General policies and principles for the Library's collections are stated in the General Collection Development Policy.
Purpose of the Collection
The purpose of the collection is to support the instructional curriculum for the undergraduate program offered by the Department of French and Italian at UCSB. The collection also supports independent study and interdisciplinary research activities of faculty and students.
Scope
Subjects
Collecting activity is focused on these major areas: (1) literature, including Italian prose, novels and short stories (2) Italian poetry, including epic poetry, lyric poetry and contemporary poetry (3) Italian drama and theater (4) Italian language, linguistics and philology (5) Italian literary history and criticism (6) Italian history, culture and civilization.
Geographical Coverage
Mostly limited to Italy and Sicily; some cultural and ethnic materials on Italians in the United States, and migrations to and from Italy are selectively collected.
Language
Italian and English are the primary languages. Occasionally, scholarly works in other romance languages may be collected if relevant. Bilingual editions and translations of literature into English are selectively collected.
Chronological Limits/Period Coverage
Medieval, Renaissance and modern periods.
Publication Dates
Emphasis is on recent imprints. Reprints and retrospective material may be purchased selectively. Prepublication offers are considered on an individual basis.
Types of Materials Collected
Monographs: Primarily monographs of university level or interest, namely, scholarly and creative works on literature, novels, theater, poetry, essays, and anthologies. Revised, augmented or corrected editions are collected as well as editions of standard literary works with new critical commentaries or new editors. Selected works of secondary authors. North American university press titles are received on approval.
Serials: Selected journals and periodicals of scholarly societies or institutions. Since the budget for serials is fully committed, new subscriptions are considered only if an equivalent dollar amount of a currently owned subscription can be cancelled.
Government publications: Selection of this type of material is mainly within the purview of the Government Information Center. In consultation with the appropriate specialist, an occasional recommendation may be made.
Proceedings/Transactions: On a selective basis, proceedings or transactions of conferences, congresses and symposia may be acquired.
Technical reports: Not applicable.
Reference materials & Indexes: Bibliographies, dictionaries, encyclopedias and other reference materials may be purchased on a selective basis.
Festschriften: Occasional purchase on a selective basis.
Primary source materials: Rarely purchased.
Newspapers: Very selectively purchased. Electronic versions are preferred.
Exclusions: Popular works, offprints, maps, juvenile literature, junior college level material, and avant-garde material.
Formats
Print is the primary format. Electronic format may be collected, if available. Microforms are rarely purchased.
Systemwide and Other Resources
UC Consortia: Consortia and cooperative agreements are used to augment the collection.
Sources outside UCSB: Interlibrary loan is used extensively. Students, faculty and staff have access to Interlibrary Loan services.
Related Collection Development Policies
Principal interdepartmental areas include, but are not limited to: Art and Architecture, Classics, Feminist Studies, Film & Media Studies, History, Linguistics, Philosophy, and Political Science.
Subject librarian: Jane Faulkner
Policy Last Updated: April, 2015
