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Engl 881: research methods “LIBRARY” research in Secondary & primary sources

Engl 881: research methods “LIBRARY” research in Secondary & primary sources. May 2012 Holly Hendrigan , Liaison Librarian hah1@sfu.ca. Workshop objectives . Understand wher e to find and how to search: Secondary Sources MLA Historical Abstracts Shakespearean Criticism

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Engl 881: research methods “LIBRARY” research in Secondary & primary sources

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  1. Engl 881: research methods“LIBRARY” research inSecondary & primary sources May 2012 Holly Hendrigan, Liaison Librarian hah1@sfu.ca

  2. Workshop objectives Understand where to find and how to search: • Secondary Sources • MLA • Historical Abstracts • Shakespearean Criticism • Primary Sources: • Early English Books Online

  3. Research guide for this class

  4. Secondary sources • Library Search/Fast Search • MLA Bibliography • Historical Abstracts • Shakespearean Criticism

  5. Library Search/Fast Search • Search boxes on Library’s home page • Integrated Library catalogue and ~65% of our full-text e-journals • Don’t overlook books! • Fast Search: it’s fast, but it’s not smart

  6. Search example • Library search: shakespeare cultural materialist • Article: Short Shrift: Religion and Materialist Criticism • Book: Materialist Shakespeare : a history / edited by IvoKamps. • IN at Bennett Library: Request item • Check out subject headings: • Literature and society -- England -- History -- 16th century.

  7. Fast way to find known items • Search: • Writing criticism jonathan culler • “A Note on the Current State of Humanities Scholarship”

  8. Practice on Library Search

  9. MLA International Bibliography • Comprehensive • Excellent indexing • Warning: • “International” means that much content is non-English • “Comprehensive” means that many articles and dissertations will require an Interlibrary Loan. Start early!

  10. Search example • Shakespeare and historicism: 112 results • Article “More Than History Can Pattern': Shakespeare and Historicism”: Where can I get this? • Book chapter “Teaching Shakespeare and the Uses of Historical Formalism” • “Shakespeare's Gifts: Self-Fashioning, Authorising, Stephen Greenblatt” SFU does not own: need to ILL

  11. Cool stuff in MLA (and other EBSCO DBs) • Advanced search • Folders • Citation tools • Switch to other databases

  12. Shortcut to Historical Abstracts

  13. Some overlap with MLA, but it indexes primarily history journals • Eg search Shakespeare and historicist • 14 results. #6: “The new historicism of Stephen Greenblatt: On poetics of culture and the interpretation of....” • In journal History & Theory: Not indexed in MLA.

  14. Practice time!

  15. Shakespearean Criticism • A series in the Gale Literary and Critical Databases • Takes a “wider lens” approach (more overviews) • Can be a real time-saver on a literature review for early and seminal critical works • Warning: need to go elsewhere for contemporary criticism

  16. Primary Sources

  17. Primary Sources • A primary source is a document or other sort of evidence written or created during the time under study, or by one of the persons or organizations directly involved in the event. • Primary sources offer an inside view of a particular event. Diaries Speeches Letters Minutes Autobiographies Official records Poetry Drama Novels Music Art Etc...

  18. Digital Archives • Pre-Internet times: research libraries held collections of primary sources on microfilm • Today, libraries purchase digital collections

  19. EEBO: Early English Books Online • Microfilming of British Library historical collections began in 1931 • Not quite complete, but getting closer • Two routes into EEBO: • 1. Library Search. All books are in the catalogue • 2. Through the library databases page (later)

  20. Searching for known items Library Search: Look up document Drunkard’s Character written by Richard Younge in 1638 

  21. Detective work in primary sources

  22. WARNING: • Some of these repositories have THOUSANDS of full-text documents • These repositories lack the “relevance” algorithm • Use the “Advanced Search” features to increase your success rate • Use subject headings whenever possible

  23. EEBO Subject keyword feature • Eg: “Tavern” as keyword: 5964 hits in 2622 records • “Taverns (Inns) – England” as subject keyword: 36 hits in 35 records

  24. EEBO Practice time

  25. Fascinated by primary sources? • Check out our Primary Sources guide • Some of the more popular sources listed on the ENGL 881 guide

  26. Questions? Help is available!!! • Holly Hendrigan, MATE liaison librarian • hah1@sfu.ca • 778-782-8203 Thanks for your time! 

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