Return to English 111 Homepage
MLA Documentation Style: A Quick Reference Guide
MLA (Modern Language Association) documentation style is the citation format used in the humanities and modern languages, including English. For writing assignments where you are required to use sources, you will need to follow a few simple rules to document your sources. There are two main elements that a properly documented MLA paper will include: 1) direct quotations or paraphrases within the body of the paper complete with end-of-sentence references; and 2) a Works Cited page. Listed below are the basics you will need to know about MLA citation style.
Make certain that all direct quotes or paraphrases you use contain these three things: 1) proper quote attribution (simple, partial, or formal), 2) a parenthetical citation with author’s name and page number, and 3) commentary in your own words about the quote to form a transition between it and the rest of your text.
Quote Attribution
Quote attribution is the way you transition from your own writing into a direct quote. There are three types of attribution:
· simple attribution: this is a simple way to introduce the quote with a short phrase and a comma. Example: Lasn writes, “each little fix means not just getting what you want, but power” (53).
· partial attribution: using only specific words and phrases from the text and integrating it with your own writing. Example: Kalle Lasn makes clear that consumerism is as much about “power” as it is “getting what you want” (53).
· formal attribution: using a complete sentence and a colon to introduce a direct quote. Example: Kalle Lasn writes extensively about the power that advertisers have on our everyday lives and the ways they encourage us to purchase their products: “each little fix means not just getting what you want, but power” (53).
Parenthetical Citation
You include parenthetical citation to demonstrate to the reader where you found the information you are using. Parenthetical citation guides the reader to an entry on your Works Cited page and should usually be placed at the end of the sentence so as to be unobtrusive. Generally, you will use the author’s last name and a page number (no comma needed) cite the quotation or paraphrase. Example: (Fitzgerald 27). Notice that the punctuation for the sentence comes after the parentheses.
· If the author’s name is placed in the immediate text around the citation, you do not have to restate the author’s name. Example: Lasn writes, “each little fix means not just getting what you want, but power” (53).
· If you don’t include the author’s name somewhere near the quote, make sure you use his or her last name in the citation. Example: Many critics of advertising and consumer culture argue that buying “is not just getting what you want, but power” (Lasn 53).
· If the source includes no author’s name, use a shortened version of the title or a main word to demonstrate the source. Example: (“Cult” 53).
Commentary
Always follow up a direct quotation or paraphrase with commentary of your own. This will help your reader see the significance of the quote and will help you transition from quote to your own writing in your paper. Example: Lasn writes, “each little fix means not just getting what you want, but power” (53). Here, Lasn discusses how both materialism and a need for power are equally important in our consumer tendencies.
Works Cited
Your Works Cited will include all your reference information for your sources. Please follow a few simple guidelines when constructing your Works Cited page:
· double space all entries just as you double spaced your paper;
· number your Works Cited as the last page of your document;
· place all sources in alphabetical order; and
· make sure you include all sources you cited or referenced in your paper.
Book by One Author
Seagrave, Sterling. The Marcos Dynasty. New York: Harper, 1988.
Work in an Anthology
Lasn, Kalle. “The Cult You’re In.” Common Culture: Reading and Writing about
American Popular Culture. 4th ed. Ed. Michael Petracca and Madeleine Sorapure.
Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall, 2003. 51-55.
Book by Two or More Authors
Andrew, Deborah C., and William D. Andrews. Business Communication. New York:
Macmillan, 1988.
Journal Article
Martin, Rita J. “Folk Songs as a Language Arts Experience.” Language Arts 58 (1981):
326-29.
Internet Web Site
“Library Resource Center.” Collin County Community College District. 3 July 2003. 10
September 2003 <http://www.ccccd.edu/cs/lrc/lrc.html>.
Online Article
Banks, Ann. “Federal Writers’ Project.” American Life Histories: Manuscripts from the
Federal Writers’ Project, 1936-1940. Library of Congress. 19 Oct. 1998. 7 March
2002 <http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/wpaintro.html>.