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Using Sources & Avoiding Plagiarism: Annotated Bibliographies

What is an annotated bibliography?

What is an annotated bibliography? 

An annotated bibliography is a list of citations, complete with a brief description of each one. These descriptions are meant to evaluate the source, put it into context, and explain why it is relevant. For more information on annotated bibliographies, including information on how to write them, visit the below link:

About Annotated Bibliographies by the University of Wisconsin-Madison Writing Center 

Library resources for annotated bibliographies

Writing annotated bibliographies

Annotated bibliographies include brief statements about each source. These annotations may take one (or more) of the following forms:

  • Descriptive: states the topic of the source only
  • Summary: summarizes the source but does not take a stance or make an argument about the source
  • Evaluative: evaluates the source, which may include placing the work in context of other research or evaluating its usefulness

Annotations may include any number of the following elements:

  • Full citation and publication information. Use a consistant citation style; bibliographies always include this element
  • Information about the author(s) and their motives
  • Summary of the source
  • Evaluation of the source, including what makes the source useful for your research or for your audience
  • Information about the intended audience of the source, including any potential author bias
  • Context for the source, including how it compares to other sources in the bibliography

For more information on citations, see Citation Resources: Manuals and Guides

Annotation example

The following is an example of an annotation based on MLA citation style. Elements to include in an annotation vary based on discipline and citation style, so make sure you are clear on what is expected for your specific annotated bibliography. 

Churchill, Suzanne, and Adam McKible. "Little Magazines and Modernism:
An Introduction." American Periodicals, vol. 15, no. 1, 2005, pp. 1-5. JSTOR, https://www-jstor-org.ezproxy.lib.davidson.edu/stable/20771167.
Authors Suzanne Churchill and Adam McKible are established
researchers of little magazines, having written multiple books and articles on the subject. This academic article serves as an introduction to little magazines and to an issue of American Periodicals devoted to them. As such, it seeks to define little magazines and place them in the context of their time: at the center of modernism. While the article does not necessarily present new scholarship or ideas about the periodicals, it does provide a useful and enthusiastic introduction to them. This article is particularly useful because it seeks to provide a definition for little magazines that is more inclusive than definitions found in other sources.

 

  • Full citation
  • Information about the authors
  • Information about the intended audience
  • Summary
  • Evaluation
  • Context

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