Drama 1701: Introduction to Drama
This guide is designed to help you with your Library Assignment and is intended to supplement the information presented in-class during the library session.
More specifically, this guide is intended to help you with:
Searching for Books
(1) Library Catalogue (2) WorldCat Local
Use the Library Catalogue to search for books, e-books and A-V materials (including films on DVD).
You can also use the catalogue to search for magazines and journals, but not the articles within those magazines and journals. So, you could use the catalogue to find out that we have Macleans Magazine, but not to search the contents of the latest issue.
You can also search for books using WorldCat Local. WorldCat Local is a discovery tool that will allow you to search for books, e-books, journals, magazines, newspapers, videos and DVDs, musical recordings and government publications available in the Mount Allison Library and in Libraries around the world.
WorldCat Local will also allow you to search for articles in many, but not all, Mount Allison Library Databases and Indexes. However, the best way to search for articles is to use a Journal Index (more on that below).
For more details, see:
We also have a card catalogue : the online library catalogue contains records for alll library materials acquired since 1980 as well as many older works that have been re-catalogued. Please check the card catalogue for works published before 1980 that do not appear in the online catalogue. The card catalogue is located next to the Research Help Desk.
Subject and Keyword Searching:
When searching the library catalogue for books *about* an author and his/her works (secondary sources), you may search by Keyword or by Subject.
What's the difference?
Subject searches use Library of Congress SUBJECT HEADINGS. These are standardized headings assigned to a book after it is published to describe what the book is about. A single book may have just one or, more likely, several different Subject Headings.
To search by Subject in the Library Catalogue, click the Starts With button and then select LC Subject from the drop-down menu.
Useful Subject Headings when searching for information about an author and/or his or her works include:
- Name of author (Last name, first name)
- Name of author (Last name, first name) -- Criticism and interpretation.
- Name of author (Last name, first name). Title of a specific work.
For example:
- Miller, Arthur, 1915-2005.
- Miller, Arthur, 1915-2005 -- Criticism and interpretation.
- Miller, Arthur, 1915-2005 Death of a Salesman.
KEYWORD searches work very differently. A keyword search allows you to search for a word, words or a phrase anywhere in the library catalogue record (for example, words from the author, title or subject fields, etc.).
Unlike subject searches, keyword searches allow you to combine words and phrases using AND, OR, NOT (these are referred to as "boolean operators").
To search by Keyword in the Library Catalogue, click the Keyword button (this is the default setting), and then type your search terms (keywords).
Examples: Any of these three keyword searches would find the title below:
victorian literature AND narrative (all words in title)
women AND narrative AND 19th century (words in title & subject fields)
langland AND gender AND rhetoric (words in author, title and subject fields)
| title: Telling tales : gender and narrative form in Victorian literature and culture author: Langland, Elizabeth subject headings: English fiction--19th century--History and criticism. Sex role in literature. Women and literature--Great Britain History--19th century. Working class women in literature. Narration Rhetoric |
Search Tip:
It's always a good idea when searching for information on a topic to use multiple search strategies and to account for variations in language, terminology, spelling, etc.
The following guide offers tips on how to prepare an effective search strategy:
And this guide explains how to use boolean operators (AND, OR, NOT) to combine keywords and construct a more complex search query:
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Searching for Articles
(1) Databases and Indexes - Drama (2) All Databases and Indexes
Journal Indexes or Databases are used to search for articles and reviews that were published in newspapers, magazines & scholarly journals. Certain indexes and databases also include essays and chapters published in multi-authored works.
The Mt.A Libraries subscribe and have access to dozens of electronic indexes and databases. Many of these are full-text databases that provide electronic access to the full article; others are just indexes that will help you identify articles relevant to your topic.
The Library's Journal Indexes and Databases are listed by Title and are also grouped together by Subject.
The indexes and databases most useful for finding articles about a play are listed on the Indexes and Databases: Drama page.
First listed on that page is the MLA (Modern Language Association) International Bibliography (aka: the MLA Database). This is the primary research tool in the fields of literature and drama. It's usually the first place to look for articles about a literary work.
Reminder: Not all electronic Journal Indexes provide the full-text of the indexed articles. The MLA Database, for instance, is not a full-text database, but will help you identify and find items available electronically via other, full-text library databases (such as JSTOR, Project Muse) or available in print in the library.
To find out if the library has access to an article, use the Library Catalogue to search for the journal/magazine/newspaper in which the article is published. The Catalogue will direct you to the appropriate full-text database or provide the call number if the journal is available in print in the library.
You can also use Journal Finder to find out if the library has electronic access to a journal. Access: On-campus | Off-campus
For more details, see: How do I search for articles?
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Distinguishing Scholarly from Non-scholarly Journals
Many of the Journal Indexes and Full-text Databases accessible via the Mount Allison Libraries include a variety of publication types, including scholarly peer-reviewed journals, trade journals, popular magazines and newspapers. Distinguishing these types of publications can be challenging -- especially in an electronic environment in which many visual cues have been stripped away or are not immediately obvious (the glossy cover, presence of adverstising, author credentials...).
The following two guides provide definitions and examples of scholarly and non-scholarly types of publications.
- Distinguishing Scholarly Journals from Other Periodicals
by Michael Engle, Cornell University Libraries
- Scholarly Journal vs. Popular Magazine Articles
U. of Texas at San Antonio Library
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How to Cite the Materials you Find
The MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers provides the guidelines for the proper formatting of literary research papers.
Brief MLA Citations Guides (covering the basic guidelines only) are available on the Research and Citation Guides page.
Please note that there are two MLA Citation Guides.
- The first guide provides guidelines and examples for preparing a list of works cited (your bibliography).
- The second guide provides guidelines and examples for parenthetical references. This guide also includes examples that show how to incorporate a quotation into a sentence that you write.
You will need to use both guides for your assignment.
In addition to these guides, there are multiple copies of the MLA Handbook available in the Library's Reference Collection at LB 2369 .G53 2009.
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Avoiding Plagiarism
What is plagiarism and how can you avoid it?
The following guide and section of the academic calendar provide information all students need to know:
Academic Calendar, section 10.13: Academic Integrity
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More Library Guides
The following guides may also prove helpful:
The Literature Review: A Few Tips On Conducting It
Primary and Secondary Resources: A Research Guide
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