Academic Encyclopedia, or Reference, articles are a good source of introductory information and will help you get started on a research project. Use reference to: 

• Learn about general schools of thoughts/literary movements. (GVRL)

• Learn about an author. (Biography in Context-biographies)

• Get an overview of critical approaches to a written text. (Gale/Gale Literature Literary Sources)

• Learn about a historical era or cultural movement that offers important context to a literary work. (US & World History in Context).

• Reference articles may also provide the specialized vocabulary of a field and leads to key sources on a topic.