LibGuides: ENGL 115 Introduction to Novels: Find Literary, Historical, & Biographical Overviews

Background Sources

Find Introductory Sources on Authors & Text

Find introductory articles on authors and literature in the library database Gale Literature by limiting to Topic & Work Overviews.

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Topic & Work Overviews can be helpful way to get to know a literary work.

Topic & Work Overviews provide a plot and character summary, biographical and historical context for the author and work, an overview of key themes and literary elements, an overview of critical approaches to the text, and a few short pieces of criticism.
The purpose of Topic & Work Overviews is to teach about the text, rather than present an original argument on interpretation.

Gale Literature This link opens in a new window
Search for literary work overviews and author biographies plus scholarly literary criticism and analysis of authors and their works - novels, short stories, poetry, and drama including Shakespeare plays.

Find Historical Info

Understanding the history of the era in which an author lived or in which a piece of literature was written will often give you better insight into that literature's meaning, symbolism, and themes.

U.S. History in Context (Gale) This link opens in a new window
Full-text articles from scholarly journals, magazines, and newspapers, reference sources, primary documents, and selected websites.
World History in Context (Gale) This link opens in a new window
Full-text scholarly journal articles, primary sources, and reference books covering world history from antiquity to the present.
History Study Center (ProQuest) This link opens in a new window
Primary and secondary sources covering global history from ancient times to the present day. Study Units offer editorially selected material on over 500 historical topics. Over 40,000 documents, articles, images and links to websites.

Search Tips

Understanding the history of the era in which an author lived or in which a piece of literature was written will often give you better insight into that literature's meaning, symbolism, and themes.

Browse or Search by Topic, Era, Group, Event

Sample search: Japanese American Internment

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Browse:

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Find Biographical Info

Use the databases linked below, along with the featured search tips to find biographical information.

Biography in Context (Gale) This link opens in a new window
Full-text reference entries, magazine and journal articles, primary sources, videos, podcasts, and images covering a vast array of people from historically significant figures to present-day news makers.
Gale Literature This link opens in a new window
Search for literary work overviews and author biographies plus scholarly literary criticism and analysis of authors and their works - novels, short stories, poetry, and drama including Shakespeare plays.

Search for author info in Gale Literature:

Tip: In Gale databases, sometimes family name, first name works best!

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Topic & Work Overviews for biographical and historical contexts, and news, reviews and primary sources for interviews and other articles about the author.
Select Biographies for articles about the author and their work

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This excerpt from "Julie Otsuka," a biography in Gale Literature: Contemporary Authors points to the intersection of her life and interests with her fiction.

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