Find Articles in Databases
- MLA International Bibliography This link opens in a new window The Modern Language Association of America's database of journal articles, books, dissertations, working papers, proceedings, and bibliographies covering scholarship on literature, language and linguistics, folklore, literary theory and criticism, dramatic arts, printing, publishing, rhetoric, and composition, with coverage from 1926 to the present.
- Project MUSE This link opens in a new window Project MUSE is a leading provider of digital humanities and social sciences content; since 1995, its electronic journal collections have supported a wide array of research needs at academic, public, special, and school libraries worldwide. MUSE books and journals, from leading university presses and scholarly societies, are fully integrated for search and discovery.modules, designed to help researchers find reliable sources of information by directing them to chapters, books, websites, archives, or data sets.
- JSTOR This link opens in a new window Full-text access to thousands of scholarly journals covering the humanities, social sciences, and sciences, plus monographs and other academic materials.
- Academic Search Complete This link opens in a new window A multidisciplinary database providing full-text access to scholarly and popular journals in broad areas of academic study, as well as indexing and abstracts of additional titles unavailable in full text. Coverage: 1990-present.
- Google Scholar This link opens in a new window Google Scholar indexes many scholarly journals, theses, books, and white papers from academic and society publishers. It also indexes patents and some case law.
Databases may contain both articles from scholarly journals and articles from popular publications. Use type of publication filters to more easily compare results.
SCHOLARLY JOURNALS
- are important in college level research
- are written by and for scholars
- publish scholarly work in a specific discipline
- use citations/bibliographies to give attribution and provide evidence
- typically contain peer-reviewed articles (the gold standard)
Look for database options to limit your search to scholarly, peer-reviewed articles:
MAGAZINES & NEWSPAPERS
Newsstand publications can offer a more accessible approach. Depending on the publication and the author, articles may also include thoughtful arguments and analysis. 
Besides searching databases, one can search within specific publications separately. Some examples...
- New York Review of Books Literary publication that discusses current books and issues.
- London Review of Books British literary magazine published twice monthly that features articles and essays.
- The New Yorker Prominent magazine that covers politics, literature, film, the arts and current issues.
- New York Times 1980 to Current This link opens in a new window "This is considered the official U.S. newspaper because it publishes the complete text of important documents, speeches and presidential press conferences. The paper's reporters have won scores of Pulitzer Prizes throughout the publication's 150-year history."
Search for other periodical titles in CBBcat as follows: 
Studies of speakers (Elke Seeger), wwwuppertal, 2013, Flickr (CC BY 2.0)
Search Tips
Photo: The Look, 2017, Flickr (CC BY-NC-ND 2.0)
KEYWORD SEARCHES
- Experiment with different search combinations, using synonyms and related terms.
- Use an asterisk to stand in for multiple word endings: narrat* = narrator, narrative, narrate, narrates
- Use quotation marks to "glue together" a phrase: "stream of consciousness"
- Use AND between terms to narrow results to items containing both terms: writing AND dialogue
- Using OR between items (within parenthesis) widens results: ("first-person" OR "point of view")
- Combine terms to build search strings.
SUBJECT SEARCHES
Find an item of interest using a keyword search? Look at its item record to identify Subject Terms. These links group material together by topic which can yield more precise results. Sample subject headings:
AUTHOR SEARCHES
To find items by authors, do an Author Search (last name, first name): Kincaid, Jamaica
To find items about authors, do a Subject Search (last name, first name): Didion, Joan
To find literary criticism, note that major authors often have the sub-division Criticism and interpretation: Baldwin, James 1924 1987 Criticism And Interpretation
CITATION TRAILS
Check the notes, references and bibliographies of every relevant article or book. You may discover a book or article perfect for your topic. One good source can lead to another!
OneSearch
- OneSearch is a discovery tool.
- It searches multiple resources at once.
- It's best used for very precise needs, such as:
- Finding a specific article
- Finding book reviews for a specific book
- Narrow, interdisciplinary topics
- For best results, use limiters - e.g. field drop-downs, content type, etc.
- For topical searches, first consult CBBcat and individual databases.
Find Books in CBBcat
SEARCH our library catalog
Books at Colby? Look at the location and call number in any item record. Service desk personnel can help you locate an item.
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Not finding what you want in CBBcat or MaineCat? Check WorldCat and order through ILLIAD our interlibrary loan service.
