We’re doing two proposals, each one about 2 pages long, for a total of 4 page that you should turn in. One proposal will outline what you’d like to research for Projects 2 and 3 (our Academic Research Paper and Editorial pieces) and the other will outline a “happiness project” of your own, which you will write about in Project 4 (our memoir piece). On top of our class discussions on happiness, as well as the proposal genre itself, here are some questions to address in each proposal:
Research Proposal:
What are you proposing is an issue, point of interest, or gap in our thoughts/concept/perspective on happiness?
What impact do you want your project to have on the concept of happiness, either on a personal or community level, and why do you think it is important to explore?
Is there a practical application for exploring this concept: are there organizations or initiatives this project might benefit from and/or organizations or initiatives that could be born from it? Why do you think it will accomplish that goal, and how does your project further that mission?
Memoir of Happiness Project Proposal:
What is your Happiness Goal for this project? For example, in Rubin’s project, she devoted the month of February to love and set up goals that would make her happier in her relationship with her husband. What are some goals you’d like to set for yourself for either the entire semester, or the months within it (February-April)?
Have similar projects been undertaken elsewhere (you can use Gretchen Rubin’s Happiness Project as inspiration, but you don’t have to)? Please explain those precursors, and how your project will be similar and/or different. If there are no direct precursors, please explain what inspirations or examples you are drawing from, .
What do you expect the physical, economic, material, or other obstacles and challenges to the projects you’re proposing to be? How will those challenges be met?
The proposals should each explain how the later writing projects (2 research-based papers and a memoir) will address these questions, not how the proposal itself will do so (that’s not the purpose of a proposal, remember).