1.3 Using Footnotes and Bibliographies

This guide uses a note-bibliography system. In this system, sources are cited in footnotes at the bottom of the page and listed in a bibliography at the end of the paper. Footnotes identify the specific source of a quotation, paraphrase, idea, or piece of information. The bibliography gives a complete list of the sources used in the paper.

Footnotes and bibliography entries work together, but they do not have exactly the same form. A footnote usually gives the author’s name in normal order, followed by the title, publication information, and the page or other location cited. A bibliography entry usually gives the author’s name in inverted order, followed by the title and full publication information.

The first time a source is cited in a footnote, the note should include full publication information. Later citations of the same source should use a shortened note. A shortened note usually includes the author’s last name, a shortened form of the title, and the page or location cited. This allows the reader to identify the source without repeating the full citation every time.

The bibliography should include every source that substantially contributed to the paper. This normally includes sources quoted directly, sources paraphrased, and sources used for important background information. A source that was only glanced at or not actually used in the paper should not be included merely to lengthen the bibliography.

For Thelemic and other hierological texts, citation as a primary source is preferred through an abbreviated title, chapter, and verse or other internal reference as may be necessary. For modern books, articles, essays, and reference works, page numbers should be given whenever the citation refers to a specific passage or claim.

Students should not try to memorize every citation form at once. The purpose of this guide is to provide models that can be followed and adapted. When preparing a paper, identify the kind of source being cited, find the closest example in this guide, and follow that pattern consistently.