English 3882, 3883, 3884: Library Resources for the Senior Paper in English
Research
Biographical-critical overviews of individual writers:
- 1. Title: Dictionary of literary biography.
Published: Detroit, Mich. : Gale Research Co., 1978-
Wilson Reference quarto PS21 - Look in the cumulated index in the latest volume, where writers in all the volumes are listed. For example, you'll find that George Eliot appears in volumes 21 (Victorian Novelists), 35 (Victorian Poets after 1850), and 55 (Victorian Prose Writers before 1867). In volume 21 you'll find a biographical article offering a thorough overview of her career, with discussions of each of her novels, lists of primary and secondary sources, and illustrations.
- For criticism and scholarly articles about literature published since 1963, use the MLA Bibliography in either the online or the print form:
2. Title: MLA international bibliography (Online)
Published: New York : Modern Language Association of America
Internet: http://www.lib.umn.edu/web-bin/mla.cgi - Remote access restricted to University of Minnesota students, staff and faculty.
Internet Resource (no call number)
You also can find this source by choosing "Indexes" from the LUMINA menu. - The print version goes back to 1939 and displays the information differently, more at a glance, but it has the disadvantage of requiring you to do one year at a time:
Title: MLA international bibliography of books and articles on the modern languages and literatures
Published: New York : Modern Language Association of America, c1970- 1969- Annual
Wilson Reference quarto PB6 .M61x
- If you are writing on a broadly interdisciplinary topic you can find scholarly articles in the online version of the Humanities Index:
3. Title: Humanities abstracts (computer file).
Published: Bronx, N.Y. : H.W. Wilson Co., (1997?)
Coverage dates: Feb. 1984 to the present, with abstracts from Mar. 1994. Updated monthly
Internet: http://www.lib.umn.edu/web-bin/humab.cgi. - Remote access restricted to University of Minnesota students, staff and faculty.
Internet Resouces(no call number)
You also can find this source by choosing "Indexes" from the LUMINA menu.
Handbooks and definitions of literary terms:
- 4. Author: Abrams, M. H. (Meyer Howard), 1912-
Title: A glossary of literary terms / M.H. Abrams.
Edition: 6th ed.
Published: Fort Worth, TX : Harcourt Brace College, c1993.
Wilson Reference PN41 .A184 - 5. Author: Beckson, Karl E., 1926-
Title: Literary terms : a dictionary / Karl Beckson and Arthur Ganz.
Edition: 3rd ed., rev. and enl.
Published: New York : Noonday Press, c1989.
Wilson Reference PN44.5 .B334 1989
Surveys and Background Reading on Theory, Critics, and Schools of Criticism:
- 6. Title: Critical survey of literary theory / edited by Frank N. Magill.
Published: Pasadena, Calif. : Salem Press, c1987.
Wilson Reference PN45 .C74 1987 Vols. 1-4 - 7. Title: Encyclopedia of contemporary literary theory : approaches, scholars, terms / Irena R. Makaryk, general editor and compiler.
Published: Toronto ; Buffalo : University of Toronto Press, c1993. Wilson Reference PN81 .E53x 1993 - 8. Title: The Johns Hopkins guide to literary theory and criticism / edited by Michael Groden and Martin Kreiswirth.
Published: Baltimore : Johns Hopkins University Press, c1994.
Wilson Reference PN81 .J557x 1994
Web Resources
- 9. Research QuickStart for undergraduate papers:
http://research.lib.umn.edu/OLIP_studentview2.asp - 10. The Online Public Library page for literary criticism, with links to 2504 websites for biographical and critical information on writers and their works:
http://www.ipl.org/ref/litcrit/ - 11. Wilson Library's web page for English and American literature with links to many sources:
http://www.lib.umn.edu/hum/lit/engamlit.html - Finally, a guide to many kinds of additional reference sources in literature:
12. Author: Marcuse, Michael J.
Title: A reference guide for English studies / Michael J. Marcuse.
Published: Berkeley : University of California Press, c1990.
Wilson Reference quarto PR56 .M37 1990
Use the index to identify scholarly sources on a writer or topic.
Writing
Style manuals and writing guides:
- 13. Author: Barnet, Sylvan.
Title: A short guide to writing about literature / Sylvan Barnet. Edition: 5th ed.
Published: GLenview, Ill. : Scott, Foresman and Co. ; c1985.
Wilson Reference PE1479 .C7 B3 1985b - Barnet instructs you in how to do a research paper and gives examples of types of writing assignments in literary study, such as explication, analysis, essays on character, style, imagery.
- 14. Author: Gibaldi, Joseph, 1942-
Title: MLA handbook for writers of research papers / Joseph Gibaldi.
Edition: 5th ed.
Published: New York : Modern Language Association of America, 1999.
Wilson Reference LB2369 .G53 1999 - 15. Author: Strunk, William, 1869-1946.
Title: Elements of style / by William Strunk Jr. ; with revisions, an introduction, and a chapter on writing by E.B. White.
Edition: 3rd ed., 8th printing.
Published: New York : Macmillan, 1982, c1979.
Wilson Reserve PE1408 .S772 1982 - Concise, clear, and inspiring.
- 16. MLA style guide online with directions for documenting resources from the Web:
http://www.mla.org/main_stl-nf.htm#sources