Literature Resource Center is a current, comprehensive and reliable online resource for research on literary topics, authors and their works. Its coverage includes all genres and disciplines, all time periods and all regions of the world.
What you'll find in Literature Resource Center
- Full-text scholarly articles from more than 360 academic journals and literary magazines—the majority peer-reviewed—as well as excerpts from scholarly monographs, literary correspondence and diaries. (After your search, select the Literature Criticism tab.)
- Reviews of books of all sorts, from children's literature to adult fiction, from popular non-fiction to scholarly studies. (After your search, select the Reviews and News tab.)
- Substantive biographical essays on more than 130,000 authors, providing insights into life and times, works, and critical reception. (After your search, select the Biographies tab.)
- Full text of thousands of poems and short stories published in contemporary journals and magazines. (After your search, select the Primary Sources/Literary Works tab.)
- Overview essays on thousands of books and literary topics. (After your search, select the Topic and Work Overviews tab.)
- Links to editorially selected websites on authors and their works, as well as pictures of well-known authors and audio interviews and reviews. (After your search, select the Multimedia tab.)
New and updated material is added daily. For a complete list of journals, magazines, and reference book materials included in Literature Resource Center, see What's in Literature Resource Center.
Search Review
Basic Search
You'll notice that when you type a search term into the search box, you have several different options for the type of search you conduct. These allow you to decide from the start how broad or focused you want your search to be.
You'll notice that when you type a search term into the search box, you have several different options for the type of search you conduct. These allow you to decide from the start how broad or focused you want your search to be.
- Tip: You can also improve the precision of your search by putting phrases in quotes. A search on remains of the day (no quotes) will return all items that contain the word remains and the word day within a few words of each other. A search on "remains of the day" (in quotes) will return only items that contain that exact phrase. (Fans of literature will know that this search will return criticism on Ishiguro’s work.)
Person – by or about: If your search term is a name, selecting this option will bring back items that were written by that person or that contain a significant amount of information about him or her.
- Tip: Keep in mind that several people may have the same name. There will be a way to narrow your search further once you get to a list of results.
- Tip: If you need items only by or only about the person, you can either filter your results after they are returned, or use Advanced Search.
Name of work: This option will search specifically for titles of works (poems, plays, books, etc.) discussed in the database as well as for any copies of the work itself that may be present.
Keywords: This option will search for your term in key parts of each document in the database, such as the title of the item, subject terms or abstracts associated with it, and its first fifty words.
- Tip: If you enter several words in the search box, Keywords Search will look for items in which the words occur close together in the text unless you separate them with the word "and."
For instance, a search on Hemingway novels will find items in which the words Hemingway and novels occur within a few words of each other in the keyword sections of a document. A search on Hemingway and novels will find items in which the words occur in any of the "keyword" sections of a document. (The first search is more targeted and gets 24 hits; the second gets 171.) - Tip: If the title is a common word, such as Raven or Beloved, you will get more precise results if you also include the author's full or last name.
All text: This option will search for the words you entered anywhere in each document. As for Keywords, however, if you enter more than one word, you will get only documents in which the words occur close together unless you use and to separate them.
- Tip: This is the broadest possible search, so if you are not getting enough results with the more focused search options, give this a try.
- Tip: "All text" is your best choice if you are looking for a famous quotation.
Advanced Search: This search form gives you many more options to create a very specific search. For more information, use the Help feature within the database.
Person Search: This search is designed to create lists of individuals who fit a custom profile that you design. For instance, if you need a list of several English Renaissance poets, or Japanese novelists born before 1940, or Native American short story writers, use this feature.
- Tip: Not everyone mentioned in the database has been classified according to all these criteria, although many thousands have indeed been classified. So keep in mind that your list will be representative, but not exhaustive.
Works Search: This search is designed to create lists of literary works fitting a custom profile that you design. For instance, if you need a list of several English poems from the Romantic era, or Spanish novels by women writers, use this search.
- Tip: Not every title mentioned in the database has been classified according to all these criteria, although many thousands have indeed been classified. So keep in mind that your list will be representative, but not exhaustive.
Questions to explore with Literature Resource Center
1. Author Robert Frost wrote a poem titled The Road Not Taken and I am looking to obtain a critical review about it. Is it possible to locate criticism regarding this poem utilizing the Literature Resource Center? I need to acquire a copy in English and a copy in Spanish for the group I will be working with... is this an achievable goal?
- Yes, it is possible to locate a critical review of the poem; The Road Not Taken, by simply typing in the author’s name and under the tab that reads Literature Criticism, select the first full text review. To retrieve a copy in Spanish proceed to the right hand side of that document under tools click on the drop down arrow to select Spanish and the Spanish version of the document will appear.
2. There is an article titled: The English Years of Robert Frost written by Linda Hart in the summer of 2008, which was published in Contemporary Review. I need to review the article again to complete my assignment. How would I go about locating this specific article in your database?
- The answer can be found by simply typing in the title of the article, The English Years of Robert Frost and the document will come up. The article can be located under Literature Criticism in addition to the tab the reads Biographies.
3. A patron is looking for an article in the periodical Women’s Studies in Communication. Does the Literature Resource Center include this resource? (Giveaway: What's in Literature Resource Center.)
- Yes, under the heading Literature Resource Center at the very top, click on the icon that says Title List. Another window will appear scroll down the page until you come to Literature Resource Center and under that heading there is a listing that reads “What’s inside LRC and click on the excel link. Proceed to scroll down the list of periodicals which are in alphabetical order until you arrive at the title Women’s Studies in Communication.
4. A patron is looking for criticism on the short story The Beast in the Jungle, by Henry James. You’ve searched by title and author in Polaris and came up empty. How many results do you get when you conduct a basic search by title and add Henry James?
- Searching by title The Beast in the Jungle I was able to retrieve a total of 32 sources and when Henry James is added to the search 17 sources were located.
