Introduction to Library Resources and Research

Methods for DRAMA 1701

Introduction to Drama September 12, 2012

Today’s class

• Primary and Secondary Sources• Scholarly and non-scholarly Sources• Most common secondary sources in

Literary/Theatre Studies• How to Find Secondary Sources (books,

articles, performance reviews, contextual and historical information)

• Keyword Selection (interactive exercise)

Primary Sources

• A primary source provides first-hand information on the topic. The author or artist personally participated in the event under discussion, such as a science experiment, a humanitarian mission, or the creation of a work of art. The work has not been changed or analyzed by another person or organization.

Examples of Primary Sources:

• Original research (results of an experiment, an archeological dig)

• Government Records (Parliamentary Proceedings, Bills, Acts)

• Personal works (diaries, letters)• Works of Art (paintings, sculptures,

photographs)

Secondary Sources

• Secondary sources present an argument, interpretation, conclusion, or summary based on information found in primary sources.

Examples of Secondary Sources:

• A biography • A book review• Commentary and criticism (of a work of music

or a work of art)• Histories

In Literary Studies

• Examples of primary sources?

In Literary Studies

• Examples of primary sources?…A novel, short story, poem or play

In Literary Studies

• Examples of primary sources?…A novel, short story, poem or play

• Examples of secondary sources?

In Literary Studies

• Examples of primary sources?…A novel, short story, poem, play

• Examples of secondary sources?…A book or journal article about a novel, short story, poem or play…A book review or review of a performance

Source for previous 8 slides (and for more information and examples): Primary and Secondary Resources: A Research Guide,

http://www.mta.ca/library/primary_secondary.html

Scholarly vs. Non-scholarlySecondary Sources

• Not every book or article about a literary work is necessarily a scholarly source.

• An article about Margaret Atwood published in The Globe and Mail or Macleans magazine, for example, would not be considered a scholarly source.

• Why not?

What is a Scholarly Source?

• Are generally written by experts in the field (look for: credentials, author affiliations)

What is a Scholarly Source?

• Are generally written by experts in the field (look for: credentials, author affiliations)

• Are generally peer-reviewed (critically assessed by other scholars and experts in the field prior to publication)

What is a Scholarly Source?

• Are generally written by experts in the field (look for: credentials, author affiliations)

• Are generally peer-reviewed (critically assessed by other scholars and experts in the field prior to publication)

• Engage and build on previous research on the same subject (see next bullet)

What is a Scholarly Source?

• Are generally written by experts in the field (look for: credentials, author affiliations)

• Are generally peer-reviewed (critically assessed by other scholars and experts in the field prior to publication)

• Engage and build on previous research on the same subject (see next bullet)

• Always cite all sources quoted or referenced in the book or paper (articles and books aimed at a non-academic audience don’t normally do this)

What is a Scholarly Source?

• Are generally published in a peer-reviewed journal (articles) or by a university press or publisher specializing in scholarly works (books – example: Oxford University Press)

What is a Scholarly Source?

• Are generally published in a peer-reviewed journal (articles) or by a university press or publisher specializing in scholarly works (books – example: Oxford University Press)

• Make a contribution to the field (present an original argument or interpretation)

What about book reviews?

• Scholarly or non-Scholarly?

What about book reviews?

• Scholarly or non-Scholarly?• Book reviews typically present one person’s

opinion about a newly published book. Book reviews do not normally engage with (or cite) existing scholarship on an author or attempt to present an argument or interpretation.

Same for reviews of a play?

Most Common Secondary sources in Literary Studies?

Most Common Scholarly Secondary sources in Literary Studies?

• Books and journal articles (articles published in academic, peer-reviewed journals)

Most Common Scholarly Secondary sources in Literary Studies?

• Books and journal articles (articles published in academic, peer-reviewed journals)

Examples: Nischik, Reingard M. Engendering Genre: The Works of

Margaret Atwood. Ottawa: University of Ottawa Press, 2009.

Deery, June. “Science for Feminists: Margaret Atwood’s Body of Knowledge.” Twentieth Century Literature 43.4 (1997): 470–86.

How to Find Secondary Sources

Where to search for Books: • MtA Library Catalogue and WorldCat • Other Library Catalogues• Other books (scan the bibliographies of books

you’ve already found)• Browsing library shelves • Google Books

How to Find Secondary Sources

Where to search for Journal Articles: • Journal Indexes and Databases such as the MLA

Database, Project Muse, JSTOR…• Also: the bibliographies of books or other articles

that you have already found.

How to Find Secondary Sources

Where to search for Journal Articles: • Journal Indexes and Databases such as the MLA Database,

Project Muse, JSTOR…• Also: the bibliographies of books or other articles that you

have already found.

Online? An increasing number of academic peer-reviewed journals are

available for free online and can be accessed through Google Scholar, the DOAJ, or through other Open Access Collections, but many journals can still only be accessed in library databases or in print format at the library.

Finding Articles Once You Have a Citation (but don’t yet have the full text)

Use the Library Catalogue and/or Journal Finder to search for the title of the journal (not title of the article).

Sample citation:

Deery, June. “Science for Feminists: Margaret Atwood’s Body of Knowledge.” Twentieth Century Literature 43.4 (1997): 470–86.

Finding Articles Once You Have a Citation (but don’t yet have the full text)

Use the Library Catalogue and/or Journal Finder to search for the title of the journal (not title of the article).

Sample citation:

Deery, June. “Science for Feminists: Margaret Atwood’s Body of Knowledge.” Twentieth Century Literature 43.4 (1997): 470–86.

Finding Articles

When you do not already have a citation for an article, and are looking for articles on a particular topic or about an author or work:

Use a journal index/library databaseExamples of library databases for

literary/theatre studies: • MLA International Bibliography (aka, the MLA

Database), JSTOR, Project Muse

Finding Articles

In other words…

Use a library database to search for articles on a topic (and access the full text, when available)

Use the Library Catalogue and/or Journal Finder to find out if the Journal in which an article was published is available at the library (when the full text is not immediately available)

What about Encyclopedias?

There are many specialized and discipline-specific encyclopedias in the Library.

Examples: • The Oxford Encyclopedia of American Literature• Encyclopedia of Feminist Literature• The Johns Hopkins Guide to Literary Theory and

Criticism• A Dictionary of Stage Directions in English Drama,

1580 - 1642

Encyclopedias

Encyclopedias are often considered “tertiary” sources. These are sources that compile, summarize or repackage information found in primary and secondary sources. Typically, the contents of encyclopedias are based on the work of other scholars.

Encyclopedias

Can help you:

• Find an overview of a topic • Find a summary of the critical reception of a work or author• Find additional secondary sources (articles in encyclopedias

sometimes include a bibliography)• Indentify the names of scholars who have published on a

topic• Become familiar with concepts and terminology that can

help with your search strategy (i.e. help you identify good and relevant keywords!)

Encyclopedias

Can also help you find contextual information (historical, biographical, political, etc.)

Examples:

• Companion to English Renaissance Literature and Culture

• France and the Americas: Culture, Politics and History: A Multidisciplinary Encyclopedia

• Greenwood Encyclopedia of Daily Life in America

Search Tip!

Truncation Symbol• $ in the Library Catalogue• * in most other library databasesExample:

Canad$ will find: Canada, Canadian, Canadians, Canadiana…

Sample Searches

• Searching for information about a play or author: >> example in the Library Catalogue

• Searching for historical information about a place and time: >> examples in the Library Catalogue

• Searching for articles: >> examples in the MLA Database

• Searching for performance reviews: >> example in LexisNexis

Keyword Selection

Sample essay topic:

Discuss the depiction of the poor in the works of American playwrights.

What are the relevant keywords?

Keyword Selection

Sample essay topic:

Discuss the depiction of the poor in the works of American playwrights.

What are the relevant keywords?

Keyword Selection

Sample essay topic:

Discuss the depiction of the poor in the works of American playwrights.

However…Keyword search:

poor and american and playwrights = 0 items !

Keyword Selection

What to do…Try using synonyms, related words (broader or

more specific), variant spellings (theatre, theater), etc.

In other words: try to account for the various ways different authors may express the same or similar ideas or topics.

Keyword Selection

Our original keyword search:poor and american and playwrights = 0 items

Using synonyms and related words:(poor or poverty or class) and (america$ or

united states) and (play$ or drama or theatre or theater) = 44 items!

Keyword Selection

Keyword selection matters. Search strategy matters. A few tips:

• Don’t rely on just one or two searches• The first words used to describe a topic are probably not

the only words you could use to search for information on that topic

• Take time to think about other ways to search for information on your topic (to find items that were not retrieved the first time)

• The sources you find first or most easily may or may not be the best sources for your topic