Research Guides: ENGL 1123 (Meek): Reference Sources and Background Materials

Reference Sources and Background Materials

Reference sources like Encyclopedias, Dictionaries, and Handbooks can help you better understand the background of your topic and make scholarly articles (which are very detailed) easier to read.

Encyclopedias and Dictionaries available at Langara
A full list of online encyclopedias and dictionaries available at Langara Library.

Suggested resources include:

Gale eBooks This link opens in a new window
A collection of specialized reference works covering many topics, including literary criticism, history, and social context. Search the entire collection at once, or select specific titles to look through. You will need to login with your Langara email & password to use these resources when not on campus. Suggested titles for browsing:

International Encyclopedia of Social Sciences
Call Number: Online & Print
Articles and biographies contributed by scholars from around the world on a wide array of global topics in the social sciences.

Daily Life of Women
Call Number: Online
This reference explores the daily life of women across civilizations. The work is organized in sections on different civilizations from around the world, arranged chronologically. Within each society, the encyclopedia highlights the roles of women within five broad thematic categories: the arts, economics and work, family and community life, recreation and social customs, and religious life.

Oxford Research Encyclopedias This link opens in a new window
The Oxford Research Encyclopedias (OREs) offer long-form overview articles written, peer-reviewed, and edited by leading scholars. The OREs cover both foundational and cutting-edge topics in order to develop, over time, an anchoring knowledge base for major areas of research across the humanities, social sciences, and sciences.

The Cambridge History of the Native Peoples of the Americas
Call Number: Online
This series provides the first comprehensive history of the Native Peoples of North America from their arrival in the western hemisphere to the present. It describes how Native Peoples have dealt with the environmental diversity of North America and have responded to the different European colonial regimes and national governments that have established themselves in recent centuries.

The Oxford Encyclopedia of Women in World History
Call Number: Online & Print
Captures the experiences of women throughout world history in a comprehensive, 4-volume work.