This style sheet, along with a sample paper from the OWL (Online Writing Lab) at Purdue University will help you format your paper in MLA style!

The Annotated Bibliography

An annotated bibliography is a Works Cited or References page which also includes a brief summary and evaluation of each selection. It generally follows a certain format (MLA, APA, or another citation style), but always contains citations followed by descriptions. The annotated bibliography can also be used as an instrument for keeping track of both references and research.

An annotated bibliography entry should contain:

1. Citation: In this case, in MLA format

2. Summary: Which briefly reviews the content of the source

3. Reflection: Which shows how this source might be useful in your essay

4. Evaluation: Which indicates why this source is particularly reliable or trustworthy

Other areas of consideration are how the source fits within the topic being researched, what makes the source significant, how the source compares to other sources, how the source adds to the global understanding of the topic. An annotated bibliography is a great way to reflect on your sources and how they will fit into your essay before starting a rough draft. Specific format, length, and organization of the annotated bibliography will vary from professor to professor, so always double check to ensure you are following directions provided in class.

Guidelines on completing annotations…

• Start with the same format as a regular Works Cited list

• All lines should be double-spaced. Do not add an extra line between the citations.

• List citation information first, and list in correct format (MLA for Warren, at college check with your professor)

• Each annotation should be one paragraph, between three to six sentences long (about 150- 200 words)

• Use complete sentences, and avoid the passive voice

• Use the third person (e.g., he, she, the author) instead of the first person (e.g., I, my, me)

• Try to be objective, and give explanations if you state any opinions

• Be sure to properly cite direct quotes

Sample MLA Annotated Bibliography Entry

(DOUBLE SPACE your summary. Titles italicized and underlined are for REFERENCE ONLY, do not include titles in your final bibliography)

Citation Bal, Mieke. “Light Writing: Portraiture in a Post-Traumatic Age.” Mosaic 37 (2004): 1- 19. Print.

Summary This article begins with an introduction to different “cultural analysis perspectives” through which photography has traditionally been analyzed (1). Reflection It is a very good brief introduction to photography theory. There is a helpful description of photography in relation to time, “This idea makes the binary between time as flow and time as catastrophic moment; photography as frozen moment stolen from the merciless flow of time, or as moment blasted out of time, dysfunctional.” (11-12). Evaluation Mieke Bal, a cultural critic and theorist who currently holds professorships at both the Royal Dutch Academy of Sciences and the University of Amsterdam, also provides in this article the specific knowledge necessary to analyze a photographic portrait. She emphasizes “the primacy of the face” and the “mobilization of portraiture as a soldier for individualism” in relation to identity politics. (5,7).