English and Literary Studies Final Year Topic: Hair and Racial Belonging in Americanah

This English and Literary Studies final year project examines the use of hair practices to negotiate racial belonging. The proposed evidence base is Americanah and selected peer-reviewed studies of embodied identity.

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Why choose this project topic?

This topic turns diaspora literature into a focused reading task by investigating the use of hair practices to negotiate racial belonging. A clearly bounded corpus gives you passages to compare and an argument to develop beyond a general plot summary.

What does a close analysis of Americanah and selected peer-reviewed studies of embodied identity reveal about the use of hair practices to negotiate racial belonging?

Agree the corpus size, editions and critical framework for this study of the use of hair practices to negotiate racial belonging with your supervisor.

Proposed project objectives

01Define the textual features relevant to the use of hair practices to negotiate racial belonging.
02Build a documented evidence set from Americanah and selected peer-reviewed studies of embodied identity.
03Close-read hair-related scenes alongside their dialogue and narrative commentary, noting contradictions between characters.

A suggested research approach

Obtain lawful access to Americanah and selected peer-reviewed studies of embodied identity. Close-read hair-related scenes alongside their dialogue and narrative commentary, noting contradictions between characters. Establish selection criteria before detailed reading, record edition and page references, and test the developing interpretation against passages that complicate it.

What you will need

Lawful access to Americanah and selected peer-reviewed studies of embodied identity
A reading matrix for the use of hair practices to negotiate racial belonging
Relevant scholarly criticism and a consistent citation system

Keep your project scope clear

Avoid treating a character's experience as a survey of migrants or racial groups.

English and Literary Studies project chapter outline

Use this outline as a starting point. You can edit the chapter titles to match your department’s format during setup.

Chapter 1General Introduction
Chapter 2Literature Review and Theoretical Framework
Chapter 3Analysis and Discussion
Chapter 4Further Analysis and Findings
Chapter 5Summary and Conclusion

Turn this topic into your own final year project.

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