Types of Periodicals in Literature

Professional Scholarly Literary

Types of Scholarly Articles

Analysis and interpretation Pedagogical Linguistic Textual Historical

Scholarly Press vs. Popular Press

Purpose and content Audience Acceptance and rejection practices

Peer Review Process

New information Fresh evaluations Innovative critical approaches

Peer Review Process

Accept Conditional acceptance Potential acceptance Rejection

Review Process: Rejection

Poor marketing Facts or interpretations already known Flawed conclusions More opinion not enough research Sloppy writing

Peer Reviewed?

Journal’s Web site Print version of journal MLA Directory of Periodicals (

www.lib.csub.edu/)

The following slides will:

1. Indicate how to access the MLA database

2. Describe the MLA database

3. Explain how to construct a search strategy

To access the MLA database from the Library’s home page . . .

MLA International Bibliography

Library’s Periodical Databases

MLA

MLA Database Search Interface

The following slides describe the MLA International Bibliography.

MLA Coverage

Coverage includes literature from all over the world--Africa, Asia, Australia, Europe, and North and South America.

Folklore is represented by folk literature, music, art, rituals, and belief systems.

Linguistics and language materials range from history and theory of linguistics, comparative linguistics, semantics, stylistics, and syntax to translation.

Other topics include literary theory and criticism, dramatic arts (film, radio, television, theater), and history of printing and publishing.

MLA Coverage

The MLA database is a collection of records that identify:

•periodical articles•books & monographs•chapters & essays in books•conference proceedings•dissertations•review essays

MLA Coverage

MLA Database Basics

The MLA database contains citations from 1926 to the present. However, access to some articles date back to the 1880s.

MLA Database Basics

A MLA database record is divided into fields. Each field represents a unit of information.

MLA Database Basics

The major fields in MLA records include:

Title

Author

Source

Subject Areas

Subject Terms

MLA Database Record

Searching the MLA database successfully means switching from simple keyword

searches (Google-style) to the more sophisticated search method called Boolean.

Keyword Search vs. Boolean

When searching a complex topic, use Boolean rather than a keyword search because. . .

Keyword Searches: Problems

Simple keyword searches often retrieve:

• too many items

• irrelevant items

• zero items

Unsuccessful keyword search

Unsuccessful keyword search

Boolean Search

A Boolean search is a flexible strategy that allows searches to be narrowed or broadened by adding terms.

Boolean Search

The following slides illustrate how to construct a Boolean search strategy.

Boolean Searching

1. Write a clear statement about the topic.

2. Divide the topic statement into concepts.

3. Select words to express each concept.

4. Truncate appropriate words.

Step 1: Write a topic statement

The topic can be stated as a:

•phrase

•question

•thesis

Step 1: Write a topic statement

How is the feminine portrayed in Conrad’s Heart of Darkness?

Step 2: Divide statement into concepts

How is the feminine portrayed in Conrad’s Heart of Darkness?

Fluff Words

Separate the important words from the “fluff,” superficial or inconsequential words that can adversely affect a search.

For example: “portrayed” is not included in the Boolean strategy because when “feminine” is combined with Heart of Darkness, “portrayed” is implied and thus not needed.

Fluff Words

Note the key essays below. They would have been overlooked by the database if the term “portrayed” had been included in the search strategy. Why? Because “portrayed” is not expressed anywhere in the MLA database records for these essays.

Step 2: Divide the topic into concepts

Below shows how to enter a basic Boolean search (step 2). When these two concepts are combined, the database retrieves 3 sources. But the database includes many more relevant sources. To include these, the search must be broadened to include synonyms of both concepts.

Step 3: Assign synonyms to concepts

Authors and database specialists will express the concept “feminine” differently. This means that you must include other words that are used to express “feminine.” If synonyms and closely related words are not included, relevant items will be NOT be retrieved.

MLA Boolean Strategy

This is how to enter a Boolean search that includes multiple synonymsor closely related words.

Step 4: Truncate appropriate words

Even with this search, key sources have been overlooked because terms were not “truncated.”

Truncating words retrieves all variant forms of a word:

For example, the variant forms of the word “feminine” include:

feminist, feminism, feminine, femininity

Truncate appropriate words

To truncate, use the symbol * and cut far enough into the word so that all of its variant forms will be searched.

Truncate appropriate words

If truncation is not used, the database may not retrieve key sources such as this one. It was not included in the results because the

database was told to search only for “feminine.”

Remember a database is literal-minded, which means it attempts to match the terms as exactly as stated by the searcher. So, to retrieve variant formsof terms, the searcher must truncate the term.

Examples of Truncation

Conrad*: Conrad, Conrad’s, Conradian

female*: female, females

women*: women, women’s

litera*: literary, literature, literatures

Truncation

Boolean Searching: Summary

1. Write a clear statement about topic

2. Divide topic statement into concepts

3. Select words to express each concept

4. Truncate appropriate words