Eng 201: Intro to Literary Study
Guide for Bibliography Project
Biographical Information | Quotation Dictionaries | Etymological Dictionaries
This bibliography project will require you to use a number of print and electronic sources for finding books, journal articles, book reviews, biographical information, and specialized dictionaries. The nature of this research moves beyond general reference works and databases into more specialized research materials in the field of literature. While this guide is not a comprehensive list of sources related to literature, it is a good starting point to help fulfill the requirements of this assignment.
Remember that the online databases and indexes (MLA, JSTOR, etc.) may
be accessed through ReSearch Point, using the
Find Resources tool. You might also find additional
bibliographic resources in the Language and Literature category in
ReSearch Point's Custom Search tool. These databases are
licensed resources and will require a
Virtual Private Networking
connection.
Books about the Author
There are a number of approaches one could use to find books written about a particular author. You may search the UWSP Library Catalog, MLA Bibliography, search other UW library catalogs, or cast your net even further by searching WorldCat (a worldwide catalog of more than 32 million holdings). You can also search specifically for a bibliography (a list of works of a specific author). Searching any of these tools will yield different results.
- Library Catalog - Search the author's name as a keyword or by subject heading.
- Examples: Keyword: “Edith Wharton”
Subject Heading:
Wharton, Edith
-
- MLA International Bibliography Database on EbscoHost (Coverage 1963-present) –
- The MLA Bibliography consists of bibliographic records providing
access to scholarly research in over 3,000 journals and series. It also
covers relevant monographs, working papers, proceedings, bibliographies,
and other formats.
- Go to the Advanced Search tab
- Limit search to Book under “Publication Type”
- Search author’s name by default field or subject
-
- WorldCat
- WorldCat is the OCLC Online Union Catalog, containing more than 40 million records. It includes items owned by the UWSP
Library and libraries around the world; each record contains library holdings. Go to:
- Advanced Search tab
- Limit by format, year and language
- Search author’s name by Subject-Named Person
Scholarly Articles (1970-1980) - via ReSearch Point
For this specific date range, you may need to use a variety of sources to find scholarly articles. Remember, most general periodical databases do not go back this far in time. Again, this is an example of where specialized sources, such as indexes, bibliographies and specific databases, will come into play.
- MLA International Bibliography Database (see above for access).
- Go to Advanced Search tab
- Limit search to Journal Article under “Publication Type”
- Search author’s name by default field or subject
- JSTOR
- Provides electronic access to back issues of core journals in
the sciences, humanities,and social sciences.
- Click on the search icon
- Go to advanced search
- Limit your search by discipline and date
- Enter your text as a phrase
Book Reviews
- Book Reviews in Print Indexes
- Find these print indexes in the Reference Room on the
library’s first floor. Use the volume for the year in which the book was
first published or the years immediately before and after the initial
publication date.
Book Review Digest Reference Room Z1035.A1 B6
- 1905-present. Lists and provides excerpts of book reviews in the humanities, social sciences, and general periodicals from the U.S., Canada, and Great Britain. Entries are under author's last name. A short description of the book, a full citation to locate the full text, and excerpts from 3-4 book reviews appear under each entry.
-
- Book Review Index Reference Room Z1035.A1 B5
- 1965-present. Provides citations to reviews of books, periodicals, and books-on-tape from over 600 general interest and scholarly publications. Arranged alphabetically by author’s last name; there is no subject approach. No summaries or excerpts of the reviews are included.
-
- The New York Times Index Reference Room AI21 .N44
- 1851-2001. Includes citations to all reviews in The New York Times Book Review section; listed in the index alphabetically by title under the Book Reviews subject heading.
Biographical Information
Biographical (an account of a person's life) information can be found in a number of sources in the Reference Room, including:- Encyclopedia of British writers (20th century) Reference Room PR451 .E55 2003
- Encyclopedia of world writers, 19th and 20th centuries Reference Room PN451 .E53 2003
- American writers : a collection of literary biographies Reference Room PS129 .A551
- British writers Reference Room PR85 .B688 (10 vols)
- You may also find biographical information in some of the Library’s online resources in ReSearch Point using the category Biographies in the Custom Search feature, such as Biographies Plus, or Contemporary Authors.
Quotation Dictionaries
There are more than 50 dictionaries of quotations in the Library. Here are just three examples:
- Columbia dictionary of quotations from Shakespeare Reference Room PR2892 .F48 1998
- Chambers dictionary of quotations Reference Room PN6081 .C43 1997
- Oxford dictionary of literary quotations Reference Room PN 6081 .O89 1997