Trexler Library - Library Instruction Handout

First Year Seminar:
Queer and Present Danger

Need help with your research? Contact:

Kelly Cannon
Humanities & Business Reference Librarian
phone: x3602
email: kcannon@muhlenberg.edu
IM (AIM, Yahoo, MSN): refcannon (add @hotmail.com for MSN)

How do I find scholarly introductions to GLBTQQ themes?

Gay Histories and Cultures and Lesbian Histories and Cultures (Ref Collection 306.76603 E56o)
Scholarly. Each entry includes a bibliography.

Gay History and Literature by Rictor Norton (http://www.infopt.demon.co.uk/gayhist.htm)
Rictor Norton is a historian from the UK who has published several important studies on gay history and literature.

GLBTQ: An Encyclopedia of Gay Lesbian Bisexual Transgender and Queer Culture (http://www.glbtq.com/)
Superb online encyclopedia edited by two widely-published faculty emeriti from the University of Michigan-Deaborn.

How do I locate popular views and controversies?

Wikipedia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Main_Page)
A communally-written encyclopedia. Not authoritative, but useful in exposing controversies.

How do I find scholarly books dealing with GLBTQQ themes?

Scholarly books pertaining to this subject area can be accessed from home or campus by visiting the Trexler Library Home PageFinding Books. See especially:

Trexler Library Catalog
Catalog of all books and documents in Trexler Library at Muhlenberg College. Most GLBTQQ histories are located on level B, call # range 306.76

WorldCat
Catalog of books and documents in libraries throughout the world. Watch especially for the AREA LIBRARIES designation. You can interlibrary loan from WorldCat, but E-ZBorrow has faster delivery.

E-ZBorrow M
A catalog of books and documents in the libraries of the PALCI consortium to which Muhlenberg College belongs. Submit interlibrary loan requests here for rapid delivery.

How do I locate primary sources such as newspaper articles and magazines from the period?

Newspaper accounts can be hard to obtain on GLBTQQ issues, depending on the publicity at the time. References in secondary histories--print or online--may help you track down primary material. Here are some other likely resources:

LexisNexis Academic (http://0-web.lexis-nexis.com.library.muhlenberg.edu/universe/form/academic/s_guidednews.html)
1970s-present.

Reader's Guide to Periodical Literature (Reference Room, level A, Trexler Library)
1900-present

New York Times Index (Reference Room, level A, Trexler Library)
1851-present.

How do I locate peer-reviewed journal articles?

Journal articles pertaining to this subject area can be accessed from home or campus by visiting the Trexler Library Home PageFinding ArticlesPeriodical Databases & Indexes. See especially:

general indexes with some full text. . .

Academic Search Premier
A good starting place for journals, and includes the full text of about 3000 journals. Limit to "peer reviewed" to find only scholarly articles. Back issues of journals begin as early as 1990. Recent issues may not be included yet, due to publisher agreement. Journals held in Trexler Library are marked accordingly.

Omnifile (WilsonWeb)
Includes extensive full text, from both popular and scholarly periodicals. Limit to "refereed" to find only scholarly articles.

subject-specialty indexes. . .

America History and Life
U.S. history database.

Historical Abstracts
World history database. Good for European history and culture back to 1492.

Index to Legal Periodicals
Links to full text in LexisNexis Academic.

getting to the full text. . .

Once you have found the citation of a journal article --or if you want to browse in a journal--follow this path to see if the journal is available online or in print in Trexler Library: Trexler Library Home PageFinding ArticlesJournal Locator.

articles via interlibrary loan. . .

Journal articles not found in Trexler Library can be requested from within the database, or if not, by following this path: Trexler Library Home PageFinding ArticlesGetting a Copy of an Article.

How do I evaluate information resources for their scholarly value?

View a checklist of criteria for evaluating web and print resources by following the path Trexler Library Home Page Research HelpResearch BasicsEvaluating Web and Print Resources.

How do I cite sources in the MLA style?

For tips on citing print and electronic sources, follow the path Trexler Library Home Page Research HelpCitation Guides.

For help in writing annotated bibliographies in the MLA style, visit Purdue's Online Writing Lab (http://owl.english.purdue.edu/handouts/general/gl_annotatedbibEX.html).