Biographies are stories about real people. We classify biographies as nonfiction, but they have elements of both informational and fiction books. Biographies use documented information from a person’s life, such as dates, places, events, accomplishments, and people, to
- Develop the person’s character,
- Paint a clear picture of events that happened (plot) in the person’s life, and
- Describe where and when those events happened (setting).
So, biographies are factual stories about real people from the past or the present.
Why should one air biographies on television or radio? Knowing about lives of others:
- Provides with models of people whose hard work and determination helped them overcome obstacles and achieve goals.
- Encourages young people to think about themselves as adults, and to consider possibilities for developing their own lives.
- Extends listeners/viewers overall understanding of the world.
When is one ready to know about biographies? Students of any grade can benefit from seeing biographies, but they do so at different levels of sophistication.
Where to Get Ideas on Biographies
You will often have an assignment which requires you to find biographical information about an individual. Biographical research sources should include, at the very least, place and date of subject’s birth; subject’s death date, if no longer living; and what the individual is known for. An entire book written or episode dedicated on the life of one individual is called a biography. Sometimes it is on the lives of several individuals who have something in common, such as female aviators; alternately, a book or episode may contain brief entries on the lives of many individuals with nothing in common other than fame, such as Webster’s Biographical Dictionary. Any collection of biographical material on more than one individual is called a collective biography. Often a well-known person writes or narrates about his/her own life. A work by its own subject is an autobiography.
Depending on whom your subject is, and how much information you need on him/her, you can look for biographical information and creative ideas in the following places:
- Encyclopedias: can help you identify a person or place him/ her in time. There are often bibliographies at the end of articles to steer you to other sources.
- Search the online catalog: using the individual’s name as a subject to find books about him/her. It is also useful to search by the person’s occupation; if he was a painter, do subjects search on artists to find collective biographies, such as encyclopedias and dictionaries, on artists.
- Use periodical indexes: to locate magazine and journal articles about the person. For example an entire Biography Index is available at the Livingston Library on Shorter’s Rome This index is available for the years 1955 to the present and gives references to books and articles about its subjects. It is also useful to search according to your subject’s occupation. If you are looking for an artist, you might check the Art Index; if your subject was a musician, try the Music Index.
- The Galileo databases: are great sources for articles as well, with many available in full text.
- Check the reference collection: Reference books are a special collection of high demand, non-circulating books arranged by subject number, as are the books in the regular collection. Some of the general biographical sources available at shorter’s Livingston Library (available on the net) are:
- You can check the archives of your own studio, old tapes and even newspapers for reference and ideas.
Current Biography Yearbook 1940 – current; R 920.02 C93
Dictionary of National Biography 1901 – 1985; R 920.042 D56
Men of Mark in Georgia; R 920.0758 N81m
Notable American Women 1607 – 1950; R 920.720973 N84n
Webster’s Biographical Dictionary R 920.02 W39
Who Was Who in America 1607 – 1989; R 920.073 W62
Who’s Who in America 1986-19 R 920.073 W62w
