Finding and refining a topic

There are several ways to establish a topic:
*Critical Perspectives offer a way to limit and focus
*Big ideas from class discussions - what did I bring up? What did we spend time on?
*The list I offered on the assignment sheet - all of these possibilities are tried and true.
*Return to the eight step process you learned in 10th grade - Read, Annotate, Pick, List, Group, Prioritize, Explain, Argue

Judgments that are too vague are not useful – drab, interesting, good, fine, boring – these  kinds of words have too many meanings that depend on context.  Be sure your vocabulary choice is deliberate and specific.

Be sure to give reasons to support your judgments.

Specific details from the text help prevent misunderstandings in explanations, criticisms, and analysis.

Analysis needs to explain the relationship of different parts of the text.

Practice weaving your creativity into your explanations, criticisms, and analyses in areas like word choice, transitions, introductions, and conclusions.

Do not pick idiosyncratic topics without fully considering their relevance to the text at hand.