Miss.E Posted June 18, 2010 Report Share Posted June 18, 2010 Hi everybody! I'm doing my EE in English literature and I could use some help with my research question. I find it really hard to decide which books I am going to use and what kind of elements should I analyze, as there are so many great books and I don't want to do about something that's already been done a hundred times before. I was thinking about picking up a couple of English classics but I don't want anything too common like Jane Austen (besides I don't even like them very much, no offence) so I thought about taking W. Somerset Maugham's The Painted Veil as one of my books. I was thinking then that my research question could have something to do with the theme of loneliness,I'm not completely sure yet though... What do you think about The painted veil, would it make a good EE book and do you know any other good book I could compare with it in case I decide to take something related to loneliness as my research question? I can't take Of Mice and Men as my other book because we are reading it in English class. Other research question proposals are appreciated as well Thank you! Reply Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
sweetnsimple786 Posted June 19, 2010 Report Share Posted June 19, 2010 Sounds like you've put a decent amount of thought into this. I haven't read The Painted Veil. Is it the "I'm lonely in a crowd" kind of loneliness or the "I'm a hermit/pirate. Fear me. Arrrr" loneliness. Maybe if you could find a book that showed a different side to loneliness... hmm Scarlet LetterGreat Gatsby God of Small Things [Author: A. Roy]Tenth Man [Author: Greene]I don't think I can recommend a book because I don't know what you've read and I haven't read your book. Luckily, loneliness isn't an uncommon thread in books. Everyone's lonely, it seems. How they act upon it and how it shapes their decisions makes the tale interesting.Why can't you do Of Mice and Men? Is your teacher restricting you? As far as I know, IB is okay with it. Reply Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Work hard party harder Posted June 19, 2010 Report Share Posted June 19, 2010 Heya!You know what, I REALLY like that...I mean I think exploring the theme of loneliness would make a 'one-of-a-king' EE. But I'm not at all familiar with any of the books you mentioned, except for Austen, of course, which brings me to my doubt:I'm doing my EE in English Literature too, on Pride and Prejudice. Should I worry about my EE being based on a book that's been examined and re-examined so many times?On the whole, I think it'd be a good idea to go ahead with the 'loneliness' theme...! Good luck!! Reply Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daedalus Posted June 19, 2010 Report Share Posted June 19, 2010 At the behest of my teacher I'm doing mine on two modern, little known novels - no sparknotes, no cliffnotes, no any-notes at all. It's pretty liberating for me... I have no secondary sources, just the books, but it makes the essay that much more focused. I would recommend you do something similar. Some good modern writers:Ian McEwanCormac McCarthyPhilip RothHaruki MurakamiJohn Updikegl! Reply Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Miss.E Posted June 19, 2010 Author Report Share Posted June 19, 2010 Thank you all for replying, your comments were really helpful! sweetnsimple786: The Painted Veil is "I´m lonely in a relationship" kind of loneliness. It´s also about finding yourself and that kind of stuff. The idea of picking up a book with a different kind of loneliness sounds good, I was actually thinking that too... now I just have to find the right book hahah. Out of the books/novels you proposed I've only read the Great Gatsby but the other ones sound familiar too. As for Of Mice and Men, my teacher said that we can´t choose a book we are going to do our final exams about because we talk about them in the class and that would help us when we are doing the EE. Work hard party harder: Personally, I wouldn´t do my EE on a book like Pride and Prejudice exactly for the reasons you mentioned, but oh well, that's just me. However, I think that you should do your EE about something you enjoy (not too much though, because then you´ll find it hard to be critical) so I think that if you make up a research question that examines the book in an original way from a new perspective or if you compare it with a more unknown book it´s usually not compared with, then you´ll be just fine Good luck!justanotherone: Thanks for the idea, but I think I´ll stick with the more classic literature because I like it that way what you´re doing sounds interesting though! Reply Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Work hard party harder Posted June 20, 2010 Report Share Posted June 20, 2010 Ohh okay I think it's settled then that I'll do mine on PAP, because I enjoy it more than any other book I considered! Thanks! And ALL THE BEST I hope you make an amazing EE! Reply Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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