Guides to Literature
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Bibliography of American LiteratureA comprehensive bibliographic guide, providing nearly 40,000 records of the literary works of approximately 300 American writers from the American Revolution to 1930. It lists every reprint and variant edition of an authors works, including obscure and fugitive appearances in anthologies, broadsides, and gift books. It also includes details on bindings and physical features of the editions.
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English Short Title CatalogueFreely available resource lists 460,000 items published between 1473 and 1800. Describes works printed in any language in England or its dependencies from the beginning of printing through the end of the eighteenth century, as well as works printed in English anywhere else in the world during that period.
Found on the Internet
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PlayShakespeare.comA completely free Shakespeare resource.
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Understanding ShakespeareCollaborative project with JSTOR and the Folger Shakespeare Library.
Writing and Citing
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MLA Handbook, 8th edition by Call Number: KEN Reference LB2369 .G53 2016ISBN: 9781603292658Publication Date: 2016Find copies at the Research & Reference Desk (we have one copy now, more to come soon). -
MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers, 7th editionCall Number: KEN Reference LB2369 .G53 2009ISBN: 1603290249Publication Date: 2009Multiple copies are available at the Research & Reference Desk. -
MLA Style Manual and Guide to Scholarly PublishingCall Number: KEN Reference PN147 .G444 2008ISBN: 0873522974Publication Date: 2008Multiple copies are available at the Research & Reference Desk. -
A Short Guide to Writing About Literature, 11th edition by Call Number: KEN Reference PE1479 .C7 B3 2009ISBN: 0205602959Publication Date: 2009Available at the reference desk.
Helpful Tutorials
Reference Resources
Reference tools such as biographies, bibliographies, and encyclopedias can provide useful overviews of a topic, a time period, a genre, or an author's life and works. These are general literature reference tools, but keep in mind that there are also many author- or subject-specific resources in the reference collection, and that it might be helpful to browse the PN (general literature), PR (English literature), or PS (American literature) call number ranges to see if your topic is represented in a specialized reference work.
General Literary Background Information
Use these resources to find author biographies, critical essays, histories, and other general background information.
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Dictionary of Literary BiographyProvides more than 140,000 biographical and critical essays on the lives, works, and careers of the world's most influential literary figures from all eras and genres. Comprised of the Dictionary of Literary Biography main series, the DLB Documentary Series, and the DLB Yearbook Series.
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Listener Historical Archive (BBC)The Listener was a weekly publication, established by the BBC in 1929 as the medium for reproducing radio - and later, television - programmes in print. It is our only record and means of accessing the content of many early broadcasts. With major contributors including E. M. Forster, George Orwell and Bertrand Russell, it also provided an important platform for new writers and poets; W. H. Auden, Sylvia Plath and Philip Larkin being notable examples. As well as expanding on the intellectual broadcasts of the week, The Listener also discussed major literary and musical programmes. 10% of its content was not connected to broadcasting at all, and it regularly reviewed new books. What united the often diverse articles was the BBC's cultural mission of educating the masses.
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Literary EncyclopediaIncludes over 6,000 authoritative profiles of authors, works and literary and historical topics with coverage of English, American, Canadian, German and Russian literatures as well as increasing coverage of French, Italian, Japanese, Classical Greek, Latin, Hispanic and East European.
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Literary Print Culture: The Stationers' Company Archive, 1554-2007The Stationers’ Company Archive is one of the most important resources for understanding the workings of the early book trade, the printing and publishing community, the establishment of legal requirements for copyright provisions and the history of bookbinding. Explore extremely rare documents dating from 1554 to the 21st century in this invaluable resource
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Literary Reference Center PlusA full-text database that combines information from major respected reference works, books, literary journals as well as original content from EBSCO Publishing. Literary Reference Center Plus contains full text for more than 35,000 plot summaries, synopses and work overviews, nearly 100,000 articles/essays of literary criticisms, more than 253,000 author biographies (including more than 22,000 in-depth bios), more than 460 literary journals, more than 693,000 book reviews, nearly 78,000 classic and contemporary poems, more than 19,600 classic and contemporary short stories, more than 6,500 author interviews, more than 8,200 classic texts and much more.
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Oxford English DictionaryWidely regarded as the accepted authority on the English language. It is an unsurpassed guide to the meaning, history, and pronunciation of 600,000 words, past and present, from across the English-speaking world. As a historical dictionary, the OED is very different from Dictionaries of current English, in which the focus is on present-day meanings. You’ll still find present-day meanings in the OED but you’ll also find the history of individual words, and of the language traced through 3 million quotations, from classic literature and specialist periodicals to film scripts and cookery books.
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Primary Sources: LiteratureList of primary source materials available to the Kenyon community.
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Times Literary Supplement Historical ArchiveContains book reviews, arts reviews, poems, letters and commentary pieces.
Library Liaison
Sarah McKee
Contact:
stclairs@kenyon.edu
(740)427-5694
Library Building A
Office A-05
Research and Reference Chat Assistance
Fall Semester Hours:
Mondays: 10:00am-12:00pm (EST)
Tuesdays: 11:00am-12:00pm (EST)
Website(740)427-5694
Library Building A
Office A-05
Research and Reference Chat Assistance
Fall Semester Hours:
Mondays: 10:00am-12:00pm (EST)
Tuesdays: 11:00am-12:00pm (EST)
Other Useful LibGuides
Contemporary Authors
Contemporary Authors
To use Contemporary Authors, consult the most recent Cumulative Index (from the New Revision Index v. 1-256). For each author, there is a list of references: CANR refers to Contemporary Authors New Revision, CA is Contemporary Authors, and DLB is Dictionary of Literary Biography, another useful series. The number after each abbreviation is the volume number; entries within each volume are alphabetical by the author's last name.
The Contemporary Authors series is a set of bio-bibliographical guides to writers of fiction, poetry, journalism, drama, film, and more. Each entry includes a biographical sketch, a bibliography of the author's works, and an essay that includes information about critical assessments of and engagements with these works. You'll also find a selection of biographical and critical sources listed for further reading.
The Contemporary Authors series is a set of bio-bibliographical guides to writers of fiction, poetry, journalism, drama, film, and more. Each entry includes a biographical sketch, a bibliography of the author's works, and an essay that includes information about critical assessments of and engagements with these works. You'll also find a selection of biographical and critical sources listed for further reading.
