A critical conversation is an ongoing discussion about a certain topic that has been researched.

Critical conversations can be compared to a grouping of recognized ideas about an interest

(Lemon, Mueller, and Pantelides, 3). In the process of researching the first step is to ask a
question that will then be researched further. If the question is worth asking, then there will be a
discussion out on the web already for that topic allowing the critical conversation to exist.

Burke’s metaphor helps make critical conversations more simple. Comparing the critical
conversation to a conversation at a party helps compare the way we look into ongoing
conversations about our selected topic with the way someone eavesdrops in an ongoing
conversation at a party. When the person at the party goes home with the constant
conversations running in their head forming opinions and later making them want to research
the topic, the research process does the same. We look into a topic we are invested in to find
out what others think. When we gather that info and build our opinion we can then research
evidence to support what we agree with.

A genuine inquiry is the topic question that leads to the process of researching information and
conversations. Even though the research and writing process is back and forth, the question is
the main and most important step when executing the research. This question must be genuine
in the sense you don't have a found understanding or the answer is too obvious since that
defeats the purpose of researching about it. This type of question is very different from other
research topics I've had in the past. Whenever I would research something it would always be
something I knew like the back of my hand. This won't do well in the research and writing
process since it has to be from an open, ready, and willing-to-be-surprised approach (Lemon,
Mueller, and Pantelides, 3).

I learned a couple of things while reading, one thing that was new is how messy these research
methods are and why it is better that way. In the past research was much more concise and
ordered to help make the process go smoother. Having the questions, methods, data, findings,
and conclusions all over the place, helps in making a more well-rounded research paper. Once
these parts of the research are laid out, and common points are discovered, it is way easier to
connect everything and make it way more detailed. This wouldn't be achievable with the
previous research methods I had in the past.

I didn't know about the different research proposals that I could use either. Besides using
sources, research proposals could be working with words, people, places and things, and
images. Using words in sources could be really useful. If there are words that are always
showing up, or synonyms across sources this could help lead the research process. Using
people in the form of surveys or interviews allows for more varying info and continuing the
critical conversation in the research process. Choosing a relevant place to the topic to conduct
research from the closest and highest ranking position on the topic. Finally, working with images
allows for research on certain artworks or landmarks to be explained and discussed through
research.