More Examples of MLA Citation
MLA Tutorial
Video created by McMaster University Library
General Guidelines
The following are some very general guidelines for formatting your MLA style paper. For more in-depth instructions, refer to the MLA Handbook.
- No title page is required unless specifically requested.
- Use one inch margins.
- Double space the text and use a legible font like New Times Roman.
- Create a running header with your last name and the page number, justified on the right side.
- The beginning of the paper should include the following justified on the left side and double spaced:
- Your Name
- Professor's Name
- Course
- Date
- Double space again and center align the title of the paper. Do not underline, italicize, or put your title in quotes.
- Indent the first word of each paragraph one half inch from the left using the tab key.
- The paper should include a Works Cited page at the end to include all resources used (see below).
- Chevallier recommends only buying this remedy if it provides this information (51).
- Chevallier states that "you should select herbal remedies that provide all this information" (51).
- It is recommended that you only "select herbal remedies that provide all this information" (Chevallier 51).
- Herbal Remedies. Metro Books, 2007.
- 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).
- For longer works (such as plays, books, entire web sites), italicize the title and provide a page number.
- For short works (such as an article), use quotations marks and a page number.
- Your Works Cited page should begin on a separate page at the end of your paper.
- Continue with one inch margins, double spacing, and the running header, including page numbers.
- Center the words Works Cited at the top of the page, not bolded, italicized, or in quotations.
- Each entry should be left-justified. When the entry is more than one line, indent the rest of the lines one-half inch from the left.
- List all entries in alphabetical order.
- Page numbers should have a dash in between the numbers and be specified in each entry.
- When you list two or more works by the same author, you may use ---, in the place of their name. (See below)
Language and the Poet: Verbal Artistry in Frost, Stevens, and Moore. Norton, 1977.
---, "Sound Symbolism as Drama in the Poetry of Robert Frost." PMLA, vol. 107, no. 1, 1992, pp. 131-44.
Citation Examples
In order to cite books, you will need the following: author(s), title, container (larger piece in which the source is located), edition, editor, publisher, and date of publication.
When using books in your paper: Titles should be italicized. "Chapters" and "Essays within the Book" should be in quotation marks.
Book with a Single Author
Henley, Patricia. The Hummingbird House. Knopf, 1994.
Book with More than One Author
Gillespie, Paula, and Neal Lerner. The Allyn and Bacon Guide to Peer Tutoring. Allyn and Bacon, 2000.
Wysocki, Francis, et al. Writing New Media: Theory and Applications for Expanding the Teaching of Composition. Utah State UP, 2004.
Two or More Books by the Same Author
Palmer, William J. Dickens and New Historicism. St. Martin's, 1997.
---. The Films of the Eighties: A Social History. Southern Illinois UP, 1993.
Book by a Corporate Author or Organization
American Allergy Association. Allergies in Children. Random House, 1998.
A Subsequent Edition
Crowley, Sharon, and Debra Hawhee. Ancient Rhetorics for Contemporary Students. 3rd ed., Pearson, 2004.
A Work Prepared by an Editor
Bronte, Charlotte. Jane Eyre. Edited by Margaret Smith, Oxford UP, 1998.
A Work in an Anthology, Reference, or Collection
Harris, Muriel. "Talk to Me: Engaging Reluctant Writers." A Tutor's Guide: Helping Writers One to One, edited by Ben Rafoth, Heinemann, 2000, pp. 24-34.
A Work in an Encyclopedia or Dictionary
"Ideaology." The American Heritage Dictionary. 3rd ed., 2012.
When using scholarly articles in your paper:
- Publication titles should be italicized.
- Journal titles should be in quotation marks.
Print Periodical Article
Bagchi, Alaknanda. "Conflicting Nationalisms: The Voice of the Subaltern in Mahasweta Devi's Bashai Tudu." Tulsa Studies in Women's Literature, vol. 15, no. 1, 1996, pp. 41-50.
Online Journal Article
Wheelis, Mark. "Investigating Disease Outbreaks Under a Protocol to the Biological and Toxin Weapons Convention." Emerging Infectious Diseases, vol. 6, no. 6, 2000, pp. 595-600, wwwnc.cdc.gov/eid/article/6/6/00-0607_article.
Online Periodical Publication in an Online Database
Alonso, Alvaro, and Julio A. Camargo. "Toxicity of Nitrite to Three Species of Freshwater Invertebrates." Environmental Toxicology, vol. 21, no. 1, 3 Feb. 2006, pp. 90-94. Wiley Online Library, doi:10.1002/tox.20155.
When using websites as resources, make sure you evaluate it to determine whether it can be trusted as a credible source and follow these general guidelines:
Citing an Entire Website
Felluga, Dino. Guide to Literary and Critical Theory. Purdue U, 28 Nov. 2003, www.cla.purdue.edu/english/theory/. Accessed 10 May 2006.
Citing a Page on a Web Site
"Athlete's Foot - Topic Overview." WebMD, 25 Sept. 2014, www.webmd.com/skin-problems-and-treatments/tc/athletes-foot-topic-overview.
When citing Audio Visual Materials in your paper: Films, Television Broadcasts, Radio Broadcasts, CDs, Audiocassettes, Record Albums, and Musical Compositions should be italicized. "Television Episode Titles" and "Song Titles" should be in quotation marks.
Television or Radio Broadcast
"The Blessing Way." The X-Files. Fox, WXIA, Atlanta, 19 Jul. 1998.
Films or Movies
The Usual Suspects. Directed by Bryan Singer, performances by Kevin Spacey, Gabriel Byrne, Chazz Palminteri, Stephen Baldwin, and Benecio del Toro, Polygram, 1995.
Lucas, George, director. Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope. Twentieth Century Fox, 1977.
Podcasts
“Best of Not My Job Musicians.” Wait Wait…Don’t Tell Me! from NPR, 4 June 2016, http://www.npr.org/podcasts/344098539/wait-wait-don-t-tell-me.
The Bible
Zondervan NIV Study Bible. General editor, Kenneth L. Barker, full rev. ed., Zondervan, 2002.
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Citing the Bible and other Biblical ResourcesSee this helpful guide from Grove City College for help with citing the Bible.
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Citing Biblical Resources from Universitas Pelita Harapan- Bible Reference ExamplesThis guide from Universitas Pelita Harapan gives great examples of how to cite the Bible in your reference list (in APA and MLA)
MLA Manual
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MLA Handbook
by
Teaching and learning MLA style is about to get easier. For nearly seventy years, the Modern Language Association has helped student writers choose trustworthy sources and use them to support their own ideas. Now, the authority on writing and research presents the clearest approach to MLA style yet with the ninth edition of the MLA Handbook. The ninth edition works as both a textbook and a reference guide. Focusing on source evaluation, it features a wealth of visual examples and updated advice on punctuation and grammar, footnotes and endnotes, annotated bibliographies, and paper formatting. An all-in-one resource that makes MLA style easier to learn and use, the MLA Handbook includes: Expanded, in-depth guidance on creating works-cited-list entries using the MLA template of core elements that explains what each core element is, where to find it in various sources, and how to style it. A new, easy-to-follow explanation of in-text citations. A new chapter containing recommendations for using inclusive language. A new appendix with hundreds of sample works-cited-list entries by publication format, including books, databases, websites, YouTube videos, interviews, and more. Updated guidelines on avoiding plagiarism. Although there are numerous websites, apps, reference works, and cheat sheets that claim to help with MLA style, there's only one truly authoritative resource to help your students on their paths to becoming better writers. The ninth edition of the MLA Handbook is the most comprehensive guide the MLA has ever produced, with an all-inclusive approach to writing, research, documentation, and formatting.
ISBN: 9781603293518Publication Date: 2021-05-30
General Information
The Modern Language Association style of writing is generally used by writers in the humanities fields, especially language and literature. This citation style is used by writers of research papers from high school levels to grduate, scholarly, or professional writers.
Information about this style is found from style.mla.org.