1. Picking a Topic
  2. Finding Books
    1. Find Books at our library
    2. Find Books at other NJ Academic libaries
  3. Finding Articles
      1. Strategies for searching the databases
    1. Use interlibrary loan 
      1. Find specific journals in the library

         

        Picking a Topic

         

        • Selecting a topic for a research paper or project can be very challenging. You will want to select a topic that is of interest to you. This will make the research , reading and writing less of a chore. (TIP: Always start with a broad topic. It is easier to eliminate information as you write than it is to start with too little.) It is a good idea to wait to decide on a topic until you do some preliminary searching for books, articles, and web-based resources. If you can't find enough, you will want the flexibility to select a new topic.  A great start to preliminary research is browsing the REFERENCE SECTION in the library (located on the 3rd floor).

         

         

        Suggested Reference Sources:    
        Twentieth Century Literary Criticism REF PN771 .T9 Covers authors who lived between 1900 and 1999. This series also contains “Topic” volumes. There is a separate cumulative title index.
        Contemporary Literary Criticism REF PN771 .C592 Included are authors who are now living or who have died since December 31, 1999. Volumes published from 1973 through 1999 include authors who died after December 31, 1959. There is a separate cumulative title index.
        Literature and Its Times

        REF  PN50.L574

        1997

        		 Multi-volume work which profiles of 300 notable works and the historical events that influenced them. Organized by work. Bibliographies included.
        Critical Survey of Drama REF PN1625 .C74 2003 Multi-volume work which critically examines playwrights and their works. Organized by playwright. Bibliographies included.
        Notable Playwrights REF PN 1625 .N68 2005 Multi-volume work which critically examines playwrights and their works. Organized by playwright. Bibliographies included.

         

         

         

        Finding Books

         

        Find Books at our library

         

        • Catalog:use this link to find books, government documents, reserve items, music, movies and journal titles (NOT JOURNAL ARTICLES) in our library.

         

          • Search the catalog using
            • Write out a few keywords on your topics and enter them into the search box.
            • Don't write out a sentence. You will get zero results.

         

          • For Example: I am writing a paper on Henrik Ibsen's A Doll's House 
            • my FIRST search might be: Ibsen and "A Doll's House"
            • DON'T STOP here! Revise your searches and use the results to find other material
            • Revised Search: I want to focus on literary criticism on A Doll's House 
            • my NEXT search: "literary criticism" and (Ibsen or "A Doll's House")

         

        Find Books at other NJ Academic libaries

         

        • ValeCatalog: use this link to locate material at other NJ academic libraries. Use Interlibrary Loan to get the material you find or drive to local schools and pick up the book.

         

         

         

        Finding Articles

         

        • These databases are for finding journal articles
        • They are available 24/7 ONLY to Ramapo students
        • Off campus use requires login: Ramapo email and password
        • BelowSome useful Databases for your projects:

          

        General Databases:  
        Academic Search Premier

         

        A multi-disciplinary database containing both full-text articles and citations.

        Tip: When only a citation is included, click on the "Check availability at Ramapo" link to see if the full text of the article is available in our collection.
        Expanded Academic

        Another multidisplinary database that contains many full-text articles.

        Tip: Check availability link within each citation to see if you have access to the journal being cited. If your search results include citations or abstracts (not full-text articles), click on the Check availability link within each citation to see if you have access to the journal being cited.

        Wilson Omnifile Mega Full-Text

        Over 4,000 journals. Coverage back as early as 1982 ensures that every search is as deep as it is broad. Users have access to information on virtually any subject.
        Literary Databases  
        Literature Resource Center Provides access to biographies, critical analyses of authors from every age of literary disciplines. The database covers over 120,000 novelists, poets, essayists, journalists, other writers, within in-depth coverage of 2,500 of the most studied authors.
        JSTOR Complete

        Tip: Entirely full-text.  Cannot email articles -- email yourself the stable url. Do not print from browser print button. Use the JSTOR print option.

        MLA Bibliography  Access to more than 1.6 million bibliographic citations from 1963 to the present, with author biographies, critical essays and journal articles in every literary genre. When the full-text of the article is not linked to the citation, click on Check availability. This database is included in Literature Resource Center.
        Contemporary Authors Tip: Unless you're searching for a very common surname, you might want to search for the surname alone, then choose the most likely match from the citation list page. Sometimes there are variations on the way an author's name is indexed, especially if the person uses initials.

         

        Strategies for searching the databases

         

      2. Always go back and revise your searches! Look at using different terms and synonyms.
      3. Use the Subject Terms or Thesaurus link in databases to find the best search (or descriptor) terms to use
      4. Always switch to the Advance Search page in a database. This will give you more control over your results.
      5. Always use Boolean Operators - AND, OR, NOT when running a search. For Example: Ibsen and "literary criticism" 
          • AND: narrows your search. Ex: "A Doll's House" and "society"
          • OR: broadens your search.  Ex: (Ibsen and "A Doll's House") and (literary criticism or criticism)
          • NOT: eliminates search results. Ex: "European Literature 19th Century" not "European Literature 20th Century"
      6. Always check your spelling if the catalog or database results are zero
      7. To look for full-text use the: check availablity at Ramapo, primary catalog, or "check availability" links in the databases
      8. Scholarly/Peer Reviewed/Refereed articles have been reviewed by a selected panel of experts in the discipline covered by that journal. Many of the databases allow you to limit your search to these articles. Remember, you can limit your search to scholarly journals prior to searching, or filter your results after you search. See example. 

         

          

         

         

         

         

        Use interlibrary loan 

         

         

        • Fill out the online form using your Ramapo Email (it will not be processed without that email address)

         

        • WARNING: give yourself time (it can take longer than 2 weeks in some cases)

         

         

         

        Find specific journals in the library

         

         

        • Use the Journal Finder to locate the full-text of journals in our library. These can be either online or in print.

         

         


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