LT901 Dissertation Plan Workshop
Summer dissertation schedule
Dissertation Proposal - submitted for approval by 9th May (by email
to your supervisor)
MA conference
Dissertation Plan – deadline 30th May (online submission)
Work on dissertation with your supervisor
Submit final dissertation by 17th September
DISSERTATION PROPOSAL (by 9th May)
• Title (a brief statement
summarizing your topic)
make sure your topic is
not too broad!
Limit by period, genre,
geographical area
• Outline scope of your project (200-300 words)
- consider limiting factors
- should be comparative (not single text focused)
- demonstrate your potential for independent study and scholarship
• Formulate a problem to be solved or an argument to be pursued
- Research questions
- Research context & methods
• Brief indicative bibliography
Dissertation Plan (by 30
th
May)
• Title + 200-300 word outline (as in your
proposal, or updated version thereof)
• Rough Plan of Structure of the Dissertation
• Indicative Bibliography (at least 20 entries, 10 of
which must be annotated)
Annotated Bibliography
• At least 20 entries, 10 of which must be annotated (can include books,
journal articles or essays from anthologies)
• For annotated entries, provide a few sentences on the item’s
argument/coverage, and why it will be useful for your research.
• Bibliography should demonstrate that you have mapped the field: a
wide range of appropriate sources
• Make sure that the bibliography is presented according to a
recognized system of academic referencing
Dissertation Structure
Introduction
State scope, aims / questions, argument, context, methods & chapter
outline
Body of the Dissertation
Divide into chapters, each devoted to analyzing specific themes/ texts;
for creative practitioners, each chapter should reflect on stylistic
inspirations and your own creative choices & how they contribute to
the aims/concepts of the project
Conclusion
For creative practitioners, self-evaluation; summarize findings and
implications for our understanding of the topic
Example:
No Escape from Washington Square: An Exploration of Class
Consciousness and its Relationship to Sexuality in the Novel
By Jessica Muscatt
I Want the World to Know (An Excerpt from a Novel) with a plot summary of the
novel
CRITICAL COMMENTARY
Introduction
Chapter 1: Henry James and Edith Wharton:
Class Consciousness and Contemporary Scandal
Chapter 2: Easy to be Upper Class and Lesbian?
An Exploration of Class and Sexuality
Chapter 3: The Process of Writing
Conclusion
Literary Precedents
Abstract (optional)
Contents page
Acknowledgements (optional)
Introduction
Chapters
Conclusion
Bibliography
Build in time for each of the following:
• Planning
• Wide range of reading & thinking through your subject
matter
• Drafting (chapter by chapter)
• Re-writing
• Checking references