The Story of My Research Paper

In the beginning of my writing process, I knew that Troilus and Cressida was a story about lovers, so I wanted to explore the idea of love and the ancient Greek culture. However, I realized that the play was about jilted love--and in most people's opinions (according to Goodreads and Twitter), very depressing. It was helpful to get an opinion of what the general public though of the play because it helped me come up with my final idea. In my first post, I had several theses, but I was intrigued that Troilus and Cressida was an "anti-tragedy." In these preliminary stages, I had some trouble finding adequate sources, but as I explored the Twittersphere, I gained a clearer understanding of "anti-tragedy." In my preliminary draft, I spent too much time proving that the play wasn't a tragedy and not enough time explaining the implications. The feedback I received from fellow students was helpful, and my video post also defined my argument. As I wrote my paper, I realized that Troilus and Cressida not only resists tragedy, but of all genres. I tried to make my paper scholarly because I wanted to submit it to several publications. Knowing that my paper was going public helped me produce a final product that I would (almost) be comfortable submitting to Criterion. However, as I have revised my paper, I have come to an even greater understanding of my topic and of the play. Writing my paper has been a journey enriched by multiple social circles.