Final project options
- 1. Final Project Options ENGL 442 Introduction to Syntax and Morphology Overview: It is hard to know what to do about a final project in a senior-level class when we’re in the middle of a global pandemic that has forced us to move online. Originally, I planned on assigning a 15-paged academic research paper, and we were going to start working on it much sooner than this. I am not requiring that of anyone anymore, but the reason for it was simple: Often times, a 400-level class serves to help you generate a writing sample if you intend to go to graduate school in an area related to the field. In my experience, 10-20 pages is the “sweet spot” for a writing sample, depending on if you are going for an MA/MS or PhD. Instead of requiring a paper, I am going to provide a list of (easier) options. I have to assign a final project of some sort, and it has to be research-driven. Beyond that, I want you to have some freedom to pursue a topic of interest to you, and to make sure you are not overburdening yourself! Options: • Research Paper. If you are planning on graduate school and feel up to this task, let me know. You’re welcome to do this if you’d like. • Analyze a Poem or Song. Syntax is obviously manipulated for artistic effect. If there is a poem or song that does this in an interesting way, feel free to write a shorter paper (five- ish pages) or record a 5-10 minute screencast that explains what’s going on. You must identify exactly what syntactic pattern is being ruptured or innovated on using language from our class, and you should find scholarship related to that aspect of syntax to help you frame your argument. Your scholarship should include at least four sources beyond the original song, and might include academic articles or independent research on COCA. You should make your argument and consider proving it not only through prose, but through tree diagrams if relevant. • Cross-linguistic Analysis. We have spent our semester understanding English syntax, but other languages function differently. If you want to spend some time analyzing a distinctive feature of another language or family of languages, please do so in a short paper of at least five pages or through a 5-10 minute screencast. You should highlight some distinctive features and demonstrate the differences through tree diagrams. You should include at least five scholarly sources and spend some time explaining why these differences matter either in the context of the language or in terms of what the differences reveal to you as a grammarian. • COCA. Use the COCA to research a syntactic construction. Make some argument about why the construction is emerging or potentially changing. Use four scholarly sources to help frame your argument, and share your findings in a five-paged paper or a 5-10 minute screencast. Use tree diagrams to visualize the construction, if relevant.
- 2. • Open-ended. Have some other idea? No problem! Run it by me! Grading and Due Dates: I will grade these according to the rubric for written assignments as detailed in the syllabus. The final project counts as 35% of your grade, distributed as follows: 5% Proposal 25% Project 5% Showcase These are the due dates: Proposal due Thursday, April 30. Please email me a detailed proposal for your project. Tell me what topic you will choose and why you think it is a relevant subject to research. Tell me which academic sources you have found that are already discussing this topic. Project due Monday, May 11. Showcase due Wednesday, May 15. Please post your project to the Final Project Showcase, then read/watch your classmates’ projects and leave a substantial comment. Comments should be encouraging and potentially asking questions in a meaningful way about the topic.