Annotated Bibliography
Annotated Bibliography (adapted from The OWL at Purdue)
A bibliography is a list of sources (books, articles, websites, etc.) one has used for researching a topic. Bibliographies are sometimes called "Works Cited." A bibliography usually just includes the bibliographic information (i.e., the author, title, publisher, etc.).
An annotation is a summary and evaluation. Therefore, an annotated bibliography includes the complete citation of bibliographic information, a summary, and an evaluation of each of the sources. Your annotated bibliography will include three parts:
Example of an annotated bibliography
A bibliography is a list of sources (books, articles, websites, etc.) one has used for researching a topic. Bibliographies are sometimes called "Works Cited." A bibliography usually just includes the bibliographic information (i.e., the author, title, publisher, etc.).
An annotation is a summary and evaluation. Therefore, an annotated bibliography includes the complete citation of bibliographic information, a summary, and an evaluation of each of the sources. Your annotated bibliography will include three parts:
- Citation: Cite the source properly using MLA format.
- For more help, see The OWL at Purdue page on MLA-style citations (also linked under Online Resources).
- Summary: Summarize the source. What are the main arguments? What is the point of this book or article? What topics are covered? If someone asked what this article/book is about, what would you say? This should be just 3-4 sentences.
- Reflection: Once you've cited and summarized a source, you need to ask how it fits into your research. How does it help your argument? How can you use this source in your project? Has it changed how you think about your topic? This should be 2-3 sentences.
Example of an annotated bibliography