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SIUC Writing Center
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WRITING AN ANNOTATED BIBLIOGRAPHY
From Writing Across the Curriculum by Sandra Nagy
Why write an annotated bibliography?
You can discover what your source contains (analysis).
You can discover how best to use that information in your paper (organization).
You can discover how to restate your topic into a “working” thesis (purpose).
Rules to follow:
Take your sources one at a time.
Answer the questions in COMPLETE SENTENCES.
The first 3 questions:
What is the main, or most significant idea of this source?
What is the author trying to do (purpose)?
Who do you think is the author’s intended audience?
Combine the Answers:
Example: Smith focuses on the dropping illiteracy levels among school children, categorizing
socioeconomic levels, racial groups, and parents’ educational background. Aiming at a general
audience, Smith attempts to convince his readers that most children do poorly in school because
their parents don’t work with them in home study sessions.
The next two questions:
What parts of the subject does the source emphasize or de-emphasize?
What assumptions does the author make about the topic or audience?
Again, you combine the answers:
Example: The author emphasizes that parents need to be more involved in their children’s
education and assumes that these parents have the time, the expertise, and the inclination to do
so.
The final three questions:
Is there any bias or slant in the source?
Are there obvious omissions that seem important to the ideas being discussed?
Does the evidence clearly support the author’s main points?
The last sentences:
Example: While Smith’s data supports his position, his solutions seem too simplistic and very
general. Because he ignores the busy schedules, as well as the attitudes and expectations of
some parents, his “just do it” advice doesn’t seem likely to change the situation.
Extra Tips:
Write SHORT paragraphs.
Combine answers where possible.
Have 5-8 sentences that accurately describe
the information and ideas from each source
in your bibliography.
Use an MLA type Works Cited page with a
paragraph of analysis for each source.
Last Points:
Use alphabetical order.
Double space everything.
Leave two double-spaces between sources.