OWHL RESOURCE GUIDE for English 200 Snow Falling on Cedars by David Guterson Teacher: Mr. Braile Instructional Librarian: Mr. Blake Term/Year: Spring, '06

Get Organized! Gather Information Use the Information Take Time to Reflect

In Mr. Braile's class you will write three papers, each four to six pages in length. The first will be a research paper on a choice of several topics related to the novel or a creative piece—a short story or essay—drawn from the research. The second major piece will be a literary analysis of the novel itself, basically an extended version of the analyses you wrote on short stories in the winter term. The third major piece will be a critique of the film as a translation of the novel. There will be shorter pieces assigned during the term, as well, including proposals for the major pieces. This guide will provide you guidance in completing these papers.

The following steps will assist you in the research process.

Step 1: Get Organized

Think about the assignment and what you are required to do. What do you want to write about? Make sure to choose one of the topics below. How much time do you have to complete the assignment? How long is the paper or report? Do I need any special types of material such as newspaper or magazine articles from the time period?

Step 2: Gather Information

Finding Reference books:

Begin your research with refence books to help you gain an overview of your topic, develop a list of search terms, and begin to build a bibliography.

If you decide to write on the Japanese internment camps, please look at the Encyclopedia of prisoners of war and internment edited by Jonathan Vance. REF 355.1 EN19

Finding electronic databases:

America: History and Life contains bibliographic citations to the major scholary journals in history

Biography Resource Center contains biographies and articles on David Guterson

Historical Newspapers covers 4 major newspapers

JSTOR contains the full-text of scholarly articles older than 5 years, on David Guterson, the northwest fishing industry, internment camps and the Japanese in World War II.

Project Muse contains the full-text of current scholarly articles, on David Guterson, the northwest fishing industry, internment camps and the Japanese in World War II.

New York Times Archives contains the full-text of all New York Times articles from 1851 to 1999

Finding Internet Web Sites:

**Remember to evaluate web sites for authority and content.

• The Japanese fought bravely for the United States in World War II. Click here to visit a website that describes the officers and enlisted men, thier duties and activities, and the history, of the 100th Battallion/442nd Regimental Combat Team.

• The Children of Camps: the Japanese American WWII internment camp experience, produced by the Public Broadcasting Service contains the project, the documentary, resources, and history. The history section contains related historical documents, a timeline, list of internment camps and the impact on Japanese Americans.

• The American Memory Project sponsored by the Library of Congress has "Suffering Under a Great Injustice" Ansel Adams's Photographs of Japanese-Americans at Manzanar.

• Internet Public Library Literary Criticism Site for David Guterson.

• For demographic information on the state of Washington check the historical Statistical Abstracts of the United States

Step 3: Use the Information

Step 4: Take time to Reflect

The paper is ready to be handed in. The bibliography is complete. Ask yourself: did you accomplish what you wanted to do? What else could I have done to guarantee a six? If you take the time to evaluate what you did you will become a better researcher.

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© Phillips Academy 1999
Last Update April 10, 2006