ENG12 - Writing about Literature

This Course Guide is designed to assist you with research for the poetry assignment in Jeanne Grandchamp’s Eng. 12, Writing about Literature course.  If you need assistance using any of the sources or need help finding additional information please contact a reference librarian either by stopping by the LRC, calling 508.678.2811, ext. 2108, or using our Online Reference form.

To read the full description of the project, click here.

I Select a poem from your text as directed by Professor Grandchamp.

II The first part of the assignment requires you to explore the life of the poet you have chosen. Many of the sources listed below provide such information—just look for the word “biographical” in bold type.

III The next step is to find relevant critical commentary on the poem. To find out what one or two critics have written, check some of the sources below, or other sources if necessary.  This is where the search process gets most interesting. Keep in mind that the sources listed on this web page are not comprehensive, so while many of the poems in your book may be included, they will not all be mentioned. (Also, these are not the only sources of criticism in existence.)

If you cannot find a critical discussion of your chosen poem after carefully searching the recommended sources, ask a librarian for help. You might even need to choose another poem. Patience and persistence will help get you through the research process. Taking the time to read through the material is also rewarding, because some of the “general” observations made by the critic about your poet’s work could apply to your poem, even if the critic is not specifically addressing it. 

The following databases may provide relevant critical and biographical articles about poets you are studying. These articles appear in a variety of magazines, journals, and even books that have been made available online. 

Databases are accessible from off campus to patrons who have a valid accessBCC card unless otherwise specified. Type the bar code numbers (your library ID) on the back of the card when prompted.

Literary Reference Center
This provides biographical and critical material from books, reference books (including the Masterplots series), and scholarly journals.

Let’s say that you are interested in Christopher Smart. Type his name in the “find” box. You will see over 30 results. At the top is the list of categories, so you could click and focus on “Biographies” for example. “Periodicals” and “Literary Criticism” will lead you to critical articles.

Scribner Writers Series
This is the online version of a scholarly set of reference books. It provides 15-20 page signed essays by critics, and includes poets from the U.S. and other countries, living and dead.
This source includes both biographical information and critical opinions. 
 
Let’s say you chose Emily Dickinson’s poem, “My Life Had Stood—A Loaded Gun.” 
 
From the main menu, click on “Writers A-Z.”
Then, at the top of the page, click on the letter D. The results will show 4 documents about Dickinson. Hint: click on “American Writers Retrospective Supp.” for an extensive discussion of that poem and others, as well as information about her life.
 
Dictionary of Literary Biography
This is the online version of a scholarly set of reference books, providing essays that cover both biographical and critical material. Includes poets from the U.S. and other countries, living and dead.
 
Let’s say you chose Robert Browning’s “My Last Duchess.”
On the search form, click in the “Author Name” box and type: 
 
Browning, Robert
 
(You don’t need to fill in the other boxes.) 
 
Then click on the “search” button. The results will show four documents. Hint: click on the third, volume 32, for discussion of the poet’s life. To find commentary on his poem, use this shortcut. Press <control> and F keys simultaneously, to open the “Find” box. Type in: duchess. Then click on “Find Next.” This will take you to the part of the essay that discusses the poem.
 
Twayne’s Authors Series
This database consists of whole books by critics; each critic covers an important author, and major poets are included. These scholarly works typically present a chapter of biographical information, followed by extensive critical discussion of the author’s works. 
 
Let’s say you chose William Butler Yeats’s poem, “The Lake Isle of Innisfree.”
 
From the main menu, click on “Authors A-Z.”
Then, at the top of the page, click on “Y.” Next, click on “Yeats, William Butler.”
 
This will bring up the Table of Contents for the book about him.
Chapter One provides biographical information.
In Chapter Two, "The Lure of Dreaming Wisdom: The Early Poems," you will find some discussion of "Innisfree."
 
Contemporary Literary Criticism Select
This database provides scholarly articles on contemporary writers, including poets. The emphasis is on critical discussion, but typically there is biographical information as well, and in some cases interviews. Several searching options are offered, the most used being author and title. Keep in mind that if you search by title of a work, often the results will also include texts by authors other than the one you are interested in.
 
Let’s say you chose Elizabeth Bishop’s poem, “The Fish.”
To search by title, click on the “Title search” link on the left of the search form.
 
Then, type “the fish” in the entry box and click on the search button.
You will get 53 results (citations), but only two for Bishop. The citations each begin with the name of the author being discussed, so simply scroll down the page until you find Bishop.
 
Hint: the essay by Costello provides the richer discussion of the poem.
 
For biographical information, there is a “Biography Link” you can click on at the beginning of the essay.
 
If you want to search by author, return to the search form, and click on “Author search” on the left. Then type “Elizabeth Bishop” in the entry box and click on the search button.
You will get 7 results, the last of which is the biographical essay.
 
Academic OneFile
This comprehensive database covers many topics, including literature, and presents articles from both magazines and scholarly journals. You will find some critical articles here.
 
Let’s say you chose Robert Frost’s “Fire and Ice.” On the “Basic Search” form, type in the entry box: 
 
Robert Frost and fire and ice.
 
Next, click on “more search options” and then click in the two little boxes
to “Limit the results” to “documents with full text” and to “peer-reviewed publications.”
 
Click on the “search” button. You will see several results. Some are not relevant, but the two critical articles from the Explicator are. This is an excellent source, because the critical essays are scholarly but meant to be comprehensible to students.
 
Academic Search Premier
This comprehensive database covers many topics, including literature, and presents articles from both magazines and scholarly journals. You will find some critical articles here.
 
Let’s say you chose Edna St. Vincent Millay’s poem, “What Lips my Lips Have Kissed.”
In the “Find” box, type: millay and lips and kissed.
Next, click in two little boxes below to “Limit your results” to “Full Text” and to “Scholarly(Peer Reviewed) Journals.”
Click on the “search” button. One of the results is an article from the Explicator.
 
Biography Resource Center w/ Marquis Who's Who
This database provides information from reference books (including Contemporary Authors) and periodicals about people from many walks of life. You can search here for contemporary poets, as well as major figures from the past. Not only will you find biographical material, but some of the sources provide critical commentary as well.
 
Let’s say you chose Ezra Pound. Simply type his name in the entry box and click on the “search” button.
 
You will see five results under the Biographies tab. Some articles include critical commentary about his work. There are more articles available when you click the “magazines” tab. Some of these are from scholarly journals.
 
Credo
This database provides reference books on many subjects. To find biographical information from literature books, click on the “browse topics” link near the top of the page. 
 
Next, click on the link to “Literature” books. 
 
Let’s say you are looking up Emily Dickinson. Simply type her name in the box, and click on the “search” button. Several scholarly articles will come up on the first page of results. 

Gale Virtual Reference Library
This database provides access to the reference work, Contemporary Poets, and is useful if your poet is contemporary rather than one who lived in the past. For biographical material and some critical commentary, type the name of your poet in the “find” box. 
 
Let’s say you chose Maya Angelou. Simply type her name, and click on the “search” button.

MasterplotsComplete 2000
This database is a CD-ROM product available on the computers in the Reference area. It contains many of the articles previously printed in the Masterplots series of reference books. Here you will find short biographical essays on many authors, including poets, and also short but substantial critical essays on many literary works, including poems.

Let’s say you chose William Blake’s poem, “London.”
On the left side of the search page, at the top, go first to the “Index” box, which lets you choose from a drop-down menu. Click on “Titles.”

Next, in the “Input” box, type: London.
You will see 3 results; the first is on Blake’s poem. Click on that one for the article. At the bottom of the page is a link to Author Biography.

You can also search by “Author” in the index box. Some essays about the poets include discussion of individual poems which do not come up in a title search. For example, an “Author” search for Adrienne Rich results in multiple documents. The article about her Collected Poems mentions “Aunt Jennifer’s Tigers.”

All of the following reference books provide information about some of the poets on your reading list. The call numbers indicate location on the shelves in the Reference area of the library. These books cannot be borrowed, but you are welcome to make photocopies or take notes. If you need help finding them, a librarian will be happy to assist you. 

Ref/ PN/ 1101/ P756/ 1998
Poetry for Students. Ed. Marie Rose Napierkowski and Mary K. Ruby. 22 vols. Detroit: Gale, 1998. 

While some biographical information is available, the emphasis here is on detailed discussions of selected poems, with summaries and critical analysis from several critics.  Presents a substantial mix of classic and contemporary poems in 22 volumes. Definitely worth checking.

Ref/ PN/ 1021/ W67/ 2000
World Poets. Ed. Ron Padgett. 3 vols. New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons, 2000.  

Biographical information on poets from many countries, ranging from ancient to modern times. 

Ref/ PN/ 1110.5/ M37/ 1992
Masterplots II; Poetry Series. Ed. Frank N. Magill. 6 vols. Englewood Cliffs, N.J. : Salem P, 1992. 

Critical analysis of 760 individual poems, from 7^th century to 20^th. Includes poets from various countries, though most are British and American. 

Ref/ PR/ 502/ C85/ 1992
Critical Survey of Poetry; English Language Series. Rev. ed. Ed. Frank N. Magill. 8 vols. Englewood Cliffs, N.J.: Salem P, 1992.

Provides some biographical information, and critical analysis of the poets’ works. 

Ref/ PR/ 401/ E9/ v. 1
The Explicator Cyclopedia; Modern Poetry. Ed. Charles Child Walcutt and J. Edwin Whitesell. Chicago: Quadrangle, 1966.

Presents critical discussions of works by major poets (British and American) of the 19^th and 20^th centuries.

Ref/ PS/ 21/ E537/ 2004
The Oxford Encyclopedia of American Literature. Ed. Jay Parini. 4 vols. New York: Oxford UP, 2004. 

Covers American authors from colonial times to the present, and includes biographical information and critical discussions.

The library has a large collection of books that you can borrow, including biographical and critical works about some of the poets on your syllabus. To find out what is available, check the Online Catalog.

Let’s say you chose Sylvia Plath.

In the “search” box, type: Sylvia Plath.

Click on the “Subjects” button.

Some of the books listed include criticism. To find out if your poem is discussed, try checking the index in the back of the book.

You can also expand your search to other libraries in the SAILS network. On the main search screen, go to the drop down menu on the right, and scroll up to the top and click on “ALL.” Then click on “Subjects” again.

If you see a book you want, you can order it to be sent here. For help, check How to Place a Hold in the Online Catalog.