Major Research Tools

Annual Bibliography of English Language and Literature (ABELL)

Full-Text, Index
Coverage: 1892-present

Index of books, articles, and other publications on literature in English from Anglo-Saxon times to the present. Covers more British publications than MLA International Bibliography. Includes links to some full text. From the Modern Humanities Research Association (MHRA).


Johns Hopkins Guide to Literary Theory & Criticism

Full-Text, Reference

Guide to literary critics and theorists, critical schools and movements, and the critical and theoretical innovations of specific countries and historical periods.


Middle English Compendium

Full-Text

Online version of Middle English Dictionary, which provides meaning and usage of English words from 1100 to 1500. Includes links to a bibliography of sources as well as texts of Middle English verse and prose.


MLA International Bibliography

Index

Coverage: 1884-present

Index of scholarly articles, edited books, and dissertations on literature, languages, film studies and folklore. Includes MLA Directory of Periodicals, which provides detailed information on periodicals covering literature and languages. For help searching MLA, see our Search Guide.


OED: Oxford English Dictionary

Full-Text, Reference

Searchable version of the Oxford English Dictionary, which traces the origins and usage of English words.


Other Suggested Research Tools

American Rhetoric

Full-Text, Gateway

Collection of full text, audio and video versions of public speeches, sermons, legal proceedings, lectures, debates, interviews, and other recorded media events. The site also includes sections devoted to rhetorical devices, Christian rhetoric, 9/11 rhetoric, movie speeches, and political speeches.


Gale Primary Sources

Full-Text

Coverage: 1604-2008

Research environment for finding primary sources mainly from Great Britain and the United States covering the 17th to 20th centuries.


Historical Thesaurus of English

Reference

Database that organizes all the words in the 1300-year history of English into a vast hierarchy of meanings allowing users to pinpoint the range of meanings of words from Old English to the present.


LEME: Lexicons of Early Modern English

Full-Text

Database of word-entries from English dictionaries, bilingual and polyglot dictionaries, and other lexical works published from 1480 to 1700.


Speech Accent Archive

Data, Reference

Intended for people who wish to compare and analyze the accents of different native and non-native English speakers, this site offers a large set of speech samples from a variety of language backgrounds. Sound clips and phonetic transcriptions are typically available. Useful for actors who need to learn an accent.