‹ Find a Database
Find by Subject › Humanities › English Literature
Literary Texts (23)
- African-American Poetry
Contains nearly 3,000 poems by African-American poets of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. Coverage: 1750-1900.
- American Drama, 1714-1915
Over 700 plays by dramatists such as Thomas Paine, Edward Hitchcock, and James Lawson. Coverage: 1714-1915.
- American Poetry
Contains over 40,000 poems by more than 200 poets, covering the Colonial period to the early twentieth century. Coverage: 1600-1900.
- Drama Online
Drama Online is a unique online resource published by Bloomsbury Publishing, of over 1,000 full-text plays and 100+ related reference works.
- Early American Fiction
A collection of American novels and short stories written before 1875. Includes both well-known and obscure figures. Coverage: 1789-1875.
- Early English Prose Fiction
Over 200 works of fictional prose by writers from the British Isles from the period 1500-1700. Coverage: 1500-1700.
- Editions and Adaptations of Shakespeare
Contains 11 major editions from the First Folio of 1623 to the Cambridge edition of 1863-6, 28 separate contemporary printings of individual plays and poems, selected apocrypha, and related works. Also contains more than one hundred adaptations, sequels and burlesques from the seventeenth, eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. Coverage: 1591-1911.
- Eighteenth-Century Fiction
Contains 96 works in English prose by writers from the British Isles. Coverage: 1700-1780.
- English Drama
Contains 4,000 plays by 1,200 authors from the late thirteenth century to the early twentieth century. Coverage: 1280-1915.
- English Poetry
Contains over 165,000 poems essentially comprising the complete English poetic canon from 600-1900. More than 1,250 poets are represented. Coverage: 600-1900.
- Faber Poetry Library
Contains the works of 50 poets comprising 140 volumes of poetry. The Faber list includes Ted Hughes, Seamus Heaney, T.S. Eliot, and Sylvia Plath. Coverage: 1925-1999.
- King James Bible - 'Authorized' Version
The standard English edition of the Bible for nearly three centuries, drawing heavily on previous editions and providing the principal influence for many subsequent versions. It is arguably the most influential single document for English literary studies in general. Coverage: 1611 edition.
- Literature Online (LION)
Over 300,000 works of English and American literature. Includes: ABELL; African-American Poetry (1750-present); American Drama (1714-1911); American Poetry (1600-present); The Bible In English (990-1970); Early American Fiction (1789-1850); Early English Prose Fiction (1500-1700); Editions and Adaptations of Shakespeare (1591-1911); English Drama (1280-1915); English Poetry (600-present); Eighteenth-Century Fiction; Faber Poetry (1925-1999); King James Bible; Nineteenth Century Fiction; and Webster's Third New International Dictionary, Unabridged. Coverage: varies.
- Literature, Culture and Society in Depression Era America: Archives of the Federal Writers'™ Project
The Federal Writers'™ Project (FWP) was the most controversial and contentious program of the Depression-era's Work Projects Administration, recognizing that journalists, playwrights and novelists were also unemployed. This collection presents the FWP publications of all 47 states involved in the project. Coverage: 1933-1943.
- Nineteenth-Century Fiction
Includes 250 novels from the period 1786 to 1903, including works by all the major Victorian novelists such as Dickens, Thackeray, the Brontes, Eliot and Hardy, as well as the landmarks of Gothic and other fiction from the Romantic period. Coverage: 1786-1903.
- ProQuest Learning: Literature
Provides full-text works of poetry, prose, and drama from around the world. Also offers secondary sources such as author biographies and multimedia, as well as literary criticisms, essays, reviews, and interviews drawn from full-text literary magazines and journals.
- Romanticism: Life, Literature and Landscape
Presents the manuscript collections of the Wordsworth Trust, researchers unique access to the working notebooks, verse manuscripts and correspondence of William Wordsworth and his fellow writers. Authors and artists represented include Wordsworth, Coleridge, Lamb, Ruskin, Gainsborough, and others. Also includes over 2,500 fine art pieces from the Wordsworth Trust's fine art collection.
- Southern Literary Messenger: Literature of the Old South
The Southern Literary Messenger enjoyed an impressive thirty-year run and was in its time the South’s most important literary periodical. Scholars and students of history, journalism, and literature can discern much about how the hot-button topics of slavery and secession were presented in southern intellectual and literary culture in the early stages of the Civil War. Coverage: 1834-1864.
- Twentieth Century African-American Poetry
A collection of poetry written by the most important and influential African American poets of the twentieth century. Includes over 10,000 poems by around 70 poets, including Rita Dove, Robert Hayden, Sherley Anne Williams, Bob Kaufman, and Langston Hughes. Coverage: 1901-2000.
- Twentieth Century American Poetry
Includes over 50,000 poems by over 300 poets, including Ezra Pound, William Carlos Williams, Denise Levertov, Wallace Stevens, Langston Hughes, and Cathy Song. Coverage: 1901-2000.
- Twentieth Century English Poetry
Over 500 volumes of poetry including W. B. Yeats, Rudyard Kipling, Robert Graves, A. E. Housman, John Betjeman, Fleur Adcock, Tony Harrison, Benjamin Zephaniah and Carol Ann Duffy. Coverage: 1885-2000.
- Understanding Shakespeare
Easily find JSTOR articles that cite a given line of a Shakespeare play. Simply navigate to the line of the play and click the number next to it to view a list of relevant articles from the JSTOR archive. Understanding Shakespeare is a collaborative project between JSTOR Labs and the Folger Shakespeare Library.
- Women Writers Online
"Women Writers Online contains the full text of hundreds of pre-Victorian English-language works written by women. Works are both fiction and non-fiction. The text of each work is fully searchable. A special subset, Renaissance Women Online, contains 100 works from this period as well as critical commentary." Coverage: 1400-1850.
Literary Criticism & Reference (11)
- ABELL - Annual Bibliography of English Language and Literature
Indexes and selectively abstracts periodical articles, monographs, critical editions of literary works, book reviews, collections of essays, and doctoral dissertations published anywhere in the world. Emphasis is on British, American and Commonwealth writing. Also includes links to the full text of more than 60 journals. Coverage: 1920-.
- American Antiquarian Society (AAS) Historical Periodicals Collection
A collection of American periodicals published between 1684 and 1912. Documents the life of America's people from the Colonial Era through the Civil War and Reconstruction.
- Early English Books Online - EEBO
Full text of books, pamphlets and broadsides published in England or in English between 1475 and 1700. Includes many of the items indexed in the English Short Title Catalogue. Corresponds to the Pollard and Redgrave, and Wing Short-Title Catalogues, as well as Thomason Tracts. Coverage: 1473-1700.
- Eighteenth Century Collections Online - ECCO
Full text--including page images--of books, pamphlets and broadsides published in England or in English between 1701 and 1800. Includes many of the items indexed in the English Short Title Catalogue. Includes ECCO parts I and II. Coverage: 1701-1800.
- Gale Literature
Combined interface for searching across multiple literature criticism resources simultaneously. Sources searched include Dictionary of Literary Biography, Contemporary Authors, Shakespearean Criticism, Contemporary Literary Criticism, and more. Coverage: varies.
- Literary Reference Center Plus
Contains author biographies, literary criticism, journal articles and book reviews.
- Literature Criticism Online
Extensive, searchable compilation of literary commentary. Scholarly and popular commentary from broadsheets, pamphlets, books and periodicals, with page images of the print originals. Combines the contents of Contemporary Literary Criticism, Nineteenth-Century Literature Criticism, Twentieth-Century Literary Criticism, Classical & Medieval Literature Criticism, Literature Criticism from 1400-1800, Drama Criticism, Poetry Criticism, Short Story Criticism, Shakespearean Criticism, and Children's Literature Review into a single online resource. Coverage: through June 2012.
- MLA International Bibliography
Indexes articles, books, chapters of books, conference proceedings, dissertations, and working papers on topics relating to literature, modern languages, folklore, and linguistics. Coverage: 1926-.
- Nineteenth Century Collections Online
Primary source collections of the “long” nineteenth century. Collections are sourced through partnerships with major world libraries and specialist libraries. Content includes monographs, newspapers, manuscripts, ephemera, maps, and more. Coverage: 1769-1906.
- Oxford English Dictionary - OED
Corresponds to the 2nd (1989) edition of the printed OED. The online version will be updated quarterly with new and revised definitions. Includes extensive coverage of word etymologies. This version is also searchable by the date that a word entered the English language. Coverage: 1989 Edition, with updates.
- Understanding Shakespeare
Easily find JSTOR articles that cite a given line of a Shakespeare play. Simply navigate to the line of the play and click the number next to it to view a list of relevant articles from the JSTOR archive. Understanding Shakespeare is a collaborative project between JSTOR Labs and the Folger Shakespeare Library.
Primary Sources: Documents & Manuscripts (7)
- Early American Imprints, Series I & II (combined)
An electronic version of the Early American Imprints sets. Combined search of both the Evans collection and the Shaw & Shoemaker collection. Coverage: 1639-1819.
- Early American Imprints, Series I. Evans (1639-1800)
An electronic version of the Early American Imprints set. Includes the full text of all known existing books, pamphlets, and broadsides published in the Thirteen Colonies or the United States between 1639 and 1800. Periodical and newspaper articles are not included. Coverage: 1639-1800.
- Early American Imprints, Series II. Shaw/Shoemaker (1801-1819)
An electronic version of the Early American Imprints set. Includes the full text of 36,000 books, pamphlets, and broadsides published in the United States between 1801 and 1819. Periodical and newspaper articles are not included. Coverage: 1801-1819.
- Gale Primary Sources
Combined interface for searching three primary-source databases simultaneously: Eighteenth Century Collections Online (ECCO), Nineteenth Century Collections Online (NCCO), The Making of the Modern World, and British Library Newspapers 1800-1900.
- Literature, Culture and Society in Depression Era America: Archives of the Federal Writers'™ Project
The Federal Writers'™ Project (FWP) was the most controversial and contentious program of the Depression-era's Work Projects Administration, recognizing that journalists, playwrights and novelists were also unemployed. This collection presents the FWP publications of all 47 states involved in the project. Coverage: 1933-1943.
- Nineteenth Century Collections Online
Primary source collections of the “long” nineteenth century. Collections are sourced through partnerships with major world libraries and specialist libraries. Content includes monographs, newspapers, manuscripts, ephemera, maps, and more. Coverage: 1769-1906.
- Romanticism: Life, Literature and Landscape
Presents the manuscript collections of the Wordsworth Trust, researchers unique access to the working notebooks, verse manuscripts and correspondence of William Wordsworth and his fellow writers. Authors and artists represented include Wordsworth, Coleridge, Lamb, Ruskin, Gainsborough, and others. Also includes over 2,500 fine art pieces from the Wordsworth Trust's fine art collection.
Encyclopedias & Reference (6)
- Cambridge Histories
Cambridge Histories is the essential reference collection spanning 350 volumes in 10 subject areas.
- Gale Literature
Combined interface for searching across multiple literature criticism resources simultaneously. Sources searched include Dictionary of Literary Biography, Contemporary Authors, Shakespearean Criticism, Contemporary Literary Criticism, and more. Coverage: varies.
- Literary Reference Center Plus
Contains author biographies, literary criticism, journal articles and book reviews.
- Literature Criticism Online
Extensive, searchable compilation of literary commentary. Scholarly and popular commentary from broadsheets, pamphlets, books and periodicals, with page images of the print originals. Combines the contents of Contemporary Literary Criticism, Nineteenth-Century Literature Criticism, Twentieth-Century Literary Criticism, Classical & Medieval Literature Criticism, Literature Criticism from 1400-1800, Drama Criticism, Poetry Criticism, Short Story Criticism, Shakespearean Criticism, and Children's Literature Review into a single online resource. Coverage: through June 2012.
- Oxford English Dictionary - OED
Corresponds to the 2nd (1989) edition of the printed OED. The online version will be updated quarterly with new and revised definitions. Includes extensive coverage of word etymologies. This version is also searchable by the date that a word entered the English language. Coverage: 1989 Edition, with updates.
- ProQuest Learning: Literature
Provides full-text works of poetry, prose, and drama from around the world. Also offers secondary sources such as author biographies and multimedia, as well as literary criticisms, essays, reviews, and interviews drawn from full-text literary magazines and journals.
Primary Sources (5)
- British Library Newspapers (1800-1900)
The British Library Newspapers collections feature London national newspapers, English regional papers, home country newspapers from Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales, and titles in specialist areas such as Victorian radicalism and Chartism. Coverage: 1800-1900.
- Cambridge Histories
Cambridge Histories is the essential reference collection spanning 350 volumes in 10 subject areas.
- Early English Books Online - EEBO
Full text of books, pamphlets and broadsides published in England or in English between 1475 and 1700. Includes many of the items indexed in the English Short Title Catalogue. Corresponds to the Pollard and Redgrave, and Wing Short-Title Catalogues, as well as Thomason Tracts. Coverage: 1473-1700.
- Eighteenth Century Collections Online - ECCO
Full text--including page images--of books, pamphlets and broadsides published in England or in English between 1701 and 1800. Includes many of the items indexed in the English Short Title Catalogue. Includes ECCO parts I and II. Coverage: 1701-1800.
- Women Writers Online
"Women Writers Online contains the full text of hundreds of pre-Victorian English-language works written by women. Works are both fiction and non-fiction. The text of each work is fully searchable. A special subset, Renaissance Women Online, contains 100 works from this period as well as critical commentary." Coverage: 1400-1850.
Articles: Scholarly Journals (5)
- ABELL - Annual Bibliography of English Language and Literature
Indexes and selectively abstracts periodical articles, monographs, critical editions of literary works, book reviews, collections of essays, and doctoral dissertations published anywhere in the world. Emphasis is on British, American and Commonwealth writing. Also includes links to the full text of more than 60 journals. Coverage: 1920-.
- British Library Newspapers (1800-1900)
The British Library Newspapers collections feature London national newspapers, English regional papers, home country newspapers from Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales, and titles in specialist areas such as Victorian radicalism and Chartism. Coverage: 1800-1900.
- MLA International Bibliography
Indexes articles, books, chapters of books, conference proceedings, dissertations, and working papers on topics relating to literature, modern languages, folklore, and linguistics. Coverage: 1926-.
- Project MUSE
Provides access to the full text of over 100 scholarly journals in the arts and humanities and social sciences. Coverage: Varies.
- Understanding Shakespeare
Easily find JSTOR articles that cite a given line of a Shakespeare play. Simply navigate to the line of the play and click the number next to it to view a list of relevant articles from the JSTOR archive. Understanding Shakespeare is a collaborative project between JSTOR Labs and the Folger Shakespeare Library.
Articles: Newspapers & Magazines (4)
- ABELL - Annual Bibliography of English Language and Literature
Indexes and selectively abstracts periodical articles, monographs, critical editions of literary works, book reviews, collections of essays, and doctoral dissertations published anywhere in the world. Emphasis is on British, American and Commonwealth writing. Also includes links to the full text of more than 60 journals. Coverage: 1920-.
- British Library Newspapers (1800-1900)
The British Library Newspapers collections feature London national newspapers, English regional papers, home country newspapers from Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales, and titles in specialist areas such as Victorian radicalism and Chartism. Coverage: 1800-1900.
- MLA International Bibliography
Indexes articles, books, chapters of books, conference proceedings, dissertations, and working papers on topics relating to literature, modern languages, folklore, and linguistics. Coverage: 1926-.
- Understanding Shakespeare
Easily find JSTOR articles that cite a given line of a Shakespeare play. Simply navigate to the line of the play and click the number next to it to view a list of relevant articles from the JSTOR archive. Understanding Shakespeare is a collaborative project between JSTOR Labs and the Folger Shakespeare Library.
Primary Sources: Historical Newspapers & Periodicals (3)
- American Antiquarian Society (AAS) Historical Periodicals Collection
A collection of American periodicals published between 1684 and 1912. Documents the life of America's people from the Colonial Era through the Civil War and Reconstruction.
- American Historical Periodicals Series 1-5
Journals, periodicals, and magazines documenting the American people from the Colonial Era through the Civil War, Reconstruction, and the twentieth century.
- Southern Literary Messenger: Literature of the Old South
The Southern Literary Messenger enjoyed an impressive thirty-year run and was in its time the South’s most important literary periodical. Scholars and students of history, journalism, and literature can discern much about how the hot-button topics of slavery and secession were presented in southern intellectual and literary culture in the early stages of the Civil War. Coverage: 1834-1864.
Video & Multimedia (2)
- Digital Theatre+
Digital Theatre+ provides access to hundreds of theatre productions and educational resources covering English and the Performing Arts.
- Drama Online
Drama Online is a unique online resource published by Bloomsbury Publishing, of over 1,000 full-text plays and 100+ related reference works.
Dictionaries (1)
- Oxford English Dictionary - OED
Corresponds to the 2nd (1989) edition of the printed OED. The online version will be updated quarterly with new and revised definitions. Includes extensive coverage of word etymologies. This version is also searchable by the date that a word entered the English language. Coverage: 1989 Edition, with updates.