English 122 Students,

Please note italicized text is mine. Everything else is from Purdue OWL. Citation at the end

Annotated Bibliography Samples

Overview

Remember that the annotations you include in your own bibliography should reflect your research project and/or the guidelines of your assignment. (Module 4, Assignment 2)

Please keep in mind that all your text, including the write-up beneath the citation, must be indented so that the author's last name is the only text that is flush left.

Sample MLA Annotation

Lamott, Anne. Bird by Bird: Some Instructions on Writing and Life. Anchor Books, 1995.

Lamott's book offers honest advice on the nature of a writing life, complete with its insecurities and failures. Taking a humorous approach to the realities of being a writer, the chapters in Lamott's book are wry and anecdotal and offer advice on everything from plot development to jealousy, from perfectionism to struggling with one's own internal critic.

In the process, Lamott includes writing exercises designed to be both productive and fun. Lamott offers sane advice for those struggling with the anxieties of writing, but her main project seems to be offering the reader a reality check regarding writing, publishing, and struggling with one's own imperfect humanity in the process. Rather than a practical handbook to producing and/or publishing, this text is indispensable because of its honest perspective, its down-to-earth humor, and its encouraging approach.

Chapters in this text could easily be included in the curriculum for a writing class. Several of the chapters in Part 1 address the writing process and would serve to generate discussion on students' own drafting and revising processes. Some of the writing exercises would also be appropriate for generating classroom writing exercises. Students should find Lamott's style both engaging and enjoyable.

In the sample annotation above, the writer includes three paragraphs: a summary, an evaluation of the text, and a reflection on its applicability to his/her own research, respectively. This is what you need to do for this assignment.

For information on formatting MLA citations, see our  MLA 2016 Formatting and Style Guide .

"MLA Formatting and Style Guide." The Purdue OWL, Purdue U Writing Lab. Accessed 21 Aug. 2019.

English 122 Students,

For information on formatting MLA citations, see our  MLA 2016 Formatting and Style Guide .

"MLA Formatting and Style Guide." The Purdue OWL, Purdue U Writing Lab. Accessed 21 Aug. 2019.

Module 4 Assignment 2: Annotated Bibliography

Overview

When you have a complex research project, it can be difficult to keep track of your sources. The more sources you consult, the more complicated keeping track of their main ideas, relevance, and credibility can be. Organizing your research makes the project easier and less stressful. One of the best ways to keep track of your sources is to create an annotated bibliography as you consult them. For each source create an MLA Works Cited entry (so you don’t have to worry about this when you draft the essay), a short summary of the source’s main and most relevant arguments, and a short analysis of the source’s credibility (the annotations). Then, as you begin to draft, you can consult your annotated bibliography to help you keep track of which sources you wanted to use for each section of your argument. Your annotated bibliography will tell the story of your research and the perspectives you have consulted.

In this assignment you will create an annotated bibliography of the sources you plan to use for your Module 5 Assignment: Researched Argument Essay.

You should spend approximately 6 hours on this assignment.

Instructions

1. Research: Continue to find sources to help you research your working thesis. You may use some or all of the sources from your exploratory essay and research proposal, or you may decide that some of those sources are no longer relevant to your refined thesis. For your annotated bibliography, include only sources you think you might actually use for your Module 5 Assignment: Researched Argument Essay. You will need at least eight relevant, quality sources for this assignment.

2. Pre-Write: Read each source carefully, noting its main arguments and relevant support. Evaluate each source for credibility, argument, support, and relevance.

3. Write: Construct your annotated bibliography. Each source should have its own annotated entry. For each source’s entry, you should write:

· An MLA Style Works Cited entry

· 3-4 sentences of summary

· 3-4 sentences of evaluation

· 2-3 sentences of reflection on the usefulness/relevance of the source to your research project/working thesis

4. Tips for Success:

· Your annotated bibliography should have 8-10 sources (no more, no less). Of those eight sources, at least four of them should be academic journal articles. The other sources should be a mix of magazine, news, internet, podcast, TED Talk, documentary, or other less traditional source types. No more than two sources should be general websites.

· Carefully follow the formatting guidelines in the resources found on the Exploration page. Annotated bibliographies should be alphabetized and should use a hanging indent.

5. Please be sure to use correct MLA Style for your essay and to create an MLA Works Cited page. Need help with MLA? Please refer to the CCCOnline MLA Citation Toolkit