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Annotated Bibliography Fall 2024
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Annotated Bibliographies
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Professor Henning
ENC 1101
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What Are Annotated Bibliographies?
Annotated bibliographies, as stated in The Little Seagull, are a "genre that gives an overview of published research and scholarship on a topic" (555). In order to provide that overview, annotated bibliographies "describe, give publication information for, and sometimes evaluate each work on a list of sources" (106).
Defining the Genre
Evaluative Annotations
Creating an annotated bibliography is a VERY important step in the research process; it ensures you've thoroughly researched your topic and thought critically about the sources you plan on using for your project.
Descriptive Annotations
Descriptive Annotations
When it comes to annotated bibliographies, there are--broadly speaking--two kinds of annotations: descriptive and evaluative.
Descriptive annotations "summarize the contents of each work, without comment or evaluation" (106). These types of annotations can be brief, "just long enough to capture the flavor of the work" (106), but they can also be longer and more formal. As always, it depends upon one's rhetorical situation.
Example of a Descriptive Annotation
Citation
Foster, Harold M. "Film in the Classroom: Coping with Teen Pics." English Journal, vol. 76, no. 3, Mar. 1987, pp. 86-88.
Annotation
An evaluation of the potential of using teen films such as Sixteen Candles and The Karate Kid to instruct adolescents on the difference between film as communication and film as exploitation.
*Example from The Little Seagull, p. 106
Evaluative Annotations
Evaluative annotations critically assess "how useful a source will be for [one's] own writing" (106). An evaluative annotation not only describes/summarizes a source, but also offers an opinion or judgment on the source.
Let's take a look at the examples of evaluative annotations on p. 107 of The Little Seagull. How does the writer assess her sources in her annotations? How is this assessment different from the descriptive annotation we just discussed?
Other Commonly Used Terms to Describe Annotations
Informative: a descriptive (summary-based) annotation that straightforwardly summarizes relevant information about the work and the author.
Other Commonly Used Terms
Indicative: another type of summary-based annotation that provides general information about what questions or issues are addressed by the work.
Critical: an evaluative annotation that evaluates the source/author critically, demonstrates the importance of the work to a particular field of study, and/or explains its usefulness to one's research project.
Key Features of Annotated Bibliographies
The Little Seagull identifies five key features of annotated bibliographies:
Key Features
- A statement of scope
- Complete bibliographic information
- A concise description of the work
- Relevant commentary
- Consistent presentation
Key Features Explained
Key Features Explained
1. A statement of scope
Generally, an annotated bibliography will begin with an introductory statement that gives some background on what you're covering (topically and in your bibliography itself). Identifying the PURPOSE of your research is helpful not only because it defines the scope of your project, but also because it ensures you stay on track with your research. You will include a statement of scope at the beginning of your Annotated Bibliography for this class.
2. Complete bibliographic information
Using your chosen documentation system, your citations should provide ALL the necessary information about each source. Correctly citing your sources helps others find them more easily. In this class, you will be using MLA to cite your sources.
Key Features Explained (cont'd)
3. A concise description of the work
In order to describe a work succinctly, comprehensively, and objectively, give accurate information that demonstrates you understand the source and its connection to your topic. This feature is key to establishing your ethos!
4. Relevant commentary
As for the evaluative part of your annotation, consider the source's usefulness as well as your rhetorical situation: What questions might your audience have about your source? What is your purpose for compiling these sources? How does the source relate to your topic? Your commentary should be relevant and purposeful.
5. Consistent presentation
Follow a consistent pattern! Each annotation should be formatted in the same way: content, sentence structure, AND documentation style.
Generating
Ideas & Text
Getting Started
Constructing an annotated bibliography and getting started with the research process can feel like a daunting task; however, there are several ways to generate ideas and text for your bibliography.
Remember: it takes practice and patience to do good research, why is why we're getting started now!
What Sources Should I Include?
How to Decide What Sources to Include
Don't feel like you have to include every source you find while doing your research. In fact, you should NOT do this, as it most likely means you are not being as discerning as you should be! For your Annotated Bibliography in this class, you will need to find at least eight sources but no more than ten. What matters when selecting sources is quality over quantity: choose to use and annotate sources that you think BEST fit your topic, that you understand, and that you think I need to know about before you begin writing your actual research paper.
Consider the following qualities as you evaluate your sources:
1. Appropriateness
2. Credibility
3. Balance
4. Timeliness
How Should I Read My Sources?
Read Carefully & Critically
No matter what you read, you should always read carefully and critically.
When writing an annotated bibliography, you don't always need to read the whole text in order to create your annotation. The Little Seagull suggests the following strategies for reading critically and efficiently:
1. Check for publisher information (e.g., the who, when, and where of the source).
2. Read the preface, abstract, or introduction (this is an especially great strategy for academic journal articles).
3. Skim the table of contents, headings, index, or other main organizational features.
4. Read parts of the work that relate to your specific topic (this is a great strategy for books or eBooks).
How Should I Format My Work?
Consistency Is Key
Consistency is a key aspect of any annotated bibliography. Be consistent not only in your syntax (sentence structure), but also in your content, format, and documentation style. The Little Seagull recommends checking that your work is consistent in:
- Content
For each citation, try to provide approximately the same amount of information. Because you need to describe and evaluate your sources for this class, be sure to do both for each work's annotation.
- Sentence structure
Maintain the same syntax throughout. For this project, you should write in complete, grammatically correct sentences.
- Format
Use the same documentation style throughout. Make sure your format (margins, font, spacing, etc.) adheres to the rules of your citation style.
Organizing an Annotated Bibliography
There are two main organizational methods used to structure an annotated bibliography: single category and multi-category.
Organizational Strategies
Although you might eventually use multi-category structure in other courses--such as in history or psychology classes--we will use single-topic structure for this class, since your research paper will focus on a single main topic.
Single-Topic Structure
Organizing an Annotated Bibliography
Regardless of the citation style you decide to use, organize your sources alphabetically. If the work lacks a named author or editor, alphabetize by the first word of the title--in other words, what would be listed first in the citation.
(Continue listing sources and annotating them.)
List first alphabetical entry, and annotate it.
List second alphabetical entry, and annotate it.
List final alphabetical entry, and annotate it.
State scope and introduce topic.
Because your annotations in this class need to be both descriptive and evaluative, each of your entries should have two paragraphs following your citation. One paragraph summarizes the source, and the other offers an opinion/evaluation of the source.
Good Sources vs. Bad Sources
When it comes to doing research, you will inevitably encounter the good, the bad, and the ugly. With that in mind, your job is to research widely and thoroughly as well as think critically about the sources you come across. You need to evaluate their credibility and describe how you plan on using each source in your research project.
Good Sources vs. Bad Sources
Throughout Module 2, we will be learning how to conduct research and meaningfully evaluate sources. It's important to be mindful of your research timeline: the sooner you get started, the better! In order to write a good research paper, it is important to spend a significant amount of time researching.
Introducing the CRAAP Test!
One helpful method to use when evaluating your sources--and one we'll be using in this class--is the CRAAP Test, which was developed by researchers at California State University at Chico. The acronym CRAAP stands for Currency, Relevance, Authority, Accuracy, and Purpose. Because of its efficacy, the CRAAP test is used across multiple disciplines, so don't be surprised if you encounter it in other classes.