Annotated Bibliographies
In terms of quality: What purpose did the author have in writing this? Who is their audience?
Are they biased? Are their conclusions valid or invalid? Do most scholars agree or disagree with
their ndings?
In terms of usefulness: How does this source connect to your topic and your main point? How
does it communicate with other sources in your bibliography?
The purpose the reference entries in any bibliography is twofold:
a. To give credit to the sources you’ve drawn from in your studies, and
b. To direct your reader to the sources if they want to see the originator of an idea you referenced or
nd more information.
When it comes to an annotated bibliography, you’re adding a notation describing and evaluating your
source. This notation has purposes that concern you, rather than your reader:
a. To get to know your sources, familiarizing yourself with their content, and
b. To explain what you found useful about the source, as a reminder to yourself for later when you’re
using it in writing.
Keeping in mind these goals, let’s talk about what goes into writing an annotated bibliography.
Turn page for Example!
I. Introductory Paragraph, Thesis Statement, or Research Question
The entries in your annotated bibliography will all be centered around some theme or idea that you’re
researching, and keeping a clear idea of this overarching topic will help you stay oriented as you evaluate
the usefulness of each source you read.
Most annotated bibliographies will begin with a thesis statement, research question, or introductory
paragraph that outlines the purpose of your research. Is there a specic question you’re answering with
your sources? Is there an argument you’re using them to prove?
II. Correctly Formatted Reference Entry Citation
Remember that at its core, an annotated bib is a reference page that needs to follow the formatting of
whatever citation style you’re using. Make sure your entries are in alphabetical order and include all the
authors, titles, and publication info that your citation style requires.
III. Summary of the Source
Keep this brief. If you can state the main point of the source in a sentence or two, you’ve probably
understood it well; if you nd yourself lost in the details, you may need to spend more time reading. What is
the core idea that this source wanted you to understand?
IV. Evaluation of the Source
This is the more abstract part of your notation: you’ll be evaluating the quality and the usefulness of each
source.
Evaluation of the Source
Correctly Formatted Reference Entry Citation
Summary of the Source
Introductory Paragraph, Thesis Statement, or Research Question
I V.
II.
III.
I.
Sample Annotated Bibliography (MLA format)
[Introducon:] Ever since the British colonization of New Zealand in the 1840s, a
distinct New Zealand dialect of has been in development, along with a fair amount of
controversy. Attitudes toward New Zealand English began negative but seem to have
recently become more positive. Considering this history, just what are current attitudes
toward the New Zealand dialect?
[Reference Entry:] Deverson, Tony. “New Zealand English,” in Book and Print in New
Zealand: A Guide to Print Culture in Aotearoa. Victoria University Press, 1997.
[Summary:] Deverson discusses the way that the New Zealand English
dialect is represented in written form. The main distinction of written New
Zealand English is in specic New Zealand slang and vocabulary, since the
grammatical structure doesn’t dier from other dialects of English and the
accent can’t be represented on paper.
[Evaluaon:] Essentially a summary of much of Deverson’s research on New
Zealand English, this chapter gives a useful overview of how the NZ dialect
is represented on paper. And although the New Zealand dialect only shows up
in limited ways in writing, this in itself is an important indication of how New
Zealand English is perceived, implying that when formality is required, distinct
New Zealand English is unacceptable.
Gordon, Elizabeth and Marcia Abell. “‘This Objectionable Colonial Dialect’: Historical
and Contemporary Attitudes to New Zealand Speech,” in New Zealand Ways
of Speaking English, ed. by Allan Bell and Janet Holmes. Multilingual Matters
Ltd., 1990, pp. 21-48.
The attitudes toward the New Zealand accent are examined from when the
New Zealand dialect rst developed in the late 1800s until the 1990s. In the
early years there was strong opposition to the New Zealand accent, since it was
seen as a bastardization of “proper” British English, but more recently it has
not been seen as a marker of low status or laziness. Instead, it is a marker of
friendliness and pride amongst New Zealanders.
This research is particularly useful because it analyzes the rsthand opinions
of actual New Zealanders, rather than just discussing the concept in the abstract.
The history of people’s opinions shows some outdated ideas that may still linger
in current attitudes.
