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Willis N. Hackney Library

ENG 201: Introduction to Literature

Search Literature-Related Databases for Literary Criticism

Tips:

In the search boxes at the top, type in your terms in separate boxes on separate lines (e.g., Shakespeare in one, criticism in the next; or Shakespeare in one, interpretation in the next, or Romeo and Juliet in one,  criticism in the next, or Romeo and Juliet in one, interpretation in the next).  You may also want to search using a theme or character's name as well.

  • In the "Limit To" area in the left sidebar, check the "Full Text" box (to make sure you can see the entire chapter or article)
  • In the "Source Types" area in the left sidebar, check the "Literary Criticism" box
  • If you want to limit to scholarly articles, in the "Limit To" area in the left sidebar, check the "Scholarly (Peer Reviewed) Journals" box
  • If you want to limit to reference books, in the "Source Types" area in the left sidebar, check the "Reference Books" box

Tips:

  • Type in your terms on separate lines (Shakespeare or Romeo and Juliet on one line and criticism or interpretation on another).  Remember that you can also search by theme or character as well.
  • In the "Limit To" area in the left sidebar, click on "Peer reviewed" to retain only scholarly journal articles.
  • In the "Limit To" area in the left sidebar, click on "Full text" to limit results to full text articles.
  • In the "Subject" area in the left sidebar, click on "literary criticism" to limit your results to critiques, interpretation, or analysis of the works in question.

Search Multi-Discipline Databases for Literary Criticism

The following databases include literary critiques among many other things in journal, magazine, and newspaper articles. To search them for literary critiques, search for the author/poet, and/or the title of that person's work, PLUS the term "criticism" or the term "interpretation."  (In some of these, you will need to limit to "peer reviewed," "scholarly," or "refereed" to find only journal articles.  In others, such as JSTOR,  they may contain only journal articles, and therefore there is no need to limit.) 

Tips:
  • To limit to full-text articles, check the "full text" limit.
  • To limit to scholarly journal articles, check the "peer reviewed" or "refereed" or "academic journal" link
  •  See our Guide to the differences between Journal and Magazine articles.

To Locate Databases by Subject, Title, Type, or Vendor

To search for resources by the discipline(s) they cover (e.g., Business, Education, History, Psychology, etc.), by type (books, e-books, magazine articles, primary sources, etc.), by the vendor who provides them (EBSCO, ProQuest, LexisNexis, etc.), or by title alphabetically (e.g., JSTOR, ERIC, ABI-INFORM, etc.), click on the following link:

Tips:  
  • Select the subject for which you want to find resources/databases from the drop-down menu in the "All Subjects" box on the top left of the page.  
    • Once your subject is chosen, the "recommended" database name(s) will appear in the yellow box.  These are good to start with for that subject/discipline, and are accessible by clicking on the database name.
    • All other resources associated with that subject will appear below the yellow box.
  • To search by Resource Type, click on the drop-down menu in the "All Resource Types" box and select your choice(s) from the options listed there.
  • To search by Vendors, click on the drop-down menu in the "All Vendors/Providers" box and select from the options listed there.
  • Still need help?  Try a Research Guide!