LibGuides: FYWB 1109: First-Year Writing, Wild Tongues (Benjamin): Finding Background Material

General Reference Sources

Cambridge Companions
Cambridge Companions are a series of authoritative guides, written by leading experts, offering lively, accessible introductions to major writers, artists, philosophers, topics, and periods.

The Cambridge Companion to Feminist Literary Theory by Ellen Rooney (Editor)
Call Number: Butler Stacks PN98.W64 C35 2006 & ebook
ISBN: 0521807069
Publication Date: 2006-07-06
Feminism has dramatically influenced the way literary texts are read, taught and evaluated. Feminist literary theory has deliberately transgressed traditional boundaries between literature, philosophy and the social sciences in order to understand how gender has been constructed and represented through language. This lively and thought-provoking Companion presents a range of approaches to the field. Some of the essays demonstrate feminist critical principles at work in analysing texts, while others take a step back to trace the development of a particular feminist literary method. The essays draw on a range of primary material from the medieval period to postmodernism and from several countries, disciplines and genres. Each essay suggests further reading to explore this field further. This is the most accessible guide available both for students of literature new to this developing field, and for students of gender studies and readers interested in the interactions of feminism, literary criticism and literature.

Dictionary of Literary Biography Complete Online
Provides access to biographical essays focusing on all genres and time periods of American and British literature and selected other literatures. Essays discuss the lives and careers of authors and summarize critical responses to their work.

Dictionary of Literary Themes and Motifs by Jean-Charles Seigneuret (Editor); A. Owen Aldridge; Armin Arnold; Peter H. Lee
Call Number: Butler Reference R803 D559
ISBN: 0313229430
Publication Date: 1988-11-21
More Info...
Consists of 143 essays contributed by 98 specialists in world literature. Topics covered include themes relating to adventure, family life, the supernatural, eroticism, status, humor, idealism, terror, and many other categories of human experience. Each entry begins with a definition and a sketch on the origin and historical background of the literary theme. The topical essay discusses the significance and occurrence of the theme in world literature and supplies information on geographical area, genre, style, and chronology. Entries conclude with a selected bibliography of scholarship in the area. A cross-index to themes and motifs will enable the reader to find information on secondary or related topics.
A Dictionary of Philosophy by Antony Flew (Editor); Stephen Priest (Editor)
Call Number: Offsite B41 .D52 2002g & ebook
ISBN: 0330487302
Publication Date: 2002-08-01
Comprehensive and up-to-date, this new edition of A Dictionary of Philosophy spans 2500 years of philosophical thought and offers a reference to the student of philosophy and the general reader alike. It has extensive coverage of modern and historical fields, encompassing personalities, terminology, and vocabulary; it extends from the classical thinkers through Aquinas, Escartes, Spinoza, and Kant to Russell, Wittgenstein, Husserl, Baudrillard, and Derrida; and particular attention is given to continental philosophy. There are over 2000 entries, with full cross-references.
Encyclopedia of Feminist Literary Theory by Elizabeth Kowaleski-Wallace (Editor)
Call Number: ebook
ISBN: 0815308248
Publication Date: 1996-11-01
An essential resource for scholars and students of feminist literary studies. The book offers a new, extended introduction outlining recent developments in the field such as ecofeminism, globalism and diaspora, defining emerging terms such as cisgendered and documenting the evolution of queer theory.
Encyclopedia of Literary Critics and Criticism by Chris Murray (Editor)
Call Number: Butler Reference R803 En191
ISBN: 1579581447
Publication Date: 1999-12-01
The two-volume set includes 375 entries on both Western and non-Western literary traditions, from the start of criticism with the Greeks through postmodernism. Varying in length from a couple of long paragraphs to several pages, the entries are of four different types: on individuals, surveys of literary periods, essays on critical theories, and definitions of key concepts. The entries on individuals, such as Roland Barthes and Jacques Derrida, investigate in detail the critic's thinking and influence. The surveys of literary periods cover different schools or time periods, including 20th-century French, British, and American theory. The criticism essays explain 28 different schools such as reader-response and semiotics, while terms covered in the short-definitions sections range from the surreal to the pastoral. More extensive in scope (both in geographical range and time periods) than other like references.
The Johns Hopkins Guide to Literary Theory and Criticism by Michael Groden (Editor); Martin Kreiswirth (Editor); Imre Szeman (Editor)
Call Number: ebook
ISBN: 0801880106
Publication Date: 2004-12-10
While concentrating on the explosion of contemporary critical and theoretical works, the Guide presents a comprehensive historical survey of ideas and individuals ranging from Plato and Aristotle to twentieth-century scholars. It includes more than 240 alphabetically arranged entries on critics and theorists, critical schools and movements, and the critical and theoretical innovations of specific countries and historical periods. It also examines developments in other disciplines which have shaped literary theory and criticism.
The Feminist Companion to Literature in English by Virginia Blain; Patricia Clements; Isobel Grundy
Call Number: Butler Ref. R803.2 F349
ISBN: 0300048548
Publication Date: 1990-10-24
Impeccable scholarship and breadth of coverage make this work a standout among several recently published on the subject. Covering more than 2700 English-language women writers, entries averaging 500 or so words chronicle writings not only in canonized genres but also in popular forms like memoirs, diaries, and travel literature. The compilers and a large team of scholars have freshly examined much of the material to provide a new level of accuracy and completeness, especially in covering works by and about hundreds of pre-modern women writers. An index of cross-references clarifies the name problems that inevitably crop up in the alphabetically-arranged listings. Entries include mention of major scholarship and are current through the mid-1980s. Some even include forthcoming works. Indispensable for literary research collections.

Literature Criticism Online
Literature Criticism Online brings together up to 10 acclaimed multidisciplinary series representing a range of modern and historical views on authors and their works across regions, eras and genres. Multiple search options are combined with an engaging format that matches the look and feel of the print originals.
Oxford Bibliographies Online
Offers peer-reviewed annotated bibliographies on specific topics in a growing range of subject areas. There are at least 50 specific topical bibliographies in each subject area. Each of these features an introduction to the topic. Bibliographies are browseable by subject area and keyword searchable.
Oxford African American Studies Center
Comprehensive collection of scholarship focused on the lives and events which have shaped African American and African history and culture, coupled with precise search and browse capabilities. Features over 7,500 articles from Oxford's reference works, approximately 100 primary sources with specially written commentaries, over 1,000 images, over 100 maps, over 200 charts and tables, timelines to guide researchers through the history of African Americans and over 6,000 biographies.

Toni Morrison Sources

The Cambridge Introduction to Toni Morrison by Tessa Roynon
Call Number: Butler PS3563.O8749 Z8448 2013 + Online
ISBN: 9781107003910
Publication Date: 2012-11-26
This Introduction offers readers a guide to the world of Morrison in all its complexity, from her status as a key player on the global intellectual stage to her unique perspective on American history and her innovative narrative techniques. Covering every novel from The Bluest Eye to A Mercy, Tessa Roynon combines close readings with critical insights into Morrison's other creative work, such as short stories, libretto and song lyrics and unpublished pieces for performance. Lively and accessibly written, Roynon's insightful text is ideal for readers approaching Morrison for the first time as well as those familiar with her work.
The Cambridge Companion to Toni Morrison by Justine Tally (Editor)
Call Number: Barnard PS3563.O8749 Z58 2007 + Online
ISBN: 9780521861113
Publication Date: 2007-09-13
This 2007 Companion introduces and examines her oeuvre as a whole, the first evaluation to include not only her famous novels, but also her other literary works (short story, drama, musical, and opera), her social and literary criticism, and her career as an editor and teacher. Innovative contributions from internationally recognized critics and academics discuss Morrison's themes, narrative techniques, language and political philosophy, and explain the importance of her work to American studies and world literature. This comprehensive and accessible approach, together with a chronology and guide to further reading, makes this an essential book for students and scholars of African American literature.
A History of the African American Novel by Valerie Babb
Call Number: Barnard PS374.N4 B24 2017
ISBN: 9781107061729
Publication Date: 2017-07-31
A History of the African American Novel offers an in-depth overview of the development of the novel and its major genres. In the first part of this book, Valerie Babb examines the evolution of the novel from the 1850s to the present, showing how the concept of black identity has transformed along with the art form. The second part of this History explores the prominent genres of African American novels, such as neoslave narratives, detective fiction, and speculative fiction, and considers how each one reflects changing understandings of blackness. This book builds on other literary histories by including early black print culture, African American graphic novels, pulp fiction, and the history of adaptation of black novels to film. By placing novels in conversation with other documents - early black newspapers and magazines, film, and authorial correspondence - A History of the African American Novel brings many voices to the table to broaden interpretations of the novel's development.
Cambridge Companion to the African American Novel by Maryemma Graham (Editor)
Call Number: Butler PS374.N4 C36 2004
ISBN: 0521815746
Publication Date: 2004-04-15
The Cambridge Companion to the African American Novel presents new essays covering the one hundred and fifty year history of the African American novel. Experts in the field from the US and Europe address some of the major issues in the genre: passing, the Protest novel, the Blues novel, and womanism among others. The essays are full of fresh insights for students into the symbolic, aesthetic, and political function of canonical and non-canonical fiction. Chapters examine works by Ralph Ellison, Leon Forrest, Toni Morrison, Ishmael Reed, Alice Walker, John Edgar Wideman, and many others. They reflect a range of critical methods intended to prompt new and experienced readers to consider the African American novel as a cultural and literary act of extraordinary significance. Includes a chronology and guide to further reading.
Encyclopedia of African American Writing by Laura Mars-Proietti (Editor); Sherry L. Hatcher (Editor)
Call Number: Butler Ref. PS153.N5 A3444 2009g + Online
ISBN: 9781592372911
Publication Date: 2009-10-09
A timely survey of an important sector of American letters, The Encyclopedia of African-American Writing covers the role and influence of African American cultural leaders, from all walks of life, from the 18th century to the present. Readers will explore what inspired various African-American writers to create poems, plays, short stories, novels, essays, opinion pieces and numerous other works, and how those writings contributed to culture in America today.
Toni Morrison's the Bluest Eye by Harold Bloom
Call Number: Barnard PS3563.O8749 Z85 2007 + Online
ISBN: 9780791096154
Publication Date: 2007-09-01
The Bluest Eye is one of Toni Morrison's most powerful novels. The Nobel Laureate's debut is the story of Pecola Breedlove, a young black girl who prays for her eyes to turn blue so that she will be as beautiful as all the blond, blue-eyed children in America. This book presents an impressive collection of updated critical essays and an insightful introduction by editor Harold Bloom that will enrich students' insight into this heartbreaking classic that tackles the crucial themes of race and identity.
The Toni Morrison Encyclopedia by Elizabeth Ann Beaulieu (Editor)
Call Number: PS3563.O8749 Z913 2003 + online
ISBN: 0313316996
Publication Date: 2003-01-30
Intended for lay readers and scholars alike, this reference offers a convenient overview of her life and achievements. The first book of its kind, this reference offers hundreds of alphabetically arranged entries on Morrison's works, major characters, themes, and other topics. Lengthier essays cover each of her novels, along with various approaches to her writings. Each of the entries was written by an expert contributor, and many close with suggestions for further reading. The volume concludes with a selected bibliography of major studies. All told, this book provides a remarkable overview of Morrison's primary concerns and achievements, charting a helpful course for readers who wish to venture deeper into the work of this extraordinary author. Toni Morrison is arguably the most popular and significant contemporary African American author of all time. As a writer, she personifies courage, blending the personal and the political and doing so in a way that resonates for readers of every age, race, ethnicity, and gender. Her stories are imagined in language that is both graceful and powerful_a truly poetic prose. Morrison's works have received increased scholarly attention, and her contributions were formally recognized around the world when she was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1993.

On Wikipedia

Wikipedia

Wikipedia is the world's largest encyclopedia, Wikipedia's coverage is vast. It can be useful, but it's important to remember that Wikipedia can be edited by anyone in the world, and some articles are more reliable and accurate than others. As with any source you use, it's important to verify the information you find.

Strengths of Wikipedia

Wikipedia is updated frequently. New information can be, and often is, added to the site within minutes. Due to editorial limitations, scholarly encyclopedias are usually updated annually.
Because Wikipedia crowd sourced, there is the potential for a broader authorship than is found in academic publications.
Citations in Wikipedia offer a wider array of materials, including articles and resources that are available for free and online.

Weaknesses of Wikipedia

Editors on Wikipedia are not necessarily experts. Authorship on Wikipedia is often anonymous or obscured.
Articles are always changing, making them difficult to cite in your research. An article you read today, may look quite different tomorrow.
Articles can be vandalized, providing wildly inaccurate information.

Ways to use Wikipedia

Use Wikipedia to get a general idea about a topic you are interested in.
Wikipedia is great for generating keywords for further searching in CLIO and elsewhere.
Check the citations, recommended resources and external links to guide you to more scholarly work.

Suze Meyers, Feminist Wikipedia, 2016.