Annotated Bibliography
This assignment is due March 29. It is a good idea to begin working on it now.
An annotated bibliography comes in many forms, but, in general, it is a bibliography that contains additional information about the sources. For this course, you will compile an annotated bibliography on a narrowly defined topic where each source is summarized and assessed for its usefulness for your project.
Here are the steps you should take to successfully complete your assignment. Please click on the links for more information about the specifics of writing and research.
Choose a Topic:
For this assignment, first choose an art historical issue, artist, art movement or work of art as a broad topic that interests you. The parameters are open – it can be any art historical topic from cave painting to 1950. Next, narrow this broad topic to a manageable topic (that could be the topic of a 7-page undergraduate paper) and develop a research question or set of questions. What do you wish to know about your topic?
Research:
The next step is to begin to conduct research on your topic in light of answering your question. Begin with the library website. Search databases for articles, RACER for interlibrary loan and the library catalogue for books at Brock. You are required to use academic sources for this assignment. Gather a number of different types of sources – as many as you can find. The assignment only asks for seven sources, but you want to find the seven best sources on your topic.
Your seven sources must include:
• at least two peer-reviewed journal articles
• at least one book or article obtained through inter-library loan (include a photocopy of the yellow book cover to prove this)
• at least two academic books, or chapters from academic books
• no more than one web page, which must be a good web page, suitable for academic research (please note that you are not required to use a web page)
Read & Think:
Read your sources. A brief overview is all you will need at first. Then choose your seven best sources. Read these more closely and take good notes. After reading, devise a thesis about your topic. A thesis statement is the short answer to your research question.
More Research:
If you haven’t found seven good sources, keep looking. Get creative. Look at the bibliographies and notes of all your sources. Who are these authors citing? Track down the authors’ sources. Still stuck? Consult a research librarian on the help desk. Do not leave any of this until the last minute, or you will be unable to complete your assignment.
Write your Annotations:
Write a brief summary and assessment of each source, in paragraph form. Each annotation should be 150-200 words long. Your goal here is concise, precise writing. Summarize the main argument of the source and then explain how and why it is useful or not useful for your purposes. Edit and revise these annotations carefully. You have a few words in which to describe and analyze the source. Make sure you choose your words carefully.
Assemble Your Annotated Bibliography:
Do no use a cover page. Type your title, name, course information, date and student number at the top of the page. This will be followed by your narrowed topic, research questions, thesis statement and annotated bibliography.
You must write up each bibliographic entry in perfect Chicago style and arrange them alphabetically, according to author’s last name. It is up to you to find out the proper format for each of your sources. This might include going to the library to look at the reference copy of the Chicago Manual of Style. Bibliographic entries are single-spaced. After the entry, insert another space before your annotation, which will be single-spaced. There should be two spaces between each bibliographic entry. Please see this example for format.
IMPORTANT!
➢ Your use of Chicago Style must be exact
➢ You must summarize and evaluate/assess your sources
➢ Follow instructions carefully
➢ Your topic must be sufficiently narrowed for an imagined paper that will allow you to properly evaluate your sources in light of your topic (i.e. not “Egyptian art” or “Raphael” or “Romanticism”; instead choose “the function of the ka statue in Egyptian funerary practices,” or “Raphael’s use of classical mythology,” or “why Turner persistently focused on Venice as a subject in his paintings.”
➢ You likely will not be able to discover your topic until you have done some reading
➢ Make your topic the title of your annotated bibliography
➢ Single space your annotations; double space between annotation and entry and between entries
➢ Spelling, grammar, punctuation, format, writing style etc. all count
➢ Your entries must be concise and precise
➢ Please come and see me if you are having difficulty
➢ Leave yourself plenty of time to work on this assignment
➢ Have fun! This is your chance to research a subject that interests you
This is how your annotated bibliography will be graded.
