French 311

French 311 (02) 

Greek Odalisques, Incan Princesses, Tahitian Goddesses: Embodying the Foreign in Eighteenth-Century French Fiction

Department of French
Mount Holyoke College
Spring 2007

Professor: Dr. Aya Tanaka
Librarian: Shaoping Moss

Goals:
Find info on the specific topics on four French Enlightenment authors for class presentation and research paper through using three kinds of resources: print, electronic databases and Internet.

Objectives:
1. Learn when and how to use each resource
2. Learn how to use the library catalog to locate books, journals and other items
3. Learn how to use MLA Bibliography, Academic Search Premier and JSTOR to find journal citations and full-text articles
4. Learn how to request an item through the library catalog, and the ILLiad Interlibrary Loan system
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1.  Online sources:
The Concise Oxford-Hachette French Dictionary (French-English). 2nd ed. 1998
Also available in paper: Ref. PC 2640.83 1997

Encyclopedia Britannica Online
An enhanced version of the Encyclopedia Britannica, including Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary.  Its content includes long and short articles from two encyclopedias, media database, magazine articles, the Web's best sites, and videos.

Encyclopedia of the Enlightenment
Covers the “long” Enlightenment, from the rise of Descartes' disciples in 1670 to the restoration of the Bourbon monarchy in 1815.

The ARTFL Project (ARTFL)
Includes bibliographies, image databases, a searchable version of Diderot and d'Alembert's Encyclopédie, French and English dictionaries, and collections of texts like French Women Writers, Provençal poetry, etc.

Bibliothèque Nationale de France
http://www.bnf.fr/

Five Colleges Libraries catalog
To find books on a particular topic, or by title or author, search the Library catalog.

Modern Languages Association International Bibliography (MLA) online (1963-present)
The Modern Languages Association International Bibliography indexes critical scholarship on literature, languages, linguistics and folklore. Provides approximately 1,200,000 records to over 3,500 international publications including journals, books, series, dissertations, bibliographies, working papers, proceedings, and other materials. Updated ten times a year. The index is available in paper format from 1921-1962 in the Main Reference Room, call number: PN 1 M64 REF. The most recent edition of the companion to the bibliography, "MLA Directory of Periodicals: a Guide to Journals and Series in Languages and Literatures," is held in the Main Reference Room, call number: PN 161 M3 1999.

Academic Search Premier(1975 - present)
Academic Search Premier is a multi-disciplinary database containing full text for nearly 4,650 serials, including more than 3,600 peer-reviewed scholarly publications.  It also offers indexing and abstracts for more than 8,200 journals.  Disciplines covered include arts & literature, ethnic studies, history, politics, and sociology.

JSTOR
JSTOR ( = Journal STORage) provides full-text of an interdisciplinary archive of hundreds of journals.  These backfiles contain fifty-eight titles in language & literature, including important journals, such as the French Review, Yale French Studies, the French Review French Historical Studies, etc.  The entire text can be searched by keyword(s).  (Note: Does NOT contain current issues in full-text, but may include citations for current issues.)

2.  Print sources:
A New History of French Literature. 1989
Essays on French literature arranged chronologically written by leading scholars in each area. The essays cover literary themes and movements, a few highly influential authors and works, and connections between literature and politics.  Ref. PQ 119 N48 1989

Guide to French Literature. 2 vols. 1992.
Vol. 1 covers the beginnings to 1789, vol. 2 covers 1789 to the 1980's. Most of the articles focus on a single author and include a biography, descriptions of the author's works, and a bibliography.  Ref. PQ 41 L48 1992

Dictionnaire des lettres françaises. 6 vols. 1992.
Revised edition of a work originally published 1951-1960. It is arranged by century: v. 1 covers the Middle Ages, v. 2 covers the 16th century, v. 3. covers the 17th century, v. 4 covers the 18th century and v. 6 covers the 20th century.  Ref. PQ 41 D53 1992

Dictionnaire des littératures de langue française. 4 vols. 1994.
A guide to most French and francophone authors, genres, and geographic areas from the 15th-20th centuries.  Extensive indices are included.
Ref. PQ 41 B4 1994

The New Oxford Companion to Literature in French. 1995.
The best one-volume starting point for French and francophone literature.  Ref. PQ 41 N48 1995Books

Writers of the French Enlightenment. 2 vols. 2005.
These are two of many volumes in the series "Dictionary of literary biography" which provides extensive essays on individual authors grouped by period and genre.  Each article includes a chronological list of the author's work, as well as a selected bibliography for further reading.
Ref. PQ261 .W75 2005

A Critical bibliography of French literature. v. 3 and v.3 suppl.  1951.
These are two of eight volumes of A Critical bibliography of French literature – an annotated listing of books and articles on French literature from the medieval period to the twentieth century.  These two volumes (Vol. 3 and its supplement) cover the eighteenth century.  Ref  Z2171  .C3

3.  Evaluating Quality in Information:
http://www.virtualchase.com/researchskills/quality3.html
Quality in information comprises several characteristics, including accuracy, scope of coverage, objectivity, timeliness, authority, and verifiability.

Web Sites
http://scholar.google.com/
http://www.google.fr/
http://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/
Can You Trust Wikipedia?
In this October 2005 article from the Guardian Unlimited, the online companion to the British newspaper The Guardian, subject experts were asked for opinions about sections of the popular online, open access encyclopedia Wikipedia, in the wake of "the founder of the online encyclopedia ... admitt[ing] some of its entries are 'a horrific embarrassment.'"  It also includes ratings and comments on specific entries.

4.  MLA Citation Style:
MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers, 6th edition
Also available in paper: Ref. LB2369  .G53 2003   

E-Journal Locator - to find out if MHC has access to a particular online journal

ILLiad Interlibrary Loan - to submit a request for a journal article that you cannot find online or in the MHC library. You will need to create an account when you use it the first time.

5.  Finding Your Way in Williston Library:
You can also browse the stacks for books on French literature, history and culture. Here are some locations to try:

• DC (French history and culture)
• PC (French Language, including dictionaries)
• PQ (French Literature)
• Z 2161 – 2178 (French Bibliographies)
• French Language and literature books are on Level 5 of the Williston wing, call numbers NE – PQ
• French history and culture books are on Level 2 of the Williston wing, call numbers DC – HB
  
  
• Literature journals are on Levels 2 1/2 of Williston, shelved alphabetically by journal title, with photocopiers nearby.

6.  Need more help?
Come to the reference desk, try “Ask a Librarian” or contact Shaoping Moss (x3034, smoss@mtholyoke.edu)

Shaoping Moss, RIS, 2/10/07