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ENGLISH LITERATURE: A Guide to Reference Sources |
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View of Bath, England, c1800 |
Literary Terms & Concepts Specialized Encyclopedias, Guides & Dictionaries Primary Texts Bibliographies Biographical Sources Sources of Literary Criticism Indexes to Journals, etc. Chronologies Annual Surveys of Research Citation Styles Reference & Research Help |
This bibliography includes titles held by the Reference collections of Olin and Uris Libraries, as well as reference materials accessible online. Some titles listed may also be available in the general stacks. Since it focuses primarily on reference materials, it is necessarily selective. Searching the Library Catalog and Find Databases will indentify or provide access to far more resources than can be listed here.
LITERARY TERMS & CONCEPTS
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- Abrams, M.H. A Glossary of Literary Terms. 7th ed. New York: Holt, Rinehart, and Winston, 1993.Uris Ref PN 41 A184x 1999
- "For clarity, concision and elegance Abrams has few peers and no superiors; plain spoken but not simplistic, his essays on critical methods are the best short treatments in the business." (Choice)
- Bedford Glossary of Critical and Literary Terms. Ross Murfin, Supryia M. Ray. Boston: Bedford Books, c1997. Olin Ref PN41 M874x 1997; 2003 edition in Uris stacks
- Provides new, reconsidered definitions of more than 500 terms mindful of the "changing inflections surrounding their use in contemporary critical discourse." (intro) Ranges from the practical and specific (ottava rima, metyonymy) to the historical and conceptual (Russian formalism, interpretive communities). Indexed.
- Continuum Encyclopedia of Modern Criticism and Theory. New York: Continuum, 2002. Olin Ref PN94 C695 2002+
- A "single-volume guide to the history and development of criticism in the humanities as the twenty-first century opens. While emphasizing the theory and practice of literary and cultural criticism, it provides extensive coverage of related and contextual discourses, as well as critical overviews of the work and reception of major figures responsible, directly or indirectly, for the development of those discourses in the now-related areas of philosophy, poetics, politics, aesthetics, linguistics and psychoanalysis. (Foreword) Signed articles are grouped in three sections: Critical Discourse in Europe, Theories and Practice of Criticism in North America, and Criticism, Literary and Cultural Studies in England, Ireland, Scotland, and Wales. Includes bibliographies and glossary. Indexed.
- A Dictionary of Literary Symbols. Michael Ferber. Cambridge, U.K.; New York: Cambridge University Press, 1999. Olin Ref PN56.S9 F47x 1999+
- "This is the first dictionary of symbols to be based on literature, rather than "universal" psychological archetypes, myths, or esoterica...two hundred main entries explain and illustrate common literary symbols (swan, rose, goose, moon, gold), supplying cross-references and quotations. Concentrates on English literature, but entries range from the Bible and classical authors to the 20th century, taking in American and European literatures." (from the introduction)Bibliography appended.
- Dictionary of Poetic Terms. Jack Myers, Don Charles Wukasch. Denton, Tex.: Univ. of North Texas Press, c2003. Olin Ref PN1042 M93 2003
- Updated edition of Longman Dictionary and Handbook of Poetry. "Over 1,600 entries on the devices, techniques, history, theory, and terminology of poetry from the Classical period to the present" (book jacket)Bibliography.
- Encyclopedia of Rhetoric. Thomas O. Sloane, editor. Oxford; New York: Oxford University Press, 2001. Olin Ref PN172 E52x 2001
- "This one-volume work covers...the elements, structure, principles and techniques of rhetoric in literature, communication and more specifically, public speaking. Major figures and rhetoric in non-Western cultures are covered as well." (Publisher) Includes synoptic outline of contents, bibliographies, index. Emphasis is on theoretical aspects of rhetoric.
- A Handbook to Literature, William Harmon and Hugh Holman. Upper Saddle River, N.J.: Prentice Hall, c2003. 9th ed. Olin Ref PN41 H355x 2003
- "Contemporary reference on literature and literary criticism in English, this handbook provides an alphabetical listing of more than 2,000 important terms and facts in literature, linguistics, rhetoric, criticism, printing, bookselling, and information technology. Covers a wide range of terms, most centered in literature, but extending into other areas, such as film, radio, TV, printing, linguistics and literary theory, music, graphic arts, classical studies, and computing and information science terms." (Publisher)
- Johns Hopkins Guide to Literary Theory & Criticism c1997- .
- A full-text searchable database of articles on individual critics and theorists, critical and theoretical schools and movements, and the critical and theoretical innovations of specific countries and historical periods. It also treats related persons and fields that have been shaped by or have themselves shaped literary theory and criticism. Each entry includes a selective primary and secondary bibliography. Paper edition (2005) in Olin Reference: Olin Ref PN81 J554 2005 +.
- Literature Online (LION)
- LION provides full-text searching of the following literary reference works.
From the main screen, go to Criticism
& Reference, then click on the Reference
link. Check off the titles or titles you wish to search. The list includes:
- Columbia Companion to the Twentieth-Century American Short Story (Columbia University Press, 2001)
Concise Oxford Dictionary of Literary Terms (Oxford University Press, 1990)
Columbia Dictionary of Modern Literary and Cultural Criticism (Columbia University Press, 1995)
Encyclopedia of American Poetry: The Nineteenth Century (Fitzroy Dearborn Publishers, 1998)
Encyclopedia of Post-Colonial Literatures in English (Routledge, 1994)
Encyclopedia of the Novel (Fitzroy Dearborn Publishers, 1998)
New Princeton Encyclopedia of Poetry and Poetics (Princeton University Press, 1993)
- Columbia Companion to the Twentieth-Century American Short Story (Columbia University Press, 2001)
- Oxford Reference Online
-
Searchable database of 100 language and subject dictionaries and reference works of Oxford University Press.
Each topical division contains searchable versions of the latest editions of published dictionaries and encyclopedias. Among the titles included are:
Concise Oxford Companion to Classical Literature
Concise Oxford Companion to English Literature
Oxford Companion to English Literature
Concise Oxford Companion to Irish Literature
Concise Oxford Dictionary of Literary Terms Concise Oxford Companion to the Theatre
Oxford Companion to Twentieth Century Poetry in English
Dictionary of Writers and their Works
SPECIALIZED ENCYCLOPEDIAS, GUIDES AND DICTIONARIES
- Bloomsbury Dictionary of English Literature. edited by Marion Wynne-Davies. Bloomsbury, 1997. Rev. ed.
- Contains over 800 entries on writers from Chaucer and Shakespeare to Martin Amis and Caryl Churchill, over 1000 entries on individual works, over 300 Biblical and mythological characters and events, over 600 literary and critical terms and movements, and over 1000 entries describing historical, cultural and social events. [publisher]
- Cambridge Guide to English Literature. Stapleton, Michael. New York: Cambridge UP, 1983.Uris Ref PR l9 C17+; Olin Ref PR l9 C17+
- A single volume guide to the literature of the English-speaking world. Covering more than a thousand years, it includes the literature of Great Britain, the United States, Australia, Canada and New Zealand. It also includes the English writing from Ireland and South Africa and contributions from the West Indies and Nigeria since World War II. Entries are for authors, individual works of litera ture, main characters in novels and plays, relevant historical events and technical literary terms. Illustrated.
- The Cambridge Guide to Literature in English. Head, Dominic, ed. New York: Cambridge UP, 2006. [1993 edition online; 2006 ed. in print at Olin Ref PR 85 C29 2006+
- Not to be confused with the Cambridge Guide listed above, this alphabetically-arranged compendium covers some of the same material, but expands its coverage to Africa, India, and other areas, and aims to include more material on contemporary literary figures. Illustrated.
- The Cambridge History of Literary Criticism. Cambridge [England]; New York: Cambridge University Press, 1989- 8 vols.Olin Ref PN86 C17
- Contents: v. 1. Classical criticism / edited by George A. Kennedy -- v. 3. The Renaissance / edited by Glyn P. Norton -- v. 4. Eighteenth century / edited by H.B. Nisbet and Claude Rawson -- v. 5. Romanticism / edited by Marshall Brown -- v. 7. Modernism and the new criticism / edited by A. Walton Litz, Louis Menand, and Lawrence Rainey -- v. 8. From formalism to poststructuralism / edited by Raman Selden -- v. 9. Twentieth-century historical, philosophical and psychological perspectives / edited by Christa Knellwolf and Christopher Norris.
- Continuum Encyclopedia of British Literature, Steven R. Serafin and Valerie Grosvenor Myer, editors. New York: Continuum, 2003. Olin Ref PR19 C66x 2003 +
- "...envisioned as a comprehensive survey of the growth and development of literature that is by definition British in scope or origin, including he literatures written in English from the colonial to the postcolonial experience in Africa, Australia, Canada, the Caribbean, India, and New Zealand." (Intro). Entries are both topical and biographical, with selected bibliographies added. Includes a historical-literary timeline as well as lists of Britisn monarchs, poets laureate and literary award winners. Indexed.
- Dictionary of English Literature. Adams, W. Davenport, 2nd ed. Detroit: Gale, 1966. Uris Ref PR 19 A21 1966; Olin Ref PR 19 A21 1966
- Although subtitled "A Comprehensive Guide to English Authors and Their Works," this compact volume tends to be more a miscellaneous collection of generally very short entries on prominent English writers, famous phrases, translations into English of works by foreign writers as well as longer articles on such topics as "The Drama", "Newspapers", "Epics", "Other", etc. The 1966 publication date given above is actually the reprinting date as the Dictionary was actually published by Cassel Petler Galpin and Co. in London in 1878.
- Dictionary of Shakespeare. Louise McConnell. Teddington, Middlesex : Peter Collin, 2000.
- A comprehensive dictionary that covers the plays, poems, characters and background to Shakespeare's works. The dictionary also includes terms used in the theatre and stagecraft, as well as historical references and details on the Elizabethan historical and social period.
- A Dictionary of Shakespeare. Stanley Wells, with the assistance of James Shaw. Oxford : Oxford University Press, 1998.
- "Compiled by one of the best-known authorities on the Bard's works, this dictionary offers up-to-date information on all aspects of Shakespeare in his own time and on his impact and influence on later ages. It includes entries on the plays and the major characters, on Shakespeare's life and his contemporaries, on actors from Edmund Kean to Peter O'Toole, on theatres and directors, plus comments on Shakespeare by later authors such as Jane Austen, Dr Johnson, and Bernard Levin." [publisher]
- Encyclopedia of Catholic Literature, edited by Mary R. Reichardt. Westport, Conn.: Greenwood Press, c2004. 2 vols. Olin Ref PN485 E53 2004
- "...covers the vast realm of Catholic literature from its origins to today. Included are alphabetically arranged entries on more than 70 major works from around the world. Special attention is given to women writers and to writers from diverse racial and ethnic backgrounds. Included are entries on such authors and works as St. Augustine's Confessions, Catherine of Siena's Dialogue, Dante's The Divine Comedy, Sandra Cisneros' The House on Mango Street, J.R.R. Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings, and Muriel Spark's Memento Mori. Each entry is written by an expert contributor and includes a biography of the writer, a plot summary of a major work, an extended critical discussion, an overview of the work's critical reception, and a selected bibliography. The entries give detailed attention to particular works and explore their relation to Catholic thought. A selected general bibliography concludes the encyclopedia." [publisher]
- Encyclopedia of Feminist Literature. Kathy J. Whitson. Westport, Conn.: Greenwood Press, 2004. Olin Ref PN471 .W455 2004+
- "...includes alphabetically arranged entries on roughly 70 women writers whose works are widely read in English, and on some 20 related topics. While some of the writers profiled are widely known, others have not yet received as much attention. And while most of the writers are from England and America, the volume also profiles Chilean, Brazilian, Indian, South African, Australian, French, and German authors. The writers selected are feminist, in that their works have challenged traditional gender roles, explored female oppression, or critiqued patriarchal social structures. In addition to providing biographical information, the entries include interpretative summaries of major works." [publisher]
- Encyclopedia of Medieval Literature, edited by Robert T. Lambdin and Laura C. Lambdin. Westport, Conn.: Greenwood Press, 1998. Olin Ref PN669 E53x 1998
- "A comprehensive guide to medieval literature. While the volume is devoted primarily to the literature of medieval England, its multicultural scope also encompasses Islamic, Mongolian, Celtic, Hispanic, Italian, Russian, and Germanic works. Longer entries treat major authors, entire genres, and important texts, while shorter entries provide valuable contextual information through their coverage of significant kings, religious leaders, artists, historical events, and other topics. Each of the more than 420 entries includes a brief bibliography, and the volume closes with a list of general works for further reading." (publisher)
- Encyclopedia of Post-Colonial Literatures in English, edited by Eugene Benson and L.W. Conolly. London ; New York : Routledge, 1994. 2 v. Olin Ref PR9080.A52 E53x 1994 +
- From the Introduction: "We use the term 'post-colonial'...to cover all the culture affected by the imperial process from the moment of colonization to the present day...The entries encompass genres, major subjects, and criticial biographies of writers." National and regional literatures in English covered include those of Australia, Bangladesh, Canada, the Caribbean, East Africa, Gibraltar, Hong Kong, India, Malaysia, Malta, New Zealand, Pakistan, the Philippines, Singapore, Sri Lanka, St. Helena, South Africa, South Central Africa, the South Pacific, and West Africa. Indexed.
- Literary History of England. Baugh, Albert C., ed., 2nd ed. New York: Appleton, 1967. Uris Ref PR 83 B34 1967; Olin Ref PR 83 B34 1967
- A comprehensive and scholarly history of the literature of England. Arranged by period and genre, with numerous footnotes indicating standard editions and an extensive bibliographical supplement listing, by chapter and page, the most important books and articles in which the reader may pursue further the writings of authors discussed.
- Oxford Companion to English Literature. Margaret Drabble, ed. 6th ed. Oxford: Clarendon, 2000. Olin Ref PR l9 O94 2000
- Available online and in print. Provides brief articles on authors and literary works from all periods of English literature are arranged alphabetically in this comprehensive single volume handbook.Contains extensive cross-references. Appendices include a chronology of English literature, and lists of poets laureate and major literary award winners.
- Oxford Companion to the Literature of Wales. Stephens, Meic, ed., New York: Oxford, 1986. Uris Ref PR 19 098 1986; Olin Ref PB 2206 O98
- A general introduction to the literature of Wales from the sixth century to the present day. It is described in the Preface as "much more than a gazetteer of writers and their works," as it includes a chronology of the history of Wales and other historical information. Includes some 2,825 entries arranged alphabetically with an emphasis on biographical and bibliographical details of the selected works of poets, editors, almanackers and other "men of letters whose writing forms the corpus of the country's literature."
- The Oxford Encyclopedia of British Literature. David Scott Kastan, editor in chief. Oxford ; New York : Oxford University Press, c2006. 5 vols. Olin Ref PR19 O95 2006
- "Covers the entire history of British literature from the seventh century to the present, focusing on the writers and the major texts of what are now the United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland. In five hundred substantial essays written by major scholars, the Encyclopedia of British Literature includes biographies of nearly four hundred individual authors and a hundred topical essays with detailed analyses of particular themes, movements, genres, and institutions whose impact upon the writing or the reading of literature was significant." (publisher) Table of contents
- Oxford English Dictionary.
- The OED presents in alphabetical series the words that have formed the English vocabulary from the time of the earliest records down to the present day, with all the relevant facts concerning their form, sense-history, pronunciation, and etymology. It embraces not only the standard language of literature and conversation, but also the main technical vocabulary, and a large measure of dialectical usage and slang. This edition contains the complete A to Z sequence of the Second Edition, its three-volume Additions Series, and also draft material from the revision programme, which represents the latest progress towards the Third Edition. Second edition available in print at Olin and Uris Reference PE1625 M98 1989
- Oxford Illustrated Literary Guide to Great Britain and Ireland. Dorothy Eagle and Hilary Carnell, comp. and ed. 2nd ed. Oxford: Oxford UP, 1992.Uris Ref PR lO9 E12 1992; Olin Ref PR lO9 E12 1992+
- "The main part of the book consists of entries for places in Great Britain and Ireland with literary associations, each headword being followed by a grid reference to the maps at the end...the place names are arranged in alphabetical order and refer to towns, villages, mansions, cottages, mountains, lakes, and rivers: places where writers have been born, educated, and buried, where they lived and worked; and where they met and talked and struck sparks off each other." (Preface)Includes an author index and many illustrations and photographs. Fictitious names of real places are entered as cross-references.
- Post-Colonial Studies: the Essential Glossary. Thieme, John. London: Arnold, 2003. Olin Ref JV22 T45x 2003
- Alphabetically arranged guide to terms ("counter discourse"), people ("Buchi Emecheta"), concepts ("nationalism") and other topics found in postcolonial studies across the disciplines. Includes bibliography.
PRIMARY TEXTS
Columbia Granger’s world of poetry: the electronic Granger’s- Indexes poetry in published anthologies. Contains full text of anthologized poems in the public domain, poetry excerpts from copyrighted works, and citations providing poem title, author, publisher, subject(s), and a list of anthologies in which the selected poem appears. 15,000 authors are represented with references to 558 separate anthologies (1992 release). Also contains audio readings of canonical works, and allows side-by-side comparison of texts.
- Literature Online. (LION)
- A full-text collection of poetry, drama, and prose with complementary references sources. Primary texts include English poetry from 600 to the present; American and African-American poetry from 1603 to the present; English drama; English prose; articles, monographs and dissertations from the Annual Bibliography of English Language and Literature; full-text articles from literary journals; and biographical information on widely studied authors. Subsumed in the database are the contents of several Chadwyck-Healey CD-ROM products, including: The Bible in English; Database of African-American Poetry, 1760-1900; Database of Twentieth Century African American Poetry; Editions and Adaptations of Shakespeare; and English Poetry.
- TEAMS Middle English Texts
- "The TEAMS Middle English Texts are published for TEAMS (The Consortium for the Teaching of the Middle Ages) in association with the University of Rochester by Medieval Institute Publications, Western Michigan University, Kalamazoo, Michigan... The focus is upon literature adjacent to that normally in print, which teachers need in compiling the syllabi they wish to teach. The editions maintain the linguistic integrity of the original works but within the parameters of modern reading conventions.[web site]"
- Early English Books Online (EEBO)
- From the first book printed in English by William Caxton, through the age of Spenser and Shakespeare and the tumult of the English Civil War, Early English Books Online) contains over 125,000 titles listed in Pollard & Redgrave's Short-Title Catalogue (1475 - 1640), Wing's Short-Title Catalogue (1641-1700), and the Thomason Tracts (1640-1661).
- Eighteenth Century Collections Online. (ECCO)
- A comprehensive digital edition of The Eighteenth Century microfilm set, which has aimed to include every significant English-language and foreign-language title printed in the United Kingdom, along with thousands of important works from the Americas, between 1701 and 1800. Consists of books, pamphlets, broadsides, ephemera. When completed, the full collection will include nearly 150,000 titles and more than 33,000,000 pages of searchable material.
- Brown University Women Writers Project
- "The mission of the Brown University Women Writers Project is to create, develop, and make accessible a state-of-the-art electronic textbase of women's writing in English before 1830. The WWP textbase is intended to support a wide range of activities, including new research on texts, information technology, and cultural history; publications and other textbase products; and innovative approaches to teaching."--Title screen
- Dictionary of Old English, Old English Corpus.
- This edition includes over 3,000 different texts and was constructed from a version supplied by the Dictionary of Old English Project in 1998.
- Scottish Women Poets of the Romantic Period Alexander Street Press, [2002]-
- "Contains 60 volumes of Romantic Poetry, extensive contemporary critical reviews, as well as material specially written for this database by leading scholars." - website
- Victorian women writers project Indiana University, [1995]-
- "The goal of the Victorian Women Writers Project is to produce highly accurate transcriptions of works by British women writers of the 19th century, encoded using the Standard Generalized Markup Language (SGML. The works...include anthologies, novels, political pamphlets, religious tracts, children's books, and volumes of poetry and verse drama." - website
BIBLIOGRAPHIES
- Kennedy, Arthur G. and Donald B. Sands. A Concise Bibliography for Students of English. 5th ed. Stanford: Stanford UP, 1972. Olin Ref Z 2011 K35 1972
- Arranged in three parts dealing with literature, the history of books,
and the profession of literary
scholarships this bibliography offers "a list of older works of
demonstrated usefulness to the student and new works that show great
promise." (Preface) Includes an index of periodicals, an index of
authors, editors, collaborators, revisors, translators, and
assistants, and a subject index.
- Magill, Frank, ed. Magill's Bibliography of Literary Criticism. 4 vols. Englewood Cliffs: Salem, 1979. Uris Ref Z 5916 Ml9
- A bibliography of books and articles on literary criticism in the
fields of fiction, drama and
poetry. The time span for literature covered runs from the Epic of
Gilgamesh to the present. Entries are arranged alphabetically by the
author being
reviewed. (A complete Title Index is provided at the end of volume 4.)
- Marcuse, Michael J. A Reference Guide for English Studies. Univ. of California, 1990.Olin Ref Z2011 M32 1990
- A large bibliographic overview of literary studies -- not limited to
Anglo-American -- arranged by
period, country, genre, author, etc., Lists and often annotates important
secondary sources. Lists major journals as well as books in any given
subject area.
- Watson, George, et al., ed. The New Cambridge Bibliography of English Literature. 5 vols. London: Cambridge UP, 1969-1977. Uris Ref Z 2011 B32+ 1969; Olin Ref Z 2011 B32+ 1969
- Covers English literature from 600 A.D. to modern times. Arranged
chronologically and under
periods by literary form (e.g. poetry, prose, drama). References given
for each author generally include bibliographies of that author, collected
editions of his/her works, individual works with dates of 1st editions and
subsequent editions within the next 50 years
and some biographical and critical citations about the author.
- World Shakespeare Bibliography.
- Published for the Folger Shakespeare Library by The Johns Hopkins University Press, [1999?]- Electronic coverage as of June 3, 2003: 1968-2003. When complete, it will provide annotated entries for all important books, articles, book reviews, dissertations, theatrical productions, reviews of productions, audiovisual materials, electronic media, and other scholarly and popular materials related to Shakespeare and published or produced since 1900.
BIOGRAPHICAL SOURCES
- Bell, Maureen, et al. A Biographical Dictionary of English Women Writers, 1580-1720. Boston: G.K. Hall, 1990. Olin Ref PR 113 B43
- Alphabetically arranged by name, this volume provides short
biographical entries, as well as lists
of anonymous and pseudonymous texts, false ascriptions, and several
critical appendices on such topics as
Quaker women writers and women in the book trade.
- Blain, Virginia et al. The Feminist Companion to Literature in English. Women Writers from the Middle Ages to the Present. New Haven: Yale University Press, 1990. Olin Ref PR 111 F32
- A 1200-page compendium of biographical sketches for more than 2700
women writing in English,
including those from African, Asian, Caribbean, Canadian and other literary
traditions. Includes some
topical entries as well. Some list sources for further reading.
- Dictionary of Literary Biography. Detroit: Gale, 1978- . Uris Ref PS 129 D55+; online via Library Catalog and Find Databases Collection
- An ongoing set of volumes designed to provide biographic,
bibliographic and critical material on major writers of America and Great
Britain as well as some writers of Canada, France and Germany.
Each volume is arranged alphabetically by the writers covered. There
are numerous portraits and often there
are appendices containing special information. A list of further reading
concludes each volume. An index to all volumes
appears at the end of each latest volume. Individual author essays are available online through the Literature Resource Center, minus illustrations, photographs, and other visual material that appears in the printed volumes.
- Irish Women Writers : an A-to-Z Guide, edited by Alexander G. Gonzalez. Westport, Conn.: Greenwood Press, 2006. Olin Ref PR8733 I75 2006+
- "Through roughly 75 alphabetically arranged entries written by more than 35 expert contributors, this reference overviews the lives and works of Irish women writers active in a range of genres and periods. Each entry includes a brief biography, a discussion of major works and themes, a survey of the writer's critical reception, and a list of works by and about the author. The volume closes with a selected, general bibliography." [publisher]
- Kunitz, Stanley and Howard Haycroft, eds. British Authors Before 1800. New York: Wilson, 1952. Uris Ref PR 105 K96; Olin Ref PR 105 K96+
- One in a series of biographical dictionaries edited by Stanley
Kunitz and Howard Haycroft.
The arrangement is alphabetical by author and entries run from a
paragraph to several pages in length. Many of the entries are illustrated
and
nearly all end with a bibliography of works by and about the author.
- Kunitz, Stanley, ed. British Authors of the Nineteenth Century. New York: Wilson, 1936. Uris Ref PR 451 K96; Olin Ref PR 451 K96+
- A single volume biographical dictionary providing brief accounts
of the lives of the major and
minor British authors of the nineteenth century. Arranged alphabetically
by author, most entries include a bibliography of works by and about the
author.
- The Literature Resource Center. [Farmington Hills, MI] : Gale Group, c1999-. Library Gateway
- "The Literature Resource Center (LRC) is a complete literature reference database designed for the undergraduate student. LRC combines biographical, bibliographical, and contextual information to deliver a complete reference/resource package on authors and their works (fiction, nonfiction, poetry, drama, history, and journalism). Centering on respected Gale sources, including Contemporary Authors, Dictionary of Literary Biography, and Contemporary Literary Criticism, this data set is augmented with full-text, excerpted, and commissioned critical material illuminating an oeuvre or era. In partnership with Merriam-Webster, Inc., LRC offers the Encyclopedia of Literature including over 10,000 entries for authors, works, literary landmarks, literary and critical terms, mythological and folkloric figures, fictional characters, literary movements, and prizes. Partnering with Macmillan Library Reference, LRC offers The Scribner Writer Series, providing more than 1500 original biocritical essays on authors of all nationalities and time periods. And The Twayne Authors Series: Twayne's US Authors, Twayne's English Authors and Twayne's World Authors,providing literary criticism, history and influence of literary movements, and the development of literary genres for approximately 200 authors.
- Modern British Women Writers: an A-to-Z Guide, edited by Vicki K. Janik and Del Ivan Janik. Westport, Conn.: Greenwood Press, 2002. Olin and Uris Ref PR116 M63 2002
- Alphabetically arranged entries on 58 British women writers of the 20th century discuss each writer's life, works, and critical reception. Each entry is written by an expert contributor and contains an overview of the writer's background, an Analysis of her major works, and an assessment of the critical response to her writings. The entries close with primary and secondary bibliographies, and the volume concludes with a selected, general bibliography. (publisher's description)
- Schlueter, Paul and June Schlueter, eds. An Encyclopedia of British Women Writers. New York: Garland, 1988. Uris Ref PR lll S3+
- Contains nearly 400 biographical entries for British women writers from
the eighteenth century to
the present. Each entry includes a list of the author's primary works
and a bibliography of critical sources. Entries are signed and a list of
contributors is provided. The detailed index is cross referenced for
pseudonyms or variant names used by an author.
- Scott-Kilvert, Ian, gen. ed. British Writers. 8 vols. New York: Scribner's, 1979-1984. Uris Ref PR 85 B86+
- An eight volume set of literary biographies, originally published as
individual studies in a British Council series called Writers and their Work.
Arrangement is chronological, starting in Vol. l with the 14th century
(William Langland: Piers Plowman) and ending in Vol. VII with Louis MacNeice
and an essay on the poets of World War II. Volume VIII serves as an index for
the complete set. Each essay contains both critical and biographical
material and ends with a bibliography of works by and about the author.
- Vinson, James, ed. Great Writers of the English Language. 3 vols. New York: St. Martin's, 1979. (Vol. 1 Poets, Vol. 2 Novelists, Vol. 3 Dramatists) Uris Ref PR 106 G7
- Extensive coverage of writers (poets, novelists and dramatists) from Great Britain, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, the United States and other English speaking areas of the world. Entries include a short biography giving very basic information, a list of publications by and about the writers and a short critical essay discussing one or more of that writer's best known works.
- Literature Online. (LION) (Library Gateway.)
- See description under PRIMARY TEXTS.
- The Literature Resource Center. [Farmington Hills, MI] : Gale Group, c1999-. Library Gateway
- See description under BIOGRAPHICAL SOURCES.
- The English Novel. 1578-1956: a Checklist of Twentieth Century Critiicism. Bell, Inglis F. and Donald Baird. Denver: Swallow, 1958. Uris Ref Z 2014 F4 B43
- This bibliography includes criticisms (from books as well as journals) of works by English novelists. Arrangement is alphabetical by author and then by title under each author. Continued by Helen Palmer's English Novel Explication: Criticisms to 1972 (Uris Ref Z 2014 F4 P17) and its supplements.
- English Novel Explication: Criticisms to 1972. Plus Supplements 1976, 1981, 1986, 1990, 1994. Palmer, Helen H. and Anne Jane Dyson, comp. Hamden: Shoe String, 1973, etc. Uris Ref Z 2014 F4 P17; Olin Ref Z 2014 F4 P17
- Palmer's book is a comprehensive listing of criticism appearing in books and periodicals from 1958 to 1972. It updates the earlier work by Bell and Baird (see above). Supplements to Palmer's work were published in 1976 (comp. by Abernethy, Kloesel and Smitten), in 1981 (comp. by Kloesel and Smitten), and in 1986 (comp. by Kloesel). Arrangement in all volumes is alphabetical by author and then by title under each author. The volumes include cross-references for pseudonyms and joint authors.
- The Explicator Cyclopedia. Walcult, Charles Child and J. Edwin Whitesell, eds. 3 vols. Chicago: Quadrangle, 1966. Olin Ref PR 401 E96
- A compilation of essays written by more than 200 scholars. These essays are drawn from The Explicator, ca. 1942, and provide interpretations of major poems. Volume I is Modern Poetry, Volume 2, Medieval to Late Victorian, and Volume 3, Prose. Arrangement is alphabetical by author.
- Modern British Literature. Temple, Ruth Z. and Martin Tucker, eds. 5 vols. New York: Frederick Ungar, 1966-1985. Uris Ref PR 473 T28; Olin Ref PR 473 T28, vols. 1-4 only
- Included are excerpts from book reviews, periodical articles, collections made by the author and books on a particular author. Authors are listed in alphabetical order, followed by an excerpt from a critical review, the reviewer's name and a complete citation to the book or article. A bibliography is included at the end of the volume.
INDEXES TO JOURNALS, ETC.
| Given the multidisciplinary perspectives from which literature can be approached, the following list represents only those resources centered for the most part on literary study. Others, such as Philosophers Index, Historical Abstracts, or PsycINFO may be just as relevant depending on the specific subject. Searching the Library Catalog and Find Databases will indentify or provide access to far more of these resources than can be listed here. |
- Annual Bibliography of English Language and Literature. 1920- (ABELL)
- ABELL contains over 814,000 records covering monographs, periodical articles, critical editions of literary works, book reviews, collections of essays and doctoral dissertations published anywhere in the world from 1920 onwards. All aspects and periods of English literature are covered, from Anglo-Saxon times to the present day. British, American and Commonwealth writing are all represented. Coverage is international, including material in languages other than English.
- Abstracts of English Studies. 1958 - 1991. Boulder, CO: National Council of Teachers of English. Olin Z 2011 A16
- No longer published, but for 1958 - 91 covers about 750 journals for articles in English-language literature of all periods. Includes summaries. Issued quarterly; indexed quarterly and annually.
- Arts & Humanities Citation Index (A&HCI)
- ISI citation databases -- under the collective name Web of Science -- are multidisciplinary databases of bibliographic information indexed to be searched by subject, author, journal, and/or author address. They can also be searched for articles that cite a known author or work. Cited reference searching allows use of a given work as if it were a subject term, to identify more recent articles on the same topic. search by footnoted source (1975 - date)
- British Humanities Index. London: The Library Association, 1962- . Olin Ref AI 3 S94++
- An index to about 375 British periodicals in the social
sciences and
humanities. Among the disciplines covered are literature, classics,
political science, economics and history. Issued 4 times/year. Quarterly
issues contain subject listings only; annual cumulations have author
and subject.
- English Short Title Catalogue (ESTC)
- Describes English or English-language letterpress materials published before 1801. Contains records for items of all types published in Great Britain or its colonies or in English from 1473 to 1800. Contains records for works printed in any language in England or its dependencies from the beginning of printing through the end of the eighteenth century, as well as works printed in English anywhere else in the world during that period. Includes the former Eighteenth-Century Short-Title Catalogue (ESTC) and the two print short-title catalogues covering 1475-1640 (Pollard & Redgrave) and 1641-1700 (Wing)
- Humanities Index. New York: Wilson Co., 1974- . Uris Ref AI 3 H91+; a1so Olin
- An author and subject index to over 250 English language scholarly journals.
"Subject fields indexed include archaeology and classical studies, area
studies, folklore, history, language and litera ture...philosophy, religion,
and theology." Also includes an author index to book reviews which have
appeared in the journals indexed. Continues Social Sciences and
Humanities
Index and the International Index.
- Humanities International Index
- A comprehensive database covering journals, books and other important reference sources in the humanities and provides cover-to-cover indexing and abstracting for over 1,700 journals and contains more than 1.5 million records. Humanities International Index includes deep backfiles for some of the most important journals in the area of humanities. The database includes all data from American Humanities Index plus bibliographic records from a multitude of international journals, books and reference works. This database provides citations and abstracts for articles, essays and reviews, as well as original creative works including poems, fiction, photographs, paintings and illustrations.
- Index to Commonwealth Little Magazines, 1964-. Olin Ref AI 3 I368
- Contains author and subject indexes to
"little" magazines, mostly literary periodicals, published in Great
Britain, Commonwealth, and
ex-Commonwealth countries.
- International Medieval Bibliography Online.
- Indexes articles, notes, and similar literature on medieval subjects in journals, Festschriften, conference proceedings, and collected essays. Covers all aspects of medieval studies within the date range of 400 to 1500 for the entire continent of Europe, the Middle East and North Africa for the period before the Muslim conquest and parts of those areas subsequently controlled by Christian powers. Includes more than 300,000 articles published 1967- , all of which are fully classified by date, subject and location.
- MLA International Bibliography of Books and Articles on the Modern Languages and Literatures. New York: Modern Language Assn., 1963- . Library Gateway; Olin Ref Z 7006 M68+
- A bibliography covering languages, literatures, folklore, film and linguistics from all over the world. One can look up secondary literature about a particular author, or articles on more general topics such as aesthetics, literary criticism and literary theory, themes and types. Since 1980 the Bibliographyhas also included a subject index to the works listed, making subject access much easier than it has been in the past. For example, film adaptations can be located in the classified listings only by language, period and writer, whereas in the subject listings one can go directly to the term Film Adaptation and there, under a subheading by country (e.g. American literature, etc), find specific critical works on a specific film.
CHRONOLOGIES
- Annals of English Literature 1475-1950. 2nd ed. Oxford: Clarendon, 1961. Uris Ref Z 2011 A61 1961a
- As noted in its subtitle, this work is a list of "the principal
publications
of each year together with an alphabetical index of authors with their
works." Also recorded are "the births and deaths of authors, the publication
of newspapers, periodicals, translations, editions...together with a selec
tion of foreign events which had a bearing of the course of English
literature." (Preface).
- Rogal, Samuel. A Chronological Outline of British Literature. Westport: Greenwood, 1980. Olin Ref PR 87 R72
- A chronological listing of births, deaths, events, and works of British literature indicating '~the extent of literary activity and literary related events in England, Scotland, Ireland, and Wales during a specific year, decade, or century." (Introduction) Coverage is from 516 A.D. to 1979. Includes an index.
ANNUAL SURVEYS OF RESEARCH
- Annual Bibliography of English Language & Literature. London, Modern Humanities Research Assn., 1920 -. Olin Ref Z 2011 M68 (latest volume only)
- Contents are strictly bibliographical, listing the year's critical
publications in books and journals by
period, genre, and author name. Earlier volumes in Olin stacks. Also available online via LION
- The Year's Work in Critical and Cultural Theory. Oxford: Blackwell, 1994- .Olin stacks PN80 Y39
- "An annual narrative bibliographyof work in the field of critical & cultural theory, recording significant debates and issues" in areas such as feminisms, colonial and postcolonial discourse, postmodernism, film theory, virtual cultures, multiculturalism, continental philosophy, sexual difference, etc. A companion volume to The Year's Work in English Studies.
- The Year's Work in English Studies. London, The English Assn., 1919/20 -. Olin Ref PE E58 (latest volume only)
- A "narrative bibliography of scholarly writing in the fields of English and American literature." (Preface) Latest volume may be several years behind current year. Earlier volumes in Olin stacks.
CITATION STYLES
The Chicago Manual of Style. 15th ed. Chicago: U of Chicago, 1993. (Olin Reference Desk Z 253 U69x 2003; also Uris) "A standard work, thoroughly revised and updated, which serves as a how-to book for authors and editors. In three main sections (Bookmaking; Style; Production and printing), offering practical information and advice on all aspects of manuscript preparation, copyediting, and seeing a work through the press. Glossary of technical terms; bibliography; index." (Sheehy). The basics online: Chicago Manual of Style.
Turabian, Kate L. A Manual for Writers of Term Papers, Theses, and Dissertations. 5th ed. Chicago: U Chicago P, 1987. (Uris and Olin Reference PE 1478 T92 1987) A newly revised and expanded version by B. Honigsblum, of Kate Turabian's standard guide for student writers. Fourteen chapters cover everything you've ever wanted to know about putting a paper together, from its introductory chapters to its bibliography. online version
MLA citation style
MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers (6th ed.) CU Library Reference locations include Olin and Uris Libraries at call number: Z 253 M68 2003.MLA citation style (Library Gateway Help)
MLA Style (MLA's web site)
Modern Language Association of America.
MLA Style Manual. 2nd ed. New York: MLA, 1985.(Olin Reference PN147
G444x 1998; also Uris Reference) Although
somewhat scholarly in tone, the purpose of the MLA Style Manual is to
provide for the researcher, at whatever level, a systematic, consistent format
for all forms of citation. In addition, it provides information about proofreading,
the use of abbreviations, transliteration and such simple, but not always obvious
items, as margin width, pagination, and typeface.
APA
citation style
Publication Manual of the American
Psychological Association (5th ed.) CU Library Reference locations include
Africana, ILR, Mann, Olin, and Uris Libraries at call number: BF76.7 .P83x
2001+.
APA
citation style (Library Gateway Help)
APA
Reference Examples for Electronic Source Materials Excerpted from
the new 5th edition of the Publication Manual.
Managing Information using Bibliographic/Citation Software
RefWorks is a web-based program that allows you to easily collect, manage, and organize bibliographic references by interfacing with databases. RefWorks also interfaces directly with Word, making it easy to import references and incorporate them into your writing, properly formatted according to the style of your choice. For more information and to sign up for an account: http://www.refworks.cornell.edu
EndNote allows you to build your own database of bibliographic references from a variety of resources, including library catalogs and periodical indexes. EndNote interfaces with several standard word processing programs and provides direct connections to resources, making it easy to import references and incorporate them in your writing. EndNote (or RefWorks) is highly recommended for researchers. EndNote workshops are regularly held on campus.
RESEARCH AND REFERENCE HELP
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A research consultation with a reference librarian can be arranged when you need in-depth, personalized research help.
http://www.library.cornell.edu/olinuris/ref/engbib.htmlRevised and updated, 2/13/09, fmCompiled by Fred Muratori, Lance Heidig, and Teresa Demo, Olin & Uris Libraries Reference Dept. Send comments to Fred Muratori |
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