Developing a Context for Your Research

Works of art and literature are unique, but they also reflect the context in which they were created. Context can refer to historical events, contemporary social mores, cultural standards, genre expectations, etc. You will need to decide which aspects of context are most relevant for your research project. To this end, it is always a good idea to spend some quality time with reference books. By developing a context for your research, you will be able to avoid making some interpretive mistakes.

Research Guides & Bibliographies - Excellent starting points if you are unfamiliar with the field. The bibliographies point to the seminal works in the field.

Art:

Art Information: Research Methods and Resources / N 85 J64 1990 Ref

Guide to the Literature of Art History / Z 5931 A67 Ref
Film: On the Screen: A Film, Television & Video Research Guide / PN 1994 M9 F535 1986 Ref
History: AHA Guide to Historical Literature (2 vols.) / D 20 A5 1995 Ref
Literature: Literary Research Guide / PR 83 H34 2002 Ref

 

Dictionaries & Lexicons - Helpful for understanding the terminology used in scholarship in a given field.

Art: Critical Terms for Art History / N34 C75 1996 Stacks
Film: The Film Studies Dictionary / PN 1993.45 B49 2001 Ref
History: Dictionary of Concepts in History / D 13 R49 1986 Ref
Literature:

Literary Terms: Definitions, Explanations, Examples / PN44.5 B33 Ref

A Modern Lexicon of Literary Terms / PN44.5 L45 Ref

 

Encyclopedias - Browse through entries on your topic in more than one encyclopedia. Some encyclopedias have in-depth articles, while others contain just brief overviews. Compare entries among various encyclopedias. Are there differences in perspective? Are the same facts emphasized? Does the entry provide cross references to other terms, events, or people? Pay close attention to the bibliographies found at the end of most entries; these will usually point you toward the fundamental scholarship on the topic.

Art:

Grove Dictionary of Art (online) An art encyclopedia covering all aspects of the visual arts from prehistory to the present day.

Dictionary of Art (34 v.) / N 31 D5 1996 Ref

Encyclopedia of World Art (17 v.) / N 31 E533 Ref

International Dictionary of Art & Artists / N 7425 I56 1990 Ref

Oxford Dictionary of Art / N 31 E533 Ref

 
Film:

The Film Encyclopedia / PN 1993.45 .K34 1994 Ref

Cinema: A Critical Dictionary (2 v.) / PN 1993.45 .K34 1994 Ref
History:

World Eras (multi-volumed) / D20 W67 2001 Ref

Oxford Encyclopedia of Ancient Egypt (3 v.) / DT58 O94 2001 Ref

Encyclopedia of Greece and the Hellenic Tradition (2 v.) / DF757 E53 2000 Ref

Oxford Classical Dictionary / DE 5 O9 1996 Ref

Late Antiquity: A Guide to the Postclassical World / DE 5 L29 1999 Ref

Encyclopedia of the Renaissance (6 v.) / CB 361 E52 1999 Ref

Daily Life in Elizabethan England / DA 320 .S56 1995 Ref

All Things Shakespeare: An Encyclopedia of Shakespeare's World (2 v.) / PR 2892 .O56 2002 Ref

 
Literature:

Literature Resource Center (online) -Explore the literary-historical timeline as well as entries for individual authors

World Literature and Its Times (5 v.) / PN50 M625 1999 Ref

Ancient Writers (2 v.) / PA 3002 A5 Ref

Classical & Medieval Literature Criticism (multi-volumed) / PN 610 C53 Ref [Covers authors who died before 1400; look in the cumulative indexes in one of the most recent volumes to find out which volumes have articles on your topic]

Literature Criticism from 1400 to 1800 (multi-volumed) / PN 86 L56 Ref [Covers authors who died between 1400 and 1799; look in the cumulative indexes in one of the most recent volumes to find out which volumes have articles on your topic]

Renaissance Women Online / A selection of fulltext writings by Renaissance women (mostly English) accompanied by contextual essays written by scholars.

Shakespearean Criticism (multi-volumed) / PR 2965 S43 Ref [Look in the cumulative indexes in one of the most recent volumes to find out which volumes have articles on your topic; volumes 6, 17, 27, 47, 58, and 70 have substantial material on Antony and Cleopatra]

Nineteenth-Century Literature Criticism [Covers authors who died between 1800 and 1899; look in the cumulative indexes in one of the most recent volumes to find out which volumes have articles on your topic]

Twentieth-Century Literature Criticism (multi-volumed) / PN 771 C5 Ref [Covers authors who died between 1900 and 1999; look in the cumulative indexes in one of the most recent volumes to find out which volumes have articles on your topic]

 

 

More Research tips: Interdisciplinary Research, Key Databases, Finding Books & Articles

Content contact: Peggy Burge ~ Collins Library ~ University of Puget Sound ~ last updated October 9, 2008