Annotated
Bibliography
An annotated Bibliography is an organized list of sources
that is followed by a brief “annotation.” Annotations
do one or more of the following:
- describe
the content and focus of the book or article
- suggest
the source’s usefulness to your research
- evaluate
its method, conclusions, or reliability
- record
your reaction to the source
Annotations
come in several common forms:
Indicative: This form of annotation defines the scope of the source, list the significant
topics included, and tells what the source is about.
Informative: This form of annotation is a summary of the source. Begin with the thesis;
then develop with arguments or hypothesis, list the proofs, and state
the conclusion.
Evaluative: This form of annotation allows the writer to assess the source’s
strengths and weaknesses to evaluate the source’s usefulness
Combination: Most annotated bibliographies contain this form: containing one or two
sentences summarizing or describing content and one ore two sentences
providing an evaluation.
