Reference sources, like dictionaries, encyclopedias, and almanacs, provide you with background information on a topic.
Wikipedia, for example, is a reference source. The World Book Encyclopedia you may have used when you were young is also a reference source. However, there are also specialized encyclopedias that focus on particular subjects or disciplines.
I ran a search for black feminist literary theory in Credo Reference, and I found an entry called "black feminist criticism" from A History of Feminist Literary Criticism that gives me quite a bit of information.
The linked references in the bibliography can also lead me to other important sources about black feminist criticism. The yellow UCeLinks buttons will either take you to the source or prompt you to request it from another library.
A History of Feminist Literary Criticism by
Feminism has transformed the academic study of literature, fundamentally altering the canon of what is taught and setting new agendas for literary analysis. In this authoritative history of feminist literary criticism, leading scholars chart the development of the practice from the Middle Ages to the present. The first section of the book explores protofeminist thought from the Middle Ages onwards, and analyses the work of pioneers such as Wollstonecraft and Woolf. The second section examines the rise of second-wave feminism and maps its interventions across the twentieth century. A final section examines the impact of postmodernism on feminist thought and practice. This book offers a comprehensive guide to the history and development of feminist literary criticism and a lively reassessment of the main issues and authors in the field. It is essential reading for all students and scholars of feminist writing and literary criticism.
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