Research can be overwhelming, but it helps to remember that research is a process.
This guide will help you work through the steps of that process, and along the way, we will introduce you to activities/techniques and connect you with resources appropriate for completing that step in the process.
We've also created a worksheet that you can fill out as you go.
Research Process When Writing about Literature
The basic research process can be adapted to different types of research and assignments. When researching and writing about literature, the research process can look a bit different than with other types of assignments.
| 1. | Identify your topic. | What work(s) are you writing about? For this class, you're choosing an poem to analyze. |
| 2. | Explore/Brainstorm your topic. | What aspects of the poem are you interested in? |
| 3. | Identify keywords/potential search terms | Looking at your topic and exploration, circle any words or concepts that might be useful as search terms. Think about how those words might be combined as search terms to find articles or other items that might be useful to you as sources. Use the blank table on the worksheet to come up with search term combinations. |
| 4. | Search for sources | Starting with the search terms and combinations you've generated, begin exploring databases and the catalog for sources. |