I have some Irish heritage, and as such I have devoted slightly more thought to Ireland in general than the average American likely would. As my disillusionment with the political condition of the United States intensified, I began to consider alternative nations that I might like to live in post-university. The combination of personal significance along with enchantingly beautiful geography shot the Republic of Ireland up to the top of potential destinations in my mind. When this project was announced, my thoughts immediately gravitated to Ireland as my country of choice. I recalled an article I had read a few weeks back regarding a potential reunification of the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland, and that was such an interesting prospect I knew it would be a perfect choice for my research project. From the beginning my hypothesis suspected that a potential reunification would bring large economic benefits. However, as my research intensifed, government funding of various sources saw a prominent increase in its importance to my thesis. Both my research question and thesis saw early issues of a crippling lack of specificity and focus. As I ramped up my examination of my topic, I gradually was able to add key information to correct the vagueness that was an issue earlier in the process. During my research one of my primary struggles was finding multiple threads to weave into an argument. Early on, the sources I looked at contained either heavy doses of opinion or did not address the issues I was looking to discuss in my paper. However, with persistence and a lot of experimentation with the GALE database, I was able to find search terms that would yield the articles I needed for my research. The potential reunification of Ireland is still very much up in the air. Several major political parties are supporting it, but it is not an immediate prospect. The general increase of its popularity points toward this debate coming to the forefront of Irish politics in the future, but it will not be an immediate occurrence.
Background image borrowed from Antiquemapsandprints.com: http://www.antiquemapsandprints.com/british-isles--north-west-europe-railways--steamship-routes-bacon-1893-map-196430-p.asp