Fair enough about guilty pleasures. But hear what Aj. Suthida is saying about the thesis ;-)

When a favorite nephew was finishing up his dissertation, at about the time when it was complete enough that he was getting fairly specific comments, he was in danger of falling into a kind of weary despair about finishing it. A chance meeting with a well-regarded academic outside his field yielded just the right tonic for my nephew: "Any old shit will do."

After spending so many long hours and notable sacrifice, clearly "any old shit" wasn't what my nephew was after. But the comment helped him to see that indeed he had essentially finished his work. It was limited, but sound and what remained to be done were matters of formatting and formalities.

The dissertation was subsequently published as a book, so there is some interest spanning time and geography about the work. His research also provides ideas for future projects and papers. One small detail of his research led to an archeological dig and a chance to speak more generally about his work.

It's quite possible to create a magnum opus. My sense, however, is that a thesis a peculiar kind of writing that doesn't lend itself to that. In your case there are philosophical or theoretical problems tow work out, which while being the toughest nut to crack will inform your thesis rather than to be the thesis.

But what do I know?! The whole notion of my getting an advanced degree seems preposterous :-)