Here's a plan:

[hmpf]

I'll try to keep writing, at a rate of about a page per day, for four more weeks. If, in four weeks, the result still does not look like it will turn into a proper thesis, I will reapply with a new topic in December (perhaps the Marcuse one that was suggested to me by another prof about a year ago; or something about utopias/dystopias, as I've - incidentally - read a lot about those when I was searching for theory stuff I could use for my thesis).

(I went and talked to some profs and a fellow student today; will see my advisor on Thursday - she wasn't there today - and will probably go to see a psych. counselor tomorrow, to try to figure out if I'm mainly having a 'technical' problem here or if it's more of a psychological issue. Either way, I may still have to abort the project, because three months is barely enough time to write a proper thesis, even under perfect conditions.)

Comments

[mikes-grrl.livejournal.com]

Good good good. There is a time in every thesis when it all looks hopelessly bleak and desperate and pointless; sometimes, the situation IS bleak and desperate and pointless, but more often than not it is just excessive perfectionism/paranoia/fear-of-failure/[insert issue here]. Obviously I can't say either way for you, and so my advice is pretty thin, but I'm glad you are exploring the issue rather than running for the hills.

You strike me as an incredibly intelligent, thorough person so honestly I will be shocked if your thesis project is as hopeless as you believe it to be.

Three months would be tight, but believe me, it HAS been done. And can be done again.

Good luck!

Oh, if this thesis fails...

[hmpf.livejournal.com]

it will be because of the topic, not because of any intellectual shortcomings of mine. I mean, yes, I *chose* the topic, so in a way, it *is* my 'fault'... but I just had a prof confirm to me today that yes, it happens to the best of us: you *can* misjudge a topic, and yes, sometimes it *may* be best to call it quits when you can see you're not getting anywhere, and start something new.

Well, I'm giving it a few more weeks... because dammit, I *am* interested in the topic I chose. Grrr, arrgh.

(I can see myself writing a very short - 20 pages or so - essay about it, *or* a full-blown Ph.D. Nothing in between. That's the problem.)