Thinking about your paper

I. How to develop a topic for the research paper

There are lots of guides that walk you through the process of figuring out a topic for a research paper. I've given you a link to Emory's own, below, in (II.1).

The best way to start is with paper and a pencil. Ask yourself what kinds of things interest you about Japanese art and literature. What kinds of things would you like to find out more about? Is there something in the literary or visual culture of another world area that has interested you in the past, and you'd like to see if the same things are true in the Japanese context? Is there a historical period that you're drawn to? Is there a particular aspect of the culture or society (religion, politics, the environment, etc.) that you think might have had some bearing on the development of Japanese literature and visual culture, and you want to explore it further?

Pick up the pencil, and write. It doesn't have to be complete sentences--it's okay to have vague ideas to start. Just follow your instincts, and see where they lead.

What are you curious about?


II. Useful Web Sites

1. Developing a Research Topic

Emory's general guide to thinking about papers. Lots of good stuff here, including advice about how to cite your sources.

2. EUCLID

3. Doing Research in East Asian Studies at Emory

This list of sources was developed for my Freshman Seminar, Introduction to East Asian Studies. Scroll down to the "Databases" section. The databases that will be most useful to you are:

Bibliography of Asian Studies
JSTOR

I've never used Project Muse, it may be helpful. The MLA bibliography is probably not going to be helpful.

At the bottom of this list is a link that gives you tips about style in citing sources.

4. Databases

Visit EUCLID's databases page and select "Art, Architecture and Art History" from the pull-down menu.

5. Bibliography of Early Modern Japanese Art, Architecture, and Gardens

The early modern period is from 1600-1868. This is a PDF included in the online reserve materials.

6. Talk to people

I'd be delighted to talk over your research interests with you. You might also get help from the research librarians at Woodruff--either just by walking up to them at the information desk on the ground floor, or by making an appointment with one of the specialist librarians in East Asian Studies or Art History. I can help you get in touch with them.



You might also browse:

Asia Society's Guide to Japanese Art. It's probably more helpful if you know what sort of genre you're interested in (painting, prints, etc.) but it doesn't hurt to start looking here.

Duke has a nice guide to their collection in Japanese Art History. There are two problems with it for us: 1) the materials are at Duke, and while many may be available through interlibrary loan, some may not be and 2) some of the materials are in Japanese. Still, it's worth browsing--at the end of the page is a fabulous list of materials on the WWW.