Annotated bibliography, ENGW 1302.05, SP12 page 1

Paper Two: Annotated Bibliography and ExploratoryEssay

Due Dates: Wednesday, February 15Project proposal due

Wednesday, February 29Three copies of rough draft due

Friday, March 2Peer evaluations due back

Friday, March 9Final draft due

Format

  • Use the most current MLA Style; see the Little Seagull Handbook or look online
  • Your 2-3 page exploratory essay should appear first, followed by the annotated bibliography.
  • The annotated bibliography does not need a new heading. Simply center the title “Annotated Bibliography” on the first page of your bibliography and continue the page numbering from the exploratory essay.
  • Each annotation will be about 300+ words, 90% of which must be in your own words; keep direct quotations to a minimum. I encourage you to draw heavily on ch. 2 of AA “Reading an Argument” to help you read your sources accurately, fairly, and critically.
  • List your sources chronologically (so that you can see the development of the debate about your topic over time), and provide a correct MLA bibliography entry for each before the annotation begins. [Note: MLA bibliographies are usually alphabetized and should be in essay #3.]

Number and types of sources required for annotated bibliography

  • Five sources, including at least
  • One scholarly article
  • One book or book chapter
  • One newspaper or magazine article from a reliable news source
  • The sources must be reliable (we will discuss at length in class what constitutes a reliable source)
  • You may NOT use the following sources for your paper, although you may want to consult them in the early stages of research to get leads to more reliable sources
  • Web sites (unless you have discussed an exception with me)
  • Encyclopedias

IMPORTANT NOTE: You will use eight sources for essay #3, but only five need to be annotated for me. You will need to be sureto know all eight of your sources well, however, so you can use them effectively in your argument essay.

Detailed Instructions for 2-3 p Exploratory Essay (see AA p171, 203-204)

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to explain how your research refined, modified, or changed your initial opinions and to explain why. You will need to be specific about what you have ready and focus on evaluating the reasoning in the sources, not making your own case

  1. Begin by introducing your topic and the research question you have been exploring.
  2. Describe your opinions on the question before you did your research and explain your reasoning. Include some explanation of what, in your own experiences or observations, contributed to your opinions before you began researching your topic.
  3. Next, describe your research process. What did you do to find sources on your subject? How easy or difficult was this part of the process? What successes did you have and what problems did you encounter as you searched for sources on your topic?
  4. Next explain what your sources had to say about your research question. Where did your sources agree and disagree? What were the issues they all seemed address (the key points of contact in all the sources)? Which sources made the soundest points and which ones made weaker points?
  5. Finally, return to your initial opinions. Which of your initial opinions were confirmed and which of your opinions changed or were at least reconsidered? How did your sources increase your knowledge?

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Detailed Instructions for Annotated Bibliography

Purpose: The purpose of the annotated bibliography is to give you time to engage deeply with your sources. You’re not just looking for quotations to include in your paper. You are figuring out what kind of conversation has been going on about your topic and deciding out whose perspectives are most trustworthy and what you should believe about the social institutionyou’ve chosen to study. Through this assignment you will practice crucial critical reading skills that will serve you well in college and for the rest of your life.

Please answer the following questions in each annotation. DO NOT, however, simply list answers to these questions. Your annotations should contain unified paragraphs.

Establishing Rhetorical Context (Please answer all these questions to the best of your ability.)

  1. What type of source is this? Is it a book, article, or news source? Who published it (only include commentary about the publisher if it is significant), and is it scholarly, popular or a trade publication (written for professionals in a particular field outside of academia)?
  2. Who is the author? What is his or her background (occupation, personal history, political leanings)? Is he or she an authoritative and generally unbiased source on this topic(why or why not)? Remember that there is a difference between bias and a reasoned opinion. Bias is usually a knee-jerk response based on one’s background. A reasoned opinion is arrived at through mature reasoning. A source does not have to be neutral about a topic to be reliable.
  3. Who is the intended audience for this piece of writing (try to be more specific than “the general public”)? (Include evidence citing specific page numbers to support your answer.)
  4. What is the purpose of the piece: to explore, to inform, to convince, to persuade? Did anything specific prompt its creation?
  5. What do you know about the time the piece was written? Is the piece responding to anything particular in the author’s time?

Reading for Understanding (Answer the following two questions in detail. You will not be able to discuss the key issues in your essay if you haven’t clearly understood them. You will lose half credit on any annotation in which you have not stated the main claims, reasons and evidence.)

  1. If the source is an argument, what are its main claims, reasons, and evidence?
  2. If the source is not an argument, what new information does it provide that justifies its inclusion in your bibliography?

Reading Critically (Comment on three or four of these questions that are most relevant to your source.)

  1. If the source is informational, how reliable were the author’s methods for collecting information? (Please explain your answer.)
  2. If the source is an argument, does the author provide evidence to support his/her claims? Is the evidence sufficient in terms of quantity and quality?
  3. What rhetorical techniques (logical or emotional appeals, convincing readers that he or she is authoritative and of good character, the arrangement of arguments) does the source use? Does the author use them ethically and fairly or does he or she try to manipulate readers unfairly?
  4. Answer any of the following questions that apply:
  • Does the author define key terms? If so, list them and his or her definitions. If key terms remain undefined, this is a weakness in the author’s argument and you should discuss this.
  • What does the author assume, and do you agree with his or her assumptions?
  • Does anything in the text contradict anything else in the text?
  • Does the author present opposing views fairly?
  • Does the author overlook or leave anything out?
  • What is the tone of the essay? How does it help the author establish credibility or fail to do so?
  • Where do the author’s biases and values show through? Does this weaken his or her credibility?

Synthesizing this source with other sources you’ve read

  1. Does this text contradict any of the other works you’ve read? If so, which do you find more persuasive and why?
  2. Does the text agree with or add new dimensions to any of the other works you’ve read? If so, explain how.
  3. How will this source help you answer your research question?