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ENG 426 Whitman and Dickinson

This course will study the poetry and prose of Walt Whitman and Emily Dickinson

Multidisciplinary Databases

These general online sources are good places to continue your literature-related research.

What is a Primary Source

A primary source is "first-hand" information, sources as close as possible to the origin of the information or idea under study. Primary sources are contrasted with secondary sources, works that provide analysis, commentary, or criticism on the primary source. In literary studies, primary sources are often creative works, including poems, stories, novels, and so on. In historical studies, primary sources include written works, recordings, or other source of information from people who were participants or direct witnesses to the events in question. Examples of commonly used primary sources include government documents, memoirs, personal correspondence, oral histories, and contemporary newspaper accounts.

Nineteen Century Periodicals

  • Making of America (Cornell)
    Digitized collection of 19th century American magazine articles & books that covers American social history from the antebellum period through reconstruction. Provides access to 267 monograph volumes and over 100,000 journal articles. Search entire collection or limit to journals only.
  • Making of America (Michigan)
    Digitized collection of 19th century American imprints. Contains approximately 8,500 books and 50,000 journal articles. Search entire collection or limit to journals only.
  • Godey's Lady's Book
    Selected issues of an important nineteenth-century periodical; includes illustrations.
  • Online Periodical Databases

    Newspapers

    Newspapers can provide you with valuable information. They include books reviews, author interviews, information on book signs, etc. Historical Newspapers can also provide you with information on how the book was received when it was published, if it was published with in the papers range.