Literary Criticism
A Research Guide
This resource guide will help you to start your research on literary authors and works of literature.
I Terms and Concepts I General Reference Resources I Author Information I
I Criticism and Summaries I Finding Books I Finding Articles I
I Recommended Web Sites I Citation Guide I
The following reference books will provide you with literary terminology and critical information about authors and their works. Literary sources range from simple explanations of plots to detailed, philosophical, and profound essays on individual stories, poems, literary themes, or authors.
Terms and Concepts
- Contemporary Guide to Literary Terms: With Strategies for Writing Essays About Literature - REF PN44.5.B332 1997
- Longman Dictionary of Literary Terms: Vocabulary for the Informed Reader - REF PN44.5.K46 2006
- Poet’s Dictionary: A Handbook of Prosody and Poetic Devices - REF PN1021.P3 1989
General Reference Resources
- Encyclopedia of Literary Critics and Criticism - REF PN75.E53 E53
- The Oxford Encyclopedia of American Literature - REF PS21.E537
- Greenwood Encyclopedia of Multiethnic American Literature - REF PS153.M56 G74
Author Information
- Contemporary Authors – Autobiography Series - REF PN453.C63
- Contemporary Authors – New Revision Series - REF Z1224.C63x
- Notable American Novelists - REF PS371.N68
- Short Story Writers - REF PN3373.S398
Criticism & Summaries
- Nineteenth Century Literature Criticism (NCLC) - REF PN761.N56
- Twentieth Century Literary Criticism (TCLC) - REF PN771.G27
- Contemporary Literary Criticism (CLC) - REF PN771.C59
- Masterplots, Revised Second Edition - REF PN44.M33
- Literature of Developing Nations for Students - REF PN3326.L58
- Novels for Students - REF PN3385.N68
- Short Story Criticism - REF PN3373.S56
- Short Stories for Students - REF PN3373.S3844
- Poetry Criticism (PC) - REF PN1010.P6
- Poetry for Students - REF PN1101.P756
- Drama for Students - REF PN1601.D595
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Finding Books
Use the library catalog to search for resources on the specific author or literary work you are studying. Here are some tips and strategies to improve your search results:
- Conduct a subject search using the author’s name (enter last name first)
- Search for critical essays on a literary work by conducting a keyword search with the title in quotation marks.
Finding Articles
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Off-Campus Access: Log in to MyOCC or Blackboard to access these resources off-campus. If you are having problems logging in, please go the MyOCC Username & Password page or call MyOCC Technical Support at (714) 432-5072. |
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Use the following databases to search for articles on the specific author or literary work you are studying.
- Literature Resource Center: Access biographies, bibliographies, and critical analyses of authors from every age and literary discipline. You may search by Author Name, Title, Genre, Literary Movement, or Literary Themes, or you may customize your search.
- Expanded Academic ASAP: This database includes periodicals in many disciplines including the arts and the humanities. Search by author or literary work to find periodical articles.
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Recommended Web Sites
Yahoo’s Literary Authors Listing : Visit the Yahoo! Directory to access Web sites on literary authors. Arrange listing by popularity or alphabetical order.
Web Evaluation
Five Criteria for Evaluating Web Pages - A quick and useful guide to help you evaluate the Web pages you find for accuracy, authority, objectivity, currency, and coverage. From Jim Kapoun’s article "Teaching undergrads WEB evaluation: A guide for library instruction” originally published in the July/August 1998 issue of C&RL News on pages 522-523.
Citing Your Sources
Citation Styles – A guide to citing Internet sources using the MLA, APA, and other formats. From Bedford/St. Martin’s site Online! A Reference Guide to Using Internet Sources.
Guides to Cite It! – Provides style guides for APA, MLA, Chicago, Turabian, and others. From the University of Georgia Libraries.
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(jk 4/07)