English 16: Love and Trouble: Black Women Writers

Professor: Mark Foster
Librarian: Joan Campbell ( )
Fall 2008

Finding Background/Biographical Information

You can find "background information" in encyclopedias and dictionaries which will help you get an overview of a writer, his or her work overall, or a particular theme. These sources often list books and journal articles for further study.  There are many, many encyclopedias and dictionaries dedicated to African-American writers and history.  I've listed some below. See also the Quick Facts page for online reference sources to get quick, authoritative definitions and facts. 

Dictionary of Literary Biography
A huge series of books now online. Good for finding authoritative biographical and general critical information on your playwrights and their plays. Also available in print. See especially  Afro-American writers before the Harlem renaissance,  Afro-American writers from the Harlem Renaissance to 1940 and Afro-American writers after 1955, all located in Main Ref around PS153.N5 A39.

Encyclopedia of African American Women Writers.  Main Ref PS 153 N5 E49 2007.

Encyclopedia of African-American Culture and History.  Main Ref E185 E54 1995.

Encyclopedia of the Harlem Renaissance.  Main Ref PS 153 N5 A24.

Greenwood Encyclopedia Of African American Literature.   Main Ref PS153.N5 G73 2005

The Harlem Renaissance and beyond : 100 Black women writers, 1900-1950 Main Ref PS 153 N5 R65 1989.

Oxford African American Studies Center.
Searchable database of biographical and historical information on African Americans. Good for images.

See also the Quick Facts page for online reference sources to get quick, authoritative definitions and facts.

Primary Sources

New York Times Archive 1851-2004
An exact replica of the New York Times.

Secondary Sources

Library Catalogs for Books

Bowdoin College Library Catalog
Access to Bowdoin Library's holdings of books, videos, government documents, etc.

NExpress
Search --and borrow from--the combined collections of Colby, Bates, Bowdoin, Williams, Northeastern, Middlebury, and Wellesley for both books and articles. Books arrive from Colby and Bates in two days.

Subject Searching in Bowdoin's Library Catalog: Browse the book shelves online by connecting to a major subject section of the Library. Some examples follow:

African American Women Authors

American Literature -- African-American Authors

Indexes/Databases for Finding Journal Articles

Academic Search Premier
Journals in the social sciences, humanities and science. Many full text.

JSTOR
Full text of scholarly journal articles up until about 2003.

MLA International Bibliography
An index to journal articles, books, and chapters in books on literature and film. Many links to the full text of journal articles.

Finding Images

ArtSTOR

Oxford African American Studies Center

Additional Sources

See also the Research Guide to English and Africana Studies