SuperSearch can be a great place to start to find out what's out there on your topic. SuperSearch will find books, journal articles, films, news, and almost everything else the library has — from popular to scholarly sources. You can use the filters on the results screen to improve your results.
For searching with more focus and precision, try one of the databases recommended on this guide.
Reference sources such as specialized encyclopedias, handbooks, and dictionaries are a good place to gather factual information, get an overview of a topic, find ideas for keywords, and get bibliographies that point to key books and articles on a topic.
Below are different resources for finding reference sources.
Search here to use the "Encyclopedia articles & more" filter in SuperSearch, which finds articles in a range of reference works from several databases. For more focused searching, try searching one of the individual databases below.
Reference databases provide a more focused search experience, with filters and other features that can help you narrow in on what you need. The databases below contain a variety of specialized encyclopedias, handbooks, and other reference sources in different subject areas, allowing you to explore a topic from a variety of perspectives.
Hundreds of full-text academic encyclopedias, dictionaries, and other sources for introductions to topics, definitions, or factual information. Includes subject-specific titles from art, literature, education, science, religion, history and more.
19,000+ biographies of selected figures from American history, written by prominent scholars.
Annotated bibliographies for a variety of subject areas.
Over 400 full-text academic encyclopedias, language dictionaries, books of quotations, and other sources. Includes subject-specific titles from art, classics, history, law, linguistics, literature, media studies, medicine, performing arts, philosophy, religion, science and technology, politics, and more.
For even more focused searching or browsing, try an individual reference work. Here are some selected titles related to topics of this course.
The Cambridge Companion to Nineteenth-Century American Women's Writing
The Louisa May Alcott Encyclopedia
The Cambridge Companion to Emily Dickinson
The Cambridge Companion to Nathaniel Hawthorne
The Cambridge Companion to Henry James