Early on in the process of this research paper, I decided on my topic: The Unwritten Rules of American Society and how they transfer over into other cultures. (Unwritten Rules of American Society: certain acts that Americans never do in public because it's just not done, and if they do them, they will be viewed as a jerk and perhaps socially ridiculed. For example: Never steal someone's seat during intermission, if a car is waiting for you to cross the road, do a little jog, etc...)
I felt that because I've lived in the Netherlands for the past eight years, I could speak to this topic. At the beginning of this project, I had great ideas, I could speak to the International Club, I could perform some of these unwritten rules here in the States, and have a friend do the same in the Netherlands and see what the difference was, etc...
Now I'm stuck.
I've spoken with the International Club and gotten all the answers I wanted, but it seems that all of these unwritten rules are just common sense, or they are differ between countries for obvious reasons.
As of now, there is no driving question to this essay.
I don't know what to research because I don't know where this research is going.
I like the idea of my topic, but in practice, it's simple, and doesn't lead anywhere.
Help!
Have you thought about talking about some of the reasons these unspoken rules "differ between countries for obvious reasons"?
ReplyDeleteI have never been outside of the United States before. I think it would be interesting to read about some of these cultural differences. You have experience in both cultures now, and I think that you would have a lot of say on the subject.
You could also include several different cultures and explore why these cultures act the way they do. We are all human, right? What makes one group of us so different from another?
Just a couple of ideas. Hopefully this gets your mind going on an idea!