Writing a research essay on MTG!
General forum
Posted on April 26, 2019, 11:12 p.m. by HannahASU19
Hey y'all! I'm a student working on my final which is a research based essay about a pop culture sub culture! I chose Magic as it is one I am already familiar with and because I enjoy playing the game myself. I need some personal experience with other Magic players in order to include some research of my own! If anyone is interested in just having a little conversation about your experience with Magic, especially how it has helped you to escape and relax or any social uses, please respond! My paper is due in a week lol any and all help is appreciated!
Everything anyone shares may be included in my paper but no one's names or usernames will be revealed, it is all anonymous and your comments will be referred to as coming from "the interviewee" or "user"
HannahASU19 says... #3
Thanks for the responses guys! My class is Interrogating Popular Culture and my assignment is to develop a thesis about those in a particular fandom and to base my paper on articles in academia relating to my thesis, whether proving or disproving it, and to obtain my own research by joining and observing those in the fandom. I'd like to form a thesis involving the idea that Magic players, and even other RPG players, use the fandom(s) and actual game(s) as a method of escape from the everyday, in whatever way that is so for you guys I'd love to hear from you about it! Even if you just use it as an escape from daily stressors, anything would be great to get your perspectives on! Focussing on historical significance would be awesome but my class and paper more relate to sociology met with psychology and the paper has to zone in on the personal effects on those in my chosen fandom.
April 27, 2019 4:35 p.m.
I will say that Magic, to include playing, reading articles, deckbuilding, discussing, and helping others, is a nice distraction.
With respect, therein lies the problem with your thesis. As you have explained it, your thesis boils down to "people use a hobby as a hobby." A stronger thesis would be take the analysis a step further--look not at Magic as a distraction, but rather as a form of expression.
In recent years, we've seen a rise of Play Therapy as a psychological tool. Dungeons and Dragons in particular has been studied lauded by therapists as a potential tool, as it allows the patient to express themselves through a character, in ways that they might not be able to do as an individual.
Magic has not been subject to the same scrutiny, and thus is ripe for some examination. Your paper could look at several core elements of deckbuilding, and discuss how players gravitate toward decks that are a reflection of themselves.
That covers the individual, psychological level. To satisfy the sociological side of your topic, you'd want to look at how Magic and other games can serve as a catalyst for social activity between desperate personality types, by allowing them to meet and bond over a shared interest, while, simultaneously playing in a manner which allows them to express their individuality.
I know that's not exactly what you were looking for, and it's not really my place to critique your thesis--it just so happens Magic and sociology (it's one of my undergrad degrees) are both interests of mine.
April 27, 2019 5:49 p.m.
I think that cdkime has an interesting idea. Regardless of what you go with Id be willing to try and help
Caerwyn says... #2
There's not much to go on here--it would probably be helpful to either provide a few more details on the assignment and what you're looking for (type of class; the specific research topic; etc.), or, better yet, a list of questions that you'd like players to respond to.
It might also be a good idea to upgrade your account so people can private message you, in case they'd feel more comfortable talking in less public of forums.
Sounds like a potentially interesting project though. I'll try to make time to help, though I'm relatively busy this weekend (part of which will be Prerelease).
April 27, 2019 12:24 a.m.