Bibliography

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For "Works Cited" lists, see Citation.
Bibliographies at the University Library of Graz

Bibliography (from Greek: βιβλιογραφία, bibliographia, literally book writing), as a practice, is the academic study of books as physical, cultural objects; in this sense, it is also known as bibliology. On the whole, bibliography is not concerned with the literary content of books, but rather the physical description, the history of its publications and editions.

A bibliography, the product of the practice of bibliography, is a systematic list of books and other works such as journal articles. Bibliographies range from "works cited" lists at the end of books and articles to complete, independent publications. As separate works, they may be in bound volumes such as those shown on the right, or computerised bibliographic databases. A library catalog, while not referred to as a bibliography, is bibliographic in nature.

Bibliographic works differ in the amount of detail depending on the purpose, and can be generally divided into two categories: enumerative bibliography (also called compilative, reference or systematic), which results in an overview of publications in a particular category, and analytical, or critical, bibliography, which studies the production of books.[1][2] Bibliographical works are almost always considered to be tertiary sources.

Enumerative bibliography

A bibliography is a list, either indicative or comprehensive, of writings sharing a common factor: this may be a topic, a language, a period, or some other theme. One particular instance of this is the list of sources used or considered in preparing a work, sometimes called a reference list.

Citation formats vary, but an entry for a book in a bibliography usually contains the following information:

  • author(s)
  • title
  • publisher
  • date of publication

An entry for a journal or periodical article usually contains:

  • author(s)
  • article title
  • journal title
  • volume
  • pages
  • date of publication

A bibliography may be arranged by author, topic, or some other scheme. Annotated bibliographies give descriptions about how each source is useful to an author in constructing a paper or argument. These descriptions, usually a few sentences long, provide a summary of the source and describe its relevance.

Bibliographies differ from library catalogs by including only relevant items rather than all items present in a particular library. However, the catalogs of some national libraries effectively serve as national bibliographies, as the national libraries own almost all their countries' publications.

Analytical bibliography

The critical study of bibliography can be subdivided into descriptive (or physical), historical, and textual bibliography. Descriptive bibliography is the close examination of a book as a physical object, recording its size, format, binding, and so on, while historical bibliography takes a broader view of the context in which a book is produced, in particular, printing, publishing and bookselling. Textual bibliography is another name for textual criticism.

An annotated bibliography is a bibliography that gives a summary of the research that has been done. It is still an alphabetical list of research sources. In addition to bibliographic data, an annotated bibliography provides a brief summary or annotation.

Annotated bibliography

Annotations

The purpose of annotations is to provide the reader with a summary and an evaluation of the source. An annotation should display the source's central idea(s) and give the reader a general idea of what the source is about. [3]

An annotation should include the complete bibliographic information for the source. It should also include some or all of the following:

  • An explanation about the authority and/or qualifications of the author.
  • Scope or main purpose of the work.
  • Any detectable bias.
  • Intended audience and level of reading
  • A summary comment

An annotation is generally between 100 to 200 words, but can be a few sentences.[4]

Indicative annotations This type of annotation defines the scope of the source, lists the significant topics and explains what the source is about. In this type of entry, there is no attempt to give actual data such as hypotheses, proofs, etc. [5]

Informative annotations This type of annotation is a summary of the source. An informative annotation should include the thesis of the work, arguments or hypotheses, proofs and a conclusion.[5]

Evaluative annotations This type of annotation assesses the source's strengths and weaknesses—how the source is useful and how it is not. Simply put, an evaluative annotation should evaluate the source's usefulness.[5]

Combination annotations Most annotated bibliographies contain combination annotations. This type of annotation will summarize or describe the topic, and then evaluate the source's usefulness.[5]

Writing styles

No matter which writing style is used for annotations, all entries should be brief. Only the most significant details should be mentioned. Information that is apparent in the title can be omitted from the annotation. In addition, background materials and any references to previous work are usually excluded.[6]

Telegraphic

A telegraphic writing style gets the information out quickly and concisely. Maintaining clarity, complete and grammatically correct sentences are not necessary.[6]

Complete sentences

A complete sentences writing style utilizes coherent sentences that are grammatically correct. Subjects and conjunctions are not eliminated even though the tone may be terse. Long and complex sentences are to generally be avoided.[6]

Paragraph

A paragraph writing style utilizes a full, coherent paragraph. This can sometimes be similar to the form of a bibliographic essay. Complete sentences and proper grammar must be used.[6]

Purpose

There are three main purposes behind writing an annotated bibliography. Each purpose can serve anyone in a different manner, depending on what they are trying to accomplish.

Learning about a topic

Writing an annotated bibliography is an excellent way to begin any research project. While it may seem easier to simply copy down bibliographical information, adding annotations will force the researcher to read each source carefully. An annotation requires the source to be critically analyzed, not simply read over.[7]

Formulating a thesis

Any form of research paper or essay will require some form of argument. This is called a thesis. Writing an annotated bibliography will give the researcher a clear understanding about what is being said about their topic. After reading and critically analyzing sources, the researcher will be able to determine what issues there are and what people are arguing about. From there, the researcher will be able to develop their own point of view.[7]

To assist other researchers

Extensive and scholarly annotated bibliographies are sometimes published. The purpose of these annotated bibliographies is to provide a complete and comprehensive overview of any given topic. While any normal researcher may not get their own annotated bibliography published, it could be a good idea to search for previously published annotated bibliographies that are related to their topic.[7]

Examples

Examples of an Annotated Bibliography

An annotated bibliography is an extraordinarily useful source when doing resource on any subject. It quickly allows one to go through a list of sources to determine which would be the most useful to use whether writing a research paper, doing a project, etc. Using an annotated bibliography enables one to identify the basis of a work, as well as the currency and authority of the of the work. This ensures instant validity on choosing a resource. Instead of having to read entire works and discover that they were not the desired material, one can instead refer to an annotated bibliography to quickly and resourcefully locate information on the desired topic in the most efficient way. The following examples are takes from HLAS Online (Handbook of Latin American Studies Online) at the Library of Congress.[8]

Citation: Rout, Leslie B., Jr. Politics of the Chaco Peace Conference: 1935-1939. Austin, Tex., Univ. of Texas, Institute of Latin American Studies, 1970. 268 p., bibl.

Annotation: Very detailed explanation of the diplomatic interchange at the peace conference based on exhaustive research in US and Latin American diplomatic records. The diplomatic moves taken in an attempt to prevent the war and to bring about its end are also treated in depth. Includes index.[9]

Citation: Spence, Jack {et al.} Promise and reality: implementation of the Guatemalan peace accords. Cambridge, Mass.: Hemisphere Initiatives; Washington: Washington Office on Latin America, 1998. 68 p.:. appendix, tables..

Annotation: Almost two years after the Guatemalan peace accords, this excellent and well-documented report assesses implementation and shortcomings. Highlights issues of human rights and military impunity, indigenous rights, socioeconomic and agrarian reform. A valuable resource for scholars and policy analysts. [10]

Citation: Boyce, James K. External assistance and the peace process in El Salvador. ( World Development, World Dev., 23:12, Dec. 1995, p. 2101-2116 0305-750X )

Annotation: Quantifies and disaggregates external-donor and government commitments to Peace Accords programs through early 1994. Argues that some external donors - especially international financial institutions - failed to exercise peace conditionality. Maintains that the government could have done more to reallocate expenditures and raise additional revenues, but understates achievements in these areas. [11]

Related terms in other media

A number of related terms have developed for listings of other media and artistic expression:

  • Films - filmography
  • Recorded music - discography
  • Websites - webliography (the first use recorded in the Oxford English Dictionary is June 1995)
  • Theatre credits - theatreography (a term with a growing popularity)

See also

Notes

  1. Belanger, Terry. "Descriptive Bibliography" Bibliographical Society of America, 2003. Excerpted from Jean Peters, ed., Book Collecting: A Modern Guide (New York and London: R. R. Bowker, 1977), 97-101. Retrieved May 19, 2008.
  2. Harris, Neil. Analytical bibliography: an alternative prospectus. Chapter 1. Definitions of bibliography, and in particular of the variety called analytical. Institut d'histoire du livre, 2004. Retrieved May 19, 2008.
  3. Carlson, Laurie. "Annotated Bibliographies." KU Writing Center. University of Kansas. Last accessed on 15 November 2006 <http://www.writing.ku.edu/students/docs/bibs.html>.
  4. How to Write Annotated Bibliographies. Retrieved 2008-03-02.
  5. 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 uw-madison writing center writer's handbook. Retrieved 2008-03-02.
  6. 6.0 6.1 6.2 6.3 "Annotated Bibliography." The Writing Center. 2003. University of Wisconsin, Madison. Last accessed on 15 November 2006 <http://www.wisc.edu/writing/Handbook/AnnBib_style.html>.
  7. 7.0 7.1 7.2 "Annotated Bibliographies." Geoff Stacks and Erin Karper. 2001. Purdue University. Last accessed on 16 November 2006 <http://owl.english.purdue.edu/handouts/general/gl_annotatedbib.html>.
  8. HLAS Online, Library of Congress. Retrieved May 19, 2008.
  9. HLAS Volume: 36 HLAS Item#: re742960, HLAS Online, Library of Congress. Retrieved May 19, 2008.
  10. HLAS Volume: 59 HLAS Item#: bi 98013997, HLAS Online, Library of Congress. Retrieved May 19, 2008.
  11. HLAS Volume: 57, HLAS Item#: bi 98008301, HLAS Online, Library of Congress. Retrieved May 19, 2008.

References
ISBN links support NWE through referral fees

External links

All links retrieved May 19, 2008.

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