2. Contents
Introduction to MLA
Resources
Gathering Information
Sample Works Cited Page
For More Information
3. Introduction
What is MLA?
MLA stands for
Modern Language Association
For more information see http://www.mla.org/about.
4.
5. Introduction
What is MLA Style?
“MLA style for documentation is widely used in the
humanities, especially in writing on language and
literature.
“Generally simpler and more concise than other styles,
MLA style features brief in
the text keyed to an alphabetical list of
that appears at the end of the work.”
www.mla.org/style
12. Gathering Information
Record all of the following:
Author(s)
Editor(s)
Title and Subtitle
Edition
Volume and Issue Numbers
Publication Information
Location (page numbers or web address)
21. Tip: When using a database article, print-out or
email the source record to yourself.
22. You can also e-mail the article (or a link) to yourself.
23.
24. Documentation: Missing Information
When a source does not indicate the publisher, the place
or date of publication, or pagination, supply as much of
the information as possible.
Enclose this information in square brackets: [2008]
For an approximate date, add “c.” for circa „around‟: [c. 2008]
If you are uncertain about the information that you
supply, add a question mark: [2008?]
For information that you cannot supply, use the
abbreviations on the next slide.
25. Documentation: Missing Information
n.p. No place of publication given
(insert before colon)
n.p. No publisher given (insert after colon)
n.d. No date of publication given
n. pag. No pagination given
Return to
Table of
Contents
27. Consult the 7th edition of the MLA Handbook for
Writers of Research Papers, and the 7th edition of
Rules for Writers.
Make an appointment to meet individually with a
Writing Center tutor.
Consult your professor during his or her office hours.
28. Visit our web site at http://libguides.tccd.edu/se-writingcenter.
Return to
Table of
Contents
Editor's Notes
Both of these books have helpful sections on MLA.
(Discuss how this section may be used. Students should understand the basic rules, and refer to the variations as needed.Point out also the “Citation at a glance” articles on pp. 495, 499, 502-03, 508-09, and 510.)
Handy, free, reliable resource.
Recommend “Manual entry.”
The Works Cited page should include only those sources you actually cite in your paper. Just make sure you do cite all sources that you borrow from.
Remind students that they must be able to locate all their sources, and they won’t want to waste time trying to relocate sources when they are working on their works cited page or in-text citations.
Additional comments: The author could be an organization or a government agency. Publication information would include city, publisher, and year (book) or year (journal), or date (magazine, newspaper, web site). Record the web address so the source can be easily located; however, the URL is not needed in the Works Cited entry.
Use the title as it is given on the title page, not on the cover or the spine of the book. Include the subtitle, if there is one. Type a colon after the title, if there is a subtitle.
Also look for edition (other than the first) and/or volume numbers, if any. The country of publication is not needed for MLA.If more than 3 authors or editors… (see next slide).
If there are more than 3 authors or editors, it is not necessary to list them all. You may list just the first author, followed by “et al.”, or you may list them all.Latin: et alii (and others)
If citing the entire work, begin the works cited entry with the first author’s/editor’s name, last name first, then “et al.” and eds. (= editors). When citing a work within an anthology or collection, type “Ed. First Last et al.” after the book title. (Ed. = Edited by.)
Some of the required information is normally found on the copyright page.
If you are citing an article in a collection, some if the information you need will be on the title page, …
… some will be on the copyright page, …
… but the author of the article and the original source will be inside. Works by several other critics will usually be grouped under one heading. If you use more than one, be sure to cite them separately.
(Not all databases have this feature. The source record is sometimes called a “detailed record.”)
Explain here that collections often include many critical works under one entry. Students must be careful to cite the original author.
Record (1) author of article, (2) title of article, (3) title of web site, (4) sponsor of web site = The New York Times Company (not displayed), (5) update date, (6) medium (= “Web.”), and (7) date of access. (The URL is not needed for the Works Cited page and often change. This title and article was changed by the next day.)
For a work with no named author, begin the Works Cited entry with the title.
[Note the layout of the Works Cited page. Discuss the header, the title, hanging indent, and order of entries. If time permits, show students how to apply “hanging indent.”]
