Below are the English 1020 tutorials: Creating Your Research Topic and Finding Sources!
Find more information and resources in the English 1020 research guide.
Developing your research topic may be the hardest part about this assignment! The one restriction is that it must, in some way, relate to Memphis. Other than that, you can write and research about whatever you are interested in. Writing and researching about something you're interested in will make you happy.
This tutorial was made especially for you! Click into the tutorial below to figure out how to create a research topic that you're interested in and that relates to Memphis.
How do you find peer-reviewed journal articles specifically talking about Memphis? Sometimes, the peer-reviewed article you're looking for doesn't exist. Don't give up searching!
Your topic is most likely a problem/event that is also happening in other parts of Tennessee, the South, and the United States. Search peer-reviewed journal articles using terms like "united states" or "american south" or "tennessee" in place of "memphis." Often, these peer-reviewed articles will give you information you can use in your background, exhibit, and/or argument. If it's happening in Memphis, it's happening in other cities, too.
Use popular materials (websites, organizations, newspaper articles, magazine articles) that specifically discuss Memphis, and tie in your peer-reviewed articles to points made in those materials.