Why Write a Proposal?
I think writing a proposal for a paper or a large project is really helpful. Proposals allow you to get all your ideas down on paper, letting you plan out your essay and envision what further research or work you may need to do in order to meet your goals for the paper. Having to write a proposal slows down the writing process and makes you take some time to plan out your argument, which in the end will make your paper stronger, since you took more time to think about and plan out what you wanted to say in the beginning.
I’ve already had to write two other proposals this semester, one for a research paper for a history class, and another for a final project for a Special Seminar course. It is important to practice writing proposals because there is a great possibility that you may need to write another in the future for a class. Also, a proposal can help even if it isn’t assigned, since it forces you to take a refined look at the research you’ve completed, allowing you to design your argument and decide if you need to do further research or possibly choose a different topic. If you struggle in writing a proposal this likely means that you do not have enough research completed, or you may need to change to a different topic.