A large portion of your grade this semester will come from a final research project. The purpose of this project is to demonstrate your overall knowledge of American literature through whichever medium you choose. You have several options for your final project of the semester. Please find a list of the topics below. After you have chosen your final project topic, complete the topic outline form and submit it to me for approval.

• Research Paper—Author’s Style. Choose an author we have studied this semester and write a five to seven page research paper discussing this author’s style. Look at three to five primary sources (these can include some of the literature we covered in class, though you should also address some of the author's other contributions as well) and use three to five secondary sources (be sure they are reputable, which means no Wikipedia or SparkNotes) as support.
  authors include Edgar Allen Poe, Robert Frost, T.S. Eliot, Ernest Hemingway, Donald Barthelme
• Reflection. For all projects aside from the research paper, you will be expected to complete a reflection paper of approximately one to two pages explaining what you learned during the final project process. This reflection can relate to what you learned about American literature, what you learned about the media form in which you presented, what you learned about your own creativity or research skills, or a combination. This is a good place to discuss what you intended with our project and what you hope it conveyed about your American literature knowledge.

• Secondary Sources. Wikipedia, SparkNotes, eNotes, GradeSaver, and similar websites are not appropriate secondary sources for this project. Remember what you learned in Composition II regarding credibility and your sources and avoid any issues with your credibility by steering clear of anything that appears non-academic. Likewise, rules regarding plagiarism and proper citation still apply, regardless of the medium through which you are presenting your research. This means you must still properly cite your sources if you are doing, say, a PowerPoint presentation. Finally, as you have probably noticed, I have repeatedly stated above that I am looking for further study in this project. If your project involves literary interpretation (all projects aside from the creative writing option), you are expected to look further into the author and/or movement and address works that we did not cover this semester. I do not simply want a regurgitation of what we studied together in class nor am I looking for regurgitation of the critics you've read. I am expecting several works beyond what we touched upon in class or, if you are looking at a time period, several authors we did not study and your opinion of these works expressed through reasoned argument
• Make a Outline. please complete the following questions.

• • Which topic have you chosen and why?
  • Thoroughly summarize your plan of action. The more information you can provide, the more guidance I can offer.
  • What research have you already conducted? List books, websites, database articles you've reviewed.
  • What do you know you still need to discover?
  • What questions do you have? How do you feel about your progress?