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Literature-Based Research

Need help with your literary research? This guide can help!

Browse the Shelves

Browse the Reference Section with these call number ranges:

  • PN 40 - PN 600: World Literature Reference
  • PN 761 - PN 774: Literary Criticisms (19th Century, Contemporary, 20th Century)
  • PN 1010 - PN 3373: Poetry, Drama, and Short Story Criticisms
  • PR 19 - PR 4580: British Literature
  • PS 21 - PS 3545: American Literature 

Search the Catalog

How to use the Library Catalog 
Books by and about authors will be shelved together. For example, Tennessee Williams' plays can be found alongside biographies and critical works about Tennessee Williams.
  • To find books by a particular author, search by author, entering the last name first, or just the last name.
  • To find titles about a particular author, such as a biography or critical discussion of the author's work, search by subject using last name first.
Examples:  Shakespeare or Williams, Tennessee.
  • If the first two searches do not work, search the author's name by words or phrase. If there is a book with a chapter about that author, that book will show up in this type of search.
  • words or phrase search such as “Romanticism and criticism” or “Hemingway and biography” is another useful approach.