Spring 2009 - Prof. Ahrensdorf

Questions? Please contact Sara Swanson (704.894.2157)

Finding Books

Use library catalogs to find books, videos, government documents, journals, magazines, and newspapers.  The Davidson College Library Catalog contains information about materials owned by Davidson.  WorldCat lists materials held in libraries around the world.  If Davidson does not have a copy of what you need, use Interlibrary Loan to request it.

When searching for books and other materials in a catalog, try searching by keyword, author, or title.  You may also search by Library of Congress subject headings.  To locate appropriate subject headings, do a keyword search and then browse records.  Helpful subject headings include:

Kings and rulers in literature
Machiavelli Niccolò 1469-1527
Machiavelli Niccolò 1469-1527 contributions in political science
Machiavelli Niccolò 1469-1527 criticism and interpretation
Machiavelli Niccolò 1469-1527 political and social views
Politics and literature
Shakespeare William 1564-1616
Shakespeare William 1564-1616 Macbeth
Shakespeare William 1564-1616 Tempest
Shakespeare William 1564-1616 political and social views
Xenophon
Xenophon Cryopaedia

For a list of helpful reference materials held by the Davidson College Library, click here.

Finding Articles

Use the Library’s online indexes and databases to find articles from newspapers, magazines, and scholarly journals.  Depending on your research interest, you may wish to search in general databases or discipline-specific ones.  Here are some suggested databases:

Starting Points

• Academic Search Premier
  (1975 to present) Indexes popular and scholarly articles in a broad range of subject areas; also includes citations to book reviews and citations to articles several national newspapers.
  
  
• OmniFile Full Text Mega
  (1982 to present) Indexes articles from over 3,000 scholarly and popular periodicals in the humanities, social sciences, and sciences; also includes the full text of selected articles from over 1,650 of these periodicals.

Subject-Specific Databases

• Annual Bibliography of English Language & Literature
  (1920 to present) Indexes journal articles, essays, and books, book reviews, and critical editions of literary works published world-wide; covers all literatures in English as well as the English language, bibliography, textual studies, and the history of publishing.
  
  
• Essay and General Literature Index
  (1900 to present) Indexes essays published in books and edited collections.  Covers the fields of art, economics, education, history, law, linguistics, literature, music, philosophy, political science, and religion, among others.  Particularly strong in the humanities and social sciences.
  
  
• L’Année Philologique
  (500 B.C.E. to 800 C.E. [historical time period covered]; 1969 to present [publication date of articles and books indexed]) Includes citations to scholarly articles, books, conference proceedings, and essays; also includes book reviews.  Covers all aspects of the Greco-Latin world, including literature, history, art, philosophy, religion, and archaeology.
  Note:  To locate citations to articles and books from earlier years, consult L’Année Philologique in the Little Library Reference Collection (R016.88 A613)
  
  
• Humanities Abstracts
  (1907 to present) Indexes articles in over 500 English-language journals in the fields of archaeology, art, classics, communication, film, folklore, history, languages and literatures, music, philosophy, religion, and theatre.  Also includes citations for book, theatre, and film reviews as well as interviews, obituaries, and some original creative works.  Includes the full text of selected articles from 1995 to the present.
  
  
• ITER:  Gateway to the Middle Ages and Renaissance
  (400-1700 [historical time period covered]; 1842 to present [publication date of articles and books indexed]) Indexes scholarly articles and books on topics related to the Middle Ages and Renaissance.
  
  
• MLA International Bibliography
  (1926 to present) Indexes journal articles, books, and doctoral dissertations in the fields of English, American, European, Asian, African, and Latin American linguistics, modern languages and literatures, film studies, and folklore.
  
  
• Philosopher’s Index
  (1940 to present) Indexes journal articles and books in philosophy and related fields.
  
  
• Social Sciences Abstracts
  (1907 to present) Indexes journal articles and some book reviews on all social sciences subjects, including history, political science, international relations, law, economics, area studies, gender studies, anthropology, psychology, and sociology.
  
  
• Social Sciences Abstracts Full Text
  (1907 to present)Indexes articles in over 500 English-language periodicals in the fields of anthropology, communication, corrections, economics, environmental studies, ethics, gender studies, geography, international relations, law, political science, psychology, sociology, and related subjects.  Includes the full text of selected articles from 1995 to the present.
  
  
• Worldwide Political Science Abstracts
  (1975 to present) Indexes articles on a broad array of political science and international relations topics; international in scope.
  
  
• World Shakespeare Bibliography Online
  (1971 to present) Includes citations to articles, books, theatrical productions, and audiovisual materials related to Shakespeare; also includes performance reviews, book reviews, and film reviews.

Finding the Full-Text Copy of an Article

If you’ve found a citation in an online index or database:

Many of our indexes and databases contain full-text copies of the articles they index.  Look first for a link to the full-text (either in HTML or PDF).

If the database does not contain a link to the full-text, look for the gray Search for Article button in the online citation.  This button will lead you to the Davidson Library Catalog, which will display the holdings for the journal.  Using your citation information, check to see if the library owns the appropriate journal and volume number.  If it does not, you can request it from Interlibrary Loan.

If you found the citation somewhere else:

Go to the Davidson Library Catalog.  Look for the red periodicals button on the right side of the page.  Click on that button and enter the first few words of the journal title in the search box.  Then, do a Title beginning with search.  The library’s holdings for the journal will appear on the page.  Using your citation information, check to see if the library owns (in print or electronic form) the volume you need.  If the library does not own it, you can request the article from Interlibrary Loan.

Reference Resources

To find reference resources held in the Davidson College Library, enter the appropriate keywords in the library catalog and limit Material Type to Reference Resources.  You may also try the Reference Universe database to see which reference works contain information on your topic.

The Bible

• The Anchor Bible Dictionary.  Ed. David Noel Freedman.  6 vols.  New York:  Doubleday, 1992.
  Reference R 220.3 A539
  
  
• Encyclopedia of Religion.  Ed. Lindsay Jones.  2nd ed.  15 vols.  Detroit, MI:  Macmillan Reference, 2005.
  Reference R 203 E562
  
  
• The HarperCollins Bible Commentary.  Ed. James Mays.  San Francisco, CA:  HarperSanFrancisco, 2000.
  Reference R 200.7 H295 2000
  
  
• The Interpreter’s Bible:  The Holy Scriptures in the King James and Revised Standard Versions with General Articles and Introduction, Exegesis, Exposition for Each Book of the Bible.  Ed. George Arthur Buttrick, et al.  12 vols.  New York:  Abingdon-Cokesbury Press, [1951-1957]
  Reference R 220.7 I61
  
  
• New Dictionary of the History of Ideas.  Ed. Maryanne Horowitz.  6 vols.  Detroit, MI:  Scribner’s, 2005.
  Reference R 901.9 D554 2005
  
  
• Oxford Bible Commentary.  Ed. John Barton and John Muddiman.  New York:  Oxford Univ. Press, 2001.
  Reference R 220.7 O98
  
  
• The Oxford Essential Guide to People & Places of the Bible.  Eds. Bruce M. Metzger and Michael D. Coogan.  New York:  Berkley Books, 2001.
  Reference R 220.3 M596o
  
  
• Who’s Who in the Old Testament.  Joan Comay.  Florence, KY:  Routledge, 2002.

Ancient History, Literature, Philosophy, and Politics

• Brill’s New Pauly:  Encyclopedia of the Ancient World.  Ed. Hubert Cancik and Helmuth Schneider.  Leiden:  Brill, 2002- .
  Reference R 913.38 P33k-T (Antiquity volumes)
  Reference R 913.38 P33kc-T (Classical Tradition volumes)
  
  
• The Cambridge Dictionary of Classical Civilization.  Ed. Graham Shipley et al.  New York:  Cambridge Univ. Press, 2006.
  Reference R 938.003 C178
  
  
• The Cambridge Dictionary of Philosophy.  Ed. Robert Audi.  2nd ed.  Cambridge:  Cambridge Univ. Press, 1999
  Reference R 103 C178 1999
  
  
• Civilization of the Ancient Mediterranean:  Greece and Rome.  Eds. Michael Grant and Rachel Kitzinger.  3 vols.  New York:  Scribner’s, 1988.
  Reference R 938 C582
  
  
• Encyclopedia of Ancient Greece.   Ed Nigel Wilson.  New York:  Routledge, 2006.
  Reference R 938.003 E561
  
  
• Encyclopedia of Greece and the Hellenic Tradition.  Ed. Graham Speake.  2 vols.  London:  Fitzroy-Dearborn, 2000.
  Reference R 938 E56
  
  
• Encyclopedia of Philosophy.  Ed. Donald Borchert.  2nd ed.  10 vols.  Detroit, MI:  Macmillan Reference, 2006.
  
  
• Encyclopedia of the Ancient Greek World.  David Sacks and Lisa Brody.  Rev. ed.  New York:  Facts on File, 2005.
  Reference R 938 S121e
  
  
• Guide to the Ancient World:  A Dictionary of Classical Place Names.  Michael Grant.  Bronx, NY:  H.W. Wilson, 1986.
  Reference R 913.8 G762g
  
  
• Handbook of Classical Mythology.  William Hansen.  Santa Barbara, CA:  ABC-CLIO, 2004.
  Reference R 292.13 H249h
  
  
• Handbook to Life in Ancient Greece.  Lesley Adkins and Roy A. Adkins.  Oxford:  Oxford Univ. Press, 1997.
  Reference R 938 O982 2003
  
  
• Illustrated Encyclopedia of the Classical World.  Michael Avi Yonah and Israel Shatzman.  New York:  Harper & Row, 1975.
  Reference R 913.38 O98
  
  
• New Dictionary of the History of Ideas.  Ed. Maryanne Horowitz.  6 vols.  Detroit, MI:  Scribner’s, 2005.
  Reference R 901.9 D554 2005
  
  
• Oxford Classical Dictionary.  Ed. Simon  Hornblower and Antony Spawforth.  3rd ed. rev.  Oxford:  Oxford Univ. Press, 2003.
  Reference R 913.38 O982 2003
  
  
• Oxford Companion to Classical Civilization.  Ed. Simon  Hornblower and Antony Spawforth.  3rd ed. rev.  Oxford:  Oxford Univ. Press, 1998.
  Reference R 938.003 O098
  
  
• Oxford Companion to Classical Literature.  Ed. M.C. Howatson.  2nd ed.  Oxford:  Oxford Univ. Press, 1989.
  Reference R 913.38 H43o2
  
  
• Perseus:  Interactive Sources & Studies on Ancient Greece
  [CD-ROM; ask at Circulation Desk]
  A collection of primary and secondary sources on ancient Greece.  Includes full-text, images, and references.
  
  
• Perseus Digital Library Contains more text and images than the CD-ROM product but sometimes has a slow response time.  For faster searching, use the CD-ROM.
  
  
  
• Political Philosophy:  Theories, Thinkers, Concepts.  Ed. Seymour Martin Lipset.  Washington, DC:  CQ Press, 2001.
  Reference R 320.01 P769
  
  
• Reference Guide to World Literature.  Ed. Sara Pendergast and Tom Pendergast.  3rd ed.  Detroit, MI:  St. James Press, 2003.
  
  
• Routledge Encyclopedia of Philosophy.  Ed. Edward Craig.  10 vols.  New York:  Routledge, 1998.
  Reference R 103 R869
  
  
• Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy.  Ed. Edward N. Zalta.  Stanford, CA:  Metaphysics Research Lab, Center for the Study of Language and Information, 1995- .

• All Things Shakespeare:  An Encyclopedia of Shakespeare’s World.  Kirstin Olsen.  2 vols.  Westport, CT:  Greenwood, 2002.
  Reference R 822.33 GO52a
  
  
• The Cambridge Dictionary of Philosophy.  Ed. Robert Audi.  2nd ed.  Cambridge:  Cambridge Univ. Press, 1999.
  Reference R 103 C178 1999
  
  
• Encyclopedia of Philosophy.  Ed. Donald Borchert.  2nd ed.  10 vols.  Detroit, MI:  Macmillan Reference, 2006.
  
  
• Encyclopedia of the Renaissance.  Ed. Paul F. Grendler.  6 vols.  New York:  Scribner’s, 1999.
  Reference R 940.2 E56
  
  
• Europe 1450-1789:  An Encyclopedia of the Early Modern World.  Ed. Jonathan Dewald.  6 vols.  New York:  Scribner’s, 2004.
  Reference R 940.2 E89
  
  
• Macbeth:  An Annotated Bibliography.  Thomas Wheeler.  New York:  Garland, 1990.
  Reference R 016.82 S527ma-w
  
  
• New Dictionary of the History of Ideas.  Ed. Maryanne Horowitz.  6 vols.  Detroit, MI:  Scribner’s, 2005.
  Reference R 901.9 D554 2005
  
  
• Niccolò Machiavelli:  An Annotated Bibliography of Modern Criticism and Scholarship.  Comp. Silvia Ruffo Fiore.  New  York:  Greenwood, 1990.
  Reference R 016.32 M149r
  
  
• The Oxford Companion to Shakespeare.  Michael Dobson.  New York:  Oxford Univ. Press, 2001.
  Reference R 822.33 GO98
  
  
• Penguin Shakespeare Dictionary.  Ed. Sandra Clark.  London:  Penguin, 1999.
  Reference R 822.33 GH975 1999
  
  
• Reference Guide to World Literature.  Ed. Sara Pendergast and Tom Pendergast.  3rd ed.  Detroit, MI:  St. James Press, 2003.
  
  
• Routledge Who’s Who in Shakespeare.  Peter Quennell and Hamish Johnson.  London:  Routledge, 1995.
  Reference R 822.33  GQ3r
  
  
• Shakespeare A to Z:  The Essential References to his Plays, his Poems, his Life, and Times, and More.  Charles Boyce.  New York:  Laurel, 1991.
  Reference R 822.33 GB7891s
  
  
• Shakespearean Concepts:  A Dictionary of Terms and Conventions, Influences and Institutions, Themes, ideas, and Genres in the Elizabethan and Jacobean Drama.  Simon Trussler.  London:  Methuen, 1989.
  Reference R 822.33 GT873s
  
  
• Shakespeare’s Legal Language:  A Dictionary.  B.J. Sokol and Mary Sokol.  New Brunswick, NJ:  Athlone Press, 2000.
  Reference R 822.33 GS683s
  
  
• Shakespeare’s Military Language:  A Dictionary.  Charles Edelman.  New Brunswick, NJ:  Athlone Press, 2000.
  Reference R 822.33 GE21s
  
  
• Shakespeare’s World and Work:  An Encyclopedia for Students.  Ed. John F. Andrews.  3 vols.  New York:  Scribner’s, 2001.
  Reference R 822.33 GS527

Related Guides

• RefWorks:  A Guide
  
  
• Research Log
  
  
• Research Planner
  
  
• Scholarly Articles:  How to Identify Them
  
  
• Web Resources:  Evaluation

Note: This guide is a revision of an earlier one created by Susanna Boylston, Head of Library Instruction and Collection Development.