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ENG 231 Course Guide

This guide contains additional research tips, tricks, strategies, and resources to help you successfully complete your ENG 231 assignments. Click on the tabs below to learn about tips to construct different types of writing assignments and useful resources about different eras of American literature.

Resources by Period of American Literature

Colonial Period

Articles

American literature (from The Columbia Encyclopedia)
Encyclopedia entry, accessed through CREDO Reference.

Author biographies and notable works

Edwards, Jonathan, 1703–58 (from The Columbia Encyclopedia)
Encyclopedia entry, accessed through CREDO Reference.
Winthrop, John, 1588–1649 (from The Columbia Encyclopedia)
Encyclopedia entry, accessed through CREDO Reference.

Neoclassical Period

Articles

"Persuasion dwelt on her tongue": Female civic rhetoric in early America by Janet Carey Eldred & Peter Mortensen
Eldred & Mortensen (1998) examine the "rhetoric and writing instruction in post-revolutionary America" and revise "the historical notion of 'separate spheres' for women and men." From ProQuest Central.

Author biographies and notable works

Barlow, Joel (1754-1812) (from American Poetry)
Author page including primary texts, criticisms, references, and dissertations, accessed from ProQuest's American Poetry.
Paine, Robert Treat (1773-1811) (from American Poetry)
Author page including primary texts, criticisms, references, and dissertations, accessed from ProQuest's American Poetry.
PAPER by Benjamin Franklin (1829)
Benjamin Franklin's poem, PAPER (1829), published in Specimens of American Poetry, With Critical and Biographical Notices, accessed through ProQuest.
Wheatley, Phillis (1753-1784)
Entries from various encyclopedias about Phillis Wheatley (1753-1784), accessed through CREDO Reference.

Romantic Period (The Beginning)

Articles

Romanticism (from the Encyclopedia of American Literature)
Encyclopedia entry, access through CREDO Reference.

Author biographies and notable works

Dickinson, Emily (1830-1886) (from American Poetry)
Author page including primary texts, criticisms, references, and dissertations, accessed from ProQuest's American Poetry.
Irving, Washington (1783-1859) (from American Poetry)
Author page including primary texts, criticisms, references, and dissertations, accessed from ProQuest's American Poetry.
Whitman, Walt (1819-1892) (from American Poetry)
Author page including primary texts, criticisms, references, and dissertations, accessed from ProQuest's American Poetry.

All periods

The following resources are suited for research pertaining to all periods of American literature.

Databases

American Poetry
Find poems written from 1650-1920. Includes Anne Bradstreet, Emily Dickinson, Edgar Allan Poe, Phillis Wheatley, Walt Whitman and Herman Melville.
CREDO Reference
Access images, sound files, animations and videos to hundreds of top quality full-text reference resources covering all major subject areas.
Gale Literature Criticism
Access the largest online collection of literary criticism in the world and find a range of modern and historical views on authors and their works across regions, eras and genres.
Gale Literature Resource Center
Articles, critical essays, work and topic overviews, full-text works, and biographies covering authors, their works, and literary movements.
Research Companion
An award-winning, cloud-based information literacy solution that enables educators and librarians to guide students through research projects efficiently. Includes self-guided modules for many stages of the research and writing process, including topic selection, avoiding plagiarism, evaluating sources, and paper revision.

Resources by Assignment Type

Research Topic Proposal

Writing a research topic proposal gives you the opportunity to map out your project and get feedback from your instructor to ensure you're on the right track from the beginning. Before you begin writing:

Read your instructor's guidelines carefully. Don't assume that you know the details of an assignment based on a brief overview in class or hearsay from your classmates. If there are written guidelines for your assignment, read them completely--and ask your instructor about anything you do not understand--before you begin.
Support your claims with evidence from your research. Don't let emotion or personal bias overshadow your logic and evidence.
Remember your audience. Keep in mind that your essay should be written using college-level research for a professional audience (your instructor). Be careful not to condescend to your reader by making assumptions about his/her stance on your topic.
Cite your sources. If you make a statement that is not your own original thought or common knowledge (ex. "The sky is blue"), or reference other works directly, be sure to cite your source both in-text and at the end of your paper.

Databases

Research Companion
An award-winning, cloud-based information literacy solution that enables educators and librarians to guide students through research projects efficiently. Includes self-guided modules for many stages of the research and writing process, including topic selection, avoiding plagiarism, evaluating sources, and paper revision.

Videos

Video: Picking Your Topic is Research!
NC State University Libraries' short video explains how research and topic selection are related, and why good topics are not "set in stone." (c) North Carolina State University Libraries, CC BY-NC-SA 3.0 US

Websites

Excelsior Online Writing Lab: Finding Topics
Excelsior University's Excelsior Online Writing Lab provides information about choosing and narrowing an assignment topic. (c) Excelsior Online Writing Lab, CC BY 4.0

Literary Research Paper

Before you begin writing:

Read your instructor's guidelines carefully. Don't assume that you know the details of an assignment based on a brief overview in class or hearsay from your classmates. If there are written guidelines for your assignment, read them completely--and ask your instructor about anything you do not understand--before you begin.
Prewrite. Using your notes to create an outline will give you a road map for writing your paper and will streamline the process.
Remember your audience. Keep in mind that your essay should be written using college-level research for a professional audience (your instructor).
Cite your sources. If you make a statement that is not your own original thought or common knowledge (ex. "The sky is blue"), or reference other works directly, be sure to cite your source both in-text and at the end of your paper.

Databases

American Poetry
Find poems written from 1650-1920. Includes Anne Bradstreet, Emily Dickinson, Edgar Allan Poe, Phillis Wheatley, Walt Whitman and Herman Melville.
CREDO Reference
Access images, sound files, animations and videos to hundreds of top quality full-text reference resources covering all major subject areas.
Gale Literature
Combines Literature Resource Center with Gale Virtual Reference Library in one interface. Articles, critical essays, work and topic overviews, full-text works, and biographies covering authors, their works, and literary movements.
Gale Literature Criticism
Access the largest online collection of literary criticism in the world and find a range of modern and historical views on authors and their works across regions, eras and genres.
Arts & Humanities Database
This database features hundreds of titles covering Art, Architecture, Design, History, Philosophy, Music, Literature, Theatre and Cultural Studies.
Research Companion
An award-winning, cloud-based information literacy solution that enables educators and librarians to guide students through research projects efficiently. Includes self-guided modules for many stages of the research and writing process, including topic selection, avoiding plagiarism, evaluating sources, and paper revision.

Annotated Bibliography

An annotated bibliography is a list of citations accompanied by a brief description (the annotation) for each citation. Annotations are typically short paragraphs (150-300 words) that summarize the source, its main points, and an assessment of its value for the reader. Before you begin writing:

Read your instructor's guidelines carefully. Don't assume that you know the details of an assignment based on a brief overview in class or hearsay from your classmates. For example, be sure that you know what citation style to use. If there are written guidelines for your assignment, read them completely--and ask your instructor about anything you do not understand--before you begin.
Only include quality, relevant sources. Review sources carefully before adding them to your annotated bibliography. Make sure that they relate directly to your topic and that they contain useful, credible information.
Summarize your sources in your own words. Don't take information directly from a source, as this is considered plagiarism. Be sure to include important points from the source, but be careful not to make annotations too long by including unnecessary details.
Remember your audience. Keep in mind that your essay should be written using college-level language for a professional audience (your instructor).
Provide detailed evaluations. Provide reasons why you will, or will not, use each source for your research. Use the C.R.A.A.P. Test to evaluate the resource.
- Currency: Does my instructor require sources to have been published after a certain date? Is the information outdated?
- Relevance: Does the source relate to my topic? Is it specific enough?
- Authority: Does the author have the credentials to show that they are an expert on this subject? Is there an organization that sponsored this source, and if so, is it credible and reputable?
- Accuracy: Are there spelling/grammar/typographical errors? Was it edited and published by professionals?
- Purpose: Is there bias or strong emotional language throughout the source? Is it trying to sell you something?

Books & eBooks

"Student Research and Report Writing: From Topic Selection to the Complete Paper" by Gabe T. Wang and Keumjae Park
Chapter 3, “Searching for Information,” from Wang and Park’s Student Research and Report Writing emphasizes the importance of identifying reliable and valid sources, preparing effectively (e.g., selecting keywords and choosing appropriate databases), conducting systematic searches through library catalogs and journal databases, and organizing your findings meticulously for later use.

Databases

A-Z Databases: English
A list of library databases best suited for research related to the subject of English.

Research Companion
An award-winning, cloud-based information literacy solution that enables educators and librarians to guide students through research projects efficiently. Includes self-guided modules for many stages of the research and writing process, including topic selection, avoiding plagiarism, evaluating sources, and paper revision.

Websites

Excelsior Online Writing Lab: Annotated Bibliographies
Excelsior University's Excelsior Online Writing Lab provides a description of what goes into an annotated bibliography, along with a sample document and helpful tips. (c) Excelsior Online Writing Lab, CC BY 4.0
The Writing Center at UNC-CH: Annotated Bibliographies
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill's The Writing Center shares a detailed handout that discusses the purpose, content, and possible formats of annotated bibliographies. Example annotated bibliographies are also available in various citation styles. (c) The Writing Center, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, CC BY-NC-ND 2.5

English: ENG 231 (American Literature I)

Need Help?

Make a Research Appointment

ENG 231 Course Guide

Resources by Period of American Literature

Colonial Period

Articles

Neoclassical Period

Articles

Author biographies and notable works

Romantic Period (The Beginning)

Articles

Author biographies and notable works

All periods

Databases

Resources by Assignment Type

Research Topic Proposal

Databases

Videos

Websites

Literary Research Paper

Databases

Annotated Bibliography

Books & eBooks

Databases

Websites