My guide to the BA Dissertation
Dissertations can be pretty intimidating for anyone. The fact that this is probably the first ‘big’ essay that you have written, and may even have to write, can also add to that big black cloud that seems to loom and follow over you for your third year. However, the dissertation needn’t be a daunting project at all, and towards the end you may even find it enjoyable! (Some people may completely disagree with that last statement!) I found approaching my dissertation really difficult to begin with. I ended up changing my idea several times in Autumn term. Having completed the Dissertation Portfolio in second year, that really did help. Even though I didn’t end up using my original ideas, just the process of understanding how to research and construct the dissertation was really useful. In fact, my final dissertation idea came about from my Autumn term module ‘Death and Devotion in the Gothic Imagination.’ Having read a lot about the Sainte-Chapelle (and falling in love with it!), I began to look deeper into the scholarship to see …