About This Site _____________

A PORTAL TO KNOWLEDGE


The Internet is one of the marvels of the 21st Century--and it is certainly here to stay. But, aside from making the open stacks of university libraries all but obsolete (when was the last time you were on the third floor?), it's a lousy place for doing research. There is simply too much stuff floating around in cyberspace. There are thousands of great Web sites, on-line journals, articles, and other resources--that actually can be quite useful for the study of modern film and literature--IF you can separate the good stuff from the downright bad and ugly.

The purpose of this site is to help you do just that. Think of it is a filter or funnel between you and the Internet. If you just type, say, "Tarkovsky" or "Farewell My Concubine" in the search window of Yahoo or Google, there's no telling what you'll come up with. Probably, at best, a few movie reviews, some zealous fan's Web site, and, only if you are very lucky, a bonafide scholarly essay.

This site is designed to help you find sound academic resources quickly--including articles and on-line journals that reside on the Web, PLUS articles from scholarly journals, via direct links to electronic databases and electronic versions of academic journals.

Click on one of the artist names on the home page, or any of the topics listed under the RESOURCES menu, and you'll find lists of Web resources and scholarly articles. Generally speaking, they are arranged in order of "sophistication." If you know little about the artist or topic, you may want to read the first few listings before you probe deeper. Click any of the titles that appear in yellow type to access that resource directly. It's that simple.

You can even cut and paste the bibliographical data from the link and insert it into your "Works Cited" page. (Most are in proper MLA format, but not all.)

As great as the Internet is, it still hasn't completely replaced good old-fashioned books and printed journals. You'll find a number of suggested books and articles listed here as well. Books and articles that are only available in print form are in blue type.

You'll also find the course objectives, class schedules, writing and research guidelines, and even lists of suggested films, plus a few additional goodies.

The whole idea here is to introduce you to a few artists and concepts, and point you in the right direction. This site is simply a portal to the great world of knowledge out there--or, if you will, a launching pad for further personal exploration. So don't stop here. Explore, probe, discover 'til your mind's content.


Karl Skutski
Duquesne University
Department of Modern Languages and Literatures
April 2004



This site was developed by the undersigned exclusively for the use of students of Duquesne University. No part of this site can be reused on any other Web site without written permission. As a password-protected site, it is not the intention of the developer to make the information contained herein available to the general public. Please request permission to link to your site.