Getting context from background resources
Encyclopedias and other reference sources give you quick background on an unfamiliar topic. Learning the issues, questions, and people associated with a topic can help you decide which direction to take your research. You might also discover keywords that will help you when searching for articles and books.
- Credo Philosophy ResourcesSearch 32 encyclopedias and dictionaries on philosophy for background information, definitions, and more.
- Stanford Encyclopedia of PhilosophyHighly regarded online encyclopedia with refereed articles by named authors.
- Oxford Reference Online: PhilosophySearch five academic encyclopedias from Oxford University Press.
Browsing library shelves for books
Browsing books in the library is a great way to get the big picture of the field and to help refine your topic. Philosophy books are located on the 2nd floor - North in Daley Library. Relevant call numbers for books on philosophy are listed below.
B Philosophy (General)
108-708 Ancient
720-765 Medieval
770-785 Renaissance
790-5739 Modern
850-5739 By Region or Country
BC Logic
BD Speculative Philosophy.
10-41 General Philosophical Works
95-131 Metaphysics
143-236 Epistemology, Theory of Knowledge
240-260 Methodology
300-450 Ontology
493-701 Cosmology
Searching for academic/scholarly articles
- Philosopher's IndexNow available through ProQuest, this current and comprehensive bibliographic database covers scholarly research in all major fields of philosophy.
- PhilPapers OnlineOnline index and archives of philosophical research. Optional free account provides personal reading lists, journal filters, content alerts, customized forum subscriptions, and more.
- JSTORDigitized back issues of scholarly journals with a rolling date of five years ago. Covers a wide variety of disciplines.
- Google ScholarPros: Familiar, flexible search language; "Cited by" feature
Con: Haphazard journal coverage
RefWorks
- RefWorks (Legacy)RefWorks is an online bibliography management service that allows you to capture citations, store them, and use them while writing papers. As of June 2022, RefWorks accounts cannot be created in Legacy RefWorks. Patrons may create accounts or transfer citations into the New RefWorks or use another citation manager. Questions? Email ask-citehelp@uic.edu.
Please note: Legacy RefWorks accounts will no longer be available after June 30, 2023. We will provide further information about upgrading to the current version of RefWorks closer to that date.