Annotated Bibliography (…because someone else just might

want to write about your topic one day.)

What is an annotated bibliography?

A bibliography is a list of sources (books, journals, websites, periodicals, etc.) one has used for researching a topic.

Bibliographies are sometimes called "references" or "works cited" depending on the style format being used. A bibliography usually just includes the bibliographic information (i.e., the author, title, publisher, etc.).

An annotation is a summary and/or evaluation.

Real answersReal answers

What is an annotated bibliography?

Ovid. Metamorphoses: Books I-VIII. Trans. Frank Justus Miller. Rev. by G. P. Goold. Loeb

Classical Library Series. Cambridge, Mass: Harvard UP, 1999. [first published 1916.]

Bibliography Entry

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What is an Annotated Bibliography?

Ovid. Metamorphoses: Books I-VIII. Trans. Frank Justus Miller. Rev. by G. P. Goold. Loeb

Classical Library Series. Cambridge, Mass: Harvard UP, 1999. [first published 1916.]

Annotated Bibliography Entry

Still authoritative after 85+ years in print. The Loeb Classical Library offers each text in facing page translation, with the Latin on the left and the English on the right. It's the version I use. Here's the place to quote as a primary source for classical texts. If you want the medieval version, check out the Ovid moralisée, a French medieval version of Ovid stuffed full of Christian allegory.

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Why are Annotated Bibliographies important?

So, the annotated bibliography is a place for you to write out what makes these sources helpful or annoying to read. It shows why you use the sources that you do.

Why are Annotated Bibliographies important?

And, after you’ve written your annotated bibliography, other people can look through your descriptions of sources to know what they want to read.

What do I put in an annotated bibliography?

•A brief summary of what the book covers, or a brief summary of the author's argument about the topic.

•A discussion of how the argument or discussion in this book is different from or similar to other books and articles about the topic.

Every annotated bibliography is different, because the audience that is trying to find sources will have different needs, Here are some of the qualities that you need to have in your annotated bibliography:

http://web.cn.edu/kwheeler/whatisabibliography.html

What do I put in an annotated bibliography?

•How up to date the book or article is (Sometimes, a book printed in 2001 may simply be a reprint of a book written in 1901, check the copyright history inside the book's first few pages.)

•Any other practical advice or warnings the reader should know (The book weighs 200 pounds; it can't be removed from the library; is written only in Italian; has great photos or charts; it is written by a world-renowned expert; every other author thinks this particular writer is insane, etc.)

Every annotated bibliography is different, because the audience that is trying to find sources will have different needs, Here are some of the qualities that you should have in your annotated bibliography:

http://web.cn.edu/kwheeler/whatisabibliography.html

You may also consider mentioning

If any chapter or section in particular looks especially useful (especially if only one chapter or section deals with the subject, and the rest of the book deals with something else)

Whether or not the book has its own bibliography in the back, and how extensive that bibliography is.

How long or short the book or article is (A 450 page book? A short one-page article?)

How easy it is to obtain the book (Is it still in print, is it available at local libraries or bookstores? Is it only available through Orbis or Interlibrary loan?, etc.)

Examples

A professor writing about “Medieval Beasts, Bestiaries, etc.”

Carroll, William Meredith. Animal Conventions in English Renaissance Non-Religious Prose (1550-1600). NY: 1954.

Not as useful as I hoped. Focuses exclusively on prose treatises. Fairly late.

Cavallo, Adolfo S. The Unicorn Tapestries at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. NY: H. M. Abrams, 1998.

Supercedes Rorimer's work on the subject, below.

Wheeler, Kip L. "Sample Annotated Bibliographies Dealing with Medieval Monsters." Kip Wheeler's Website. Carson-Newman College, 11 Dec. 2009. Web. 09 Mar. 2010. <http://web.cn.edu/kwheeler/monster_biblio_sample.html>.

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Too Short!Too Short!

Examples The O.W.L. at Purdue

Lamott, Anne. Bird by Bird: Some Instructions on Writing and Life. New York: Anchor Books, 1995. Print.

Lamott's book offers honest advice on the nature of a writing life, complete with its insecurities and failures. Taking a humorous approach to the realities of being a writer, the chapters in Lamott's book are wry and anecdotal and offer advice on everything from plot development to jealousy, from perfectionism to struggling with one's own internal critic.

In the process, Lamott includes writing exercises designed to be both productive and fun.

Lamott offers sane advice for those struggling with the anxieties of writing, but her main project seems to be offering the reader a reality check regarding writing, publishing, and struggling with one's own imperfect humanity in the process. Rather than a

practical handbook to producing and/or publishing, this text is indispensable because of its honest perspective, its down-to-earth humor, and its encouraging approach.

Chapters in this text could easily be included in the curriculum for a writing class. Several of

the chapters in Part 1 address the writing process and would serve to generate discussion on students' own drafting and revising processes. Some of the writing exercises would also be appropriate for generating classroom writing exercises. Students should find Lamott's style both engaging and enjoyable.

200 words

Too Long!

Examples A student writing about UnicornsSalvatore, Cavallo Adolfo. The Unicorn Tapestries at The Metropolitan Museum of

Art. New York: The Museum; H. N. Abrams, 1998.

Hunt of the unicorn, Gothic tapestries. France, art and myth combined. Explains the human/medieval fascination with unicorns and why they may have actually been "tall tales" or folklore relating to observations of

rhinoceroses.

South, Malcolm. Mythical and Fabulous Beasts: A Source Book and Research Guide. NY: Greenwood P, 1987.

Absolutely indispensable. A treasure-hoard of information. Has a glossary of some of the more important fabulous creatures, and will make a great starting spot for any research. Decent bibliography, and a taxonomic chart at the back of book. Doesn't limit itself to medieval material--also has stuff about monsters in modern literature, such as Stephen King. Available at Knight Library. Short Bibliography. Good source.

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Better, but aim for 75-150 words!

Examples

Nakjavani, Erik. “The Rest is Silence: A Psychoanalytic Study of Hemingway’s Theory of Omission and its Adaptation to ‘The Sea Change.’ ” North Dakota Quarterly 65.3

(1998): 145-173. Print.

Nakjavani’s analysis of “The Sea Change” is the product of his discussion on psychoanalytic theory and silence. He uses “The Sea Change” to show how Hemingway used silences to disrupt the usual psychoanalytic analysis, and to demonstrate a way of thinking about the concept of silence that could help literary critics to get out of the “overwhelming desire to mount an imaginary search and seizure operation to recapture [the] lost beginning” (164). Nakjavani pushes the reader to look at what the pronoun “it” does to the reader instead of trying to pin down its signification. There are multiple specific references to concepts of psychoanalytic theory and performativity, and a solid understanding of these abstract concepts is needed to better understand Nakjavani’s point. Nonetheless, Nakjavani’s analysis of the

conflict between our human drive for narrative constructions and the silences in “The Sea Change” is an interesting way to navigate a central characteristic of the story.

154 words. This is the longest the annotation should be.

Do not explain the main story/topic in the annotation!

Salvatore, Cavallo Adolfo. The Unicorn Tapestries at The Metropolitan Museum of Art. New York: The Museum; H. N. Abrams, 1998.

A long time ago, people used to put unicorns of tapestries. These tapestries were found in castles and other places that were very important. This book explains the human/medieval fascination with unicorns and why they may have actually been "tall tales" or folklore relating to observations of rhinoceroses.

Do not explain the main story/topic in the

annotation!

Salvatore, Cavallo Adolfo. The Unicorn Tapestries at The Metropolitan Museum of Art. New York: The Museum; H. N. Abrams, 1998.

A long time ago, people used to put unicorns of tapestries. These tapestries were found in castles and other places that were very important. This book explains the human/medieval fascination with unicorns and why they may have actually been "tall tales" or folklore relating to observations of rhinoceroses.

Formatting The format of an annotated bibliography can vary, so

if writing one for a class, it's important to ask for specific guidelines.

Generally, though, the bibliographic information of the source (the title, author, publisher, date, etc.) is written in either MLA or APA format.

The annotations for each source are written in paragraph form. The lengths of the annotations can vary significantly from a couple of sentences to a couple of pages. The length will depend on the purpose. If you're just writing summaries of your sources, the annotations may not be very long. However, if you are writing an extensive analysis of each source, you'll need more space.

Formatting

Hanging Indents are required for citations in the bibliography. That is, the first line of the citation starts at the left margin. Subsequent lines are indented 4 spaces.

As with every other part of an MLA formatted essay, the bibliography is double spaced, both within the citation and between them. Do not add an extra line between the citations.

The annotation is a continuation of the citation. Drop down to the next line to start the annotation.

The right margin is the normal right margin of the document.

Practice

Summarize: Give a brief (two full sentences or less) description of the author’s point or argument. What is the book about?

Assess: Write four to six sentences describing the important information in the source, if any, and how that information relates to other writings on the topic. Why is this source a good place to find information on your topic? Would you recommend this source to another researcher? Was this source better or worse than other sources?

Each annotation should be between 75-150 words

Think about the Annotation in two parts: