Annotated Bibliography Reminders

Classics & Composition II

Purpose of an Annotated Bibliography for a Comparative Literature
Criticism Essay:
A review of the arguments/literary theories surrounding a piece of
literature
Illustrate the quality of research that you have done
Explore the subject for further research
Set up all of the material you need for your research paper in one
location
Organize your MLA sources before creating your Works Cited

Secondary sources may come from:

Academic Articles (found via
Academic Search Premier,
Literature Resource, or JSTOR)
Books/Encyclopedias found on the
Library Cart at TCA or PPLD

Annotated Bibliography MLA Check List

o MLA Heading
o Minimum of 4 Secondary Sources (minimum 2 secondary sources
per primary source)
o Secondary sources alphabetized by authors last name
o Secondary source titles organized in MLA format

Each Secondary source has the following

information:
o Double spaced with no additional
spaces between paragraphs
o 2 paragraphs and a list of quotations
from the secondary source

Frequently Asked Questions on Annotated Bibliography (compiled from Ms. Clarks English classes)
Can I have more than 4 secondary sources?
Yes of course. Its better to have more to work with than struggle to find secondary source support later on in the
writing process.
Do I have to use everything I write in my Annotated Bibliography in my essay?
No. The research process might yield more information than you can fit into your essay. Its okay if you dont use
every single quote you pulled from the article and you might not use all of your sources if you have more than 4.
Generally I dont cut out information from my Annotated Bibliographies, I just dont always include all of it in my
essays.
What does Annotated Bibliography mean?
An annotation is a summary and/or evaluation; a bibliography is a list of sources (books, journals, web sites,
newspapers, etc.) one has used to research a topic. Thus, an annotated bibliography is a list of sources that includes
summary and evaluation.
How detailed to I have to be?
Be as detailed as you possibly can be because the work you put in now will only help you on your essay later. Please
stop using nonsense words like: things, stuff, significant, good, really good, key, useful, vital, etc. Be specific. Just
writing this source is good because it has significant key quotations for support means nothing.
Do I have to do an Annotated Bibliography?
Yes. Are you serious?
Can I use the web to find my non-scholarly journal articles?
You can use the web to help develop your understanding of the arguments that surround your research question for
background knowledge, but all of the secondary sources that appear on your Annotated Bibliography must come
from Academic/Peer Reviewed/Scholarly articles or books (PPLD: Academic Search Premiere, Literature Resource
Center; JSTOR; Library books).
Whats the deal with MLA style?
Check out MLA style on the Online Writing Lab at Purdue:
https://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/614/01/ and https://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/747/01/

For help creating your summary and evaluation responses, refer to the original yellow packet with the examples.
You may also choose to follow these sentence-by-sentence guides (the information available in the secondary sources may
dictate your construction of your paragraphs):
Example
A
Summary
Paragraph

3rd Person Present Tense

To begin include the following types of sentences (you will expand upon these simplified sentences after
writing them, but starting with the basics will help organize your thoughts). After the first 4 sentences, you
will write the summary of the argument/evidence.
1st Sentence --- Name the author, [optional: a phrase describing the author], genre and title of source, date
in parentheses, a rhetorically accurate verb (such as assert, argue, suggest, imply, claim, etc.); and a
that clause containing the major assertion (thesis statement) of the work.
2nd Sentence --- An explanation of how the author develops and/or supports the thesis, usually in
chronological order.
3rd Sentence --- A statement of the authors apparent purpose, followed by an in order phrase indicating
the change the author wants to effect in the audience.
4th Sentence --- A description of the intended audience and the relationship the author established with the
audience.
Example:
Douglas Park, in his essay Audiences (1994), suggests that teaching audience is an essential but elusive
aspect of teaching writing. Park develops this idea by exploring different definitions of audience, looking at
how a text itself can delineate audience, and then discussing specific strategies writers can use to create
contexts for an audience. His purpose is to help teachers of writing understand and teach the different
aspects of audience in order that they can help students improve the sense of audience in their writing.
Park establishes an informal relationship with teachers who are interested in strengthening their students
weak writing. ***Then continue on by adding some summary information of the article***
Example:
Laura Korobkins article suggests that while Hawthorne is critiquing and exploring the problems of
historical Puritan society, he is primarily using this a as means to respond to his very contemporary
political concerns in because of the fugitive 'lave Law, Hawthornes American society was concerned with
whether or not the restrictions of law could be cast aside for a higher moral laws Korobkin argues that
Hawthorne was equally concerned with neither being bound by the law nor completely discarding the law
for vigilante justice, as Chillingworth does.
Some questions to consider as you write the summary portion:
How is the author revealed as authoritative (or not)?
Who is the intended audience?
What is the authors point of view?
What is this authors rhetorical strategy?
What is this authors literary bias? (theoretical perspective?)
Are there any gaps in the authors argument?
How does the authors argument relate to other critical works on the same subject?
How does this work illuminate your bibliography topic?

Evaluation
=
Assessmen
t
&
Reflection

3rd Person Present tense (you might slip into 1st person in 1 or 2 sentences at most remember,
academic writing avoids 1st person)
In this paragraph, you will need to explain to me and your peers how you anticipate using this source in
your essay. In order to do this, refer to your thesis and your research questions and talk about how this
source fulfills certain information goals/needs that you have.
You may even want to talk about what you see as the weaknesses and how you intend to consciously and
critically work despite those weaknesses (that is, it the text too biased? too short to include all of the
complications? too personal? and so on). In other words, you are doing a lot of thinking about the facts and
information surrounding your topic before you start to write. This can be as short as two sentences and as
long as six sentenceswhatever you need to clearly articulate your understanding of how the text relates to
the project at hand.
A warning: The process of writing this paragraph tends to also highlight the weaknesses in your own line of
thinking, showing that you might be bringing certain biases or understandings to the text. Please do not
fight against that discovery process. It is better to start to transform your thinking about a topic early in the
process and not fight against what the materials are saying rather than doing so later in the process. I would
recommend using this process as part of your own discovery and invention instead of walking into the
project thinking that you have your topic and argument already figured out and all you have to do is
support it. Remember you can also refute the source in your paper and use quotes from it to address the
potential opposing arguments.
Example:
This seems to suggest that Hawthorne, while not a political activist necessarily, was responding to the life
and times of his culture. Although actually writing about the world of the past, Hawthornes story showed
his deep concern for justice and peace within his own lifetime
Consider these questions when assessing your source and writing the critique:
Was the research question well framed and significant to my research question/thesis?
How well did the authors relate the research question to the existing body of knowledge?
Did the article make an original contribution to the existing body of knowledge?
Was the theoretical framework for the study adequate and appropriate?
Has the researcher communicated clearly and fully?

Is there a better source that is similar to find answers to the research question?
(Occasionally you might consider) Did the writer take into account differing social and cultural
contexts?

Consider these questions when reflecting:

How is this source different than others in the same field or on the same topic?
How does this source inform your future research?
Does this article fill a gap in the literature or argument?
How would you be able to apply this method to your area of focus or project?
Is the article universal?