Check out some of the other research guides listed on the Humanities Research Page. Also check the research pages for Music, Art, Theater, etc.
Reference Works
Specialized reference works like the ones listed below are very useful for research. Specialized encyclopedias can provide useful overviews or convenient explanations. Specialized dictionaries give a more precise definition of terms as they are used by a particular field of study. The print titles here are located on the first floor of the Library. These are only some of the titles available; browse around the same areas to find other useful titles. To access online sources, just click on the title.
Art and Architecture
- African-American Architects
- A Biographical Dictionary, 1865-1945 : Reference NA736 .A47 2004
- African Americans in the Visual Arts
- Reference N 6538 .N5 O86 2004
- Contemporary Latin American Artists
- Reference N6502.5 .C659
- Dictionary of Art
- Reference N 31 .D5 1996 online as Oxford Art Online
- St. James Guide to Black Artists
- Reference N 40 .S78 1997
Dance
- International Dictionary of Modern Dance
- Reference GV 1585 .B46 1998
- International Encyclopedia of Dance
- Reference GV 1585 .I586 1998
Ethnicity
African Americans
- African American Almanac
- Reference E 185.5 .Ar 2003
- Black Women in America
- Reference E 185.86 .B542 2005
- Black Women in America
- Reference E 185.96 .F2 1997
- Contemporary Black Biography
- Reference E 185.96 .C66
- Encyclopedia of African American Culture and History
- Reference E 185 .E54
- Notable Black American Women
- Reference E 185.96 .N68
Asian Americans
- Asian American Encyclopedia
- Reference E184.O6 A827 1995
Hispanic/Latino Americans
- Encyclopedia of Latino Popular Culture
- Reference E 184 .S75 E59 2004
- Handbook of Hispanic Cultures in the United States
- Literature and Art : Reference E 184 .S75 H365 1993
- Hispanic American Almanac
- Reference E 184 .S75 H557 2003
- Latino Encyclopedia
- Reference E 184 .S75 L357 1996
- Mexican American Experience
- Reference E 184 .M5 M4535
- Oxford Encyclopedia of Latinos and Latinas
- Reference E 184 .S75 O97 2005
Native Americans
- Encyclopedia of American Indian Contributions to the World
- Reference E 54.5 .k46
- Native American Almanac
- Reference E 77 .N37
Film and Television
- African American Video Guide
- Reference PN 1995.9 .N4 O44 1994
- Blacks in American Film and Television
- Reference PN 1995.9 .N4 B58 1988
- Companion Encyclopedia of Middle Eastern and North African Film
-
- Encyclopedia of Ethnic Groups in Hollywood
- Reference PN 1995.9 .M56 M85 2003
- Encyclopedia of Indian Cinema
- Reference PN1993.5.A65 C66 2001
- Encyclopedia of Television
- Reference PN 1992.18 .E53 2004
- Guide to Latin-American, Caribbean and U. S. Latino-Made Film and Video
- Reference PN 1995.9 .L37 G85
- Multicultural Films
- Reference PN 1995.9 .M56 W45 2005
Literature
- African American Writers
- Reference PS 153 .N5 A344 2001
- Asian American Literature
- Reference PS 153 .A84 A82 1999
- Asian Pacific American Heritage
- Reference PS 153 .A84 A87 1999
- Black Literature Criticism
- Reference PS 153 .N5 B556
- Dictionary of Literary Biography
- Reference PN 451 .D5
- Hispanic Literature Criticism
- Reference PQ 7081 .A1 H573
- Hispanic Writers
- Reference PQ 7081.3 .H58
- Identities and Issues in Literature
- Reference PS 153 .M56 I34 1997
Music
- African American Song
- Streaming music. Liner notes, if available, are an important source of information.
- Garland Encyclopedia of World Music
- ML100 .G16 v. 10, General perspectives and reference tools in Reference, all others in general
- The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians
- Reference ML100 .N48 200
- Oxford Music Online
- Articles on composers, performers, conductors, instruments and notation, forms and genres, and individual works.
- Smithsonian Global Sound
- Streaming music from cultures around the world. Liner notes, if available, are an important source of information.
Library Catalogs
Use the catalogs below to locate print and audio-visual materials.
- COD Library Catalog
- Books, eBooks, videos, music, etc. in the COD Library.
- I-Share
- Materials at 76 Illinois libraries. You may borrow directly from Benedictine, Elmhurst, North Central College and Wheaton College libraries.
- WorldCat
- A large number of US and some world libraries.
You may search for particular forms of art such as Hip-Hop or Sculpture or names of individual artists. If you are searching for a particular artist, you should first search them as a subject: i.e. Saar, Betye; then as an author, i.e Saar, Betye; then as a keyword, i.e. Saar and Betye.
If you would like to search for information on ethnic groups, here are some subject headings to try. All these examples use African Americans, but you can just substitute the ethnic group you are interested in. Remember that Asian Americans may also be Chinese Americans or Japanese Americans or Korean Americans among others. Latino is not used; use Hispanic Americans or Mexican Americans. Native American in also not used; the term used for this group is Indians of North America.
African Americans...
| biography | in mass media
|
| history | in motion pictures
|
| race identity | in popular culture
|
| social conditions | in the motion picture industry
|
| in art | in the performing arts
|
| in literature | on television
|
or African American.... or African American Women...
| actors | entertainers
|
| art | motion picture actors and actresses
|
| artists | painting
|
| arts | painters
|
| authors | photographers
|
| dance | sculptors
|
| dancers | sculpture
|
Databases
Although the College of DuPage Library has no online databases specifically for topics in the humanities, many of these general sources cover the topic well. In many cases, the databases will have the full text article available online. If you are using these databases from off-campus, please be sure to have your library card available.
- Academic OneFile
- Peer-reviewed, full-text articles from the world's leading journals and reference sources.
- Academic Search Premier
- Journal coverage for nearly all academic areas of study.
- Art and Architecture Complete
- Excellent coverage of the arts.
- Biography And Genealogy Master Index
- Index to sources of biographical information. (Available in the Library and C.O.D. Network only)
- Essay and General Literature Index
- Indexes chapters or essays in books.
- JSTOR
- JSTOR is an archive of digitized journal articles ranging in date from the 1700's to the early 2000's. These collections span a variety of subjects in the Humanities, Social Sciences and Physical Sciences.
- Literary Index
- Indexes more than 350,000 works plus biographies, criticism and reference.
- Literature Resource Center
- Biographical and critical information on authors from all times and places.
- New York Times and New York Times Historical
- Full text of the New York Times; excellent for reviews of film, theatre, and art exhibits.
How to Write about ...
- How to Study and Write for Art
- How to Study and Write for Theatre
- Short Guide to Writing About Art N 7476 .B37 1997
- Thinking and Writing About Art History N 380 .R438 2004
- Writing About Art
- The Writing Center; University of North Carolina
Writing About the Humanities PE 1408 .D593 2000
Citing Sources
The MLA format (Modern Language Association) is commonly used to create bibliographies or works cited pages for the field of humanities. The sources below may help you.
- C.O.D. Library's page on Citing Sources: APA & MLA Style
- Research and Documentation Online
Ken Orenic, Reference Librarian
630-942-2338
orenick@cod.edu
September 2012
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