Struggling to choose my research topic :(
Going into my final year of Masters in English Literature and still unsure of what my dissertation should be about. I will also be pursuing PhD after this, so it is even more imminent that I decide something soon.
While there are broader areas that I can identify- gothic literature, dream work, crime fiction ---
I am not sure how to narrow down from here
How to tie these together
I came up with statements like- gothic architecture in literature facilitates crime, or the portrait in Dorian Gray as an abject- but I feel like these have been overdone
Now these ideas are stuck in my head and I can't shake them off and start anew
Struggling to come up with something 'new' and 'original'
I know I should go through my university syllabus to see what interests me, read the literature of the related topics and look at the limitations to figure out the research gap -- it's just not happening.
My university syllabus is horribly lacking and since I can't really decide on one theme of interest, I can't read the literature. I keep trying to combine them all.
I've asked a similar question here before and was directed to contact my supervisor but that is not really an option. That professor shows up once in a month because he's busy with his other profession or whatever. Basically, he does not care but would be deeply offended if I contacted some other professor. Either way, that is not a choice rn.
I tried going through online videos and while they claim to solve all your doubts, most just beat around the bush. I would be really grateful if someone could point me towards a better resource or walk me through their own process :( it's stressing me out now