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Literature and Literary Criticism



Background Information

American Writers: A Collection of Literary Biographies
Location: JPL Reference Stacks PS129 .A55 v. 1-4
Consists of ninety-seven signed essays which include biographical material, a selected bibliography by and about the author's works and critical analysis.

Biography and Genealogy Master Index (UTSA subscription)
Location: JPL Reference Stacks Z5305 .U5 B56 1980 Suppl. 1980-1999
A master index of citations to biographical reference sources.
Available in both print and electronic formats.

Black Literature Criticism
Location: JPL Reference Stacks PS153 .N5 B556 1992
Three-volume set covers one hundred twenty-five writers from the United States, Nigeria, South Africa, Jamaica and other countries. Includes biographical and critical information in addition to bibliographies.

British Writers
Location: JPL Reference Stacks PR85 .B688
Eight-volume set plus supplements includes biographies of British writers from the fourteenth century to the present. Each entry also includes a survey of principle writings, an overall assessment of the author's work, and a bibliography of works by and about the author.

Cambridge Guide to Literature in English
Location: JPL Reference Stacks PR85 .C29 1988
Concise guide to literature in English produced by all English-speaking peoples. Topics covered includes particular literary works and authors, and literary genres and movements.

The Cambridge History of American and English Literature
Free Website: http://www.bartleby.com/cambridge/
An online encyclopedia reproduced from the 1907-1921 print resource. Contains over 300 chapters. Topical coverage includes annotated bibliographies, essays on poetry, fiction, drama, history, theology and political writing.

Chicano Literature: A Reference Guide
Location: JPL Reference Stacks PS153 .M4 C46 1985
Location: Downtown Library, Reference PS153 .M4 C46 1985
Covers the literary output of Mexican Americans since 1848. Entries include both individual authors and pertinent subject headings.

Contemporary Literary Criticism
Location: JPL Reference Stacks PN771.C59
A multivolume set providing biographical information, excerpts, and criticism for works from novelists, poets, scriptwriters and short story writers. Select bibliographies included.
Also available online through Literature Resource Center.(UTSA subscription)

Dictionary of Literary Biography
Location: JPL Reference Stacks PS21 .D5
150 volume set, each devoted to a particular time period, genre and country. Cumulative author index.
Also available online through Literature Resource Center.(UTSA subscription)

The Feminist Companion to Literature in English
Location: JPL Reference Stacks PR111 .F45 1990
Comprehensive work contains biographical entries as well as entries for genres, events, groupings and institutions important in the development of women's writing.

Film Reviews/Criticism
Free Website: http://www.lib.utsa.edu/Research/Subject/filmrevguide.html
This UTSA Subject Guide describes how to find film reviews and film criticism.

Finding Book Reviews
Free Website: http://www.lib.utsa.edu/Research/Subject/bookreview.html
This UTSA Subject Guide describes how to find book reviews.

Latin American Writers
Location: JPL Reference Stacks PQ7081 .A1 L37 1989
Three-volume set. First volume provides overviews of subjects and a chronological table of important events. Following volumes are devoted to biographical and critical essays of individual authors.

Literature Resource Center (UTSA subscription)
A full-text literature reference database rich in biographical, bibliographical, and critical content. An important resource for information on more than 100,000 literary figures searchable by name, title, genre, movement/time period, and theme. Includes significant full-text from Contemporary Authors, Contemporary Literary Criticism, Dictionary of Literary Biography,, and Merriam-Webster's Encyclopedia of Literature. Full Text

Voices from the Gaps: Women Writers of Color
Free Website: http://voices.cla.umn.edu/
This website from the University of Minnesota provides biographical information on authors, descriptions and excerpts of works, and selected bibliographies. Searchable by author or racial/ethnic group. Website includes the online literary review ReSound.

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Books

Books and Materials at the UTSA Library

UCAT, UTSA Library Online Catalog
Search UCAT to locate books, journal titles (not articles), government documents, maps and multimedia materials available at the UTSA Library. Read the Search Tips to learn how to conduct a better search.

UCAT Basic Searches
Find Items By Search Examples
find items by expert keyword poe and criticism
literature and "latin america"
find items by author poe edgar allan (books by Poe)
Shakespeare
find items by LC Subject Heading poe edgar allan (books about Poe)
english literature -- history and criticism
find items by book or journal title catcher in the rye
english language notes
review of english studies

Books and Materials Elsewhere

  • Want to find books and journal holdings in other libraries?
    Check the Catalogs list to search other library catalogs


  • Need to use another library?
    TexShare Cards


  • Want the UTSA Library to obtain materials for you?
    Interlibrary Loan (ILL)

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Words and Phrases

Bartlett's Familiar Quotations:
A Collection of Passages, Phrases, and Proverbs Traced to Their Sources in Ancient and Modern Literature

Location: JPL Reference Stacks PN6081 .B27 2002
Location: Downtown Library, Reference PN6081 .B27 2002
Sourcebook of quotations indexed by theme and quotation.

A Multicultural Dictionary of Literary Terms
Location: JPL Reference Stacks PN41.C28 1999
Current dictionary presenting a broad perspective.

Handbook to Literature
Location: JPL Reference Stacks PN41.H355 2000
Location: Downtown Library, Reference PN41.H355 2000
Contains definitions for "important, difficult, or controversial" terms used in literary scholarship.

Oxford English Dictionary (OED) (UTSA Subscription)
Location: JPL Reference Stacks PE1625 .O87 1989
Contains the meanings and derivation of virtually all words in the English language.

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Databases & Article Searching

  • Some databases provide full-text or full-image of articles.
  • Some databases provide citations or abstracts only.
  • If you find articles in a citation-only database, search UCAT to see if the library owns or subscribes to the journal you need.
  • If the UTSA Library does not subscribe to the journal you need, either in print or an online format:

Academic Search Complete (UTSA subscription)
Provides full-text for nearly 3,200 scholarly publications covering academic areas of study including social sciences, humanities, education, computer sciences, engineering, language and linguistics, arts and literature, medical sciences, and ethnic studies. Full Text/Full Image

American Periodical Series Online (UTSA subscription)
The American Periodicals Series database, currently in progress, offers full-image access to 700 periodicals published in America between 1741 and 1805. The indexed titles can be searched by keyword and include general interest magazines as well as professional and scholarly journals. Full Image

Chaucer Bibliography Online
Free Website: http://uchaucer.utsa.edu/
The Chaucer Bibliography Online is supported by The University of Texas at San Antonio Library and The New Chaucer Society. A project of UTSA's Dr. Mark Allen, the database covers Chaucer scholarship since 1975. Citations Only

Early English Books Online (UTSA subscription)
EEBO offers full-image access to more than 125,000 literary and historical works published in Great Britain and Ireland from 1475 to 1700. Included are titles listed in Pollard and Redgrave's Short-Title Catalogue of printed materials published in the English language from 1475 to 1640; Wing's Short-Title Catalogue of works dating from 1641 to 1700; and Thomason Tracts, a compendium of broadsides on the English Civil War printed between 1640 and 1661. Also included are high-resolution images of original works by authors such as Malory, Spenser, Bacon, More, Erasmus, Boyle, Newton, Galileo, Purcell, Shakespeare, and Behn. Included are books, tracts, pamphlets, proclamations, almanacs, and calendars of interest. Full Image

HarpWeek (UTSA subscription)
Provides electronic access to the complete historical backfile of the journal Harper's Weekly, published between 1857 and 1912. Included are full images of articles from the weekly publication, as well as original advertising and illustrations, providing a comprehensive, week-to-week chronological record of world events and society in the last half of the 19th and the early years of the 20th centuries. Full Image

JSTOR (UTSA subscription)
Full-image access to a comprehensive archive of scholarly journals, including 15 Language and Literature titles. New subjects and titles added regularly. Full Image

Literary Resources on the Net
Free Website: http://andromeda.rutgers.edu/~jlynch/Lit/
This website from Rutgers University contains comprehensive material about English and American Literature. Contains many links to the full-text of several novels and other related works.

MLA International Bibliography (UTSA subscription)
Indexes journal articles, books, book chapters, and dissertations for literary criticism, linguistics, and rhetoric. Coverage Date: 1963 - current.
Earlier years covered by paper files available in Reference Stacks. Citations Only

ProQuest Research Library (UTSA subscription)
Major database accessing more than 1,800 popular magazines and selected academic journals, including several important for literary research. Coverage varies. Full Text/Full Image

Magill's Bibliography of Literary Criticism
Location: JPL Reference Stacks PN523.M25 1979
Highly selective guide to key articles, book chapters, and books for frequently assigned literary works. Useful if you just need 2-3 articles and want to be sure they are among the "classics."

Project Muse (UTSA subscription)
Maintained by Johns Hopkins University, this source offers access to over scholarly journals, including more than 50 Language and Literature titles. Search by keyword or by journal. Full Text/Full Image

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Writing Assistance

Citing in APA/MLA Style

Citing Internet Resources

UTSA English Department
Free Website: http://colfa.utsa.edu/ecpc/
Information about undergraduate and graduate English programs at UTSA. Includes contact information and faculty webpages.

The Writing Center
Free Website: http://www.utsa.edu/twc
A resource for UTSA students located in HSS 3.03.08. Graduate students and English faculty tutors assist with organization, documentation, development, and other elements of writing. Contact the Writing Center (HSS 4.03.02 or 458-5353) for hours.

The Tomás Rivera Center
Free Website: http://www.utsa.edu/trcss/
A resource for UTSA students located at both the 1604 and Downtown Campuses. English tutors available to assist with the composition process.

Subject Specialist

Tara Schmidt
Email: tara.schmidt@utsa.edu
Phone: (210) 458-2429
Fax: (210) 458-6660

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