Literary Criticism and Cultural Context
(Our example author: Susan Minot)The following is a support material related to a library instruction session conducted by a library instructor and an BHCC English Department course instructor.
Do you have a library card? You will need one to check out books from the BHCC library. Your student ID is your library card -- it must have a 14 digit barcode on the back.
When you come to the library there are some basic things you need to know so that you are putting our research tools to work effectively for you. Many of you may already be familiar with the research methods and techniques that you will be using, but now you will be using them to help you accomplish a specific research goal.
STAGES OF A TYPICAL RESEARCH ASSIGNMENT
- Propose a topic
- Familiarize yourself with the BHCC library
- Compile a working bibliography
- Keep organized notes
- Finalize thesis and outline
- Submit fitst draft
- Prepare notes and works cited sheet
- Submit final, revised manuscript
Know the assignment guidelines
- ??? words
- Minimum of ??? sources
- Minimum of ??? types of sources
- Due date: ???
Consider where you'll search
- Book catalog
- World Wide Web
- Subscription databases
Consider how you'll search
- Natural language
- Keyword
- Advanced Boolean search techniques
You'll need to find a combination of books, journals articles, newspapers articles, and reliable Internet sources to complete your literary analysis. To find these sources, you will need to use the BHCC Library online catalog as well as online periodical databases such as EBSCOhost and InfoTrac Web.
The BHCC Library home page at http://www.noblenet.org/bhcc/ provides a single place where you can go to get access to the library catalog, online databases, and information about the library itself. You just need a PC with an Internet connection and a Web browser.
USING THE ONLINE CATALOG
The BHCC Library online catalog is the most efficient way to find a book in the BHCC library. If you take some time to master it, your task will be much easier when you need to stop in and borrow a book. Remember, the online catalog can be searched from any PC connected to the Internet with a Web browser.
If you take a look at the online catalog, you'll see that there are many ways to search for a book: author, title, subject, keyword, and more. To start, try the keyword search, which is the broadest possible search. Subject, author, and title searches are more specific. Before you enter your search, read the screen. There are always useful tips that will save you search time. To see an example of how to do a search in the catalog, you can go to the Web page entitled How to use the online catalog
Your end goal should always be the book's call number, which is like the book's address and tells you where to find the book in the library. This BHCC Library web page on Finding a Book in the Library is a good place to start for more detailed information on how call numbers work.
For this assignment, you'll need to find a combination of biographical information, historical context, and literary criticism. However, whatever type of book you search for, the concepts behind using the catalog remain the same. One of the most important resources for finding information about the author and critical reviews on the title is the Reference Section of the library. Here, you will find both biographical and literary criticism materials.
Biographical Reference Sources
- Contemporary Authors REF Z1224.C6 -- Print speciality series that compiles biographical and brief bibliographical information on authors, poets, playwrights and writers of other genres. Use Index volume to find the volume number for the author you search.
- Current Biography Yearbook REF CT100.C8
- Contemporary Literary Criticism REF PN771.C59-- Print series that focuses on literary criticism and also provides short biographical information on authors and their works into multi-volumes.
Biographical Sources in the General Collection
Let's take a look at finding the area of the library focused on your author -- use the library's shelf order to the fullest! Here are some sample searches:
USING ONLINE RESOURCES
As an example, we'll try looking for biographical and literary criticism information in a couple of different areas. The first will be the World Wide Web.
Using the World Wide Web to find reliable information
Anyone can put in information on the Internet. Unfortunately, not all of this information is reliable. It is very important to make sure that your sources are credible. It is your responsiblility to critically analyze the information you find. Check out a great resource for Evaluating Websites from the Cornell University Library. Wesleyan University has also put together a mini-tutorial on evaluating Web sites, available on the Wesleyan library Web site at Evaluating what you find. Four criteria to keep in mind while considering websites are:
- Accuracy- Are there spelling errors or incorrect data? Is the information too generalized?
- Authority- Who is the author? What are their credentials? Can they be contacted?
- Currency- When was the material written? Are the links live? Has the site been updated?
- Objectivity- Is more than one view presented? What is the goal of this site?
Literary criticism on the Web -- sites to consider:
- Internet Public Library: Online Literary Criticism Collection -- a collection of "critical and biographical websites about authors and their works that can be browsed by author, by title, or by nationality and literary period" from the Internet Public Library
- Reading Group Guides -- EVENING by Susan Minot , from an online community collecting reading group guides
- Susan Minot -- book and author information from the publishers's website.
Using subscription databases to find reliable information
The Library currently subscribes to over 200 different periodicals and over 40 online databases, many of which provide periodical articles on virtually any subject you can name. To help you sort through this vast amount of information and find what you need, we will be focusing on two broad-based periodical databases here, EBSCOhost and InfoTrac Web. For a full list of all the databases we have to offer, take a look at our databases page.
For the purposes of this assignment, one of the best places to start is InfoTrac. Within InfoTrac, try using the Biography Resource Center, which has basic information on well-known people. Also try the Contemporary Literacy Criticism Database, which includes not only biographical information on authors, but also critical reviews of their works.
Biography information online -- sites to consider:
- Biography.com -- from the A&E television network
- Academy of American Poets -- includes biography, list of major works, and some free full-text poems
- InfoTrac Biography Resource Center -- includes biographical information from many academic sources
Don't forget to mine the BHCC Library English workshop files, too. For example, we have tutorials on finding 1920s historical information -- perfect for researching the background of Hemingway's early work!
Keep In Mind when using print or electronic resources -- Consider the tool you're using. Where did it come from, who is offering the information and for what purposes, how does the search tool work, and other basic information evaluation questions that will serve you and your task at hand.
CITING YOUR INFORMATION SOURCES
After you have completed your research paper, your final step will be to compile a list of the sources you used in writing your paper. Whether you paraphrase, summarize, or quote directly from an information resource you must credit and document the source.
The format you will use for citation is known as the MLA format; to assist you in compiling your list of sources, consult the MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers, REF LB 2369. G53 1999. This volume is very detailed and even covers citation formats for the different electronic resources you will be using. For a good treatment of the same material available on the World Wide Web, check out the Duke University Libraries' Guide to citing sources.
Your citations can be processed using a library database called NoodleTools. To use NoodleTools, you must create a NoodleTools account. When you access NoodleTools for the first time, click on the link near the bottom of the screen "Create a new folder." This will register NoodleTools for your use. Before using NoodleTools, it may be helpful to see the 15 minute video demonstration. After using NoodleTools, your list of work cited will be presented in the format required for this assignment. To use NoodleTools, after setting up your account, you must have at least one book or article you will be using in your paper.
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Last reviewed April 05, 2007
Last updated April 9, 2007