Tuesday, 26 June 2012

Finished Editing

Now I am on to the literature review chapter.

Technically I have five chapters of nine written to first draft standard.  However, I do have to re-do the discussion chapter as although the arguments in it are decent enough I don't think it is really engaged with the literature enough.  I am sure I should have lots and lots of references and it just doesn't really.  It shows I don't really know the lit at the mo.  But when I have done the lit review this should come naturally?  I will review it straight afterwards.

Looking at the lit review hurts.  I thought it was jazzy but actually it is poor.  I am so glad in a way that I have had this time off (er well, not... but you know what I mean) because because I can really see the work for what it is.  It needs some proper TLC which I couldn't really give before because my deadlines were too tight and I was reaching burnout.  As it was I did burnout and nearly snuffed it completely, but am back now and woah, lady, this needs some attention!

The introduction is lazy, wordy and unfocused.  The points I want to focus on are a bit toward the outside of my remit and in a couple of areas I don't even know that well.  So I either need to steer clear of them, or read more.  Surely I can't read more - but what I have read I can ingest better, so re-reading properly and wholeheartedly is essential.  If I think that this is the last bloody time I will have to really read these notes and authors and if I can just concentrte and get the info in my brain, like for an exam, then it gives me that bit of energy I need to pick them up again. 

I have a month to complete this chapter which is lovely.  With hard work and concentration I can do this. 

it is so much better seeing it with fresh eyes.  I can see the edges of my research, whereas before I 'knew' too much and was sort of bleeding into areas that are of interest to the work but not really...  and so should be left alone.  I need to think of it as a little project, a micro project and make it really focused and tight, make it about a few points made well rather than grand statements.  PhD projects do not the world change :) 

Off to stare at this mess of an introduction and re-think what it is I really want to do with the research.  Lit review chapters do have quite an important role in shaping the expectation of the reader as to the direction of the research.  I have written the contentions chapters, now I need to kind of work backward and see what my main foci were, why and what the history behind them is.  this is the lit review.

x J

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