Introduction

Online Catalog

Reference Collection:

British Literature

American Literature

Poetry

Fiction

Literary Criticism Theory

Bio-bibliographical sources

Compilations of criticism

Internet Resources

Citing Sources

Introduction

Literary criticism is the evaluation of literary works. Literary criticism can take several forms. A criticism can compare a literary work with other works published during the same period. A criticism can compare one work of an author to other works also by that author. A criticism can compare a theme in the literary work of one author to the literary works of other authors who use the same theme.

Most literary criticism is published in scholarly journals that are available primarily in print. Very few scholarly journals on literary criticism exist in electronic form. Our library has some in both formats.

Online Catalog

Use the online catalog to identify books which evaluate an author’s works. Select the Subject search option to find books about the author’s work. Type in the author’s name as your subject. You can also type in immediately following the author’s name "criticism and interpretation", "bibliographies", or the title of a specific work.

Example:

Austen, Jane, 1775-1817—Criticism and interpretation

This subject search will identify general works which give critical analyses of the author’s works.

Austen, Jane, 1775-1817—Bibliography

This subject search will identify bibliographies which list other books and journal articles about the author’s works.

Austen, Jane, 1775-1817—Pride and Prejudice

This subject search will identify entire books that evaluate one specific work.

You can also search by more general literary subject headings to identify other literary criticism. Here are just a few examples of these:

Poetry—History and Criticism

Fiction—History and Criticism

American Literature—History and Criticism

British Literature—History and Criticism

English Drama—History and Criticism

Short Stories,American—History and Criticism

Subject headings can also be subdivided by literary periods:

American Literature—19^th Century —History and Criticism

British Literature—18^th Century— History and Criticism

Index and Bibliography Databases

Literature Resource Center
This database includes biographical information on authors and literary criticism of author works. The content for this database is taken from the authoritative critical sets published by the Thompson Gale company, as well as literary journals. Also included is the Encyclopedia of Literature and a Literary-Historical Timeline. A complete list of sources is available. Older print volumes of some of these sets are listed at the bottom of this guide and are available in the library.

Click here for citation information for this database.

Discovering Collection
This is an online collection of journal articles, encyclopedia entries, definitions and biographies covering various subjects, including literature. View a list of the resources included in this database. This database is produced by the same company that makes Literature Resource Center.

MLA International Bibliography
Bibliography of journal articles, books and dissertations on literature and languages.

Essay and General Literature Index
Index Area Ref Z 1011 E752 (1900-2004)
This index cites essays and articles contained in collections of essays and other works published in the United States, Great Britain and Canada. Focus is in the humanities and social sciences.

In the First Person
An index to diaries, letters, oral histories and personal narratives covering many subjects, all in the English language. Some of the sources are repositories and collections which are available free on the web. Source formats include text, audio and video files. Other sources are by subscription only and may not be available to access if the library does not subscribe.

JSTOR
This is an online archive of scholarly journals which have been digitally reproduced to provide access to the backfile of each title. Some titles go back to the 19th century. JSTOR will not include the latest 2 - 5 years of the journals. There are several journals representing language, literature and linguistics.

Humanities Index
Index Area REF AI 3 R492 (1974-2004).
This index covers literature, folklore and languages, plus other humanities topics such as archaeology & classical studies, area studies, history, literature, performing arts, philosophy, religion, theology.

Clase and Perioda via FirstSearch (password protected)
This database indexes documents from Latin American scholarly journals published in English, Spanish, Portuguese and French. Subjects cover the humanities, social sciences, sciences and technology.

Black Drama
This database offers the full-text of over 1200 dramatic plans from the mid-1800s by authors from North America, English-speaking Africa, the Caribbean and African Diaspora countries. Also included are playbills, images and other ephemera related to the productions.

British Literature

These sets cover all genres. Also see specific genres listed on following pages.

British Writers
Ref. PR 85 B688

Critical Temper
Ref. PR 83 C764

English Novel: 20^th Century Criticism
Ref. Z 2014 F4 E53

English Novel Explication
Ref. Z 2014 F5 P26

Masterplots II: British and Commonwealth Fiction Series
Ref. PR 881 M39 1987

Moulton’s Library of Literary Criticism
Ref. PR 83 M73 1966

Oxford Companion to English Literature
Ref. PR 19 D73 1995

Oxford Companion to Twentieth Century Literature in English
Ref. PR 471 O94 1996

American Literature

These sets cover all genres. Also see specific genres listed on following pages.

African American Writers
Ref. PS 153 N5 A344 1990

American Writers
Ref. PS 129 A55

Chicago Manual of Style
Ref. Z 253 U69 2003 15th ed
Targeted for writers and editors of scholarly books and journals but also for users who work with magazines, newletters, corporate reports, proposals, electronic publications web sites and other nonbook or nonprint documents. Includes the topics of manuscript preparation and editing, proofs, grammar, punctuation, spelling names, terms and numbers.

Concise Oxford English Dictionary
Ref. PE 1628 C68 2002
This dictionary includes more than 240,000 words, phrases, and definitions and hundreds of new words covering areas as diverse as e-commerce, technology, and fashion.

Harper Collins Reader’s Encyclopedia of American Literature
Ref. PS 21 B46 2002
This compendium focuses primarily on the U.S., although it also encompasses the literatures of Canada and Latin America. Its more than 6,000 entries include authors, filmmakers, songwriters, titles of literary works, characters, historical events, periodicals, groups and movements, and a variety of other topics. In addition, a number of lengthy articles provide broad overviews of the literary history of particular geographical areas, ethnic groups, and genres.

Jeff Herman’s Guide to Book Editors, Publishers and Literary Agents
Ref. Z 475 I57 2005
15th edition offering more than 400 United States and Canadian trade publishers, interviews with editors and agents and 120 websites including writers’ associations, funding sources and workshops.

Masterplots II: American Fiction Series
Ref. PN 846 M37

Oxford Companion to African American Literature
Ref. PS 153 N5 096 1997

Oxford Companion to American Literature
Ref. PS 21 H3 1995

Oxford Companion to Twentieth Century Literature in English
Ref. PR 471 O94 1996

World Literature

Cambridge Encyclopedia of World’s Ancient Languages
Ref. P 140 C36 2004
This volume brings systematic presentations of grammars which were accessible previously only by consulting multiple sources.  For some languages, this is the only existing grammatical description.

A companion to the literature and culture of the American South
Ref. PS 261 C555 2004
This book provides an overview of the whole range of literary and cultural activities in the American South.  It includes discussion of the visual arts, music, society, history, and politics in the region.

Cyclopedia of World Authors
Ref. PN 451 M36 1997

Encyclopedia of Latin American Literature
Ref. PQ 7081 A1 E56 1997

Encyclopedia of World Literature in the 20th Century.
Ref. PN 771 E5 1999

Latino and Latina Writers
Ref. PS 153 H56 L39 2004
Essays covering the lives, works and themes of Chicano and Chicana, Puerto Rican, Cuban and Dominican writers, emphasizing those who have published since 1960.  The important issues such as the role of music, language, feminism and history are also explored.

New Oxford Companion to French Literature
Ref. PQ 41 N48 1995

Oxford Companion to Classical Literature
Ref. PA 31 H69 1989

Oxford Companion to German Literature
Ref. PT 41 G3 1976

Oxford Companion to Spanish Literature
Ref. PQ 6006 O95

Reference Sources for Canadian Literary Studies
Ref. Z 1375 J65 2005
This volume offers the first full-scale bibliography of writing on and in the field of Canadian literary studies.

Schomburg Center Guide to Black Literature
Ref. PN 841 V36 1995

Women's Literature

American Women Writers
Ref. PS 147 A42 1983

Feminism in Literature
Ref. PN 471 F53 2005
Vol. 1 focuses on feminism in literature from antiquity through the 18th century, volume 2  and 3 on the 19th century, voumes 4, 5 and 6 include the 20th century to the present day.  The set contains reprinted criticism and bibliographical citations with further readings.

Feminist Companion to Literature in English
Ref. PR 111 B57 1990

Feminist Encyclopedia of Spanish Literature
Ref. PQ 6055 F46 2002

Masterplots II: Women’s Literature Series
Ref. PN 471 M37 1995

Modern American Women Writers
Ref. PS 151 M54 1991

Oxford Companion to Women’s Writing in the U.S.
Ref. PS 147 O94 1995

Drama

American Drama Criticism
Ref. Z 1231 D7 P3

Critical Survey of Drama: English Language
Ref. PN 2035 C7

Critical Survey of Drama: Foreign Language
Ref. PN 1625 C74 1986

Contemporary Dramatists
Ref. PR 737 C57 1988

Encyclopedia of World Drama
Ref. PN 1625 M3

International Dictionary of Theatre
Ref. PN 2035 I49 1992

Major Modern Dramatists
Ref. PN 1861 M27 1984

Masterplots II: Drama Series
Ref. PN 6112.5 M37 1990

Twentieth Century American Dramatists
Ref. PS 351 T9

Poetry

Contemporary Poets
Ref. PR 603 C6 1991

Critical Survey of Poetry: English Language Series
Ref. PR 502 C85 1982

Guide to American Poetry Explication
Ref. Z 1231 P7 G85 1989

Oxford Companion to Twentieth Century Poetry
Ref. 601 O9 1994

Poetry Explication
Ref. Z 2014 P7 K8

Short Stories

American Short Story Writers Since W.W.II
Ref. PS 374 S5 A398 1993

Critical Survey of Short Fiction
Ref. PN 3321 C7 2001

Reference Guide to Short Fiction
Ref. PN 3373 R36 1994

Twentieth Century Short Story Explication (2^nd ed.)
Ref. Z 5917 S5 W33

Fiction

Critical Survey of Long Fiction (English language series)
Ref. PN 3451 C75 2000

Critical Survey of Long Fiction (Foreign language series)
Ref. PN 3451 C71

Survey of Contemporary Literature
Ref. PN 44 M34

Magill’s Literary Annual
Ref. PN 44 M35

Literary Criticism Theory

Johns Hopkins Guide to Literary Theory and Criticism
Ref. PN 81 J554 1994

Bio-bibliographical sources
The sources listed below are older print versions of titles that are included in the Literature Resource Center database listed at the top of this guide.

Dictionary of Literary Biography Series.
Biographical information and literary criticism on authors and their works. The volumes are organized by literary periods and styles. Shelved individually by volume title within the Reference Collection--check online catalog for call number specific to a volume title.

Contemporary Authors: A Bio-Bibliographical Guide to Current Writers in Fiction, General Nonfiction, Poetry, Journalism, Drama, Motion Pictures, Television and Other Fields.
Ref. Z 1224 C6; Ref. Z 1224 C58; Ref. Z 1224 C6 A9

These sets, published by the Gale Group, are useful to get introductory criticisms for an author's work. To find out which set your author would appear in, connect to the Gale Literary Index (http://www.galenet.com/servlet/LitIndex) and search by either author name or the title of the author's work. This index also covers the sets listed above under bio-bliographies.

Classical and Medieval Literature Criticism. Detroit: Gale, 1988 - present.
Ref. PN 681.5 C57
Literary criticism compilations, authors of antiquity through 1399

Literature Criticism from 1400-1800. Detroit: Gale, 1984- present.
Ref. PN 86 L56 1984
Literary criticism compilations, authors of 1400 through 1799, excluding Shakespeare.

Shakespearean Criticism. Detroit: Gale, 1984 - present.
Ref. PR 2965 S43
Excerpts from the criticisms of Shakespeare’s plays and poetry.

Nineteenth-century Literature Criticism. Detroit: Gale, 1981 - present.
Ref. PN 761 N56
Literary criticism compilations, "authors who died between 1800-1899"

Twentieth-century Literary Criticism. Detroit: Gale, 1978- present.
Ref. PN 771 T83
Literary criticism compilations, "authors who died between 1900-1959"

Contemporary Literary Criticism. Detroit: Gale,1973 - present.
Ref. PN 771 C59
Literary criticism compilations, "authors now living or who died after Dec. 1, 1959"

Poetry Criticism. Detroit: Gale, 1991 - present.
Ref. PN 1010 P62
Excerpts from criticisms of the works of poets of all nationalities, movements and periods of literary history.

Short Story Criticism. Detroit: Gale, 1989 - present.
Ref. PN 3373 H37
Excerpts from criticisms of the works of major short fiction writers of all nationalities and periods of literary history.

Internet Resources

Glossary of Literary Terms
A free resources provided by the Gale Group, a leading publisher of literary criticism reference sources.

Internet Public Library Online Literary Criticism Collection
The Internet Public Library at the University of Michigan is a terrific source for links to resources on literature criticism.

Librarian's Index to the Internet: Literature and Books
Links to evaluated web sites concerning literature and books. Web sites are chosen for their informational content and most sites are free to use.

Poet's Corner
A free source from the Gale Group which gives basic information for many major poets, plus links to information on additional poets.

Citing Sources

For information on citing resources in a research paper, see Citing Print and Electronic Resources in Research Papers.