NOTE:
Off-campus access
to article databases listed in this guide is limited to WSU students,
staff, and faculty and requires a WSU user name and password. If
you have questions, chat with us online. Just click on the Ask a Librarian button at the top right of this page. Or call the Reference
Desk 626-6415 or toll free 1-877-306-3140 or send us an email.
Using
Catalogs: Use the WSU online
catalog to find the location and availability of books and
other media in Stewart Library. Books which may be checked out are
part of the General Collection located on the library's upper level.
The magazines and journals to which the library subscribes are also
listed in the catalog. Use Electronic Journals
to see if a particular magazine or journal is available full text
electronically.
Some books of collected
speeches are found with the call number PN6122 or look
in the catalog under the Subject heading "Speeches,
addresses, etc." You may also search the catalog for
speeches by a particular individual. Do a general keyword
search using the individual's name and include the word
'speeches'. For example, in the General keyword box type "Martin
Luther King speeches" (without the quotation marks).
To find speeches on DVD,
video, etc. type Speeches in the General
Keyword box and limit by format to "Videos, DVDs,
Films, etc." or "Audio recordings (non musical)
Use chronologies or time
lines to help put a particular speech in historical perspective.
Many chronologies may be found in the Stewart Library's Reference
area on Table 2B. Or take a look at Yahoo's
Timelines
Interlibrary Loan:
If we do not own a particular book or article you need,
we will borrow it for you from another library through Interlibrary
Loan .
Reference resources include encyclopedias,
dictionaries and other materials you use to "refer" to. Use these
resources for background information on a topic. Reference
books must be used in the library and are located on the library's
middle level. Use the library catalog and limit your search to "Reference
collection" to find books on your topic. For others, go to
the Article Databases page,
click on Reference. If you don't find anything, think of a broader
term or ask the staff at the Reference desk for assistance.
Reference books on famous
speeches include:
- Contemporary American
Voices: Significant Speeches in American History, 1945-present
(published in 1992) Reference E173.A786
- A Treasury of the World's Great Speeches (published
in 1965) Reference PN6121.P4
Stewart Library subscribes
to many online dictionaries and encyclopedias. Good ones to
start with are:
Article Databases
To find articles on your
topic use article databases, also known as periodical indexes.
Stewart Library databases are arranged by broad subject categories.
Select the category most relevant to your topic. Search by subject
or keyword in these indexes. Most databases are available
from off-campus using your WSU user name and password.
Start at Article Databases.
Some databases offer full text articles. For those that give only
the citation or abstract, use Electronic Journals
to see if a particular magazine or journal is available full text
electronically.
If we do not own a particular book or article you need,
we will borrow it for you from another library through Interlibrary
Loan.
- Academic
Search Premier Abstracts (summaries) from over
8000 scholarly journals in most subject areas with full text articles
for about half that number. Has feature to limit searches to peer
reviewed or refereed (scholarly) journals. Includes full text
from Vital Speeches of the Day, 1934 to present.
- ComAbstracts/ComIndex/CIOS
A database devoted to articles and links to web sites on the broad
topic of communication. Stewart Library's most comprehensive index
on the topic of communication.
- Communication
and Mass Media Complete The best starting place
for articles from communication journals
- CQ
Researcher This full text database covers current
events, usually of a controversial nature. A great place to get
ideas for argumentative speeches or papers.
- ERIC
This national clearinghouse for research in the broad field of
education indexes both ERIC documents and journal articles. ERIC
documents (studies, reports, etc) may be found fulltext on microfiche
in the Stewart Library. Those published since 1993 are fulltext
online. Ebsco
also makes ERIC available through Stewart Library.
- JSTOR
This database has scholarly, fulltext journals in a wide variety
of subject areas. Good for historical background since many of
the articles go back fifty years or more.
- LexisNexis
This fulltext database includes transcripts of Congressional hearings,
presidential radio addresses, news programs, etc. On the Basic search page, use the drop down menu next to Sources and
click on Transcripts.
- Pro
& Con Online Another good source for argumentative
or persuasive speeches. Covers topics from the US Supreme Court
plus US Congressional and international issues.
- PsycInfo
The premier database for articles in the broad subject area of
psychology. Some fulltext articles.
Print Resources
- Index to Journals
in Communication Studies Through 1990 Classic print index
by Matlon and Ortiz indexes about 20 journals from 1915 through
1990. Reference P87 .I53
- The text of many significant speeches was published over the
years in the New York Times. Stewart Library
has the New York Times on microfilm back to 1851. Use the print
indexes located in Reference AI21.N45 or search the New
York Times archives online. Full text articles from the paper
from June 1980 to present may be found online in LexisNexis.
Web
Resources
Research
Tips
- Clearly identify your information need
- Identify key words and search
terms to match your topic
- Develop search statements using advanced
search techniques
- Boolean logic, adjacency searching and truncation
- Use the online
catalog to find books
- Use article databases
to find journal and magazine articles
- Use Ejournals
to determine if Stewart Library subscribes to the full text of
a particular journal
- Use Interlibrary loan
to get materials that are not in Stewart Library
- Carefully
evaluate the information you find for usefulness and quality
- Revise your search terms and strategy to expand or narrow your
results.
- Use appropriate style to document
and cite research
- Ask for assistance at Reference,
via phone, chat, or email.
