Research Guides: French Resources: Literature Studies

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TIP: When searching for foreign-language book titles in the library catalog, do not include an article (such as "la") which appears at the beginning of the title.

Introduction to French Literature

French Literature: A Very Short Introduction
Call Number: Read Online - Or print is available: PQ103 .L96 2010, 3rd floor
The heritage of literature in the French language is rich, varied, and extensive in time and space. French Literature: A Very Short Introduction introduces this lively literary world by focusing on texts - epics, novels, plays, poems, and screenplays - that concern problematic protagonists who allow us to understand what interests writers and readers across the wide world of French.
French Literature: A Beginner's Guide
Call Number: PQ103 .C53 2012, 3rd floor
French literature has long been a pioneer of style and innovation. Highlighting its distinct qualities, Carol Clark explores how the literary styles of different periods took shape and shows what we can gain from reading classic and modern French works.
The Cambridge History of French Literature
Call Number: PQ103 .C26 2011, 3rd floor
From Occitan poetry to Francophone writing produced in the Caribbean and North Africa, from intellectual history to current films, and from medieval manuscripts to bandes dessinées, this History covers French literature from its beginnings to the present day, with equal attention to all genres, historical periods and registers.

Where to Find French Literature & Criticism in the Library

French-language literature and translations into English, as well as criticism, analysis, etc. of French literature, is all located in the same general area, in the call numbers PQ1 - PQ3999. You can locate more specific topics in the call number ranges below:

PQ1 - PQ771 - French Literature: History and Criticism

PQ1 - PQ50 - General
PQ151 - PQ221 - Medieval, Old French
PQ226 - PQ310 - Modern
PQ400 - PQ491 - Poetry
PQ500 - PQ591 - Drama
PQ601 - PQ771 - Prose and prose fiction

PQ845 - French Juvenile Literature
PQ1100 - PQ1297 - Collections of French Literature
PQ1300 - PQ1595 - Old French Literature, to circa. 1500/1550
PQ1600 - PQ2726 - Modern French Literature

PQ1600 - PQ1709 - 16th century
PQ1710 - PQ1935 - 17th century
PQ1947 - PQ2147 - 18th century
PQ2149 - PQ2551 - 19th century
PQ2600 - PQ2651 - 1900-1960
PQ2660 - PQ2686 - 1961-2000
PQ2700 - PQ2726 - 2001-

PQ3800 - PQ3999 - French Literature: Provincial, Local, Colonial, Etc.

Search Literary Criticism and Analysis Online

You can search for and read thousands of journal articles, literary criticism essays, and information about authors and literature in these databases. Off-campus users will be asked to login with their SHSU username and password.

Literary Reference Center This link opens in a new window Information on thousands of authors and their works across literary disciplines and timeframes. Contains thousands of plot summaries, synopses, work overviews, literary criticism articles/essays, author biographies and interviews, literary journals, book reviews, classic and contemporary poems and short stories, classic texts, and much more. Also includes a wide range of leading encyclopedias and other works in literary studies.
Literature Criticism Online This link opens in a new window Centuries of literary analysis, including scholarly and popular commentary from broadsheets, pamphlets, encyclopedias, books and periodicals.
JSTOR This link opens in a new window Huge collection of full-text articles in back issues of journals in most subject areas. Review dates and journals included by subject and alphabetically.

SciELO - Open-access Literature and Arts Journals from Spain and Latin America

Find even more databases for literary studies...

Biographical Information on Writers

Guide to French Literature
Call Number: PQ226 .L48 1992 vol. 1-2, Reference

In addition to the various print volumes below, you can also access the Dictionary of Literary Biography online from the SHSU Library.

Dictionary of Modern French Literature
Call Number: PQ41 .D65 1986, copies at Reference and 3rd floor both
Sixteenth-Century French Writers
Call Number: PS129 .D5 vol.327, Reference
Seventeenth-Century French Writers
Call Number: PS129 .D5 vol.268, Reference
Writers of the French Enlightenment
Call Number: PS129 .D5 vol.313-314, Reference
Nineteenth Century French Fiction Writers
Call Number: PS129 .D5 vol.119, Reference
Histoire de la litterature de langue francaise des annees 1930 aux annees 1980
Call Number: PQ305 .B56 1985 vol. 1-2, 3rd floor