Getting Started: Selected Reference Works

Begin your search with reference works to find background information, locate statistics and facts, and build a bibliography.

General

Ref AE25 .E3 1993
Encyclopaedia universalis. Nouv. ed. 32 vols. Paris: Encyclopaedia universalis, 1990.
A general encyclopedia in French, with signed articles that give bibliographical references. Illustrated. Ref AE25 .G63 1982
Grand dictionnaire encyclopédique Larousse. 10 vols. Paris: Librairie Larousse, 1982-.
Ten-volume dictionary in French. Thickly illustrated, and most of the illustrations are in color.

History and Culture

Ref DC33.2 .M44 1995
Kibler, William W. Medieval France: An Encyclopedia. Garland reference library of the humanities; vol. 932. Garland encyclopedias of the Middle Ages ; vol. 2. New York: Garland Pub., 1995.
Brief, signed articles with lists for further reading. arranged alphabetically and indexed. Ref DC33.7 .E53 1998
Reader, Keith, and Alex Hughes. Encyclopedia of Contemporary French Culture. London ; New York: Routledge, 1998.
Alphabetically arranged, with a "Classified Contents List" in front. Signed articles with lists for further reading. Coverage of francophone topics. Indexed.

Ref DC33.7 .F726 1995
Brosman, Catharine Savage, and Tom Conley. French Culture, 1900-1975. Dictionary of twentieth-century culture. Detroit: Gale Research, 1995.
Includes a "Topical Table of Contents" and a "Timeline." Entries are arranged alphabetically, signed, and include lists of references. Indexed. Ref DC33.7 .N63 1996
Northcutt, Wayne. The Regions of France: A Reference Guide to History and Culture. Westport, Conn.: Greenwood Press, 1996.
Significant articles on each region include maps and bibliographies. Supplemented by a list of French rulers, a substantial general bibliography, and an index.

Literature and Language

General

Ref PC2071 .B37 1989
Bassan, Fernande, Donald C. Spinelli, and Howard A. Sullivan. French Language and Literature: An Annotated Bibliography. Garland reference library of the humanities; vol. 954. New York: Garland, 1989.
Annotated entries on French language and literature. Chapter 20 covers "Literatures of French Expression outside of France." Indexed by title and author of the works listed (numbers in the index entries refer to the number of the entry, not the page number).

Language

Ref PC2625 .I4
Imbs, Paul. Trésor de la langue française: dictionnaire de la langue du XIXe et du XXe siècle (1789-1960). 16 vols. Paris: Editions du Centre national de la recherche scientifique, 1971-1994.
Gives definitions, etymology, history, pronunciation, and examples of usage from the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. In French. References are given for further study. Ref PC2625 .R552 1989
Robert, Paul. Dictionnaire alphabétique et analogique de la langue française. 2nd ed. 9 vols. Paris: Le Robert, 1987-1989.
Sponsored by the Académie Française, this dictionary gives defintions, etymologies, synonyms, antonyms, and examples of usage.

Literature (French & Francophone)

Ref PQ41 .B42 1994
de Beaumarchais, Jean-Pierre, and Daniel Couty. Dictionnaire des œuvres littéraires de langue française. 4 vols. Paris: Bordas, 1994-.
Signed articles in French on literary works, including francophone works. Editions are listed at the end of each article. Pictorial essays with color plates on selected authors are scattered throughout the work and indexed in volume 4 in the "Table des hors-texte." There is also an index of works covered arranged by author. Ref PQ41 .N48 1995
France, Peter. The New Oxford Companion to Literature in French. New York: Oxford University Press, 1995.
Brief entries on a wide range of topics, including francophone literatures, alphabetically arranged, as well as maps and a chronology.

Ref PQ149 .M27 1996
Makward, Christiane P., et al. Dictionnaire littéraire des femmes de langue française. Paris: Karthala, 1996.
Articles of varying lengths on French and francophone writers. Longer articles are signed and include primary and secondary bibliographies. Ref PQ103 .C27 1996
Worth-Stylianou, Valerie. Cassell Guide to Literature in French. New York: Cassell, 1996.
Articles on periods in French literature include lists for further reading. There is an essay on "Francophone Literature," and a chronology and index.

French Literature

Ref PQ41 .D65 1986
Dolbow, Sandra W. Dictionary of Modern French Literature: From the Age of Reason through Realism. Westport, Conn.: Greenwood Press, 1986.
Entries on works and authors, some with references for further reading. Cross-referenced. Includes an appendix of "Historical and Literary Events." Indexed. Ref PQ41 .L48 1992
Levi, Anthony. Guide to French Literature. 2 vols. Chicago: St. James Press, 1992-1994.
Lengthy articles include lists of primary and secondary works. Entries are listed at the beginning of each volume, and each volume includes a timeline. Volume 2 includes title and general indexes. Organized chronologically. Ref PQ149 .F47 1999
Sartori, Eva Martin. The Feminist Encyclopedia of French Literature. Westport, Conn.: Greenwood Press, 1999.
Signed articles with bibliographies on women writers who have "lived and worked mainly in France," a chronology, and a general bibliography. Indexed.

Ref PQ149 .F73 1991
Sartori, Eva, and Dorothy Wynne Zimmerman. French Women Writers: A Bio-Bibliographical Source Book. New York: Greenwood Press, 1991.
Coverage of "European women who have written in French and who have identified with French culture." Substantial signed articles with primary and secondary bibliographies, as well as a chronology and a "List of Authors by Date of Birth." Indexed by title and subject.

Francophone Literature

Ref PN849.A35 L55 1996
Limb, Peter, and Jean-Marie Volet. Bibliography of African Literatures. Lanham, Md.: Scarecrow Press, 1996.
Arranged by language and then by country. There is a section on "French Literatures." Indexed by author, and includes a "Female Literary Authors Index and a "Countries Index." Ref PN849.C3 B47 1989
Berrian, Brenda F. Bibliography of Women Writers from the Caribbean. 1st ed. Washington, DC: Three Continents Press, 1989.
Includes a section on "French Caribbean and Guyane." Indexed.

Ref PN849.C32 P36 1993
Paravisini-Gebert, Lizabeth, and Olga Torres-Seda. Caribbean Women Novelists: An Annotated Critical Bibliography. Bibliographies and indexes in world literature; no. 36. Westport, Conn.: Greenwood Press, 1993.
Entries are arranged alphabetically by novelist, and include lists of works by and about the novelist, as well as lists of adaptations of the work to other genres and/or media. Includes a "List of Authors by Country," and "Index of Novelists," "Index of Critics," and "Index of Themes and Keywords."

Ref PN849.U43 E53 2001
Hawley, John C. Encyclopedia of Postcolonial Studies. Westport, Conn.: Greenwood Press, 2001.
Focuses on literary topics, not all of them francophone. Alphabetically arranged, signed articles include references (fully cited in the volume's bibliography). Indexed. Ref PN849.U43 F58 1995
Fister, Barbara. Third World Women's Literatures: A Dictionary and Guide to Materials in English. Westport, Conn.: Greenwood Press, 1995.
Alphabetically arranged,this work includes entries on authors, genres, and individual workss. Entries on authors include a brief biography, a list of works, and a list of writings about the authors and works. There are five appendices: "List of Authors by Region and Country," "Chronological List of Authors," "Resources for Research," "Anthologies," and "Criticism."

Ref PQ3901 .K35 1990
Kandiuk, Mary. French-Canadian Authors: A Bibliography of Their Works and of English-Language Criticism. Metuchen, N.J.: Scarecrow Press, 1990.
Alphabetically arranged by author. Each entry has full primary and secondary bibliographies. Indexed by literary critic and editor. Ref PQ3980.A52 K65 1996
Kom, Ambroise. Dictionnaire des oeuvres littéraires de langue française en Afrique au sud du Sahara. San Francisco: International Scholars Publications, 1996.
In French. Brief, signed articles on literary works.

Film

Ref PN1993.5.A65 C66 2001
Leaman, Oliver. Companion Encyclopedia of Middle Eastern and North African Film. New York: Routledge, 2001.
Includes sections on " Cinema in the Maghreb" (which covers the films of Algeria, Morocco, Tunisia, and Mauritania) and "Cinema in Lebanon, Syria, Iraq, and Kuwait." Articles include filmographies and lists of filmmakers. Includes a bibliography. The volume has three indexes: general, names, and films. Ref PN1993.5.F7 B52 1996
Biggs, Melissa E. French Films, 1945-1993: A Critical Filmography of the 400 Most Important Releases. Jefferson, N.C.: McFarland, 1996.
Arranged alphabetically by French title, entries include cross-references to English-language and/or other titles. A brief bibliography is included. Illustrated with photographs. Indexed. Ref PN1998 .C975 1985
Cyr, Helen W. A Filmography of the Third World, 1976-1983: An Annotated List of 16mm Films. Metuchen, N.J.: Scarecrow Press, 1985.
Arranged geographically, these volumes give brief listings and plot summaries for each film. They include a list of directors and an index.

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Finding Books

In Bridge, Gould Library's online catalog:

• Begin with a word search.
  • Enter words that describe your topic (names, places, events, etc.).
  • When you find a book on your topic, examine its subject headings for relevance to your topic.
  • Click on a hyperlinked subject heading to perform subject heading search and retrieve related books.
• Perform a subject heading search in Bridge only if you know a valid Library of Congress subject heading. Subject headings for Francophone studies can be problematic, because the field is so interdisciplinary. Subject headings that pertain exclusively to Francophone studies include:

  French-speaking countries
  France -- Relations -- French-speaking countries
  French-speaking countries -- Civilization -- Study and teaching

Subject headings for searches for books about French or Francophone literature include:

French literature (you may give a subordinate subject heading pertaining to the time period)
French literature -- French-speaking countries -- History and criticism

You may also use a genre of literature (provided you use the appropriate subject heading for it) and attach "French" to it, as in

Fantasy literature, French -- History and criticism

You may also use the name of France or a Francophone country, but you might find that it's better to be a bit more specific.

Browsing the stacks can help you evaluate the library's collection in a given field of study. Since there are many countries with a francophone population, onlly continents have been listed here. An easy way to locate the call number for a francophone country, province, or region wouldd be to do a word search in Bridge on the country, province, or region, then identify the call number(s) for the relevant items. The following call number ranges contain works relevant to French language or francophone studies:

PC2001-3761 French language PQ1-3999 French literature (including francophone literature) DC1-947 History of France DT1-3415 History of Africa DS1-937 History of Asia F1001-1140 History of Canada

Search WorldCat, an online catalog for libraries throughout the world, to take your search beyond Gould Library. return to top of page

Finding Articles

Periodical literature in the discipline of French and Francophone studies presents cutting-edge research, provides reviews of historiographical trends, and creates a forum for intellectual exchange among professional historians. Once you have located an article citation in a database, index, or bibliography, perform a title search in Bridge using the exact title of the periodical. If Carleton and St. Olaf do not hold the journal, you may request the article through Interlibrary Loan.

Periodical Databases

General

Magazine and Journal Articles (including book reviews)

ProQuest Research Library
General database with full text for over 1600 journals. Ingenta
An interdisciplinary periodical index.

Book Reviews

Ref Z1035.A1 B62
Book Review Index. Detroit: Gale Research Co.
Indexes book reviews of all manner of monographs. Arranged by author and title. Book Review Digest
Elecronic index of book reviews.

Newspapers

Lexis Nexis Academic
Indexes foreign language news. From the main page, select "news", then select "Guided Search." Then select "non-English language" from the drop-down menu, and "French language news" from the other dropdown menu. Begin your search! The New York Times is available as part of National Newspapers (5), which includes the LA Times, the Washington Post, the Wall Street Journal, and the Minneapolis Star-Tribune. Full-text of articles is available back to 1986.

Dissertations

ProQuest Digital Disssertations
Indexing and abstracts for dissertations in all fields. Complete text is available for some recent dissertations.

Books

WorldCat
A catalog of books and other materials in libraries across the country.

Humanities

America: History and Life
Indexes articles (including book reviews) and books on world history. Arts & Humanities Citation Index accessed via Web of Science.
Covers more than 1,140 of the world's leading arts and humanities journals in a broad range of disciplines from 1989-present. Historical Abstracts
Indexes articles (including book reviews) and books on world history.

Arts & Literature

Art Index (1984-present) and Art Index Retrospective (1929-1984)
Indexes articles and books on all of the visual arts, including film. Ref PN1993 .F45
Film Literature Index. Albany, Filmdex, Inc.
Divided into two parts, the first on film and the second on television and video. Indexed by film title, subject, various proper names. International Index to the Performing Arts
Indexes journals (from 1998-present) on all aspects of the performing arts, including theatreand film. Abstracts are included with all citations. MLA International Bibliography
The premier database for doing research in literatures, letters, and folklore.

Social Sciences

PAIS International
An index to books, documents, reports, and articles in periodicals concerning public policy. Social Sciences Citation Index accessed through Web of Science
The web version covers articles published between 1979 and the present and includes over 1,700 journals. Sociological Abstracts
An index to scholarly literature in sociology. HQ1111 .W65
Women Studies Abstracts. Rush, N.Y.: Rush Pub. Co., 1972-.
Print idex and abstracts of materials published on women's studies.

Journals to Browse

General

Newspapers
Le Monde.
Gould Library has:
Current three months
Newspaper. In French. Periodicals AP20 .A58
Annales, histoire, sciences sociales.
Gould Library has:
Print: v. 15- 1960-
Scholarly journal of interdisciplinary study of history. In French. Periodicals AP20 .E9263
L'express international.
Gould Library has:
Print: No. 2469- 1998-
Newspaper. In French. Periodicals AP20 .N852
La Nouvelle revue française.
Gould Library has:
Print: no. 131- 1963-
Scholarly journal containing literary and political reviews. In French.

Philosophy & the History of Ideas

Periodicals B2 .R2
Revue de métaphysique et de morale.
Gould Library has:
Print: v. 69-101,No.1- 1964-1996,1997-
Scholarly journal of philosophy. In French. Periodicals B2430.M34 A16
Notes et documents de l'Institut international "Jacques Maritain".
Gould Library has:
Print: no. 36-44 1993-
Scholarly journal on the social sciences. In French and English. Periodicals CB361 .B5
Bibliothèque d'humanisme et Renaissance. Travaux et documents.
Gould Library has:
Print: v. 25 no.2- 1963- INC
Scholarly journal covering the literature and history of the 15th and 16th centuries. In English, French, German, and Italian.

Historical Studies (including cultural studies)

Periodicals DC1 .F69
French Historical Studies.
Gould Library has:
Print: v. 1- 1958- INC
Project Muse: Vol. 22, no. 4 (1999) through current issue
JSTOR: Vols. 1-22, 1958-1999
ProQuest: v16- 1989-
Scholarly journal of French history, uincluding book reviews and bibliographies. In French with abstracts of articles in both French and English. French Colonial History.
Gould Library has:
Project Muse: Vol. 3 (2003) through current issue
Scholarly historical journal. In English. French History.
Gould Library has:
ProQuest: 2002 - Current, delayed 365 days
Scholarly journal covering the history of France. In English. Periodicals DC1 .Y3
Yale French Studies.
Gould Library has:
Print: no. 1- 1948-
JSTOR: Issues 1-98, 1948-2000
Scholarly journal about literature and culture. In English. Periodicals DC27.A1 S49
Dix-septième siècle.
Gould Library has:
Print: no. 17- 1953- INC
Scholarly journal covering seventeenth-century literature and culture. In French. Periodicals DC33.9 .S57
Sites.
Gould Library has:
Print: v. 4- 2000-
Scholarly journal on French culture using a variety of critical approaches. In English. Periodicals DC33.9 .C66
Contemporary French Civilization.
Gould Library has:
Print: v. 1- 1976-
Scholarly journal on history. In English and French. Periodicals DT1 .J59
Jeune Afrique.
Gould Library has:
Print: no. 1357- 1987-
Newspaper focused on Africa and those of African descent. In French. Periodicals DT19.9 .C3 B82
Canadian Journal of African Studies
Revue canadienne des études africaines.
Gould Library has:
Print: v. 21- 1987-
JSTOR: Vols. 1-31, 1967-1997
Scholarly journal on African studies. In English and French.

Anthropology

Periodicals GN1 .H68
L'Homme: Revue française d'anthropologie.
Gould Library has:
Print: v. 14-37 no.144; no. 145- 1974-1997; 1998-
Scholarly journal on anthropology. In French.

Art

Periodicals N2 .R44
Revue de l'art.
Gould Library has:
Print: no. 31- 1976-
Journal of art and art history. In French. Periodicals NX688 .Q36
Qantara: le magazine de l'Institut du monde arabe.
Gould Library has:
Print: no. 14- 1995-
Journal covering Islamic arts and civilization. In French.

Literature & Culture

Periodicals PC1 .R7
Romanic Review.
Gould Library has:
Print: v. 11-16,34- 1920-1925,1943- INC
ProQuest: 1997 - 2000
Scholarly journal covering literature. In multiple languages. Periodicals PC2001 .F75
The French Review.
Gould Library has:
Print: v. 13- 1939- INC
JSTOR: Vols. 1-71 (Issue 2), 1927-1997; Special Issue: No. 1 - No. 7, 1970-1982
Scholarly journal covering all aspects of francophone culture. In English and French. Periodicals PC2001 .J68
Journal of French Language Studies.
Gould Library has:
Print: v. 10- 2000-
Scholarly journal on French language and linguistics. In English. Periodicals PC2002 .T288
Les Temps modernes.
Gould Library has:
Print: v. 19- 1964-
Journal of literary and political reviews. In French. Periodicals PC2066 .F35
Le Français dans le monde.
Gould Library has:
Print: no. 87-205,278- 1972-1986,1996- INC
Journal for French teachers covering many subjects, including pedagogy. In French. Periodicals PN3 .P64
Poétique.
Gould Library has:
Print: no. 45- 1981-
Journal of literary and political reviews. In French. Periodicals PN603 .R58
Romantisme.
Gould Library has:
Print: v. 23- 1993-
Scholarly journal covering nineteenth-century literature and culture. In French. Periodicals PQ1 .E78
L'Esprit créateur.
Gould Library has:
Print: v. 1- 1961-
Scholarly journal on French and francophone literature. Thematic issues. In English and French. Periodicals PQ1 .F82
French Forum.
Gould Library has:
Print: v. 11- 1986-
Scholarly journal on French literature. In English and French. Periodicals PQ1 .N55
Nineteenth-Century French Studies.
Gould Library has:
Print: v. 28- 1999/2000-
Scholarly journal on all aspects of French culture of the nineteenth century. In English and French. Periodicals PQ1 .W66
Women in French Studies.
Gould Library has:
Print: v.10- 2002-
Scholarly journal covering women's writing in and feminist interpretations of French and francophone culture. In English and French. Periodicals PQ243 .P36
Papers on French Seventeenth Century Literature.
Gould Library has:
Print: no. 13- 1980- INC, no. 14- also called v. 8- (1981- )
Scholarly journal on French literature of the seventeenth century. In English. Periodicals PQ2 .R5
Revue d'histoire littéraire de la France.
Gould Library has:
Print: v. 64- 1964-
Journal of literary history. In French. Periodicals Z1003.5.F7 L55
Lire.
Gould Library has:
Print: no. 241- Dec 1995-
Literary journal. In French.

Film

Periodicals PN1993 .A93
L'Avant-scène. Cinéma.
Gould Library has:
Print: no. 121-258, 447- 1972-1980, Dec.1995-
Journal covering film. In French. Periodicals PN1993 .C25
Cahiers du cinéma.
Gould Library has:
Print: no. 222-390,541- 1970-1986, Dec 1999-
Journal covering film. In French.

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Web Sites

The Web sites recommended below complement other research resources. http://www.yahoo.fr/Art_et_culture/
Catégorie Yahoo! équivalente en français
From the Yahoo France site in the Yahoo:Regional:Countries category maintained by Yahoo!, the quintessential Web directory. Yahoo also includes an entry for French Language. http://www.lib.ttu.edu/icc/index.htm
International Cultural Center Library
From Texas Tech. Select "internet resources" from the main page, then choose from the links on the left to find internet resources from a given region or country. http://www.nomade.fr
Nomade.fr
A French search engine similar to Yahoo. http://www.utm.edu/departments/french/french.html
Tennessee Bob's Famous French Links
Despite the flip title, this website gives you access to a number of search engines (under the heading "Finding New Francophone Sites"), as well as links to "Books and Literature" and "Art, Music, Film and General Culture." Maintained by Professor Bob Peckham, of the University of Tennessee--Martin. This site is trying to "go commercial." return to top of page