MLA Style: In-Text Citation and
Works Cited Page
Documentation and MLA
Reasons for Documenting:
• Allows readers to find out more about origins
of the ideas you present
• Protects you from charges of plagiarism
Two Types of Documentation in MLA Style:
• In-Text Citations
• Works Cited
Basics of In-Text Citation
• Author’s name, including first name the first
time name mentioned, in text of your essay
• Note page number in parentheses—without pg.
or p—at end of citation; final punctuation comes
after final parenthesis
– If using block quotation, final punctuation comes
before the information in parentheses
• If including author’s name in text of your essay is
awkward, then put only the last name in the
parentheses before the page number:
–
(Lowe 79).
In text citation
Author’s name
Page number
• Last name only
• Add initial if multiple cited authors by
same last name.
• No pg, p, etc
( Lowe 79 ).
Final punctuation
Parentheses
• as required by sentence
• in block quote, complete
punctuation of quote before
the in-text citation.
Additional Aspects of In-Text Citation
• Last name of author is enough for reader to
reference in Work Cited
• Page number makes it easy to find original
quotation
• If two authors have same last name, include first
name or, if in parentheses, initial:
– (J. Lowe 79).
• If more than one work by same author, specify
which work in essay with an abbreviation of the
title, or, if in parentheses, put comma after last
name and before title and use abbreviation of title:
– (Mayers, “A Bad Man” 79).
In Text Citation – Multiple Authors
with Same Last Name
(J. Lowe 79 ).
Author’s name
• Add first initial if multiple cited authors by
same last name.
In Text Citation – More than One Work
per Author
Name of work
•After author’s name
•Follow rules in works cited page:
• In quotes if it’s an article
• Italics if it’s a book
•Can be abbreivated
•Preceded by comma and space
( Mayers , “A Bad Man” 79 ).
Additional Aspects of In-Text Citation
• Web sources usually don’t have page numbers, so
just give author’s name
– MLA prefers author’s name in text instead of in
parentheses
– If no author, mention title in text
• Poems: if quote all or part of 2 or 3 lines of poetry,
put in quotation marks and separate lines using a
slash / with a space on each side. In parentheses
put line numbers (7-9).
• Plays: give the act, scene and line numbers when
the work has them, page numbers when it doesn’t.
Additional Aspects of In-Text Citation
• If two or more sources support a single point,
separate them with a semicolon:
–
(Jones 8; Smith 7).
• Work quoted in another source, put “qtd. in”
before the information about the indirect
source:
– (qtd. in Bauman 9).
• Mention direct source of quotation in signal
phrase: According to Thomas Jefferson, “‘…’”
Work Quoted in Another Source
(qtd. in Lowe 79 ).
put “qtd. in” before the information
about the indirect source.
Basics of Works Cited Page
• On a separate page at the end of your essay,
include the Works Cited page
• Header: last name and page number. Page
number should follow the last page number of
body of your paper
• Center and in regular type/font: Works Cited
• Double space throughout
• No extra spaces between title and entries or
between entries!
• No numbers for entries!
More Basics of Works Cited
• Use “hanging indentation”
– First line of citation is flush left
– Indent all subsequent lines for that citation one-half inch
• Alphabetize by author’s last name or, if no author, by
title
– “The” and “A” don’t count
• If you cite more than one source by same author, the
individual works are alphabetized by title; author’s full
name is given only for the first citation in the Works
Cited, after which it is replaced by three hyphens:
Curie, Marie. “The Portrait.”
---. “The Reversal Performed, Not Rehearsed.”
• The rest of the citation is as it would have been for that
source
More Basics of Works Cited Page
•
•
•
•
Only include sources cited in your text
Don’t leave out any sources cited in your text!
Include primary and secondary sources
If any information called for is unavailable for
a particular source, skip that element and
keep the rest of the entry as close as possible
to the given format
Sears 18
Works Cited
Abrams, Mark. “All’s Not Well.” Theatre Journal 11.2 (2007): 48997. Print.
Collier, Judith, and Francine Prose. The Outsider within: Othello
and the Military Code. Ed. Leslie Knox. Austin: U of Texas P,
2009. Print.
Glass, Meredith. “Rogue Performers.” PMLA 12.3 (2008): 245-49.
Academic Search Premier. Web. 1 Nov. 2009.
---. “William Shakespeare.” The Shakespeare Project: Biography.
Shakespeare Project, 21 Mar. 1999. Web. 30 Oct. 2009.
“Iago’s Motivation.” Notes on Othello. Theater Teacher’s
Resource, 2006. Web. 28 Oct. 2009.
Othello. Dir. Oliver Parker. Perf. Lawrence Fishburne, Kenneth
Branagh, and Irène Jacob. Castle Rock, 1995. DVD.
Shakespeare, William. Othello. Making Literature Matter: An
Anthology for Readers and Writers. Ed. John Schilb and John
Clifford. 4th ed. Boston: Bedford / St. Martin’s, 2009. 706-793.
Print.
Citing a Book (skip any material not available)
1. Name of the author(s) (or editor, if no author is listed), last
name first, followed by period
2. Full Title, italicized, followed by period; if subtitle, put colon
between title and subtitle
3. Name(s) of the editor(s) if the book has both an author and an
editor, following the abbreviation, Ed., followed by period
4. Name(s) of translator or compiler, following abbreviation
Trans. or Comp. as appropriate, followed by period
5. The edition, if other than the first—3rd ed.—followed by period
6. Volume(s) used, if the book is part of a multivolume set—Vol.
8.—followed by period
7. City of publication (followed by a colon), name of the publisher
(comma), and year, followed by period
8. Medium of publication: Print, followed by period
9. Name of any series to which the book belongs, followed by
period
Works Cited : Book
Authors:
Last1, First1, and First2 Last2
Book Title
in Italics
Semicolon
between
title and
subtitle
Collier, Judith, and Francine Prose. The Outsider within:
Othello and the Military Code. Ed. Leslie Knox. Austin: U of
Texas P , 2009. Print.
Editor: If there is one
Year
Note comma
City: Publisher:
•Start with city (no state)
•Shorthand:
U = University
P = Press
Hanging indentation
As opposed
to Web.
More on Citing Books
• If you have a book with multiple authors or
editors, list all names, but only the first name
is given last name first and rest in normal
order; put comma after first author’s name
• If there are four or more authors or editors,
give only first full name listed on title page,
followed by a comma and et al. (“and others”)
• A book with a corporate author—group,
government agency, or organization listed as
its author—treat as single author: National
Society of Photographic Educators
Citing a Work in an Anthology
1. Name of the author(s) of the article/literary work,
followed by period
2. Title of the shorter work, enclosed in quotation marks
(unless longer work—full play—italics), followed by
period
3. Title of the anthology in italics followed by a period
4. Names(s) of editors of collection or anthology,
followed by period
5. Relevant publication information as in book citation,
followed by period
6. Inclusive page numbers for shorter work, followed by
period
7. Medium of Publication: Print, followed by period
Cross-References from Same Anthology
• If cite several articles or texts from same collection or
anthology, cross-reference them
• Write a single general entry that provides full
publication information for whole collection
• Also include entries for shorter works; only include
author and title of shorter work, last names of editors,
and page numbers of shorter work
For example:
Schilb, John, and John Clifford, eds. Making Literature
Matter: An Anthology for Readers and Writers. 4th ed.
Boston: Bedford / St. Martin’s, 2009. Print.
Shakespeare, William. Othello. Schilb and Clifford 706793.
---. “Sonnet 116.” Schilb and Clifford 574.
Citing Articles in Periodicals
1. Name(s) of the author(s) of the article/short
text, last name first followed by period
2. Title of the article/short text in quotations,
followed by period:
– “Theatre of the Obtuse.”
3. Title of the periodical italicized
4. All relevant publication information (see next
slide)
5. Medium of publication: Print, followed by a
period
Works Cited: Journal Article
Author
•Last, First
•(same rule as book)
Period
Name of
Publication
Italics
Abrams, Mark. “All’s Not Well.” Theatre Journal 11.2
(2007): 489-97. Print.
Volume.Issue
Name of Article
In quotes
Year
•Parentheses
•semicolon
Pages
•Note format
Hanging indentation
As opposed
to Web.
Different Types of Periodicals
• For a scholarly journal—volume number and issue number
(sometimes only issue); year of publication in parentheses,
followed by a colon, and the page numbers of the shorter
work, followed by period:
– PMLA 121.6 (2006): 1526-35. Print.
• For a magazine—month(s) of publication for
monthly/bimonthly magazine OR date (day, abbreviated
month, then year) for weekly/biweekly, followed by a colon,
and page numbers, followed by period:
– New Yorker 5 Nov. 2005: 65-73. Print.
• For a newspaper article—date (day, abbreviated month, year),
edition if listed on the masthead, followed by colon and page
numbers (including section number or letter, if applicable),
followed by period:
– New York Times 24 Mar. 2007, late ed.: A1+. Print.
Citing Library Databases
1. Print publication information—author’s
name, title, publication information
2. Name of the database (italicized)—like
Academic Search Premier, followed by period
3. Medium of publication—Web, followed by
period
4. Date you accessed site (day, month
abbreviated, and year), followed by period:
– 30 Oct. 2010.
Journal Article in Web Database
Same as print
article.
Period
Glass, Meredith. “Rogue Performers.” PMLA 12.3 (2008):
245-49. Academic Search Premier. Web. 1 Nov. 2009.
Name of
Database
in italics
As opposed to
“Print”
Date accessed by
you
Hanging indentation
Citing the Internet: World Wide Web
1. Name of the author(s), last name first, followed by a period
2. Title of the section of the work accessed in quotation marks,
followed by a period; if not titled, identify by label like Home
page or Introduction, but not in quotation marks
3. Title of the full document or site italicized (if different than
title of the work accessed), followed by a period
4. Publisher’s or sponsor’s name, followed by a comma; if
neither available, use N.p.
5. Date of publication by day, month, and year if available,
followed by a period; if date isn’t available, use n.d.
6. The medium of publication—Web, followed by a period
7. Date you accessed site (day, month abbreviated, and year),
followed by a period
–
30 Oct. 2010.
Citing Publication on Web with Print Publication Data
1. Name of author, followed by period
2. Print Publication Information (same format
as usual)
3. Name of the Web site in italics, followed by
period
4. Medium of publication—Web, followed by
period
5. Date you accessed the site (day, month,
year), followed by period
Article in Scholarly Journal Published Only on
Web
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Name of author, followed by period
Title of article, followed by period
Name of journal in italics
Volume and issue number (or just issue number)
Year of publication in parentheses, followed by
colon
6. Page numbers or n. pag., followed by period
7. Medium of publication—Web, followed by period
8. Date you accessed the site (day, month
abbreviated, year), followed by period
Article in Newspaper on Web
1.
2.
3.
4.
Name of author, followed by period
Title of article, followed by a period
Name of newspaper in italics, followed by period
Publisher’s name (New York Times) or N.p.,
followed by comma
5. Date of publication (day, month abbreviated,
year), followed by period
6. Medium of publication—Web, followed by period
7. Date you accessed the site (day, month
abbreviated, year), followed by period
Article in Magazine on Web
1. Name of author, followed by period
2. Title of article, followed by period
3. Name of magazine in italics, followed by
period
4. Publisher’s name or N.p., followed by comma
5. Date of publication (day, month abbreviated,
year), followed by period
6. Medium of publication—Web, followed by
period
7. Date you accessed the site, followed by
period
Personal Communication or Lecture
Personal Communication:
1. Name of the person who gave you the information,
followed by period
2. Type of communication (interview, letter, email),
followed by period
3. Date of communication, followed by period
Lecture, Public Talk, or Debate:
1. Name of lecturer/speaker, followed by period
2. Name of lecture or lecture series, followed by comma
3. Place, followed by comma
4. Date (day, month abbreviated, year), followed by
period
5. Medium (lecture, debate, commencement address)
Multimedia Sources
If Film or DVD:
1. Title in italics, followed by period
2. Director’s name beginning with Dir., followed by period
3. Optional—performers’ names, starting with Perf., followed by period
4. Distributor (Universal, Paramount), followed by comma
5. Year, followed by a period
6. Medium (Film or DVD), followed by period
If TV or Radio Program:
1. Title of episode or segment in quotation marks, followed by period
2. Title of the program and series, if any, in italics, followed by period
3. Performers, narrators, directors or others who might be pertinent,
followed by period
4. Name of network or call numbers and city for local station, followed by
period
5. Broadcast date, followed by period
6. Medium (either Television or Radio), followed by period
Informational Notes
• Use if a piece of information is interesting or useful but
can’t be worked into body of essay without interrupting
flow of ideas
• Use a small superscript number in text to signal a note,
which will be on a separate page at end of essay before
Works Cited page
• Be sure to include any sources mentioned in end notes
in Works Cited page:
End Notes
1 Several critics interpret this scene as revealing Iago’s
suspicions about Emilia’s fidelity (Roberts 72; Bond 8991; Crowley 655-56).