Discourse on Crafting a Literary Dissertation: An Interview with Graduate Edric Huang '18
Edric Huang, a senior in the Anthropology Department with certificates in Urban Studies and Creative Writing, is writing two theses this year. One of these theses is a collection of poems for his Creative Writing Certificate, while the other focuses on his anthropological fieldwork.
Huang's creative thesis consists of 30-40 pages of poems. His approach to writing poetry is individualistic, and he is still refining his best practices. He free-writes by spewing out lines onto a Word document with his computer screen dimmed out. Huang edits his work by keeping his writing minimal, with each word having gravity and saying as much as possible about the poem.
In his anthropological research, Huang's fieldwork last summer involved visiting a migrant reception center in Paris and studying the survival strategies of Sudanese refugees. His research methods for poetry include attentively living, taking photos of arresting images, reading other poets, and researching topics he is unfamiliar with.
Huang's sources of inspiration in his poems are often evident, as he mentions them by writing "after" something, such as a specific poet, song, or album. He hopes to continue writing, editing, and revisiting his topics post-graduation.
For those interested in undergraduate research, Adrian Tasistro-Hart '17 and Teri Tillman '16 are examples of individuals who have undertaken such projects. Articles about their experiences, titled "Looking Back on Undergraduate Research: A Conversation with Adrian Tasistro-Hart '17" and "Looking Back on Undergraduate Research: A Conversation with Teri Tillman '16," are available in the "Senior Thesis" section.
The Lewis Center offers classes for creative writing, and the McGraw Center and the Writing Center provide resources for research and writing. For advice on creative writing, students can consult a Peer Arts Advisor.
In writing a creative thesis, the process involves several key steps: concept development, proposal and planning, writing the thesis, workshop and feedback, final draft and submission, and (in some programs) defense. This general framework can guide students through the process of creating their own creative thesis.
For more information about senior thesis planning, you can refer to the articles in our blog Archives. If you're specifically interested in Edric Huang's experience, you might need to consult sources directly related to him or his work.
Edric Huang, in his approach to undergraduate research, immerses himself in independent work, such as his senior thesis that combines both poetry and anthropological fieldwork. His lifestyle, especially during the development of his creative writing and senior thesis, mirrors the self-driven and focused education-and-self-development journey that many university students undertake.
