ENGL
501: Techniques of Literary Research
Dr. Debora
B. Schwartz
Introduction to Kennedy Library Research Tools
One purpose of this class is to learn to use some
of the research
tools accessible online through the Kennedy
Library to identify and obtain appropriate secondary sources (scholarly
criticism) on your research topic. Contrary to popular belief, reputable
scholarly resources are NOT typically available for free over the Web to
anyone. They are found in expensive, subscription-only databases
which take an increasingly large bite out of the Kennedy Library's Materials
Acquisition budget each year -- so you owe it to yourselves to use them
effectively! To access restricted resources from off campus, you
will be prompted to log in (using your PolyCard barcode, the 14-digit number
beginning 20150 on the front of your PolyCard); or you can log in at MyPolycat
each time you visit the Kennedy Library
site.
Research tools available through
the Kennedy Library can be used for two distinct functions: to identify
resources on a given topic, and to provide
access to these resources. While many of the tools offer
both
functions to some degree, the single most powerful tool to identify sources
on a literary research topic, the MLA bibliography,
does not provide direct access to the items it indexes. However,
a new (and still imperfect) tool, SFX, provides direct
links between MLA bibliography entries and some (but not all) of the Kennedy
Library resources which may be used to access to the item in question.
The present page offers a brief overview of some of the
most important Kennedy Library tools for literary research. The research
exercises accessible from the class calendar will guide you as you learn
how to use specific research tools to identify and access secondary
sources on a literary research topic. Before beginning these
exercises, you should be familiar with the various types
of resource that are available, the research tools
that can be used to identify and access them, and the various modes
of access that can be used to obtain them. Use the following
links to navigate the information on this page:
5 Types of Sources:
-- Primary sources
-- Secondary sources including:
How to locate:
MLA bibliographic citation formats for:
|
4 Modes of Access
to print and electronic resources:
-
Kennedy Library (for print, audio-visual,
and special collections)
-
Electronic access (through Kennedy Library
subscription databases).
-
LINK+ (to obtain books from a consortium of
lender libraries)
-
ILL (to obtain journal articles not available
at Kennedy Library and books not available from LINK+)
A new (and imperfect) tool, SFX
is a linking technology that attempts to check whether an item can be accessed
at Cal Poly, providing links to PolyCat, to Interlibrary Loan order forms,
and/or to full-text electronic versions in some (but not all) of Cal Poly's
subscription databases. While it is not itself a mode of access, it can
facilitate access to materials. Follow the link for a cautionary
word about SFX's limitations. |
Profiles of 5 Types
of Research Tools Every English Student Should Know (and use
to identify and/or access secondary sources on a given research topic):
Follow links for cautionary notes on using Polysearch
to search multiple databases and on using web
search engines for literary research. |
PRELIMINARIES I: TYPES OF SOURCES
A "primary" source refers to a novel,
poem, short story, collection, play, essay etc. by the author who is the
focus of your literary research.
A "secondary" source refers to
a scholarly work (e.g. a book, journal
article, essay, or review)
about
the primary work, author, genre, technique etc. that is the focus of your
research. The secondary sources you are most likely to use in a research
paper include:
1) Single-author book:
a
book-length scholarly work by one author (or several co-authors) published
in book form (but not an edited collection of essays
by multiple authors). A citation for a book includes the author,
title, city of publication, publisher and year of publication. The
basic MLA bibliographic format for a book citation is:
Author last name, Author first name. Title of Book.
City of publication: Publisher, year.
[The above model presents the simplest form for a book citation; consult
your MLA Handbook for specific rules that apply in different situations.
Note that the MLA bibliographic format in this and all other examples on
this page should be followed
exactly; pay attention to which information
should be included, the order in which elements should appear, the punctuation
(or lack of punctuation) between them, which elements should be underlined
(or italicized), which elements should be enclosed in quotation marks,
and the final punctuation.]
To locate a single-author book for which you
have a citation, first check Polycat using the author and title of
the book as search terms. If the book is not available in the Kennedy
Library collections, use the same search terms to look for it in LINK+.
If the book is not available from either Polycat or LINK+, you can order
it from ILL using an ILL
BOOK Order form.
2) Journal article:
a scholarly essay by one author (or several co-authors) published in a
scholarly journal or review which appears periodically. A citation
for a journal article includes the author's name, the title of the article,
the title of the journal, volume and issue numbers, year (or month and
year), and inclusive page numbers on which the article appears. The
basic MLA bibliographic format for a journal article citation is:
Author's last name, Author's first name. "Title of Article."
Title
of Journal x.y (year of publication): inclusive page numbers.
[In the model above, x=volume number in arabic numerals, y=issue number
in arabic numerals; they are separated by a period. For page numbers,
indicate 1st and last page numbers with a dash between them.] Note
1: The title of the journal is found in an MLA Bibliography entry
under "source." Note 2: The above model presents the simplest
form for an article citation; consult your MLA Handbook for specific
rules that apply in different situations.
To locate a journal article for which you
have a citation, search for the title of the JOURNAL in which the article
appears (not for the author's name or title of the article itself)
using Polycat's Journal
Title Search AND Serials
Solutions (an index of all e-periodicals available in the Kennedy Library
collections). If the journal is available, check the listing to determinee
whether the specific issue you need is in the Kennedy Library collections;
both Polycat and Serials Solutions will indicate the volumes/years covered,
as well as the format (bound in the stacks, on microfiche, or electronic
in a subscription database), provide a call number allowing you to locate
the journal in the stacks or on microfiche, or indicate the specific subscription
database(s) in which an electronic version of the periodical is found.
Another tool under development (and not yet fully reliable) is Citation
Linker, an SFX service which searches for full-text electronic access
to a given article in some (but not all) Kennedy Library Subscription Databases.
If an article is not available in the Kennedy Library collections in print
or electronic form, you can order it from ILL using
an ILL Article Order form.
3) Essay in an edited collection:
a
scholarly essay by one author (or several co-authors) from an edited collection
of essays published in a book rather than in a periodical. A citation
for an essay in an edited collection includes the author's name, the title
of the article, the title of the book in which it appears, the editor(s)
of the book in which it appears, complete publication information for the
book in which it appears (city, publisher and year of publication), and
inclusive page numbers on which the essay appears. The
basic MLA bibliographic format for an essay in an edited collection
combines the formats for a book and for a journal article:
Author's last name, Author's first name. "Title of Essay."
Title
of Book. Ed. Editor's full name (not in inverted order).
City of publication: publisher, year. inclusive page numbers.
[For page numbers, indicate 1st and last page numbers with a dash between
them.] Note 1: An essay in an edited collection is called a "book
article" in the MLA Bibliography; the BOOK TITLE
is found in an MLA Bibliography entry under "source." Note 2: The
above model presents the simplest form for citing an essay in an edited
collection; consult your MLA Handbook for specific rules that apply
in different situations.
To locate an essay in an edited collection for
which you have a citation, search Polycat by
title for the title of the BOOK in which the essay appears (not
for the title of the essay itself; the BOOK TITLE is found in an MLA Bibliography
entry under "source"); or, do an "author" search in Polycat for the EDITOR
of the book in which the essay appears (not for the author of the
essay itself). If the book is not available in Polycat, search LINK+
using the same search terms you used in Polycat. If the book is also
not available from LINK+, you can order it from ILL
using an ILL BOOK Order form;
under "author," be sure to put the name of the EDITOR of the BOOK IN WHICH
THE ESSAY APPEARS (not the author of the essay itself); under "title,"
be sure to provide the title of the BOOK IN WHICH THE ESSAY APPEARS (not
the title of the essay itself).
4) A review: a critical
assessment of a literary work or works, film, performance etc., published
in a periodical. A citation for a review includes the author
and title of the review (if applicable), the author (or editor/translator/director
etc., as applicable) and title of the subject of the review, and publication
information on the periodical in which the review was published.
See the MLA Handbook for specifics. The
basic MLA bibliographic format for a review of a single book is:
Reviewer's last name, Reviewer's first name. "Title of
Review (if applicable)." Rev. of Title of Book Being Reviewed, by
Author of Book Being Reviewed. Periodical Title date of periodical:
inclusive page numbers.
[The date of publication immediately follows the underlined periodical
title without any intervening punctuation. For the date, use the
order "day month year" followed by a colon and inclusive page numbers comprising
the 1st and last page numbers with a dash between them.] Note: see the
MLA
Handbook for format to use for reviews of more than one work or of
a performance, translation, edition, etc.
To locate a book review for which you have
a citation, follow the guidelines above for
locating an article in a periodical.
5) Please note that the citation guidelines above cover only
the simplest form of the four most common categories of secondary source
and apply only to print versions of those sources (not to electronically
accessed versions). For electronically accessed journal
articles and e-books,
see below; for variations upon these categories and for other types of
secondary source (e.g. editions, translations, multivolume works, reprints,
websites, etc.), consult your MLA Handbook.
PRELIMINARIES II: MODES OF
ACCESS:
There are four ways to access an item for which you have a bibliographic
citation:
-
Hard copies of both books and periodicals
may be available in the Kennedy Library collections. For access,
use Polycat to determine the location and call number
needed to find the item in the stacks, reference room, microfiche collection,
reserve room, current periodicals, or in Special Collections.
-
Electronic access to some books and journals
is available through the Kennedy Library's subscription databases.
E-books can be accessed from their listings in Polycat,
or search directly for an e-book by topic or title in NetLibrary.
Likewise, electronic journals can be accessed through Journal Title listings
in Polycat, or you can search directly for articles
by topic, keyword, author or title in Kennedy Library's full-text
journal databases. As long as you are aware of their respective limitations,
you can save time by using Polysearch to search
multiple databases simultaneously, or Citation
Linker to see if a full-text version of an article is available electronically.
-
LINK+ combines the online catalogues of a consortium
of academic and public libraries. Through LINK+, you can borrow a book
that is not in the Kennedy Library Collections from another institution
in the consortium. Note: LINK+ cannot be used to borrow
journals, journal articles, software, audio/video materials, and certain
rare books. It is both faster and cheaper (for the library) than
ILL, so check it first when looking for a book (single-author
or an edited collection) that is not listed in Polycat. For more
information, see the LINK+ profile below.
-
ILL (interlibrary loan, exclusive of LINK+) is
a Kennedy Library service allowing you to request items that are not available
in the Kennedy Library Collections (either in print or electronic form)
or through LINK+. Use an ILL
Article Request for articles from periodicals that are not in the
Kennedy Library Collections in print, microfiche or electronic form; use
an ILL Book Request
for books that are not available through Polycat
or LINK+. For more information (e.g. borrowing periods,
renewals, and late fees), consult the Kennedy Library page Interlibrary
Loan Policies & FAQ.
PROFILES OF THE FIVE BEST
RESEARCH TOOLS for Savvy Students of English:
1)Polycat
What it is: a catalogue listing all materials available in the
Kennedy Library collections, including both print and electronic resources
accessible through one of the library's subscription databases. Searchable
by keyword, author, title, subject, author/title, call number, or journal
title.
What it contains:
-
bibliographic entries for all print resources in the library collections
(hard copies of books, periodicals, documents and other source materials
found in the stacks, Current Periodicals, Special Collections, or on Reserve
for a course) with a call number allowing you to locate the item.
-
bibliographic entries for resources in the library collections which can
be accessed electronically from one of the library's subscription
databases. These include:
-- Netlibrary
for e-books (electronic versions of printed books of which the library
may also have a hard copy);
-- Full-text journal databases
for periodicals. (NOTE: periodicals found in the full-text subscription
databases are listed in Polycat by journal title only; Polycat does
not
contain author or title listings for the articles which are found within
these periodicals.)
-
bibliographic entries for videos and audio recordings in the library collections.
When and why to use it:
-
as you begin research, to identify an initial (and far from complete) list
of library holdings by or on a given author, title or topic.
-
to check whether the library holds a specific item for which you have a
bibliographic citation (e.g. from the MLA Bibliography Database,
the notes or bibliography in another work you have consulted, or a citation
provided by a professor in class).
Strengths:
allows you to connect directly to LINK+ to continue
a search for a book that is not available from the Kennedy Library
Collections.
allows you to connect directly to ILL to place an order
for an article from a periodical that is not available at the Kennedy
library (in hard copy or electronic form) or for a book that is
not available at the Kennedy Library or through LINK+.
allows you to virtually "browse" the stacks starting from a Polycat
Call
Number listing to determine what items are shelved together in
the Kennedy Library Collections, even if these items are currently misshelved
or checked out to another borrower.
allows you to put a hold on an item that is currently checked out to another
borrower.
Limitations:
-
In theory, a Polycat Journal
Title listing should identify all means of accessing a given
periodical within the Kennedy Library's collections, whether as a hard
copy (found in Current Periodicals or bound in the stacks), on microfiche,
or electronically (through a full-text subscription
database). But in fact, Polycat journal title entries cannot
keep up with the ever-changing list of periodicals in the databases to
which the Kennedy Library subscribes. It is therefore prudent to
check for a given journal title both in Polycat
AND in Serials
Solutions, an index of all e-periodicals available in the Kennedy
Library collections which lists the volumes/years covered and the subscription
database(s) in which the periodical is found. You can also try Citation
Linker to see if a full-text version of an article for which you
have a full citation is available online -- but like all SFX
tools, it is not completely reliable because it can't talk to all
of Poly's subscription databases; full text of a journal article may
in fact be available electronically (e.g. through JSTOR),
even though clicking on the SFX "FIND IT" tab produces the message "No
online Full-Text available via SFX!" (Follow link for more on the limitations
of SFX).
-
Polycat is at best an imperfect tools for bibliographic research
due to the limitations on the subject listings that can be included.
Because it can't tell you what is found between the covers of the books
and periodicals it indexes, it is best used in conjunction with a research
tool such as the MLA Bibliography which indexes
individual essays
within edited collections and articles within periodicals by author,
title, keyword and subject. After using the MLA Bibliography to generate
a list of books, journal articles and "book articles" (essays
in edited collections published in book form), go first to Polycat
to determine whether the resource in question is available in the Kennedy
Library's collections, and if not, to request the item via access LINK+
or ILL.
2) LINK+
What it is: a union catalogue of the combined holdings of 40+
participating academic and public libraries in California and Nevada, searchable
by author, title, keyword or subject. Patrons from member libraries
electronically request an item not available in their own library which
is delivered for checkout from their home institution at no charge to the
individual patron (although at some cost to the library). Books may
be borrowed for a period of 21 days with one renewal. Patrons may
request no more than 15 LINK+ items at one time. Items typically
arrive in 2-4 days and will be held for pick-up at the circulation desk
for up to 10 days. LINK+ may be accessed directly at <csul.iii.com>
or linked to from Polycat.
What can be borrowed: books which are not available
in the Kennedy Library collections (or which are missing from the collections)
and which are listed as "available" in the union catalogue. LINK+
cannot
be used to borrow journals, journal articles, software, audio/video materials,
and certain rare books.
When to use it:
-
as you begin your research, to identify and order a broader range of books
on your research topic than can be found in the Kennedy Library collections
using Polycat.
-
when you have a bibliographic citation for a single-author
book or an essay from an edited collection
published as a book and the book you need is not listed
in Polycat (e.g. in a citation from the MLA Bibliography,
from the notes or bibliography in a work you have consulted, or a citation
provided by a professor). Because LINK+ is faster, cheaper (for the
library) and more reliable than ILL, always check it
first
when
looking for a book (single-author or an edited collection) that
is not listed in Polycat.
Strengths:
you can connect directly from Polycat to LINK+ to
continue a search for a book that is not found in Polycat.
offers quick access to a far greater number of books than are available
in the Kennedy Library collections.
faster, cheaper (to the library), and generally more reliable than ILL.
Requested books usually arrive within 2-4 days and will be held at the
circulation desk for up to 10 days.
Limitations:
-
cannot be used to borrow journals, journal articles, software, audio/video
materials, and certain rare books, or to borrow titles available at Cal
Poly (except for books that are missing from the Kennedy Library collections).
-
patrons limited to 15 LINK+ transactions at a given time.
-
fees for lost or overdue items are high.
-
like Polycat, LINK+ is at best an imperfect tool
for basic bibliographic research due to the limited number of subject listings
that can be included in the record for a given book. Because it searches
multiple library catalogues, however, it can provide many more results
than an identical search in Polycat.
-
tiny differences in the way an item is catalogued at the different libraries
in the consortium can result in the same book being listed multiple times.
Tip: LINK+ can be fruitfully used in conjunction with the MLA
Bibliography to locate essays in edited book collections that are
not available at Cal Poly. In the MLA Bibliography, limit your search by
document type to "book article" (the term used to designate an essay
in an edited collection as opposed to an article
in a journal or periodical). In the document record, note the
title,
editor and bibliographic information for the book listed as the "source,"
i.e. the book in which the essay appears; "source" information immediately
follows the author and title of the "book article" (essay) itself.
Go to Polycat
and do a "title" search for the BOOK LISTED AS THE SOURCE of the essay
(NOT for the title of the individual essay); or, do an "author" search
for the EDITOR OF THE BOOK LISTED AS THE SOURCE of the essay (NOT for the
author of the individual essay). If the book is not listed
in Polycat, click on the "Search LINK+" tab at the top of the screen.
3) The MLA
Bibliography
What it is: the single most powerful tool to identify published
works on a literary research topic. The most comprehensive literary
and language database available, it provides citations only (not
direct access) for a broad range of secondary
sources and some primary sources (e.g.
scholarly editions of primary texts).
When to use it:
-
to generate the most complete list of secondary sources on a given research
topic.
-
to identify a particular kind of secondary resource on a given topic,
such as books, articles, "book
articles" (i.e. essays in edited collections), book
collections, or dissertation abstracts.
-
to generate the most complete list of secondary sources published
within a given range of dates, e.g. within the last ten years. (By contrast,
full-text
databases and NetLibrary, which also can
be limited by date, provide information only on the journals or e-books
they contain.)
Strengths:
-
Extremely comprehensive, it is updated ten times per year, with coverage
from 1963 to the present.
-
Extremely flexible, it is searchable by up to three search terms from a
list of over twenty (including keyword, author, title, descriptor, subject,
series title, publication date, etc.)
-
Boolean search terms ("and," "or," "not") can be used to tailor a search
-
Search results can be limited by language, by document type, by date range,
or to include only peer-reviewed sources.
-
While the MLA Bibliography does not itself provide access to any material,
SFX,
a new (and imperfect) tool, links MLA bibliography entries to certain Kennedy
Library resources, allowing you to check for an item in Polycat, link to
full-text versions available through some (but not all) of the Kennedy
Library subscription databases, or place an ILL
order from within the MLA bibliography listing.
Limitations:
-
provides citations only; does not offer direct access to
the items it indexes. Users must know how to check for an indexed
item in the Cal Poly collections (both print and electronic), and know
how to order an item that is not available at Cal Poly using LINK+
or ILL.
-
the SFX links in an MLA bibliography
listing are not always reliable, since SFX
does not know how to "talk to" all the subscription databases in the Cal
Poly collection. Thus, full text of a journal article may in
fact be available electronically through a Kennedy Library subscription
database even when clicking on the "FIND IT for Links-Full-text Resources"
tab in an MLA journal article listing results in the message "No online
Full-Text available via SFX!"
TIP: because of the imperfect interface between SFX
and some subscription databases, when looking for a journal article listed
in the MLA Bibliography, it is prudent to check for the journal by JOURNAL
TITLE (not by the title of the article) both in Polycat
AND in Serials
Solutions (an index of all periodicals available electronically
in the Kennedy Library collections). You can also try Citation
Linker (another SFX resource) to look for full-text
versions of an article available electronically (but keep in mind that
SFX doesn't search all of Cal Poly's full-text databases).
4) Subscription Databases
offering full-text journal access
What's available: among the many databases to which Kennedy Library
subscribes, there are four which offer full-text, electronic access to
a significant number of scholarly journals in the fields of language and
literature. They are:
-
Academic
Search Elite, indexing over 2,900 publications, including
scholarly journals in the social sciences, humanities, general science,
education and multicultural studies, as well as popular magazines. Full-text
electronic access is provided for over 1,300 periodical titles. Where
full text is not available, citations may include an abstract (summary
of an indexed article). Coverage: from 1990 to the present.
-
Expanded
Academic Index ASAP, indexing over 1400 core scholarly journals
in the humanities, social sciences, and general sciences as well as some
popular publications (including the New York Times). About one-third of
the indexed articles include full-text electronic access. Where
full text is not available, citations may include an abstract (summary
of an indexed article). Coverage: from 1980 to the present.
-
Project
Muse, offering full-text electronic access from a
searchable database of over 100 scholarly journals in the humanities and
social sciences. Coverage: from 1997 to the present.
-
JSTOR,
offering full-text electronic access from a searchable database
of the back issues for more than 130 scholarly journals in the humanities
and social sciences. Coverage for each journal begins with volume 1. Because
JSTOR is an archival database, issues are not available for the latest
3-5 years.
When to use them:
-
to identify and browse full-text articles on a given topic without a specific
citation. (See also comments under Polysearch,
below.)
-
to determine whether Cal Poly offers full-text electronic access to an
article for which you have a specific citation. (See also comments under
Citation
Linker, below.)
Strengths:
-
full-text databases provide 24/7 electronic access from any web browser
to a selection of full-text journal articles.
-
full-text articles may be read online, printed out, down-loaded to your
hard drive or emailed to yourself.
-
Boolean search terms ("and," "or," "not") can be used to tailor a search.
-
depending on the database, searches may be limited by date range, to include
only peer-reviewed journals, or to exclude citations without full-text
access.
-
multiple databases may be searched simultaneously using Polysearch,
although the same limitations apply as for
other SFX resources: since SFX does not interface
with all Cal Poly subscription databases, full text of a journal
article may in fact be available electronically (e.g. through JSTOR),
even though clicking on the SFX "FIND IT" tab produces the message "No
online Full-Text available via SFX!"
-
you can look for a specific article for which you have a citation in three
of the four listed databases using Citation Linker
(but the same limitations apply as for any
SFX
resource; see preceding comment).
Limitations:
-
each of the four databases has specific quirks which must be mastered before
they can be used with maximal efficiency. For instance, full-text
articles in html format may lack pagination found in the print version
of the same article. (To avoid this problem, choose a PDF fileover HTML
when the option is available.)
-
some journals are indexed in more than one database, resulting in duplicate
hits.
-
not all relevant periodicals are indexed in one of the subscription databases.
Students who rely exclusively on electronically accessed full-text journal
articles but neglect to consult the MLA bibliography
will miss valuable resources on their topic.
TIP 1: Polysearch
is a new research tool which searches multiple full-text databases simultaneously.
While Polysearch can be a time-saver, it should be used with care for the
following reasons:
-
the basic search function searches numerous databases that are not
particularly helpful to students of literature, leading to many unhelpful
results.
-
the list of "Most Useful Databases for English," available through
the advanced search function, is not exhaustive; like SFX
tools, it omits JSTOR, one of the best full-text databases
for literary research.
-
Although looking in several databases at once may speed up your searches,
this increased efficiency comes at a cost: you lose the specialized
search options and functions which are specific to an individual database.
The "one size fits all" search hits only common denominators, speeding
up the process but sacrificing the fine-tuning that is possible when one
learns the quirks of individual databases.
-
Polysearch results mix apples with oranges: Polycat entries, simple bibliographic
citations (with no abstract or full text access), bibliographic citations
with an abstract (but no full-text access), and full-text articles from
a subscription databases will all be included, when in fact it is easier
to deal intelligently with only one such category of resource at
a time.
-
Students using Polysearch may falsely assume that they have obtained all
relevant
"hits" for a given research topic, when in fact Polysearch does not automatically
search all available and relevant databases and may miss some resources
that could be unearthed by using the full range of search functions (rather
than just the common denominators).
-
Students are therefore strongly advised to customize Polysearch
using the "my.favorites" function in "My Polysearch" to avoid excessive
erroneous hits and to ensure that all relevant databases are consulted.
TIP 2: if you have a citation for a
journal article, you can try Citation
Linker (another SFX
resource) to check whether a full-text version is available from three
of the four databases. However, the same limitations
apply as for other SFX resources: since
SFX does not interface with all Cal Poly subscription databases,
full text of a journal article may in fact be available electronically
(e.g. through JSTOR), even though clicking on the SFX "FIND IT" tab produces
the message "No online Full-Text available via SFX!"
TIP 3: Be sure that you
cite a journal article accessed electronically through a subscription database
correctly. 1) Provide a complete citation as you would for the print
version of the journal article. (FULL
pagination for the article may not be included in the initial entry describing
the article, but it may appear in the text of the essay itself). Hint:
if
there is a choice, access the article in a .pdf file (which is essentially
a photocopy of the print journal) rather than in .html format to ensure
accurate pagination. For an HTML version that does not provide inclusive
pagination, you may be able to find the original print-version pagination
in the MLA Bibliography. 2) At the end of the complete
journal
article citation, add: the name of the subscription database (underlined
and followed by a period). The library through which the subscription
database was accessed (followed by a period). The date of access
followed immediately by the URL of the subscription database (not of the
article itself) in triangular brackets and immediately followed by a period.
Thus, to the basic bibliographic entry for a journal article accessed through
Project Muse, you would add the following:
Project Muse. The Robert E. Kennedy Library, California
Polytechnic State University. Date of access <http://muse.jhu.edu/>.
(Alternatively, you can use the "stable URL" for the article itself --
but if it's excessively long, the URL of the database is preferable.)
For fuller details, consult your MLA Handbook (in the 5th ed.,
see sections 4.9.4 and 4.9.7; in the 6th ed., see sections 5.9.4 and 5.9.7).
5) Netlibrary
What it is: a searchable subscription database offering
access to e-books in the Kennedy Library Collections. Also includes
a number of e-books that are in the public domain. E-books available
through Netlibrary are included in Polycat records along with any print
versions available. About half the collection consists of single-user titles,
while the other half is licensed for 4 simultaneous users. If you access
a title that is already in use, a message will appear to ask you to try
the request later.
When to use it:
-
to access a specific e-book from a citation found in Polycat.
-
to search 1,400 subscription-only online book titles and 3,500 publicly
available titles (primarily literary classics) by keyword, subject, etc.
-
to search or browse reference resources including encyclopedias, dictionaries,
directories, handbooks, and thesauri.
Strengths:
-
NetLibrary provides 24/7 electronic access to electronic books which may
be previewed with your browser or checked out for exclusive personal use
for a specified period of time.
-
The Reference Center Browse feature allows you to view a list of all titles
in the reference center collection by subject; it includes encyclopedias,
dictionaries, directories, handbooks, and thesauri.
-
The Basic Search lets you quickly perform a search in a single field (e.g.
Keyword, Title, Author, or Full Text). Basic Search is featured on the
home page and is available on the right side of every non-search page.
-
Advanced Search lets you construct more complicated searches using multiple
fields (e.g. Keyword, Title, Author, Full Text, Subject, ISBN), Boolean
operators (and, or, not), and limits (year, publisher, language, format).
-
Once you have generated a list of Search Results, you may choose to view
an eBook immediately in the online reader; go to the Details page for additional
information about the title and other viewing options; revise your search
(or conduct a new one). Sort shows how the results list is arranged
and allows you to re-sort using different sort options. The title listing
includes the title, author, and publication information about each item.
The bibliographic information (on the Details page) includes subject
listings with links which can be used to search for other titles in
that subject area.
-
You may view an eBook for approximately 15 minutes. After a period of inactivity,
the eBook may be made available for someone else to view.
-
Page navigation options are shown at the top and bottom of every page.
You may navigate through an eBook using the Previous and Next page links,
the page number links, or the "Go to Page" option. When viewing an eBook
in the online reader, you can navigate using the Table of Contents or search
the full text for a given word or phrase.
Limitations:
-
because of the limited number of e-books available, a given NetLibrary
search may not yield any results for the topic you are researching
-
searching the database can be frustrating until you have mastered the best
search techniques. Consult the online help for guidance and pointers.
TIP: Be sure to cite an eBook accessed
through NetLibrary correctly. 1) Provide a complete citation as you
would for the print version of a single-author book
(or, as appropriate, an essay in an edited collection).
2) After the complete book or essay
citation, add: the name of the subscription database (underlined and followed
by a period). The library through which the subscription database
was accessed (followed by a period). The date of accessfollowed immediately
by the URL of NetLibrary in triangular brackets and a period. Thus,
to the basic bibliographic entry for a book or essay in an edited collection,
you would add the following information:
NetLibrary. The Robert E. Kennedy Library, California
Polytechnic State University. Date of access <http://www.netLibrary.com/index.asp>.
A final word: Students
of English literature should be aware that searching
the Web with a standard search engine (such as Google, Lycos, etc.) will
NOT typically turn up resources appropriate for citation in an academic
research paper. With the exception of genuine scholarly work
made available on a reputable scholarly website by a recognized,
academic author (e.g. unpublished conference papers, previously published
essays, book chapters or journal articles), material found online is HIGHLY
UNLIKELY to be suitable for citation in your research paper. If you
DO choose to look for other resources on the web, be sure to consult Finding
and Evaluating Websites for tips on how to evaluate the scholarly validity
of a website or resource found online. One sign of a reputable scholarly
source MAY be a URL (web address) ending with ".edu"; but keep in mind
that such web-sites may also be student-authored work (posted on his or
her own or a professor's website) which is not typically suitable
for citation in a research paper.
Contents of this and linked pages residing on this site Copyright
Debora B. Schwartz, 2004