MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers: A Brief Guide
This Guide is intended to serve as a basic introduction to the MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers. If you require more complete information, consult the handbook (call number LB 2369.G53, found at the Central Reference Desk in Waldo Library). All examples in this guide duplicate formats from the latest edition.
Using Parenthetical Citations
In MLA documentation style, sources are acknowledged by brief citations in the text. These parenthetical citations refer the reader to an alphabetical list of works cited at the end of the paper. Example:
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The citation " (Marcuse 197)" tells the reader that the source of the information is page 197 of a book by Marcuse. The list of works cited at the end of the paper would include the following information:
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Works Cited Formats
The list of works cited appears at the end of the paper under the title " Works Cited."
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Book, with one author: Kaku, Michio. Hyperspace: A Scientific Odyssey through Parallel Universes, Time Warps, and the Tenth Dimension. New York: Oxford UP, 1994. Book, with two authors: Jakobson, Roman, and Linda R. Waugh. The Sound Shape of Language. Bloomington: Indiana UP, 1979. Anthology or Compilation: Lopate, Phillip, ed. The Art of the Personal Essay: An Anthology from the Classical Era to the Present. New York: Anchor-Doubleday, 1994. A Literary Work in an Anthology: Work of Its Best Playwrights. Ed. Lindsay Patterson. New York: Dodd, 1971. 221-76. An Essay in an Edited Collection: Wordsworth, Ann. "Browning's Anxious Gaze." Robert Browning: A Collection of Critical Essays. Ed. Harold Bloom and Adrienne Munich. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall, Inc., 1979. 28-38.The Published Proceedings of a Conference: Freed, Barbara F., ed. Foreign Language Acquisition Research and the Classroom. Proc. of Consortium for Language Teaching and Learning Conference, Oct. 1989, U of Pennsylvania. Lexington: Heath, 1991. Article in a Magazine: Bazell, Robert. "Science and Society: Growth Industry." New Republic 15 Mar. 1993: 13-14. Article in a Scholarly Journal with continous pagination: Fitzgerald, John. "The Misconceived Revolution: State and Society in China's Nationalist Revolution, 1923-26." Journal of Asian Studies 49 (1990): 323-43. Articles from Newspapers: Feder, Barnaby J. "For Job Seekers, a Toll-Free Gift of Expert Advice." New York Times 30 Dec. 1993, natl. ed.:C1+ (specify the edition, if named on the masthead, e.g., natl. ed., late ed.) Ibrahim, Azlan. "Language: It's All in Your Head, Says Expert." Kalamazoo Gazette 19 Mar. 1996: D1+ Allen, Martha Sawyer, "Pagan Holidays?" Star Tribune [Minneapolis] 31 Oct. 1995: E1 (include name of city in brackets if not part of the newspaper name) Article in a Microform Collection of Articles Chapman, Dan. "Panel Could Help Protect Children." Winston-Salem Journal 14 Jan. 1990: 14. Newsbank: Welfare and Social Problems 12 (1990): fiche 1, grids A8-11. Material from Database on CD-ROM: United States. Dept. of State. "Industrial Outlook for Petroleum and Natural Gas." 1992. National Trade Data Bank. CD-ROM. US Dept. of Commerce. Dec. 1993. "Albatross." The Oxford English Dictionary. 2nd ed. CD-ROM. Oxford: Oxford UP, 1992. |
If this guide does not include the example you need, refer to Chapter 4 in the MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers, latest edition, for complete information. For examples of works cited formats for Internet sources consult the MLA online guide at http://www.mla.org/