Created by the Modern Language Association, MLA is most often used by the Humanities, which includes languages, literature, philosophy, visual & performing arts.
This brief video will show you how to use Word 2010 to format your paper.
This brief video will show you how to set up your document in MLA format using Google Docs.
Placement: The Works Cited list appears at the end of the paper, on its own page(s). For example, If your research paper ends on page 8, your Works Cited begins on page 9.
Arrangement: Alphabetize entries by author's last name. If source has no named author, alphabetize by the title, ignoring A, An, or The.
Spacing: Like the rest of the MLA paper, the Works Cited list is double-spaced throughout. Be sure NOT to add extra spaces between citations.
Indentation: To make citations easier to scan, add a hanging indent to any citation that runs more than one line.
Each entry in your Works Cited list is built from a set of elements common to most sources—things like the author, title, and publication date. MLA calls these the core elements, and they must appear in a specific order (top to bottom in this list):
Not every source will include every element. If one isn’t present (for example, no “other contributors”), simply skip it and move on to the next element.
Use the links below to see examples.
If you don’t find what you need, check out Ask the MLA on the MLA’s official site.
In-text citations are brief references within your paper that:
Show your reader you’ve used an outside source, and
Point them to the matching entry in your Works Cited list.
They may also indicate the exact location in the source (e.g., a page number).
In-text citations can appear directly in your sentence, in parentheses, or as a combination of both. You must cite all direct quotations, paraphrases, and summaries.
An in-text citation begins with the first piece of information from the Works Cited entry: usually the author’s last name or, if no author is listed, the title of the work.
With author: (Jones 14)
With no author: ("Global Warming" 129)
If page numbers are available, they must be included. (Check the PDF version of database articles to find them.)
Before punctuation: Most parenthetical references go before the period.
Example: Magnesium can be effective in treating PMS (Haggerty 42).
Block quotes: Direct quotes longer than 4 lines are indented ½ inch, quotation marks removed, and the citation goes after the punctuation.
Example:
A preliminary study presented recently at the American College of Cardiology annual meeting found that getting enough sleep was associated with greater protection of death from all causes. If magnesium does work to help someone get a little shuteye, that may be because it is acting on certain receptors on the surface of brain cells to quiet down brain cell activity. The nutrient acts on the benzodiazepine receptor, which is the same receptor used by Valium-type drugs and the sleep medication Ambien. (Gurubhagavatula 546)
Author already named: If the author’s name appears in your sentence, do not repeat it in parentheses.
Example: Haggerty notes magnesium is effective at relieving PMS (42).
MLA tells us that, you should cite a source in an annotated bibliography just as you would in a list of works cited and then append an annotation to the end of the entry. Annotations describe and/or evaluate sources. Further, annotations should not rehash minor details, cite evidence, quote the author, or recount steps in an argument. Writing an effective annotation requires reading the work, understanding its aims, and clearly summarizing them.
You may also want to use the template below. Just type over the words in the template with your own information, citations, and annotations.
It's easy; it's a form you fill out with the information about your source; it helps you catch mistakes.
Why use this database? Use NoodleTools when you want to create and organize your research notes, share and collaborate on research projects, create and error check citations, and complete your bibliography in MLA, APA, or Chicago styles.
What's included: Tools to provide you a workflow for your research including creation of notecards and outlines, the ability to collaborate with classmates on group projects, in addition to a citation generator that teaches you how to cite your sources as you complete the citation forms, and the ability to build your complete bibliography.
Use NoodleTools Express if you just need to create a source citation on the fly, then copy and paste it into your document. No login required.
