You might be wondering why a English 382 student would consult subject encyclopedias. The quick answer is that it can't hurt to make sure you have a good sense of how your research question fits in with other scholarly research that has been done. Subject encyclopedias are a great resource for getting a quick overview of key issues and the bibliographies at the end of encyclopedia articles are an efficient way to make sure you know who the scholars are who've been working on your topic.

In Collins Library, the print reference collection is located on the first floor, and most of the online reference collection is available in one of the database collections listed below.  Use Primo to identify subject encyclopedias in either format; or ask a librarian for recommendations.

Remember that tertiary sources are intended to fill in gaps in your knowledge or jumpstart your research; they should not be cited as scholarly secondary sources for your project.

The subject encyclopedias listed here are potential starting points, depending on your topic, but you also should explore the entries in the online collections.