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R364: Gender in the Reformation

How do you find sources for your research paper? Here are some suggestions.

Look in reliable reference sources for an overview of your topic, plus suggestions for further reading. For some topics, Blackwell Reference Online and Oxford Reference Online will be helpful. If not, try a more in-depth print source like
The Oxford encyclopedia of the Reformation (Reference Reading Room, BR302.8 .O93 1996).

Use IUCAT to find both primary and secondary sources. Search for authors and titles from your syllabus and from footnotes and bibliography in your readings. Look at the subject headings. Or use the Advanced Keyword search, and combine one or more of these subject headings with your own keywords:

reformation
church history
16th century or sixteenth century
counter-reformation
early works to 1800
sources
diaries

Use the Advanced Keyword search to find translations into English, by limiting your search by language.

Some primary sources are available online. Early English Books Online is a digitized collection of English books from the 15th century to 1700. You can search by the same subject headings as in IUCAT. If your topic goes into the 18th century, look in Eighteenth Century Collections Online, or if you're interested in early American sources, Early American Imprints.

Use subject-specific databases to find secondary sources, research by scholars on your topic:

ATLA Religion Database is the source for research in Religious Studies.
Historical Abstracts is for History (hint: use the Time Period limit to get better results).
Iter: Gateway to the Middle Ages and Renaissance is a little earlier than your course, but might be helpful depending on your topic.
JSTOR is a huge digitized collection of scholarly journals. You need pretty specific keywords to get good search results.

Don't give up! Remember to try lots of variations on your keywords, think of different ways to describe what you're looking for, find as many clues as you can from the sources you already have. Ask for help if you get stuck--either ask Professor Furey, or email me for a research consultation: Celestina Savonius-Wroth, cewroth@indiana.edu.