I am working on an independent study, undergraduate research paper that needs to be approximately 6000 words long. I am not done the entire essay yet but I would like to have some advice on how I can make my introduction and research questions as clear and concise as possible. I am going to be posting more sections of my paper to this same thread (since it is all for one paper) once I am done new sections such as the literature review, findings, methodology, etc. I will be adding more to my Research Question section once I am completed the Literature Review but so far I am just including the actual questions in this post. Here is the instructional outline for the entire paper from my course syllabus along with the approximately word length expected for each section:
Final Written Research Project:
The final written project report should be approximately twenty-five pages [6,000 words] in length, not including the bibliography/works cited. The project report should generally contain the following elements:
a) Title and title page
b) Abstract (200 words)
c) Introduction, including a brief statement of research area, topic and purpose (250 words)
d) Research questions, general and specific (300 words)
e) Literature review (1,500 words)
f) Methods, including limitations and ethical issues (1,000 words)
g) Findings (1,500 word)
h) Discussion (1,000 words), including the project's relevance, its connection with the literature, its implications, and what could be the next steps)
i) Conclusion (250 words)
j) Bibliography
k) Appendices (such as interview schedules, questionnaires)
All papers should be double-spaced and use a 12-point text size.
Introduction:
Orchids have been a part of our lives for more than two hundred years and have captured the interest, admiration and imagination of orchid collectors, horticulturists, and consumers alike. During the Victorian Era, European orchid collectors seen the orchid as a signifier of unknown, undiscovered places and uncivilized peoples (Berliocchi, 14). The anxiety and curiosity that orchids incited influenced many European orchid collectors to travel long distances to gather orchids and bring them back to Europe for study and profit. This research paper relates to the broad topic of European orchid collector history during the Victorian Era with a more distinct focus on the efforts of British orchid hunters and horticulturists and their written texts during the late eighteen hundreds. More specifically, this paper will provide a detailed qualitative analysis and discussion of two British, Victorian texts the first of which is from the orchid hunter Albert Millican and the second text from the horticulturist Lewis Castle. There are three purposes for this research paper all of which are explored through a post-colonial, eco-critical lens. The first purpose of this research paper is to explore how the orchid was described in the British travel writing and horticulturist texts of interest. The second purpose of this research paper is twofold and involves an evaluation of the ways in which the orchid landscapes, nature and the non-European natives were described and contextualized in Millican's travel writing and the implications that these descriptors have on the desirability of the orchids. The final purpose of this research paper is to examine the relationship between how the orchid was described in Castle's text and the desirability of orchids amongst collectors.
Research Questions:
Considering the topic and purpose of this research paper, the following research questions were put forth:
- RQ1: How was the orchid described in the horticulturist text written by Lewis Castle and the travel writing of Albert Millican?
- RQ2: How are the orchid landscapes, nature, and the non-European natives described and contextualized in Millican's travel writing and what are the implications that these descriptors have on the desirability of the orchids?
- RQ3: What are the implications of how the orchid is described in Castle's text in relation to the reasons why the orchid was desirable amongst collectors?
Works Cited:
Berliocchi, Luigi. The Orchid in Lore and Legend. United States: Timber Press, 2000. Print.
Thank you,
Kameela Amer
Final Written Research Project:
The final written project report should be approximately twenty-five pages [6,000 words] in length, not including the bibliography/works cited. The project report should generally contain the following elements:
a) Title and title page
b) Abstract (200 words)
c) Introduction, including a brief statement of research area, topic and purpose (250 words)
d) Research questions, general and specific (300 words)
e) Literature review (1,500 words)
f) Methods, including limitations and ethical issues (1,000 words)
g) Findings (1,500 word)
h) Discussion (1,000 words), including the project's relevance, its connection with the literature, its implications, and what could be the next steps)
i) Conclusion (250 words)
j) Bibliography
k) Appendices (such as interview schedules, questionnaires)
All papers should be double-spaced and use a 12-point text size.
Introduction:
Orchids have been a part of our lives for more than two hundred years and have captured the interest, admiration and imagination of orchid collectors, horticulturists, and consumers alike. During the Victorian Era, European orchid collectors seen the orchid as a signifier of unknown, undiscovered places and uncivilized peoples (Berliocchi, 14). The anxiety and curiosity that orchids incited influenced many European orchid collectors to travel long distances to gather orchids and bring them back to Europe for study and profit. This research paper relates to the broad topic of European orchid collector history during the Victorian Era with a more distinct focus on the efforts of British orchid hunters and horticulturists and their written texts during the late eighteen hundreds. More specifically, this paper will provide a detailed qualitative analysis and discussion of two British, Victorian texts the first of which is from the orchid hunter Albert Millican and the second text from the horticulturist Lewis Castle. There are three purposes for this research paper all of which are explored through a post-colonial, eco-critical lens. The first purpose of this research paper is to explore how the orchid was described in the British travel writing and horticulturist texts of interest. The second purpose of this research paper is twofold and involves an evaluation of the ways in which the orchid landscapes, nature and the non-European natives were described and contextualized in Millican's travel writing and the implications that these descriptors have on the desirability of the orchids. The final purpose of this research paper is to examine the relationship between how the orchid was described in Castle's text and the desirability of orchids amongst collectors.
Research Questions:
Considering the topic and purpose of this research paper, the following research questions were put forth:
- RQ1: How was the orchid described in the horticulturist text written by Lewis Castle and the travel writing of Albert Millican?
- RQ2: How are the orchid landscapes, nature, and the non-European natives described and contextualized in Millican's travel writing and what are the implications that these descriptors have on the desirability of the orchids?
- RQ3: What are the implications of how the orchid is described in Castle's text in relation to the reasons why the orchid was desirable amongst collectors?
Works Cited:
Berliocchi, Luigi. The Orchid in Lore and Legend. United States: Timber Press, 2000. Print.
Thank you,
Kameela Amer
