This is the list of guides provided by the ISU Library for the various topics taught in the Iowa State University's English Department.
This guide is intended to serve as both a resource for undergraduate students studying English and graduate students enrolled in one of the Master's level or Doctoral programs offered by the ISU English Department. Here you will find links to, and descriptions of, many highly pertinent and useful resources that will help you to get started doing research in one of the areas that falls under the umbrella of English. These areas include Creative Writing, English Literature, Linguistics (Applied and other), Rhetoric and Professional Communication Speech Communication, andTechnical Communication. (In a box on the left column you'll see links to specific guides for the above-mentioned subjects. Note that the guide is divided up according to the structure of the English department. Basic information will generally be found in the opening pages of the guides, with more involved information located under the tabs to the right of the guide's starting page.
If you'd like further assistance in doing research in any of the areas that fit under the category of English, please don't hesitate to contact the English Subject Specialist, Dan Coffey
The MLA (Modern Language Association) Index is a database that can be used to find scholarly journal articles, peer-reviewed essays published as chapters in books, and occasionally poems, short fiction, and creative nonfiction pieces that have been published in journals. The purpose of the MLA is to give scholars searchable access to tens of thousands of publications in the field of literary studies in all modern languages, as well as linguistics, rhetoric, teaching composition, film studies, and folklore. So, no matter which area of English you happen to be doing research in, the MLA database should be your first stop.
Academic Search Ultimate is a very useful tool for finding scholarly articles on any academic topic, including anything that falls under the umbrella of English studies. Many of the articles you'll find here are available in full-text format (i.e. the article appears right on the screen). This doesn't go anywhere nearly as in depth as the MLA Database does, so it's a good idea to try both of these tools, regardless of which aspect of English you're studying.