Annotations can be merely descriptive,

summarizing the authors' qualifications, research

methods, and arguments.

Annotations can evaluate the quality of scholarship

in a book or article. You might want to consider the
logic of authors' arguments, and the quality of their
evidence. Your findings can be positive, negative, or
mixed.

Annotations in an annotated bibliography usually

perform both functions. The annotation is a concise
description of a particular source, including important
aspects of content not evident in the title. It enables
the researcher to establish the relevance of a specific
journal article, book, research report, or government
document, etc. and to decide whether to consult the
full text of the work.

Elements of an Annotation

Information found in an annotation may include:

1. qualifications of author(s);

"Based on 20 years of study, William A. Smith,

Professor of English at XYZ University...";

2. purpose/scope:

"...sets out to place John Turner in eighteenth century

England and show the development of his philosophy
in relation to contemporary social mores";
3. audience and level of reading difficulty:

"Smith addresses himself to the scholar, albeit the

concluding chapters on capital punishment will be
clear to any informed layman";

4. bias or standpoint of author :

"Turner gears his study more to the romantic aspects

of the age than the scientific and rational
developments";

5. relationship to other works in the field:

"Here Turner departs drastically from A. F. Johnson

(Two will not, New York, Riposte Press, 1964) who not
only has developed the rational themes of the
eighteenth century but is convinced the romantic
elements at best are only a skein through the major
prose and poetry";

6. findings, results, and conclusions (if available); and

7. format/special features

(e.g., bibliography, glossary, index, survey

instruments, testing devices, etc.).

Structure of an Annotation
Length: Generally, annotations constitute one
paragraph and are approximately 100 -150 words
long, with a goal of concise and explicative
annotations. Avoid repetition of any kind.

Person: The third person is the standard, though first

person may be appropriate for certain types of
annotated bibliographies.

Language and Vocabulary: Use the vocabulary of the

author, as much as possible, to convey the ideas and
conclusions of the author. If you use a quotation
excerpted from the work set it within quotation
marks. Vary your sentence structure and try to avoid
repetitive vacuous phrases in your annotations, such
as, "The author states," "This article concerns," or
"The purpose of this report is," as well as sentences
starting with "It was suggested that," "It was found
that," and "It was reported that."

Format - Sentences: Whole sentences are preferable,

but single descriptive words, and simple phrases or
lists may be acceptable.

Format - Paragraphs: Annotations should be one

paragraph long. The paragraph should contain a
statement of the work's major thesis, from which the
rest of the sentences can develop.

How is the Annotation in an Annotated

Bibliography Different from an Abstract?

An abstract is a descriptive summary of a single

longer text, with content summarized in the
 same order as the original. It is often found at
the beginning of scholarly journal articles, in
periodical indexes, or in electronic databases

An annotation enables readers to see the

relationship of a number of written works to
each other and in the context of the topic
studied

Choose how you will organize your annotated

bibliography

Remember, there are three ways of organizing

your annotated bibliography: by author
alphabetically, by date, or by subtopics or
sections. The latter will not be necessary in a
very short paper
Samples: Note that each could be enhanced in certain ways.
Read them critically.

Lamott, Anne. Bird by Bird: Some Instructions on Writing and

Life. New York: Anchor Books, 1995.

Lamotts 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 Lamotts book are wry and
anecdotal and offer advice on everything from plot
development to jealousy, from perfectionism to
struggling with ones 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 ones
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
Lamotts style both engaging and enjoyable.

***

Waite, Linda J., et al.. "Nonfamily Living and Living and the
Erosion of
Traditional Family Orientations Among Young Adults."
American Sociological Review 51, no. 2 (1986): 541-
554. http://www.jstor.org/stable/2095586 (accessed
September 16, 2011).

The authors, researchers at the Rand Corporation and

Brown University, use data from the National
Longitudinal Surveys of Young Women and Young Men
to test their hypothesis that nonfamily living by young
adults alters their attitudes, values, plans, and
expectations, moving them away from their belief in
traditional sex roles. They find their hypothesis strongly
supported in young females, while the effects were
fewer in studies of young males. Increasing the time
away from parents before marrying increased
individualism, self-sufficiency, and changes in attitudes
about families. In contrast, an earlier study by Williams
cited below shows no significant gender differences in
sex role attitudes as a result of nonfamily living. This
study was especially useful as these researchers not
only had an especially large sample to work with but
their results clearly demonstrated the liberating effect
that nonfamily living had on their females subjects.
Duus, Peter, ed. The Japanese Discovery of Ameria: A Brief
History with Documents. Boston: Bedford Books, 1997.

This book explores the relationship between Japan and

the United States in the mid-nineteenth century,
focusing on the dramatic differences between the two
cultures and the uneasiness, confusion, and
misunderstandings that arose from those differences. In
a short introductory history, Duus discusses Japanese
isolationism, the military and economic factors that led
the United States to forcefully open relations with
Japan, and the ways in which the Japanese observed
and interpreted Americans and their culture. The main
body of the text comprises a series of documents,
including political pamphlets, autobiographies,
eyewitness accounts, broadsheets, and printes. The
inclusion of both Japanese and American views of Japan
invites a comparison of mutual misunderstandings.