Cite Sources in MLA Format

The Modern Language Association (MLA) has its own guidelines for citing sources, and you may be required to use them by your instructor or field. The standards are laid out in MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers. Even so, the protocol can be quite confusing, especially if your teacher is leaving you to your own devices. Now you can spend less time worrying about formatting and concentrate on getting that A!

Steps

In-Text Citations

  1. Make a reference to the author. This can be done in one of two ways. The authors name can either be in the bulk of your paper or included in the reference. Both ways involve parentheses and the page number(s). Take these two examples from Purdue:
    • "Human beings have been described by Kenneth Burke as "symbol-using animals" (3)." In this manner, the name of the author is in the actual sentence.
    • "Human beings have been described as "symbol-using animals" (Burke 3)." In this manner, the name of the author is in the reference.[1]
  2. If the author is unknown, using the title of the work is sufficient. With technology these days, it's becoming more and more common to find works that don't have a specific author attributed to them. If that is the case, just cite the title. Take this example from Cornell:
    • "We see so many global warming hotspots in North America likely because this region has "more readily accessible climatic data and more comprehensive programs to monitor and study environmental change..." ("Impact of Global Warming" 6)." If the title is long, you can shorten it. Omit initial articles and begin with the word by which it is alphabetized in the Works Cited list.[2]
  3. Cite multiple things in one sentence. That's right -- it's doable. If you have multiple authors or multiple locations (or both) you can cite them in the same sentence. It gets a little parenthetical-heavy, though, so it's best not to do this often.
    • This hypothesis (Herrick and Coleman 18) denounced this theory (Clark, Masterson, and Andrews 32). To avoid citing twice in a sentence, put the author's name (or authors' names) in the sentence itself. That'll make it a lot easier to read.
      • If you have two authors (whether they're in the same citation or not), use their first initial to distinguish one from the other.
    • If there's a volume, precede the page by the volume number and a colon. For example, "Jennings alludes to these future consequences (116-19, 203)."
  4. Cite electronic and indirect sources. This is where MLA formatting gets a little tricky. But just because this is the case, don't shy away from it. However -- note that most online sources shouldn't be used; who knows if they're valid and legitimate?
    • If you have a quote that's sourced in another work, you have an indirect source. For this situation, use "qtd. in" to indicate the source you actually consulted.
    • If you have an electronic source, refer to it by the first word of its citation on your works cited page. Whether it's the author name, article name, website name, or film name, refer to it by the item listed first. If it's a website, don't use the URL. Just something like Wikihow.com will suffice.
      • Paragraph or page numbers as determined by your print preview function are not necessary.

Works Cited Basics

  1. Begin your Works Cited page. References cited in the text of a research paper must appear at the end of the paper in a Works Cited list or bibliography. This is a separate page. This list provides the information necessary to identify and retrieve each source that specifically supports your research.[2] It should have the same one-inch margins and last name, page number header as the rest of your paper.
    • All your citations should be double-spaced, but don't skip spaces between entries. Also, indent the second and subsequent citation lines by 1/2" (for a hanging indentation).[1]
  2. Go in alphabetical order. Arrange entries in alphabetical order by authors' last names. If no author, do so by title. If the author has some special title (like PhD), do not include it. What a blow to sycophantism.
    • There are a number of nuances to keep in mind:
      • Don't use ampersands. That is, use "and," not "&."
      • Capitalize all major words.
      • Shorten the publisher's name. The Illustrative Press Co. can just be "Illustrative."
  3. Keep up-to-date on MLA standards. Unfortunately, sometimes they change. Your professor may or may not be keen on this. If you're aware of a recent change, ask your instructor their preference.
    • As of MLA 2009, for every entry, you must determine the Medium of Publication. Most entries will likely be listed as Print or Web sources, but other possibilities may include Film, CD-ROM, or DVD.
    • URLs used to be required, but they are no longer (for web entries, that is). But if your instructor insists, include them in angle brackets at the end and finish off with a period. For long URLs, break lines only at slashes.[1]

Format of Citations

  1. Cite from books. There are a number of elements that go into a book citation. However, only worry about what you have at your disposal -- not all of them are necessary. References to an entire book should include the following elements:
    • Author(s) or editor(s)
    • The complete title
    • Edition, if indicated
    • Place of publication
    • The shortened name of the publisher
    • Date of publication
    • Medium of publication
      • An example of the formatting:

        Lastname, Firstname. Title of Book. Place of Publication: Publisher, Year of Publication. Medium of Publication.[2]
        • For no author or editor, go straight to the title. For more than three authors, feel free to use "et al." That's Latin for "and others," by the way
        • If it's an article within a book, include the article title before the book title.
  2. Cite an article from a journal, newspaper, or magazine. This is similar to citing from a book, but is slightly different. You'll need:
    • Author(s)
    • Article title
    • Publication title (journal, magazine, etc.)
    • Volume number
    • Publication date (abbreviate months, if used)
    • Inclusive page numbers
    • Medium of publication
      • Cite by listing the article's author, putting the title of the article in quotations marks, and italicizing the periodical title. Follow with the date of publication. Remember to abbreviate the month!
      • If it's a local publication, include the city name and state in brackets after the title of the newspaper.
  3. Cite from electronic sources. You should refer to these as web publications; your medium is web. The MLA no longer requires URLs in citations because they're no good -- they're not static and often change or shut down entirely.[1] Collect as much information as possible and cite it in the following order:
    • Author and/or editor names (if available)
    • Article name in quotation marks (if applicable)
    • Title of the Website, project, or book in italics
    • Any version numbers available, including revisions, posting dates, volumes, or issue numbers.
    • Publisher information, including the publisher name and publishing date.
    • Take note of any page numbers (if available).
    • Medium of publication.
    • Date you accessed the material.
    • URL (if required)
  4. Cite from interviews. Interviews typically fall into two categories: print or broadcast published and unpublished (personal) interviews, although interviews may also appear in other, similar formats such as in e-mail format or as a Web document.
    • If you conducted the interview yourself, list it by the name of the person you interviewed (last name first, of course). Include the descriptor "Personal interview" and the date of the interview.
    • For a published interview, start in much the same manner. Then, if the name of the interview is part of a larger work (a book, a television program, or a film series, for example), place the title of the interview in quotation marks. The title of the larger work should go in italics. Italicize the interview if it appears as an independent title. Fill in the rest of the entry with the information required by whatever medium (print? Web? DVD?) your interview is in. For books, include the author or editor name after the book title.[1]
  5. Know that you can even cite tweets. There is no limit anymore. You can cite practically anything so long as it's relevant to your work. And who thought sourcing a paper wasn't entertaining?
    • Begin with the user's name (Last Name, First Name) followed by his/her Twitter user name in parentheses. Place a period outside the parentheses.
    • Next, place the tweet in its entirety in quotations. Within said quotations, place a period. Include the date and time of posting, using the reader's time zone; separate the date and time with a comma and end it with a period.
    • Include the word "Tweet" (this is your medium) afterwards and end with a period. Your professor will love it.

Examples

Books

Ruechel, Julius. Grass-Fed Cattle. New York: Storey Publishing, 2006.
Johnson, Elliot J., ed. Handbook of No-Till Agriculture. Kansas City: CRC, 1993.
Fonda, Alison, and Jim Terezian. Banking in NYC. New York: Random House, 2000.

Anthology

Broman, Jason P. "Feasibility of Using Algae as an Energy Source." Renewable Energy: Opposing Viewpoints. Ed. Melissa DeAntonio. Albuquerque: Zia Publishing, 2003. 20-27.

Encyclopedia

Jones, Alessia. "Certificates of Deposit." Encyclopedia of Finance. Ed. James Michael Norton. 2nd ed. 4 vols. San Francisco: Macmillan, 2001.

Magazine article

Fellon, Brad. "Aurora Borealis." Travel May 2004: 36-41.

Journal article

Powell, Hope D., Benjamin Adams, Anthony Richter, and Patricia Roth. "Implementation of GIS in Soil Analysis." Soil Technology 47 (2003): 295-308.
Maddox, Alex L., Anna Ali, and Jamie McNamara. "Effect of Visiting Animals on Patient Recovery." Hospital Observations 58.6 (2003): 12-18.

Newspaper article

Corvallis, Patrick. "Development Threatens Farmland." Mesilla Valley Bulletin 8 Apr. 2004, night final ed.: A3.

Website

Applegate, Tristan. "Judging the Credibility of Sources." Your Source for Sources. Ed. Madison Collar. 4 Sept. 2004 http://sourceforsources.com/articles/article.php/3398511 .

Online Periodical

Hernandez, Craig. "Desert Rat Carries Rare Infectious Disease." LasCrucesNews.com 4 Sept. 2004 http://lascrucesnews.com/2004/07/06/news/story1.html

Related Articles

Sources and Citations

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/747/05/
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 http://www.library.cornell.edu/resrch/citmanage/mla
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