You need to pin down an object of study, a first principle from which other principles can emerge, and part of the process is to say, "Hey, it's not literature we're talking about.

首要原则是，需要锁定要谈论，即学习的目标，可是，谁知道什么是文学。

耶鲁公开课 - 文学理论导论课程节选

One final example of an object permanence study.

最后举一个关于客体永存性研究的例子

耶鲁公开课 - 心理学导论课程节选