THEO 276 - Theologies of the Civil Rights Movement

Primary sources offer firsthand evidence from people with a direct connection to the topic. Examples of primary sources:

• Journals, letters, and diaries
• Autobiographies and memoirs
• Oral histories
• Archives and personal papers
• Photographs
• Audio recordings, video recordings, and films
• Newspaper articles from the time period in question

Secondary sources are one step removed from the primary source. They analyze or interpret past events, creative works, or research findings. Examples of secondary sources:

• Books such as monographs (scholarly books by one author) or edited collections (scholarly books with multiple chapter authors)
• Scholarly articles
• Literature reviews and historiographies

Some people also refer to another category, tertiary sources - several steps removed from the primary source. Examples of tertiary sources:

• Encyclopedias
• Bibliographies

Search for your figure's name in many different places.

Try your figure's name as the only search term, especially in the library catalog or WorldCat. In other databases, also try looking for an Advanced Search screen and adding an additional search term such as God, theology, religio* (will find religion or religious in most databases), spiritual*, or faith. 

Library Catalog

• Use the library catalog to find books in the TLU Library.
• Try searching for your figure as an author (last name followed by first name) and also as a keyword.
• Use Advanced Search to combine your search term with the subject heading Sources (use the drop-down menu to select Subject). 

Reader's Guide to Periodical Literature

The library has an index called the Reader's Guide to Periodical Literature. It is a physical reference source located on the main floor. You can use it to find articles by subject in the library's bound periodicals such as:

• Time (starting in 1927)
• Harper's Monthly Magazine (starting in 1902)
• The Atlantic (starting in 1981)
• Good Housekeeping (starting in 1930)

You can also use the Reader's Guide to locate periodical articles that the library does not own and request them through ILL. 

Opinion Archives

Provides full-text access (including backfiles) to periodicals. These periodicals are also indexed in QuickSearch. American Spectator (1967-present), Commentary (1945-present), Commonweal (1924-present), Dissent (1954-present), Harper's (1850-present), La Follette's Magazine (1909-1929), Moment (1975-present), The Nation (1865-present), National Review (1955-present), The New Leader (1924-present), The New Republic (1914-present), The New Yorker (1925-present), Orion (1982-present), The Progressive (1909-present), The Washington Monthly (1969-present), and The Weekly Standard (1995-present).