An Introduction to MLA

AN INTRODUCTION TO MLA

PAPER FORMAT

Double spaced

Legible font (Times New Roman, Arial, etc)

12 point font

1 inch margins – preset by some word processors

FORMATTING THE FIRST PAGE OF YOUR 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.

FORMATTING THE FIRST PAGE OF YOUR PAPER

IN-TEXT CITATION

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).

AUTHOR NAMED IN A SIGNAL PHRASE

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.

AUTHOR NAMED IN A SIGNAL PHRASE

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).

WHEN TO USE A QUOTE

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.

WHEN TO USE A QUOTE

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).

LONG OR DROP QUOTES

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.

LONG OR DROP QUOTES

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)

LONG OR DROP QUOTES

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)

NO AUTHOR IN THE SIGNAL PHRASE

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).

UNKNOWN AUTHOR

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.

UNKNOWN AUTHOR

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)

UNKNOWN AUTHOR

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).

UNKNOWN PAGE NUMBER

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.

UNKNOWN PAGE NUMBER

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.”

INDIRECT SOURCE

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).

INDIRECT SOURCE

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).

LISTS OF WORKS CITED

BOOKS WITH ONE AUTHOR

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 Low-Wage Jobs Fail 30 Million Americans and Their Families. New York: New, 2003. Print.

BOOKS WITH MORE THAN ONE AUTHOR

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.

AUTHOR WITH AN EDITOR

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: Anchor-Doubleday, 2000. Print.

BOOK WITH FOUR OR MORE AUTHORS

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.

WORK IN AN ANTHOLOGY

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.

ARTICLE IN A DAILY NEWSPAPER

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.

SHORT WORK FROM A WEBSITE

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.

SHORT WORK FROM A WEBSITE

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.

WORK FROM A DATABASE

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.

WORK FROM A DATABASE

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.

FOR MORE INFORMATION ON MLA

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owl.english.purdue.edu

FOR MORE INFORMATION ON MLA

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