This manual offers practical advice on the fundamentals of research to college and university students in all fields of study. The Craft of Research teaches much more than the mechanics of fact gathering: it explains how to approach a research project as an analytical process. The authors chart every stage of research, from finding a topic and generating research questions about it to marshalling evidence, constructing arguments, and writing everything up in a final report that is a model of authority. Their advice is designed for use by both beginners and seasoned practitioners, and for projects from class papers to dissertations.

This book is organized into four parts. Part One is a spirited introduction to the distinctive nature, values, and protocols of research. Part Two demystifies the art of discovering a topic. It outlines a wide range of sources, among them personal interests and passions. Parts Three and Four cover the essentials of argument—how to make a claim and support it—and ways to outline, draft, revise, rewrite, and polish the final report. Part Three is a short course in the logic, structure, uses, and common pitfalls of argumentation. The writing chapters in Part Four show how to present verbal and visual information effectively and how to shape sentences and paragraphs that communicate with power and precision.

"A well-constructed, articulate reminder of how important fundamental questions of style and approach, such as clarity and precision, are to all research."—Times Literary Supplement

韦恩·c·布斯(Wayne C.Booth)芝加哥大学荣誉退休教授。 格雷戈里·G·卡洛姆(Gregory G.Colomb) 弗吉尼亚大学英语语言文学教授。 约瑟夫·M·威廉姆斯(Joseph M.Williams) 芝加哥大学英语语言文学荣誉退休教授。 他们三位曾在芝加哥大学联合讲授高级写作课程。在经过认真讨论确立本书的大纲及计划后,他们分工撰写各章,然后互换,每人对其他两人的部分进行修改,几轮过后才形成定稿。本书因此达到了很高的水平而成为一部经典。他们的合作也成为团队研究的成功标本。