MLA Citation - University of Nebraska Omaha
Download
Report
Transcript MLA Citation - University of Nebraska Omaha
MLA Documentation
Understanding a Discipline’s Philosophy
Creating Credibility with Your Readers
Living a Plagiarism-Free Life
UNO Writing Center
2006-07
Language of Documentation
History of Documentation
Philosophy of MLA
Why do we cite sources?
To allow readers to locate and retrieve
sources used in an essay.
To properly acknowledge another
author’s ideas and work.
To build your own credibility as a
serious, knowledgeable writer.
To avoid plagiarism.
MLA Style: Two Parts
In-Text Citation
(Parenthetical Documentation)
Works Cited Page
Part I: In-Text Citations
What needs to be cited?
Direct Quotes
Paraphrases
Another source’s research, theories or ideas
Another source’s argument or opinions
Facts that are not commonly known
Another source’s visuals, e.g. tables, graphs,
images, statistics
Part I: In-Text Citations
What does NOT need to be cited?
Proverbs or sayings
A stitch in time saves nine.
Well-known quotations
“To be or not to be. That is the question.”
Common knowledge
Shakespeare wrote Hamlet.
Your own field research, observations or
surveys
My survey revealed that 15% of the Shakespeare class believes
Francis Bacon wrote Shakespeare’s plays.
How to Use In-text Citations
Author’s last name and page number(s) of
quote must appear in the text.
Heiresses know “there’s a big difference between being fun
and provocative and being totally over the top and gross”
(Hilton 8).
Paris Hilton argues an heiress knows “there’s a big
difference between being fun and provocative and being
totally over the top and gross” (8).
Using Attributive Tags
(Signal Phrases)
According to Hilton in her
autobiography, “I’m a
fantasy to a lot of people .
. . They want to think I’m
‘Paris Barbie’” (8).
In her autobiography, Confessions of an
Heiress, Paris Hilton reminds us that
“an heiress knows how to tread that fine
line – in stilettos” (8).
How to Cite a Paraphrase
Paraphrase material by putting the source’s idea
into your own words AND sentence structure.
Original: “there’s a big difference between being fun and
provocative and being totally over the top and gross”
(Hilton 8).
Paraphrase: Hilton acknowledges the contrast between
suggestive behavior and coarse, vulgar behavior (8).
In-text Rarities
Same Last Name: Use the first initial of their
first name in the parenthetical:
(C. Hilton 45 ) and (P. Hilton 8)
No Author: Use the first word or words from
the title of the source. Punctuate appropriately:
“Paris: The Barest”
(“Paris” 12)
More In-text Rarities
Same Author, Multiple Works:
The author’s last name must be accompanied by a word
from the title of the source you are referring to:
(Hilton, “Confessions” 8) and (Hilton, “Diary” 25)
Web Sources: When possible use (Author page
#) or (Title page #): (Dionne A21)
If no page numbers are provided, use paragraph numbers
instead. (Author par. #) or (Title par. #): (“Paris” par.
17)
Part 2: Works Cited
The Works Cited page contains a
complete list of sources that you cite in
your essay.
Each Works Cited entry provides the
bibliographic information necessary for a
reader to locate and retrieve that source.
Works Cited
Most entries should contain the following
information:
Author’s name (last name, first name)
Title of work
Publication information
Works Cited: Some Examples
Book:
Author. Title of Book. Place of Publication: Publisher,
Date.
Mair, George. Paris Hilton: The Naked Truth. New
York: Penguin, 2004.
Collins, Ronald K.L., and David M. Skover. The Death of
Discourse. New York: Westview, 1996.
Note: Only the first author’s name is reversed.
Works Cited: More
Examples
Journal Article
Author. “Title of Article: Subtitle.” Periodical Title
Volume (Year): Inclusive Page Number(s).
Howarth, William J. “Some Principles of Autobiography.”
New Literary History 5.2 (1974): 363-81.
Note: Journals that paginate each issue separately will call
for an issue number as well: . . . volume.issue (year):
inclusive page numbers.
Works Cited: Even More
Examples
Web Page (Professional )
Author. “Title of Document.” Info about Electronic
Publication. Access Information.
Dionne, Jr., E.J. “The Paris Hilton Tax Cut.” The
Washington Post 12 Apr. 2005. 29 Oct. 2005
<www.washingtonpost. com>.
Sample Works Cited Page
Works Cited
Kimball, Miles A. The Web Portfolio Guide: Creating Electronic Portfolios for the Web. NY: Longman,
2003.
Springfield, Emily. “Comparing Electronic and Paper Portfolios.” Ed. Barbara L. Cambridge et al.
Electronic Portfolios: Emerging Practices in Student, Faculty, and Institutional Learning.
Washington, D.C.: American Association for Higher Education, 2001. 76-82.
Treuer, Paul, and Jill D. Jenson. “Electronic Portfolios Need Standards to Thrive.” Educause Quarterly 2
(2003): 34-42.
Formatting an MLA Paper
Pitsnoggle 1
Peter Pitsnoggle
Professor Snodgrass
English 1150
15 November 2005
Hilton’s Empire
Hilton walked the runaway not or the money or the attention, but because it was “fun”
and “if [she] didn’t do it, who would? [She] created a new opportunity for [other] young
heiresses” (5).
For more information…
MLA Handbook
UNO Writing Center
www.unomaha.edu/writingcenter/
Modern Language Association
Purdue On-Line Writing Lab
St. Martin’s Handbook
www.mla.org
owl.english.purdue.edu