This week, there were several circumstances that prevented me from getting further along in my capstone process than I hoped. Most of it had to do with difficulties from another class. I was saddened to hear that Dr. Lowe had to cancel class last week, but I’m hoping that she is feeling better now and that we will meet this week at Paley. This said, there were some positive outcomes this week. From reading an article on Monday in another class, I finally had an idea for narrowing my topic. It came when I heard that in early 1960s New York City, famed developer Robert Moses wanted to build a highway over Washington Square Park, one of the most intricate parks in the city. I figured this could definitely apply to cemeteries. Therefore, I will focus my project on cemeteries vs. construction projects. I also picked up one of my secondary sources from Paley on Thursday, David Charles Sloane’s work “The Last Great Necessity: Cemeteries in American History.” Chapter eight has some intriguing content that I hope to utilize in my paper. Dr. Lowe gave me further guidance on another source which I tried to locate last Sunday but was unable to. It is, however, in Paley’s Special Collections which we will visit in the coming week. I plan to register with that office to obtain the source. If I cannot find what I am looking for in these and other sources, I will utilize their bibliographies to get closer.
In light of class on Wednesday, I was pleased to complete my capstone proposal and assist one of my classmates in her project. Audrey’s project will be about what happened to Chinese women in the post-Mao era. There is very little that I know about this topic, but I tried to help her as best I could. The most challenging part of this process was finding resources related to the topic. This is consistent with challenges she brought up in class since some sources are biased and/or contain inaccurate translations. Nevertheless, I provided her with two secondary sources that could align with her topic. Meanwhile, Michael reviewed my topic and provided me with a review on Friday. I read over his analysis thoroughly and will attempt to take his advice to heart. It is my hope that we can discuss how to execute this further in class or in a one-on-one meeting with Dr. Lowe. This activity was rewarding because like in previous weeks, it helped me reflect on how to make my paper better. I did have some setbacks this week, but I look towards the new week with optimism.