The collection that supports the English and Creative Writing Departments is comprised of material on the spoken and written language, the critical and theoretical literature, and the primary texts of writers, both in the literary canon and of various popular genres. It is one of the oldest and largest segments of the overall Library's collections. The material housed in the John D. Rockefeller Library totals more than 145,000 titles, including some 235 current serial subscriptions.
While the general collection includes the varieties of literature and language, as written and spoken throughout the centuries and all over the world, it is significantly augmented by the holdings of the John Hay Library. Students in Creative Writing, particularly, draw on its poetry, drama, and prose collections of every period and genre as background material for their own writing of poems, plays, and fiction. Among the literary and popular collections, ranging from Poe and Whitman to humor and gay and lesbian publications, the single most important special collection is the Harris Collection of North American Poetry and Plays. This collection of more than 250,000 volumes, features North American poets and playwrights from 1609 to the present, as well as hundreds of literary and small magazines.
The table below indicates the financial support the Library has provided for the study of English language and literature for the general collections in the past five years. Expenditures for the Special Collections are not included but they are substantial, including more than $50,000 a year on the Harris Collection alone.
| Library Expenditures | 1994/95 | 1995/96 | 1996/97 | 1997/98 | 1998/99 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Firm Orders | $11,035 | $ 6,578 | $ 7,956 | $ 5,174 | $ 6,734 |
| Approvals | $50,000 | $49,906 | $ 44,727 | $37,054 | $38,503 |
| Serials | $11,231 | $ 8,608 | $ 9,172 | $15,131 | $13,251 |
| Total Expenditures | $72,266 | $65,092 | $ 61,855 | $57,359 | $58,488 |
According to the Collection Development Policy Statement, prepared for English in 1983, the desired coverage in most aspects of the discipline is RESEARCH. A RESEARCH level collection is one which includes the major source materials required for dissertation and independent research. It also offers all important reference works, a wide selection of specialized monographs, an extensive collection of journals, and major indexing/abstract services. To these must be added the array of electronic and Web-based resources made available in the last six years. These include major indexes like the MLA Bibliography (1963-), the Annual Bibliography of English Language and Literature (1920-the present), PoolesPlus (19th century) and reference works like the Oxford English Dictionary, the Literature Resource Center, the English Short-Title Catalog, and the Arts and Humanities Citation Index (1988-). Full-text collections (all part of the LION/ Literature Online package) include Afro-American, American, and English Poetry from the beginnings to the present, Early American Fiction and English Fiction of the 18th and 19th centuries, English Drama, and Editions and Adaptations of Shakespeare, as well as the texts of numerous, individual journals. We also recently acquired the online version of the Corpus of Old English, a product of the Dictionary of Old English, being published by the University of Toronto.
The Library has endeavored to achieve a RESEARCH level collection in most of the major areas of interest to English. Yet, it is apparent that Library support for English has, despite a small increase last year, has declined. Undoubtedly, some funds have been drained away by serial price increases, especially in the Sciences, and by reallocation of resources for electronic products. As far as we can tell, the resources are supporting the instructional needs of the faculty and the research needs of undergraduates and graduate students.
The Library continues to acquire a wide range of materials to accommodate the wide range of teaching and research interests. We try to be responsive to individual requests, new and expanding areas, such as postcolonial, multicultural, and gender studies, as well as increasing interdisciplinary interests. We try to encourage use of the traditional and electronic resources of the general collections as well as the treasures of the John Hay Library, and maximize accessibility to Internet resources and the holdings of libraries throughout the world. We would encourage faculty and students in these fields to suggest any ways or resources that would enhance or improve the collections and increase awareness of the availability of relevant material.
Stephen L. Thompson, Librarian for English language & literature
Department of English
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