I've been away from this forum for over a year, so excuse me for shuffling back in after so long...

I'm editing my introductory chapter (draft complete! Just a few months to go now!). I've been thinking that it's going to work a lot better if I divide it into a short (2000-ish word) preface, plus full 10,000 word intro. The preface would outline my argument and the historical context, and the longer piece would function as a lit review and methodological discussion.

Does this sound legitimate? I'm still waiting for my supervisor's response so other opinions would be helpful. The subject area is Hist. of Art, if that helps.

Thanks!

======= Date Modified 21 Mar 2012 15:39:03 =======
I had a preface for a while but in the end merged it into my intro chapter. I submitted with a quite traditional format except for two chapters - prelude and postscript to analysis which eh, ehem, neither examiner liked:-(. Part of my corrections was to revert to original format. I told my examiner on the day 'that's easily changed' to which he replied 'yes, 1, 2, 3,4, 5...' :$ At that stage I was thankful that I had ditched the preface idea. I still think it's a nice way to introduce the work but at the same time would be wary of being too 'different'. Maybe save it for after the viva