Annotated Bibliographies: Overview

An annotated bibliography is a list of citations to books, articles, and other documents used for research. Each citation is followed by a brief description (usually about 150-250 words) and/or evaluative paragraph, the annotation.

Purpose:

The primary purpose of bibliographic citations is to assist the reader in finding the sources used in the writing of a work. Depending on the assignment, an annotated bibliography might have different purposes:

• show that you understand each source cited
• demonstrate the quality of research you have done
• provide a literature review on a particular subject
• help formulate a thesis on a subject
• describe other items on a topic that may be of interest to the reader

There are 2 common types of annotations - descriptive (abstracts) and critical or evaluative (annotations):

A Descriptive annotation may summarize:

• The main purpose or idea of the work
• The contents of the work
• The author’s conclusions
• The intended audience
• The author’s research methods
• Special features of the work such as illustrations, maps, tables, etc.

A Critical annotation includes the same information as a descriptive annotation, but will also include value judgments or comments on the effectiveness of the work. [In this context, critical means evaluative and may include both positive and negative comments.] When writing a critical annotation, include some of the these features:

• The work’s contribution to the literature of the subject
• Comparison with other works on the topic
• The author’s qualifications for writing the work
• The author’s bias or tone
• The accuracy of the information in the source
• Limitations or significant omissions