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Home > LITS > Library Research & Collections > Find Articles > Research Guides > Research Guides for Courses - Fall '09 > Spanish 212-01
Spanish 212-01 Preparation for Advanced Studies
The Research Process
The first step is to select a topic that interests you. Talk to your professor and browse through encyclopedias, dictionaries, or bibliographies to get ideas. Next, write out your topic as a short sentence or question and then identify the key concepts. Finally start compiling a list of keywords or subject terms and remember to include synonyms and alternate spellings. After you've refined your topic, begin searching for information that has already been written on your topic (books, journal articles, etc.). Gather all your information and evaluate it (see below for tips). The last step is, of course, to start writing your paper and to cite your sources. One final note to remember is that research is a cyclical process. More information is available at Getting Started on Research or Ask a Librarian for assistance.
Important Note: This guide is not intended to be comprehensive but rather a starting point. Consulting with a reference librarian and the other research guides, specifically Spanish Language and Literature and Film Studies, is recommended.
Background Information
To get an overview of your topic and background information start with encyclopedias, dictionaries and other reference books. A good idea is to check the bibliographies, included in these sources, for more books and articles on your topic. Most of these materials are in the reference collection on the fourth floor of the library and may not be checked out, but photocopiers are available.
Cambridge History of Spanish Literature. PQ6033 .C36 2004
Encyclopedia of Contemporary Latin American and Caribbean Cultures. F1406 .E515 2000
Encyclopedia of Latin American Theater. PQ7082.D7 E63 2003
Johns Hopkins Guide to Literary Theory & Criticism PN81 .J554 2005
Latin American Women Writers: An Encyclopedia. PQ7081.3 .L37 2008
Medieval Iberia : an Encyclopedia. DP99 .M33 2003
Spanish Culture and Society: the Essential Glossary. DP233.5 .S73 2002
Other Sources
Dictionary of Literary Biography (ask at reference desk)
Contemporary Literary Criticism (e-resource)
Gale Virtual Reference Library (electronic collection of encyclopedias)
Books
The Five College Libraries Catalog allows you to search for books, DVDs, CDs, journals (only journal titles - not the articles), microfilm, and more. You may search all five college libraries (Amherst College, Hampshire College, Smith College, and UMass Amherst) or only search Mount Holyoke College. Library Catalog tutorials are available. Search by keyword, author, title or subject.
Subject searching:
Latin American literature -- History and criticism
Motion Pictures -- Latin America
Motion Pictures -- Spain -- History
Popular Culture -- Spain -- History -- 20th Century
Spanish Drama -- History and criticism
Spanish Literature -- 18th Century -- History and criticism
Spanish poetry -- History and criticism
Browsing the library shelves (call number ranges)
DP 17 - DP 680 (History of Spain)
F 1208 - F 3738 (History of Latin America)
PN 1993 - PN 1999 (Motion Pictures)
PQ 6033 - PQ 8498 (Spanish Literature in English)
PQ 6174 - PQ 9698 (Spanish Literature in Spanish)
Requesting books from the Five Colleges
If you need a book from a library on another Five College campus you can use the Request Item function in the Five College Library Catalog to have it delivered to the MHC library. If available, the book will be delivered to the MHC library Circulation Desk within 2 -5 working days.
Requesting books through Interlibrary Loan
MHC uses the ILLiad Interlibrary Loan service to borrow materials from other libraries. Other items may also be requested, such as, journal articles, conference papers, dissertations, essays within books, and other text-based materials.
Journal Articles
MHC students have access to scholarly databases or electronic indexes of journal articles. The full list is at E-Resources A-Z. Some databases only provide citations (author, title, abstract, etc.) but not the full text of the article. Use the MH Links button  to check if the article is available electronically or in print at MHC. If MHC does not have the full text article electronically or in print, you may use Interlibrary Loan to request the article. Please plan ahead with your research as it may take some time to receive the article.
Some databases offer journal articles from a wide range of subjects while other databases are more narrow in their scope. The research guides are a good place to start when selecting a database or Ask a Librarian for suggestions.
A selection:
Academic Search Premiere indexes more than 8,200 journals and disciplines covered include arts & literature, ethnic studies, and history.
Film & Television Literature Index with Full Text provides subject coverage of film & television theory, preservation & restoration, writing, production, cinematography, technical aspects, and reviews from the 1980's to present.
HLAS Online/Handbook of Latin American Studies is a selective annotated bibliography of scholarly works on Latin America with coverage beginning in 1936. Each year, more than 130 academics from around the world choose over 5,000 works for inclusion in the Handbook.
LION/Literature Online offers literature and literary criticism with more than 350,000 works of poetry, drama and prose, 251 full-text literature journals, and other key criticism and reference resources.
MLA International Bibliography/Modern Language Association is a major research database for finding scholarly articles in literature with over 2.2 million citations from more than 4,400 journals and 1,000 book publishers from the 1920's to present.
Evaluating Sources
Critical evaluation of sources is an important part of the research process. A general criteria for evaulating a source might include: authority, date of publication, accuracy, scope/depth/breadth, objectivity, quality of publication, intended audience, level of information, and ease of use. Purdue University Libraries offers a helpful guide to evaluating books, periodical articles and web sites.
Another useful way is to distinguish between popular and scholarly works. Generally for quality research scholarly publications are preferred. Cornell University Library offers definitions of scholary and popular with Distinguishing Scholarly Journals from Other Periodicals and North Carolina State University Library has Anatomy of a Scholary Article.
Citing Sources
A list of Writing and Citing Tools is available for assistance and MHC provides free access to RefWorks, an online tool that manages citations and creates biblographies in over 30 citation styles.
Help
For individual consultations, please contact Leigh Mantle, Spanish Department LITS Liaison at lmantle@mtholyoke.edu or x2795. Other reference librarians are also happy to help! Please find all of the ways to contact a librarian at Ask a Librarian.
Getting around in LITS directory and videos.
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