A topic analysis will help you to clarify and understand what your assessment question is asking you to do.

You will generally be given three key pieces of information:

1. The key topic or concept words direct you in what to research.
2. The limits or qualifiers tell you the specific focus of the topic or concept.
3. The task or instruction terms tell how you are to deal with the content. Charles Sturt University has a list of explanations for common instruction words.

An example question is:

One critic has described Twelfth Night as "a festive comedy"

Discuss the "festive" nature of this play with reference to specific episodes.

What are the key concept words? What are the limits? What is this task asking you to do?

According to the list of explanations for common instruction words, to discuss a topic, you need to consider it from more than one point of view, provide arguments for and against the main ideas, and draw your own conclusion. 

Once you feel you have a clear grasp of what you're being asked to do, you should plan your response and make sure everything you write answers the question - don't get off topic!

Some of your assessment will involve searching for articles and books. Before you start searching, you should analyse your topic a little further to identify search terms.

For example, if you want to research the political period surrounding Le Morte d'Arthur, the first step is to look for background information about Thomas Malory and the period he lived in. A Google search might lead to information about The War of the Roses, and life in England in the 1400s.

To find key words to use in Primo or journal databases, it's important to brainstorm all possible aspects of the topic. You also need to think about synonyms and alternatives for words, as well, to broaden your search.

When searching, you can combine these words and concepts to find relevant books and articles. You need to experiment with which combinations produce the best results.

See the Find section for search tips, and more information about tools and resources.

Finding background information on your topic might seem like doing more work when you could just jump straight into in-depth research, but it actually provides you with important context and can help you identify key concepts and keywords. 

There are a number of places to find background information:

• Reference resources such as encyclopedias and dictionaries. The Literature Library Resources Guide has a list of relevant resources available in the Library. 
• Reliable websites (from informed or authoritative sources; see the Evaluate tab for how to check)
• Books, including manuals and textbooks

While you shouldn't use Wikipedia as a source in an academic paper (meaning, you should not use it as a final source or cite it in your reference list), it can be a useful starting point for background information. Citations in Wikipedia articles can sometimes lead you to other good sources, especially on contemporary topics. 

Dictionaries and encyclopaedias can help you to find additional keywords and get an overview of the concept.