EN 200 Foundations of Literary Studies: Library Resources

Best bet for literary criticism:

Other databases with literary criticism:

Articles not available in full-text? Request through ILLiad, our interlibrary loan service. Some articles are sent in just a few hours.

In databases, look for Request from ILLiad or Request from another library links when you are directed to a screen that that says full-text is not available at Colby.

Articles in scholarly journals are particularly important to academic research. They:

• report original research in a specific discipline
• use in-text citations and bibliographies
• typically contain peer-reviewed articles

Look for options in databases to limit results to articles in scholarly, peer-reviewed journals.

Older editions of the MLA handbook are also available. Many databases still use the 7th edition.  OWL uses the 8th edition. Note the differences! Be consistent.

MLA 7th Edition: Falk, Cynthia G. "'The Intolerable Ugliness Of New York': Architecture And Society In Edith Wharton's The Age Of Innocence." American Studies 42.2 (2001): 19-43. MLA International Bibliography. Web. 19 Jan. 2017.

MLA 8th Edition: Falk, Cynthia G. "'The Intolerable Ugliness Of New York': Architecture And Society In Edith Wharton's The Age Of Innocence." American Studies, vol. 42, no. 2, 2001, pp. 19-43. EBSCO, http://www.jstor.org/stable/40643250. Accessed 19 Jan. 2017.

Citation Managers:

Zotero

RefWorks

  Photo: By Frank Schulenburg from Flickr Creative Commons (CC BY-SA 2.0)

KEYWORD SEARCH

In library catalogs and databases, keyword searches only look for exact matches.

To narrow results, try using quotes to glue together words in phrases, titles or an author's name. "stream of consciousness"

An asterisk is a wild card that stands in for different endings of a word. ideal* = ideal, ideals, idealism, idealistic

SUBJECT SEARCH

Subject searches take you to books that have been pre-identified as being about that person or subject. Identify subject headings by checking the item records found in a keyword search.

To find subject headings for an author, do a Subject Search using the author’s name (last name first): Jewett, Sarah Orne (Select Subject from first drop-down option in CBBcat.)

Not very many search results?  Look for broader subject headings in item records. Books covering broader topics may include chapters or significant passages on the author you're interested it. Check indexes and Table of Contents.

• Authors, American – Maine
• Women authors -- Maine

Check the works cited, notes, references and bibliographies of every relevant article or book. You may discover a book or article perfect for your topic.

Hafley, James Robert, 1928 - The Glass Roof: Virigina Woolf as a Novelist. Berkely: University fo California Press, 1954. (link to bibliography)

One good source can lead to another!
Look for a Cited Work using:

• OneSearch (articles)
• Google Scholar (articles)
• CBBcat (books, media available through Colby)
• MaineCat (books, media available regionally)
• Hathi Trust (sometimes has full-text digital versions of older books or articles)
• WorldCat (if can't find resource locally)

OneSearch searches multiple resources at once. It's most useful for precise, controlled searches.

Use Advanced Search and limit by format.

To find an article listed in a bibliography, enter title of article in top row search box. You may need to also add the last name of the author in the second box.

To find book chapters discussing a writer or an artistic work, enter the name of the writer or the work in the search box and check the box Book Chapter in the "Show Content Type" limiter.

To find book reviews, enter the title of the book in the search box and check the box Book Review in the "Show Content Type" limiter.

• Library Subject Guides
• English Subject Guide
• Citation Help
• Evaluate Sources
• Search Strategy
• Video Tutorials

A database for articles related to history:

SEARCH our library catalog 

Books in Miller Library? Look at the call number. Most literary works are on the bottom floors (S1 & S2) of the Miller bookstacks.

Books at the Colby Storage Facility, Bates or Bowdoin? To order click
Enter your name and bar code number (omit beginning and ending letters) from your Student ID or Library Card.

Not finding what you want in CBBcat or MaineCat?  Check WorldCat and order through ILLiad, our interlibrary loan service.

Keep a research log & document every search.

Explore a variety of search terms.

Check multiple resources.

Carefully evaluate all materials.

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