Skip to Main Content
site header image

Cultural Studies: Black Death

This guide was created to support Mr. Hanewald's Cultural Studies class and their research project on Black Death, Spring term 2023. Please reach out to Ms. Sinai if you have questions regarding the resources or content presented here.

Getting Started

Assignment Links: Presentation Guidelines

Fig. 1. English School, 14th century. The Black Death. 1348. Bridgeman Images, tinyurl.com/2chp4sef. Accessed 17 May 2023.

To access databases and other library services from home, you will be prompted to sign-in through Lawrenceville's EZproxy. When you click link for a Bunn database or service, the log-in screen (pictured below) will appear.
  • Username: first part of your email address (before the @lawrenceville.org). Example: asinai
  • Password: your email password
Having trouble with access? Email dgeary@lawrenceville.org and include a description or screenshot of your issue. 

Finding Sources

Understanding the Basics: Background Reading

Online Collections from Bunn Library:
Encyclopedia Britannica: Includes the complete encyclopedia, as well as a Merriam-Webster dictionary and thesaurus. The Internet Guide provides links to recommended websites.
Facts on File: Modern World History: Modern World History offers a comprehensive look at world history from the mid-15th century to the present. Includes both reference/background and primary sources. 
Gale eBooks: Search the artist's name, or title of the piece (if it is particularly famous). Use quotation marks “” around multiple words to search for key phrases.
Gale in Context: World History: Covers modern world history, with full-text articles and primary sources. Includes reference, secondary, and primary sources. 
Suggested Books (Encyclopedias) to Explore: 

Secondary Source Collections

Interpretation and Analysis: Secondary Sources

Library Databases:
Gale in Context: World History: Covers modern world history, with full-text articles and primary sources. Includes reference, secondary, and primary sources. 
JSTOR: A highly selective digital library of academic content in many formats and disciplines. Use the Advanced Search and limit to Articles and Books.
ProQuest Databases: A vast library of periodicals (newspapers, magazines, and scholarly journals) covering a wide range of subjects. To search, select the Full Text checkbox so that your results yield only material that you can access, and use filters to limit results to scholarly articles.
Academic Search Engines:
Google Scholar: Google Scholar is a free search engine that allows users to search for academic content (such academic papers, dissertations, theses, and case law) across the web, including content owned by Bunn Library. Results with full-text access will have a link in the column to the left of the title.
Websites:
The Black Death, The Plague 1331-1770: From the John Martin Rare Book Room at the University of Iowa. This virtual exhibit provides a useful timeline, as well as supporting visual sources from the time period. 
The Bubonic Plague - The First Pandemic: From the Science Museum in the UK. Provides the history of the plague, as well as some interesting primary sources (artwork). 
The Plague: From the Italian Studies department at Brown University. This website provides an overview of the plague, as well as causes and effects. 
Books from the Library Catalog:
  • Bunn Library Catalog: Access Bunn Library's print and ebook collection. Start with a "subject keyword" search.
  • Proquest eBook Central: Filter your results using limiters and change your search terms according to your topic. Contact Bunn or visit our Haiku page for helpful search tips. 
To find a book, search the Bunn Library Catalog. Use the General Keyword search to broaden your results. For a narrower focus, search the catalog by Subject Keyword using the drop-down menu. To get started, browse the subject headings Black death -- History, Black death -- Europe.
To find books in the stacks, look at the call number:
  • 000-699: Lower Level
  • 800-899: Main Floor, next to Fiction
  • 700-799, 900-999: Second Floor
Have a useful book in hand?
  • Look at the Index for additional keywords and locate where they are discussed in your book. 
  • Check the Bibliography for additional sources that are connected to your topic.
Suggested Books to Explore: 

Primary Sources and Image Collections

Integrating Historical Evidence: Primary Sources
 

Online Collections from Bunn Library:
Facts on File: Modern World History: Modern World History offers a comprehensive look at world history from the mid-15th century to the present. Includes both reference/background and primary sources. 
Gale in Context: World History: Covers modern world history, with full-text articles and primary sources. Includes reference, secondary, and primary sources. 
Primary Sources Resources from the Web:
EuroDocs: Plague and Pestilence in the UK: Explore documents related to Black Death. 
Medieval History Sourcebook: from Fordham University. Contains the following primary sources (and many more!) that could be useful...
+ Bocaccio: The Decameron - Introduction: The onset of the Black Death, was described by Giovanni Boccaccio (1313-1375).
+ Ordinance of Laborers, 1349: A vain attempt by the king to freeze wages paid to laborers at their pre-plague levels, the ordinance is indicative of the labor shortage caused by the Black Death. It also shows the beginnings of the redefinition of societal roles.
Image Collections to Explore: 
ArtSTOR: Artstor contains over 1.8 million digital images in the arts, architecture, the humanities and science from outstanding international museums, photographers, libraries, scholars, and photo archives.
Bridgeman Images: Bridgeman Images for Education is a complete visual resource offering over 1,000,000 digital images of art, history and culture from global museums, galleries, private collections and contemporary artists all copyright cleared for educational use.
Analyzing a visual source can be tough! Start with these questions to help think through how the imagery supports the creator's goals. What is the value of the source? What does it say? What does it leave out? 
 
[1] Describe the source: List information about the images, colors, lines, placement of objects, other details.
[2] Record basic information about the work. Who created it? When? Does the piece have a title, or supporting text that can provide more context? In what format was it originally distributed, and how it was it used?
[3] Based on what you know about the image, what message did the creator(s) of the poster intend to express? Who was the intended audience? What do you think they wanted the audience to do or feel once they have seen the image?
[4] Is the image effective? Does it successfully communicate the intended message? Does it use misleading information or lies to express its message? If so, how?
Primary Source Collections from the Library Catalog: