Who Am I? “If the writing is honest, it cannot be separated from the man who wrote it.”- T. Williams Sophomore English Research Assignment October 24, 2008 Ms. Tong

Traditional Literary Criticism Traditional Literary Criticism looks at a writer’s life and work, and attempts to find out how his biographical information is reflected in his work. Your Task: Using the library’s resources, evaluate your poet’s work using traditional literary criticism.

Meet William Stafford

Finding Books in the Library Click on the library  Click on Keyword Search: Stafford, William Hint: Most of your books will be found in the 800’s or in the biography section of the library.

MLA Format for a Book Last Name, First Name. Title of Book. Place of Publication: Publisher, Date of Publication. Stafford, William. All About Light. Ohio: Croissant, 1978.

Xavier High School Databases! 1.Student Resource Center 2. Lit Finder

When researching, ask yourself.. Q.Is this article from the Student Resource Center or Lit Finder? If the answer is No, DO NOT PUT IT IN YOUR PAPER!!

Hammer Time Wikipedia Search  Google Search  Student Resource Center  Lit Finder 

Xavier Information Databases from School -Click on Library  -Click on any of the database icons like: - No username or password needed

Xavier Information Databases from Home -Go to Xavier Library Home Page -Click on one of the databases -A Login prompt will come up. Formal Address: SmithJ11 Password: Green3beans Hint: Use the same id and password that you use for the computers in the learning center.

Student Resource Center

Lit Finder

Different Tabs, Different Information Student Resource Center Tabs Reference- Critical Essays, Narrative Biographies Creative Works- Poems by Writer Multimedia- Audio files of Interviews, Poetry Readings, Images of Writer

MLA Citation for Student Resource Center Author (if provided). "Article Title." Original Source of Article. Editor. Volume: Pages of original source. Specific Gale Database on Larger Database (if appropriate). Gale Group. Name of Providing Library, Consortium or Library System. Date of access..

MLA Citation for Student Resource Center II. Anderson, Erland. “Stafford’s Aunt Mabel.” The Explicator Fall 2003: Student Resource Center-Gold. Gale Group. Xavier High School. 17 Oct

Lit Finder Book Mark and Student Resource Center Info Mark Located on the top right corner of the screen Creates a URL for useful articles You can also create a book mark or the URL to yourself Good for keeping track of your articles.

What is this? d=GALE|LTF WK&v=2.1&u=n ysl_me_xavierhs&it=r&p=LITFS&sw=w Using the Infomark button, this link will now direct you to Stafford’s poem, British Columbia so you don’t need to do a search query to bring it up again.

At the Bomb Testing Site At noon in the desert a panting lizard waited for history, its elbows tense, watching the curve of a particular road as if something might happen. It was looking at something farther off than people could see, an important scene acted in stone for little selves at the flute end of consequences. There was just a continent without much on it under a sky that never cared less. Ready for a change, the elbows waited. The hands gripped hard on the desert.

Make the Connection. Stafford’s Biography Excerpt Stafford earned a bachelor's degree from the University of Kansas, and had nearly completed a master's degree when World War II began in Registered as a conscientious objector, Stafford was incarcerated in public service camps, and spent the four years of the war cutting trails, fighting forest fires, and terracing eroding land in Arkansas, California, and Illinois. As a pacifist in a country that saw so many of its young men killed, he faced public scorn, suspicion, and enmity.

Any questions? Ms. Tong’s Library website: