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MKTG 311V : Consumer Behavior

READ This first--Excellent report on the bibliographic essay

Dr. Beth M. Sheppard, a librarian at United Library at the Seabury-Western Theological Seminary has written an excellent essay on the bibliographic essay. She describes very clearly the differences and similarities among book reviews, annotated bibliographies, and articles. Her article is only 3 pages long and easy to read and understand. If you want a good grade for this assignment, it's imperative that you read this article and fully understand what you will be writing. After you have read the article, I would suggest you review some of the BEs I have linked for you under Examples. Below is the link to Dr. Sheppard's article:

http://journal.atla.com/ojs/index.php/theolib/article/viewFile/29/44

To synthesize Dr. Sheppard's article, the required elements of a bibliographic essay are:

  • the essay should be well ordered and follow a planned scheme
  • the resources discussed should flow easily from one to the next;large gaps in the discussion disrupts the reader
  • keep in mind that you are selecting the BEST resources to include; assume you are creating a list of the best materials available on a topic in order to recommend to a colleague; do not limit your list to print sources-- other formats are perfectly acceptable
  • how do these resources compare and fit
  • introduce your essay telling the reader what the context is for the particular study
  • a closing statement is also appropriate
  • use appropriate grammar and writing style; there are several very good writing manuals

In addition to Dr. Sheppard's recommendations, I would add these:

  • use the assigned style sheet (APA, MLA, Chicago) or select the most appropriate if given a choice by your professor
  • check in at the reference desk for writing and style manuals if you don't already own one

Brief Definitions of a Bibliographic Essay

A bibliographic essay identifies and evaluates the core literature of a field of study. Like an annotated bibliography, it describes and analyses the sources, which can include books, book chapters, periodical articles, Web sites etc. In addition, it compares, contrasts, and evaluates the sources in relation to one another other. (Dr. Judith Freidenberg, http://www.lib.umd.edu/MCK/anth468Yspring2008.html)

A bibliographic essay is a critical essay in which the writer identifies and evaluates the core works of research within a discipline or sub-discipline. (http://www.ohiodominican.edu/library/quickref04/writing/biblio.pdf)