STLCC-FV (14 Sept. 2012)MLA Style of Documentation (7th/2009)1 MLA Style of Documentation (7 th ed. 2009) Michael Martin St. Louis Community College at.

MLA Style of Documentation (7th/2009) 1STLCC-FV (14 Sept. 2012)

MLA Style of Documentation(7th ed. 2009)

Michael Martin

St. Louis Community Collegeat Florissant Valley

MLA Style of Documentation (7th/2009) 2

ObjectivesIt is important that you understand how to do the following:1. Format the essay in MLA style.2. Understand the relationship of your in-

text citations to your list of works cited.3. Mark boundaries for citations in your text.4. Be aware of some problematic sources.5. List common sources on the works-cited

page.

STLCC-FV (14 Sept. 2012)


Format of a Research Paper:The Text Double-spaced 1-inch margins (top, bottom, left, and right) Header (every page): last name, one space, and page

number (upper right corner, 1/2 inch from top) Heading (first page): name, instructor, course, date (flush

left) Title (centered) Indent paragraphs ½ inch Long quotations (4+ lines): indent whole quotation 1 inch;

do not enclose in quotation marks.

Martin 1

Michael Martin

Prof. James Sodon

College Composition I

26 September 2005

MLA Style of Documentation

The style of documentation developed by the Modern Language Association of America (MLA) is widely used

in scholarly publications of English literature. modern languages, and other humanities. The MLA style uses author-page

number system to cite sources in text.


Format of a Research Paper:Works Cited Start a new page (1-inch margins, double-spaced,

header continues) Works Cited (centered at top) List sources alphabetically, usually by authors’

last names Use hanging paragraphs (1st line flush left; indent

subsequent lines ½ inch)

Martin 12

Works Cited

Bryson, Bill. The Mother Tongue: English and How It Got That Way. New York: Morrow, 1990. Print.

Gibaldi, Joseph. MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers. 6th ed. New York: MLA, 2003. Print.

Strunk, William, Jr., and E. B. White. The Elements of Style. 3rd ed. New York: Macmillan, 1979. Print.


Format of a Research Paper: TemplateA Word template has been formatted for the MLA format:

http://users.stlcc.edu/mmartin


http://users.stlcc.edu/mmartin


Relationship of In-Text Citations and the List of Works CitedMLA style uses an author-page system to cite sources in text (in the body of your essay).

Bill Bryson states that of the 615,000 words in the Oxford English

Dictionary, “about 200,000 English words are in common use” (13).

The in-text citation, in turn, refers to a source in the list of works cited, which includes complete publication information for all sources.

Works Cited

Bryson, Bill. The Mother Tongue: English and How It Got That Way.

New York: Morrow, 1990. Print.


Relationship of In-Text Citations and the List of Works Cited Author in signal phrase with page

number in parenthetical citation.

A signal phrase names the speaker or author followed by a verb. Other phrases can be used, for example:

According to Bill Bryson, . . .

Signal phrases can be followed by credentials to support the source’s authority, for example:

According to Bill Bryson, a best-selling author of books on the English language, . . .

Author with page number in parenthetical citation.

Bill Bryson states that of the 615,000 words

in the Oxford English Dictionary, “about

200,000 English words are in common use”

(13).

Of the 615,000 words in the Oxford English

Dictionary, “about 200,000 English words

are in common use” (Bryson 13).


Blurry BoundariesRobert Harris gives the following example to illustrate how a citation at the end of a paragraph is “confusing” (100):

A product recall might be more accurately known as a product repair because most recalled products never leave the consumer’s home. In many cases, when a defect is discovered by the manufacturer, a repair kit is sent to the consumer. In other cases, the product must be taken in for repair. Rarely will the product be called in and exchanged for another. For example, recalled automobiles are never returned to the factory and replaced; they are simply repaired at a dealer (Doe 456).

What parts of the paragraph were borrowed from Doe?What parts, if any, belong to the writer?



Blurry BoundariesHarris revises the preceding example to indicate boundaries. In this example, it becomes clear that the interpretation in the first sentence and the example in the last are the writer’s (100).

A product recall might be more accurately known as a product repair. As Jane Doe notes, most recalled products never leave the consumer’s home. In many cases, when a defect is discovered by the manufacturer, a repair kit is sent to the consumer. In other cases, the product must be taken in for repair. Rarely will the product be called in and exchanged for another (456). For example, recalled automobiles are never returned to the factory and replaced; they are simply repaired at a dealer. STLCC-FV (14 Sept. 2012)


Marking Boundaries in TextLearn how to mark boundaries; they work in similar ways regardless of style (MLA, APA, Chicago, etc.)

Your reader must know where your source material interrupts your original writing. It is important, consequently, to mark both the beginning and ending of source material.

How you mark boundaries depends on the type and length of the source material: Boundaries for short quotations Boundaries for long quotations (4+ lines) Boundaries for paraphrases Boundaries for problematic sources



Marking Boundaries in TextBoundaries for short quotations

1. Introduce source with signal phrase.2. Enclose quotation within a pair of quotation marks.3. End with page number(s) in parenthetical citation or other close.

In-text example:

William Strunk and E. B. White warn that when a transition “is too

often used, it becomes a mannerism” (17).

Work Cited

Strunk, William, Jr., and E. B. White. The Elements of Style. 3rd ed.

New York: Macmillan, 1979. Print.



Marking Boundaries in TextBoundaries for long quotations (4+ lines)

1. Introduce source with a signal sentence ending with a colon (:).2. Indent the quotation 1 inch from left margin, but do not enclose it in quotation

marks (block quotation).3. End with page number(s) in parenthetical citation.

In-text example:

Regarding the use of the split infinitive, Fowler classifies speakers, and hence writers, into five categories:

(1) Those who neither know nor care what a split infinitive is; (2) those who do not know, but care very much; (3) those who know and condemn; (4) those who know and approve; and (5) those who know and distinguish. (579)

Work Cited

Fowler, H. W. A Dictionary of Modern English Usage. 1926. Revised Ernest Gowers.

2nd ed. Oxford: Oxford UP, 1965. Print.STLCC-FV (14 Sept. 2012)


Marking Boundaries in TextBoundaries for paraphrases

1. Introduce source with signal phrase.2. Paraphrase (restate) the source material in another form and words.3. End with page number(s) in parenthetical citation or other close.

In-text example:

In a student-written essay often used in the Writing Lab as an example, Gene Hert develops his introduction by giving examples of three bad jobs he has had: an assembly line worker, a punch press operator, and a psychiatric ward aide (295).

Work Cited

Hert, Gene. “My Job in an Apple Plant.” English Skills. By John Langan. 7th

ed. Boston: McGraw-Hill, 2001. 295–96. Print.



Marking Boundaries in TextBoundaries for problematic sources Author unknown No page numbers given

1. Introduce source with signal phrase that indicates the type of document.2. End with the first component of what is known, usually a condensed title, in the

parenthetical citation.

In-text example:

According to an article in the Issues and Controversies database, opponents of surveillance cameras argue that people expect a “degree of anonymity” even in public places (“Surveillance”).

Work Cited

“Surveillance Cameras.” Issues and Controversies on File 4 March 2005: n. pag.

Issues & Controversies. Web. 13 July 2011.STLCC-FV (14 Sept. 2012)


Problematic SourcesSource with author, editor, translator, and compilerSome sources include parts written by other authors, such as an editor who wrote an introduction or a translator who wrote a preface.

Cite the author and the part consulted, along with the source.

In-text example:John Ormsby suspects that Cervantes had probably finished the First Part of Don Quixote about five years before its publication (17).

Work Cited

Ormsby, John, trans. Translator’s Preface. Don Quixote. by Miguel de

Cervantes Saavedra. 1605. NetLibrary. Web. 12 July 2010.



Problematic SourcesSecondary, or indirect, quotation Authors often quote other authors or speakers. If you must cite a quotation from a secondary source, cite it as follows:

1. Give credit to the original author or speaker in a signal phrase.2. Paraphrase or quote the original author or speaker (enclose a quote by the

original author in quotation marks).3. In a parenthetical citation, cite the secondary source with the abbreviation qtd.

in and secondary source’s author.

In-text example:In May, Bernie Miklasz reported, "His slugging percentage since last July 18 is .551, which is pretty good, but it just isn't Pujols” (qtd. in McClellan).

Work Cited

McClellan, Bill. “Cubs Fan Bill McClellan Tells Cards: Trade Pujols.” STLtoday.com. St.

Louis Post-Dispatch, 9 July 2010. Web. 9 July 2010.STLCC-FV (14 Sept. 2012)


Examples of Works CitedLearn the basics of the list of works cited (alphabetized, hanging paragraphs); look up how to format a source as needed.

Common Sources: The information included in the list of works cited depends on the type of source and medium of publication.

Print Sources Book Short Work in an Anthology Article in a Scholarly Journal Article in a General Periodical

Web Sources Article in an Online Subscription Database Article in an Online Periodical Web Page

Other Sources Motion Picture


Examples of Works Cited:Book1. Author(s) (first author’s name reversed for alphabetizing)2. Title of the book (italicized)3. Editor, translator, or compiler (if any)4. Edition (if other than first)5. Place of publication: publisher, and date6. Medium of publication: Print7. Name of the series and number (if any)

Example: Book

Strunk, William, Jr., and E. B. White. The Elements of Style.

3rd ed. New York: Macmillan, 1979. Print.


Examples of Works Cited:Short Work in an Anthology 1. Author(s) (first author’s name reversed for alphabetizing)

2. Title of the work in an anthology (enclosed in quotation marks)

3. Title of the book (italicized)

4. Editor, translator, or compiler

5. Edition (if other than first)

6. Place of publication: publisher, and date

7. Inclusive page numbers of work

8. Medium of publication: Print

9. Name of the series and number (if any)

Example: Short Work in an Anthology

Baldwin, James. “Stranger in the Village.” The Norton Reader. Ed. Linda H.

Peterson and John C. Brereton. 11th ed. New York: Norton, 2004. 360-68.

Print.


Examples of Works Cited:Article in a Scholarly Journal

1. Author(s) (first author’s name reversed for alphabetizing)

2. Title of the article (enclosed in quotations marks)

3. Title of the periodical (italicized; omit an introductory A, An, The)

4. Volume and issue numbers (separated by a period)

5. Year of publication (enclosed in parentheses)

6. Inclusive page numbers of article

7. Medium of publication: Print

Example: Article in a Scholarly Journal

Haney, Brenda, and Ed Hara. “’Finding’ Teaching: A Lesson in

Collaboration.” Thought and Action 20.1 (2004): 63-72. Print.


Examples of Works Cited:Article in a General Periodical1. Author(s) (first author’s name reversed for alphabetizing)2. Title of the article (enclosed in quotations marks)3. Title of the periodical (italicized; omit an introductory A,

An, The)4. Date of publication5. Inclusive page numbers of article6. Medium of publication: Print

Example: Article in a Magazine

Fineman, Howard. “Money, Money, Everywhere.” Newsweek

26 Sept. 2006: 24-31. Print.


Examples of Works Cited: Articles in an Online Subscription Database1. Author(s) (first author’s name reversed for alphabetizing)2. Title of the article (enclosed in quotations marks)3. Title of the periodical (italicized; omit introductory article A, An, The)4. Volume and issue numbers (if a journal)5. Date of publication (year in parentheses if a journal)6. Inclusive pages numbers of article (or n. pag. if no pagination given)7. Title of the database (italicized)8. Medium of publication: Web9. Date of access

Example: Article in a Scholarly Journal Retrieved from a Subscription Database

Coris, Eric E., and William H. Higgins II. “First Rib Stress Fractures in Throwing

Athletes.” American Journal of Sports Medicine 33.9 (2005): 1400-04.

Academic Search Elite. Web. 26 Sept. 2005.


Examples of Works Cited:Article in an Online Periodical1. Author(s) (first author’s name reversed for alphabetizing)

2. Title of the article (enclosed in quotations marks)

3. Title of the periodical (italicized; omit introductory article A, An, The)

4. Publisher or sponsor (or N.p. if no publisher given)

5. Date of publication (or n.d. if no date given)

6. Medium of publication: Web

7. Date of access

Example: Online Newspaper Article

Glaberson, William. “Obama to Keep Tribunals; Stance Angers Some

Backers.” New York Times. New York Times, 15 May 2009. Web. 18

May 2009.



Examples of Works Cited:Web Page (nonperiodical)1. Author(s) (first author’s name reversed for alphabetizing)

2. Title of the work (enclosed in quotations marks)

3. Name of the Web site (italicized)

4. Publisher or sponsor (or N.p. if no publisher given)

5. Date of publication (or n.d. if no date given)

6. Medium of publication: Web

7. Date of access

Example: Web Page with Unknown Author (begin with title)

“What Is New in the Seventh Edition of the MLA Handbook?” MLA.

Modern Language Association of America, 13 Jan. 2009. Web. 24

June 2010.STLCC-FV (14 Sept. 2012)


Examples of Works Cited:Motion Picture Title of motion picture (italicized) Director Original release date (if relevant) Distributor Year of release Medium consulted (e.g.: Film, DVD, Videocassette)

Example: Motion Picture Rereleased on DVD

Crash. Dir. Paul Haggis. 2005. Lions Gate, 2006. DVD.



Questions?Works Cited

Harris, Robert A. Using Sources Effectively: Strengthening

Your Writing and Avoiding Plagiarism. 3rd ed. Glendale:

Pyrczak, 2011. Print.

MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers. 7th ed. New

York: MLA, 2009. Print.

STLCC-FV (14 Sept. 2012)MLA Style of Documentation (7th/2009)1 MLA Style of Documentation (7 th ed. 2009) Michael Martin St. Louis Community College at.

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