Here, at a glance for any historical period, you can see the prominent events in politics, science, religion, art, literature, music and philosophy during that time. The interdisciplinary nature of literature means that literary works always bear some relationship to the time period in which they were written. Therefore, it helps the researcher to know something about the time period in which the work was written. Another source, Chronicle of the World , presents important events year by year in the form of short articles accompanied by illustrations. The New York Public Library Book of Chronologies is divided into fourteen areas, with an emphasis on more current events.
Literature is the direct result of an individual author's interpretation of that society.
Therefore, as broad an insight into the historical period will help you, the literary researcher, gain insight into the creative ways in which real life and history are imaginatively transformed into the images, ideas, and motifs of the work itself. Concerning Shelley's Frankenstein , for instance, one critic noticed that the author apparently knew quite a lot about theories of conception and childbirth from both folkloric and more scientific sources. These old works contain the ideas that Mary Shelley would have been familiar with in her day. These newer works present current perspectives on Mary Shelley's treatment of the issues. Historical research, therefore, presents numerous possibilities for fascinating areas of research.