Shakespeare: A Guide to Research

Because so much is written about Shakespeare's plays and poetry, sometimes research can be frustrating. Before using the library catalog, some important advice: It's best to approach Shakespeare by a specific play or a specific character. Broad, thematic searches like "Shakespeare and vengeance" are vague and yield too many results.

Using The Online Catalog

There are numerous ways to use the catalog (catalog.nypl.org) to research Shakespeare. One way is to perform a SUBJECT KEYWORD search using the word "Shakespeare" and important words from the title or character you are researching. The following example shows the first few results of a subject keyword search for SHAKESPEARE MERCHANT VENICE. Click here to recreate this search.

The first ten results (of sixty) include works of criticism about The Merchant of Venice and a video lecture. You can scroll through the list of sixty titles or use the catalog's "search settings" feature to limit results to specific formats such as books and paperbacks only.

The Library Catalog's "Related Works" feature is a powerful tool in helping to focus your search. If a title in the catalog has been useful then you can find similar titles by clicking (if you're using the catalog's web version) on any of the underlined subject links for similar titles.

Understanding Shakespeare's Call Numbers

For those who prefer simply to browse the shelves, all Shakespeare titles begin with the call number 822.33. Each play has a unique letter/number following 822.33. Browse the following numbers for these plays and criticism:

The Poetry: Shakespeare's poems and poetry criticism is found at 822.33-Y1 and -Y2. The sonnets are found on the shelves at the call number 822.33-Y7. Individual works of criticism about the sonnets are at 822.33-Y8.

Shakespeare Encyclopedias and Collections Of Criticism

Shakespearean Criticism A multi-volume resource that offers significant passages from published criticism. Use the three excellent cumulative indexes+character, topic, and topic index by play+ in the back of the most recent volumes to guide your research. (See also "Literature Resource Center" under Electronic Resources below.)

Shakespeare for Students (at the information desk) This popular three-volume work presents information on Shakespeare's most-studied plays. Each 50-75 page entry is treated similarly: synopsis, principal thematic issues, criticism arranged by topics, and sources for further study. Each volume also contains an index to major characters and themes.

William Shakespeare: His World, His Work, His Influence edited by John F. Andrews. A three-volume work containing sixty original essays. His World offers a view into the social and political climate in, as well as the day-to-day life of, Shakespeare's England. His Work focuses on the man, his writing, and broad themes such as Shakespeare's language, dramatic methods, and psychology. His Influence explores Shakespeare's enduring effect on other artists, writers, critics, and institutions.

Shakespeare Bibliographies

Bibliographies organize published criticism by listing books and journal articles that discuss a certain play, character, or theme. An annotated bibliography also provides a summary of each listed book or article so that the user can better determine its helpfulness. Ask at the desk for the following titles:

Shakespeare (Magill Bibliographies) Individual plays get three or more pages (depending on popularity) worth of annotated lists of books and articles. Other lists are classified under "General Studies" and include thematic and topical approaches to research.

Shakespeare (Bevington) More scholarly than the Magill bibliography, Bevington's bibliography breaks down individual plays by major characters and themes. The section on general works includes lists of biographies, about style and language, and about criticism of Shakespeare's works as a whole.

Garland Shakespeare Bibliographies Full-length books, annotated, devoted to individual plays.

Electronic Resources

The following databases offer plot summaries, biographical and critical information from books and journals about Shakespeare. All are available through the Library's electronic resources site (www.nypl.org/databases)

• Literature Resource Center**: Full-text articles on all authors and time periods. Nearly full sets of reference titles like Shakespearean Criticism.
• EBSCOhost Academic Search Premier**: Citations and some full-text articles in all subjects.
• Literature Online: Many full-text articles from over 100 journals on all authors, all time periods.
• MLA Bibliography (Modern Language Association): Scholarly in coverage, it offers citations to books, book chapters, and journal articles on literature.
• JSTOR: Offers full-text scholarly criticism from almost fifty journals of literature, including Shakespeare Quarterly.
• MagillOnLiterature Plus: Plot summaries and criticism for high school students and general readers.

**available from home with a valid NYPL library card.

May 08, 2004

by Richard Reyes-Gavilan, Librarian, Literature and Language Collection, Mid-Manhattan Library