I wanted to center my research paper around the San Francisco bay is some way or another. First I thought I could link surf culture in SF to the culture of the beats; then I tried to find some information on the Ports of SF, but that was a broad subject. In researching I found a lot of information on immigration and migration to SF. So I began researching about Asian immigration and Angel Island. I would really like to focus my research paper on the influences of Chinese labor in SF industry and I would also like to somehow tie in the writings of poetry from the residents of Angel Island.
I found this awesome book that translates poems and writings from Angel Island inhabitants on their passage through SF. I know that Kerouac was really into Asian philosophies and the beat poets in general revolved thier lifestyles around Buddhist modes of thought.
I wanted to approach the subject in terms of the bay being a means of travel and communication to the outside world, and then focus on the immigration of one peoples from one region to narrow my subject. Then I would like to consider the industrial influences of Asain immigration as well as the cultural influence.
Hopefully my thesis will entail how the SF bay has enabled the city to become a center of change and influence from outside societies due to its location.
-Is this a legitimate approach to establishing a thesis?
-Do you think that this is too broad of a subject?
-Can I make a clean transition from Asian immigration as it relates to industrial growth and the Asian philosophies in poetry and writing?
1 comment:
Jessica,
We'll talk about this more, I think, but you could do a lot of great work here...lots of really interesting connections. I think the scope that you're outlining in this proposal is rather large (ties between Asia/Pacific and SF is a field in itself), but you're picking up on lots of angels into it. Actually, these sound like topics for three really great papers. Here are some thoughts:
+ If you're interested in Angel Island poetry, that might be a project unto itself (topic D)... Sounds like you found the "Island" anthology, which is fantastic, and a really important work. You could write a great paper on the histories and visions of SF from the point of view of Angel Island immigrants.
+ Then there is the Asian philosophy in the Beat materials...also really interesting and valuable to look at closely. If you wanted to pursue this topic, you might look at the movement of Snyder to Asia, or even Ginsberg's visits to India. What happens to the Beat poetry, in other words, when the Beats look toward Asia?
+ The Asian Americans and industry angle is interesting, and I would want to know more about what is meant by "industry." There's a history of sweatshop work in Chinatown (a few books on that). Of course, the cultural influence on SF is undeniable as well, and we can see this all over the literary texts we've read. Tripmaster Monkey would be a good way to look at this question.
Hope this is helpful...they're all great topics, which have a real "worlding" dimension. Keep an eye on the surf topic too, for later; it's also an interesting and important topic.
Let me know if you'd like to bounce around more ideas. Good luck.
sc
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