Diane Van Stone
English 102 (late start)

 Books & Media:

Use the CCBC Dundalk Library Catalog to find books about an author and criticisms of an author's work. (Hint: Use the author's last name in the subject search or do a keyword search type in the author's last name and criticism.) Resources at CCBC Dundalk Library:  Use the Literature Reference books in the library. They are in the REF P section. Some specific titles that might help with your research are the following:

Reference Books and research material with information on your author and criticism and information about their writings:
African American Writers Ref. PS 153 .N5 A344
American Women Writers Ref. PS 147.A4
American Writers Ref PS 129.A55
Black Literature Criticism Ref PS 153 .N5 B556
Contemporary Literary Criticism Ref PN 771 .C59
Contemporary Literary Criticism - Annual Cumulative Title Index Ref PN 771 .C59
Greenwood Encyclopedia of Multiethnic American Literature Ref. PS 153 .M56G74 2005
Modern American Women Writers Ref. PS151 .M54
Short Story Criticism Ref PN 3321.S56
Short Stories for Students. Ref PN 3373.S54
Twentieth-Century Literary Criticism Ref. PN 771 .G27
Twentieth-Century Literary Criticism Annual Cumulative Title Index Ref. PN 771 .G27
World Literature Criticism Ref. PN 523.W67 1992


Finding information in magazines/journals/newspapers:  Top

Use the Periodical Databases which include articles from magazines, journals and newspapers to find focused articles on your topic.
To access these databases go to Magazines, Journals & Newspaper page . Follow the instructions for off-campus access.

Use the Literature Databases page to find the best databases for finding articles on literature.
Below are a few of these databases:

• Literature Resource Center by Gale is a good literary database with overview of works, criticism and information on individual authors.
• LION - Literature Online is a literary database
• Humanities International Complete Some Full text. Scholarly articles on literature, and more.
• Proquest Direct has some literary articles. It includes a Humanities module and General Research module. You might also what to check Newspaper databases in Proquest.
• Academic Search Elite has some literary articles and information on the author.

 Search tips: Literature Resource Center

• Author search - last name of author, first name of author (Baldwin, James) - go to Literary criticism tab
• Keyword search - author's last name and title in quotes (Baldwin and "Sonny's Blues")
• Keyword search - author's last name, title of story in quotes and topic of research (Baldwin and "Sonny's Blues" and race)
• Additional resources tab - might include web pages and additional resources

 Search tips: LION

• Author search - author's last name, and author's first name (Baldwin, James)
• Keyword search - Title of of play in quotes and if needed author's last name ("Sonny's Blues")
• Keyword search - author's last name, title of story in quotes and topic of research (Baldwin and "Sonny's Blues" and race)

 Research Tips :Top

How to Do Research - helpful link on research
How to Write a Research Paper - From OCLC Hot Topics - June 5, 2002
Citing Sources -Make sure you use the correct citation for your research material.
MLA guide in pdf
MLA Style from University of British Columbia Library
Plagiarism - Make sure you do not plagiarize

Web Resources:  Top

Use Evaluative Web Guides, such as Librarians' Internet Index to find web sites on a general topic.
The Intute , an evaluative web guide, is from England. It has a free, "teach yourself" tutorial. There is one on English Literature. Use the tour to see the different web sites that might help you.
Use Search Engines , such as Google to focus your search for web sites.
To get better results connect your terms with the Boolean term "and" (ex: criticism and Baldwin,) or put quotes around a phrase (ex:"Sonny's Blues".)
Performing Precise Searches on web searching

Evaluate:

Evaluate your material for its relevance and authenticity. See evaluation criteria for web sites.

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