EN 271: EN271

Extend your search to libraries worldwide with WorldCat     (Directions on signing up for ILL)

Karen Gillum
Humanities Research Librarian

Email me about appointments, questions, problems:
kjgillum@colby.edu

Conduct more targeted searches in individual databases for newspaper, magazine & journal articles:

• Academic Search Complete 
• MLA International Bibliography
• JSTOR
• Literature Resource Center
• Scribner Writers
• Twayne's Authors
• Newspaper guide
• Encyclopedia of Literature and Criticism
• Johns Hopkins Guide to Literary Theory & Criticism
   

Another source for brief biographies of authors is the Literary Encyclopedia:

• Jacques Derrida
• Sigmund Freud
• Claude Lévi-Strauss
• Michel Foucault
• Jacques Lacan

Subject searches make it easier to find books in the catalogs. Some examples of subject headings in CBBcat:

• Poststructuralism
• Feminist Literary Criticism
• Marxist Criticism
• Psychoanalysis and Literature
• Postcolonialism in Literature
• Cosmopolitanism in Literature

The Baroque Library Hall in The Clementium. Source: Wikicommons
The Clementinum is mentioned in "The Secret Miracle" by Jorge Luis Borges. The main character has a dream of the library of Clementinum where the librarians look for God in the books of the library.

An author... - Creates a written work - People read it         - They discuss it, some in writing                    - Reviews                      - Scholarly analyses              - Biographers record, assess, contextualize

Think Strategically about Your Research

• Looking up background information first can save you time later - use Credo Reference and Johns Hopkins Guide to Literary Theory and Criticism 
• Use terminology and facts learned from the background information to search for articles in MLA International Bibliography, Academic Search Complete,  and other databases at left
• Search for books in any of the catalogs Colby has access to, expanding your search with subject linking
• Investigate the notes and bibliographies of every good source you find for leads to more
• Think about what sorts of publications the information you need might be published in 

Why use Reference sources?

To look for...
definitions, historical context, biographical information

How can you identify a scholarly journal article?                 

Look for...
an abstract, in-text citations, a bibliography. Scholarly Journals report original research in a specific discipline and typically contain peer reviewed articles

In general, the purpose of annotations is to inform a researcher consulting the bibliography on aspects of the cited title, such as

• From what critical perspective does the writer approach the work?
• How thorough is the analysis?  Are there omissions or weaknesses in the argument?
• How does the article contribute to scholarly discourse on the work? (For instance, is it cited by later writers?)

Sample Annotated Bibliography (MLA) Diana Hacker

How to Prepare an Annotated Bibliography Cornell U. Library

Be sure to follow the directions of your own assignment!

Tips for Using MLA International Bibliography

1. Take advantage of folders and the ability to export citations in MLA format.

2. Set search limits before you begin searching so that ALL your results are from scholarly, peer-reviewed journals or books.

3. Use the "Names as Subjects" function to isolate a set of articles about the author you are working on; then refine your search by adding Subject Terms.

4. NEVER GIVE UP! Almost every article will be available to you either online, on mcrofilm, in print, or through Interlibrary Loan.

Record for a Book in CBBcat

Click where the arrow points to request. Fill in only the numerals of the barcode on the back of your Colby ID.