My topic has only evolved so much that it has been added to. While studying with Dr. Brown--also my thesis adviser--it has come to my attention that much of Dark Tourism, and the places I am researching form my topic deal with a certain kind of otherness. We do not relate so we can spectate in many a place without being impacted so much that we can head home and feel good about ourselves once more. If we make a place more relatable, people begin to think heavier. It is one thing I am bound to bring up in my thesis now.
I have also decided to eliminate Salem from my list of case studies. The Lizzie Borden house and Salem are very close on the list of being very 'gimmicky'. Therefore, it is not needed. Instead I will use the extra space to delve further into all of my places. I discussed my thesis outline with Dr. Brown last week since I was not able to stay for the peer evaluation of them. We came up with many changes, and overall I feel like I am headed in a great direction with my thesis.
This seems like a really cool topic. You clearly are very interested in it, which will only help you with writing. It wasn't clearly articulated, but I assume you're topic evolved from being about violence within the past, to being about death. I wonder if that change limits the possibilities of your paper. To me, by not limiting tourism spots that focus on death only, and opening it up to, as you have said in past posts, a broader sense of the term "dark," you are left with far more options for case studies. For example, while reading your posts, all I could think about is the "Follow the North Star" fugitive slave experience in Indiana. While it does not deal with the death of fugitive slave exclusively, it is very dark, sad and emotional for the participants. But overall, I think you have a very interesting topic and good luck!
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