Transcript An_Introduction_to_MLA_09_2012

A N I NTRODUCTION
TO
MLA
PAPER F ORMAT

Double spaced

Legible font (Times New Roman, Arial, etc)

12 point font

1 inch margins – preset by some word processors
F ORMATTING THE F IRST
PAGE OF Y OUR PAPER

Do not include a title page unless specifically
requested by your instructor.

In the upper left hand corner, list your name,
your instructor’s name, the course, and the date.

Double space and center your title. Do not underline
or italicize your title.

Do not write your title in all capital letters.

Include a header in the upper right hand corner with
your last name and page number.
F ORMATTING THE F IRST
PAGE OF Y OUR PAPER
I N -T EXT C ITATION

Signal phrases introduce information taken from
a source.

Author’s last name is usually included.

The page number comes after the cited material.

Example:
As Hamilton notes, “The biggest single invention
to impact on the pace of the modern office is
e-mail” (44).
A UTHOR N AMED IN A
S IGNAL P HRASE

Ordinarily, use the author’s name to introduce
cited material.


This helps prepare readers for your source and
keeps your parenthetical citation brief.
Use the author’s full name and the name of the
cited work the first time the work is referenced.
A UTHOR N AMED IN A
S IGNAL P HRASE

Example:
In his article “Avoid the Overload,” columnist
John Hamilton says, “Once you read an e-mail,
reply to it straight away. There is a danger that
once an e-mail appears as ‘read’ it might get
forgotten about altogether” (45).
W HEN TO U SE
A
Q UOTE

To support your argument by using the words of
someone of authority on your topic.

To show your reader expressive or vivid
language.

To show the position of others in their own
words.
W HEN TO U SE
A
Q UOTE

Words or a phrase can be borrowed from
someone else without having the entire sentence
quoted.

Example:
Hamilton notes that many employees who are
expected to maintain constant communication
believe that “email is their biggest source of
stress” (44).
L ONG
OR
D ROP Q UOTES

When a quote is more than four lines (or three
lines for poetry), drop the quote down to a new
line and indent it one inch (or ten spaces) from
the left margin.

Introduce long quotes with an informative
sentence.

Use a colon instead of a comma.

Don’t use quotation marks.
L ONG

OR
D ROP Q UOTES
Example:
In his article “Avoid the Overload,” columnist John
Hamilton provides helpful suggestions for those
overcome by mass email in the workplace:
When you are faced with a large number of messages,
it’s helpful to filter them into different batches. You can
either tag the e-mail subject line, or, better still, create
a separate folder for them called something like
‘pending action.’ Use ‘reply asap’ for the most urgent,
‘to do’ for those that need less urgent attention, and
‘later’ for those that can wait. (45)
L ONG

OR
D ROP Q UOTES
Example:
Hamilton suggests the best ways to productively
manage office time in relation to email:
Start by turning off the ‘you’ve got mail’ message box
that appears every time an email lands in your inbox. It
distracts you from the report you’re writing, or other
important task you’re doing. Schedule some time into
your diary for tackling your emails, in the same way
you would for other word activities. (44)
N O A UTHOR IN THE S IGNAL
P HRASE

When paraphrasing or summarizing, if the author
is not mentioned in a signal phrase, put the
author’s last name in parenthesis before the
page number.

Do not put anything between the author’s last
name and the page number.

Example:
Using paragraphs effectively in an email makes it
easier to read and helps emphasize key points
(Hamilton 45).
U NKNOWN A UTHOR

When the author is unknown, use the complete
title in a signal phrase or a short form of the title
in parenthesis.

Titles of articles are put in quote marks.

Titles of books are italicized.
U NKNOWN A UTHOR

Example:
According to a recent article, “Studying Still the Key to
Academic Success,” published in USA Today:
Improving one’s grade point average takes more
than a few extra hours of study each week. In
fact, a study of 79 college students found that a
one-letter grade increase in quarterly GPA was
associated with a 40-hour increase in weekly
study. (14)
U NKNOWN A UTHOR

Example:
In a recent study of 79 students, 40 hours of
weekly increased study time showed a
correlation to a one-letter grade increase in
quarterly GPA (“Studying” 14).
U NKNOWN PAGE N UMBER

Omit the page number if the source does not
have page numbers, as is the case with some
documents taken from the Internet.

Do not use page numbers printed on a web
document by a printer. Page breaks vary from
printer to printer.
U NKNOWN PAGE N UMBER

Example:
In her article “Where Are Your High-Tech
Manners,” Amy Cox says, “A poll last year . . .
found that 81 percent of the people . . . surveyed
were irritated at least occasionally by loud and
annoying cell phones in public places.”
I NDIRECT S OURCE

When using words from a text that originally
appear in another work by someone else, begin
the parenthetical citation with “qtd. in.”
Example:
University of Wisconsin-Madison
communications professor Lew Friedland says of
the changing norms of texting etiquette, “Texting
while talking is not experienced by most people
as a sign of disrespect or rudeness. It’s just
literally normal” (qtd. in Cox).
I NDIRECT S OURCE

Example:
Ravitch argues that high schools are pressured to
act as “social service centers, and they don’t do
that well” (qtd. in Weisman 259).
L ISTS
OF
W ORKS C ITED
B OOKS
WITH
O NE A UTHOR

Author’s last name, author’s first name. Title and
subtitle in italics. City of publication:
Publisher, Date of publication. Medium.

Example:
Shulman, Beth. The Betrayal of Work: How LowWage Jobs Fail 30 Million Americans and
Their Families. New York: New, 2003. Print.
B OOKS WITH M ORE T HAN
O NE A UTHOR

Author’s last name, author’s first name, and
additional author’s first and last name. Title
and subtitle in italics. City of publication:
Publisher, Date of publication. Medium.

Example:
Strumpf, Michael, and Auriel Douglas. The
Grammar Bible: Everything You Always
Wanted to Know About Grammar but Didn’t
Know Whom to Ask. New York: Holt, 2004.
Print.
A UTHOR

WITH AN
E DITOR
Author’s last name, author’s first name. Title and
subtitle in italics. Ed. Editor’s first and last
name. City of publication: Publisher, Date of
publication. Medium.
Example:
Plath, Sylvia. The Unabridged Journals of Sylvia
Plath. Ed. Karen V. Kukil. New York: AnchorDoubleday, 2000. Print.
B OOK WITH F OUR OR M ORE
A UTHORS

If there are four or more authors, name all of the
authors or include only the first author’s name
followed by “et al.” (Latin for “and others”).

Example:
Wysocki, Anne Frances, et al. Writing New Media:
Theory and Applications for Expanding the
Teaching of Composition. Logan, UT: Utah State
UP, 2004. Print.
W ORK
IN AN
A NTHOLOGY

Last name, first name of the author of the
selection. “Title of the selection.” Title of the
anthology in italics. Ed. Editor’s first and last
name. City of publication: Publisher, Date of
publication. Page numbers. Medium.

Example:
Rodriguez, Richard. “The Achievement of Desire.”
Rereading America. Eds. Gary Colombo,
Robert Cullen, and Bonnie Lisle. Boston:
Bedford/St. Martin, 2004. 214-27. Print.
A RTICLE IN A D AILY
N EWSPAPER

Last name, first name of the author of the article.
“Title of the article.” Title of the newspaper
in italics Day Month Year: Section and page
number. Medium.
Example:
Brummit, Chris. “Indonesia’s Food Needs
Expected to Soar.” Boston Globe 1 Feb. 2005:
A7. Print.
S HORT W ORK FROM A
W EBSITE

Author’s last name, first name. “Title of the short
work.” Title of the website in italics. Sponsor
of the website, Update date (n.d. if there is
no date). Medium. Date of access.

Example:
Jenkins, Henry. “Bearings.” MIT Communications
Forum. MIT, 19 Feb. 2002. Web. 16 June
2005.
S HORT W ORK FROM A
W EBSITE

Example:
Cox, Amy. “Where are Your High-Tech Manners?”
CNN.com. Cable News Network, 3 July 2007.
Web. 28 Feb. 2010.
“This Day in History: March 18.” History.com.
History Channel, 2008. Web. 5 Sept. 2008.
W ORK

FROM A
D ATABASE
Author’s last name, first name. “Title of the
article.” Name of the periodical in italics
volume number.issue number (Date of
publication): Inclusive pages. Name of
database in italics. Medium. Date of access.
Example:
Jenson, Jill D. “It’s the Information Age, so
Where’s the Information?” College Teaching
53.3 (2004): 107-12. Academic Search
Premier. Web. 2 Feb. 2005.
W ORK

FROM A
D ATABASE
Example:
Gerdes, Eugenia. “Managing Time in a Liberal
Education.” Liberal Education 87.2 (2001):
52. ProQuest. Web. 12 Feb. 2010.
Niak, Gautam. “Chile Earthquake: Why Bigger
Quake Sowed Less Damage.” The Wall Street
Journal 1 Mar. 2010: A14. ProQuest. Web. 1
Mar. 2010.
F OR M ORE I NFORMATION
ON MLA

www.dianahacker.com/resdoc

owl.english.purdue.edu
F OR M ORE I NFORMATION
ON MLA
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