MLA Citation
Common Core CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.CCRA.W.8 Gather relevant information from multiple print and digital sources, assess the credibility and accuracy of each source, and integrate the information while avoiding plagiarism.
Essential Questions Why does citing sources matter? What does citing sources offer to readers? How should correctly cited sources look?
Popular Methods for Citation MLA (Modern Language Association) Used in literary studies APA Used in psychology Chicago Used in history
Two Components for MLA Citations In-Text Citations Inside the paper aka parenthetical citations End-Text Citations At the end of the paper aka Work(s) Cited page
Various Types of Sources to Cite Books Magazines Newspapers Multivolume Works Online Periodicals Documentaries Scholarly Journals Charts/Graphs Interviews Almanacs Internet sites Encyclopedias Lectures Films
Information that Doesn t Require Citations Proverb, sayings, clichés A friend in need is a friend indeed. Give credit where credit is due. Well-known quotations To be or not to be. That is the question. Common knowledge that s not debatable. The sky is blue. Shakespeare wrote Hamlet. Your own field research.
MLA Works Cited Popular Entries Four of the most common source types: Books Magazines/Journals Articles (Print) Magazines/Journals Articles (Library Web Database) Websites
Nine Components to Note There are nine core elements to universally apply to any source material you want to cite. These core elements are the items you will look for when preparing to cite your sources. Depending on the type of source you have, you may or may not use all these components when building your Works Cited page. You ll look at your source and decide What is my source, and what are its common, key features?
Nine Components to Note <<<<< Punctuation matters and info for entries appears in this order.
Unpacking the Nine Components Author = Who wrote it? Title of Source = Name of article, book, documentary, etc. Title of Container = Containers are the elements that hold the source. For example, if a television episode is watched on Netflix, Netflix is the container. Both the title of the episode (container #1) and its container (Netflix) are included in a citation. If a source is found in a magazine, that magazine is its container.
Unpacking the Nine Components Other contributors = translators, editors, etc. Version = Volume Number = Number Publisher = Company that published the source. Publication Date = Date a source is originally published/copyrighted. Location = For online sources, the location is the URL. If the source was found in an electronic database, that information is included as part of the location. Page numbers for print sources will need to be included here.
MLA Works Cited Entry Formulas Book Example Citation Formula: Last name, First name. Title of Source. Publisher, Date of Publication. *A book is its own container.
MLA Works Cited Entry Formulas Book Example: Bronte, Charlotte. Jane Eyre. Signet Classics, 2008.
MLA Works Cited Entry Formulas Print Magazine/Journal Article Formula: Last name, First name. Title of Source/Article. Title of Container (Magazine or Newspaper), vol #, no #, Day Month Year, Page numbers.
MLA Works Cited Entry Formulas Print Magazine/Journal Article Example: Powell, Frances. Lady Diana: The People s Princess. Newsweek, 20 November 1995, pp. 25-28. *This source did not have a volume or number. * Note pp. used for multiple pages.
MLA Works Cited Entry Formulas Web Database Magazine/Journal Article Formula: Last name, First name. Title of Source/Article. Container (Title of Journal), vol, no, year, page(s), Online Database Name, Location (URL).
MLA Works Cited Entry Formulas Web Database Magazine/Journal Article Example: Reese, Patty. Christianity in America. The Christian Journal, vol.6, no. 2, 2009, pp. 1+, Academic, Expanded www.thechristainjournal.com/chrsitianityi namerica.
MLA Works Cited Entry Formulas Website Formula: Last name, First name. Title of Source/Article. Title of Container. Day Month Year of Publication. Location.
MLA Works Cited Entry Formulas Website Example: Smith, Beth. Something Rotten in the Big Apple. NewYorkNews.com, 17 June 2002, www.newyorknews.com/somethingisrotten.
MLA Works Cited Entry Formulas Multiple Containers: Sometimes the source you re citing might have two containers. For example, if an article is found on a database, the first container is the name of the larger whole, such as a journal. The second container is the database where you found the article. Another example might be a television series you watched on Netflix. The first container is the name of the series, and the second container is Netflix.
MLA Works Cited Entry Formulas Multiple Containers: For sources with multiple containers, follow this template: 1. Author. 2. Title of source. Container 1 3. Title of Container, 4. Other contributors, The full citation for a source with multiple containers might look like this: Ellingsen, Eric. In the Listening: The Gold Waxes. World Literature Today, vol. 89, no. 1, 2015, pp. 30-32. JSTOR, doi:10.7588/worllitetoda.89.1.0030. 5. Version, 6. Number, 7. Publisher, 8. Publication date, 9. Location. Container 2 3. Title of container, 4. Other contributors, 5. Version, 6. Number, 7. Publisher, 8. Publication date, 9. Location.
Building the MLA Works Cited Page Continue page numbering with last name from the body of your paper. It goes after the paper. Center the title Works Cited, one inch from the top. No quote marks or underlining. Alphabetize entries by the author s last name. If no author, alphabetize by the title (do not ignore A, An, The). Use hanging indent. Double space.
Building the MLA Works Cited Page Q: What if I don t have all nine components? A: Just use what you have.
MLA Works Cited Page Overview
MLA In-Text Citations Formulas References in your paper must clearly point to specific sources in your list of Works Cited. IF IT S IN THE PAPER, IT GOES ON THE WORKS CITED PAGE. IF IT S ON THE WORKS CITED PAGE IT GOES IN THE PAPER.
MLA In-Text Citations Formulas Formula: In print sources (and sources from the web and databases), providing the author s last name and the page number is most preferred. Example: Medieval Europe was a place both of raids, pillages, slavery, and extortion and of traveling merchants, monetary exchange, towns if not cities, and active markets in grain (Townsend 10).
MLA In-Text Citations Formulas Formula: In web sources, providing the author s last name is still the first choice. Special Other Considerations: Since many web sources do not have page numbers, use the abbreviations par. for the paragraph number. Do not use page numbers assigned by the printer. Sources that are PDF files have page numbers that are stable/fixed and authentic/original and should be included in the parenthetical reference.
MLA In-Text Citations Formulas Formula: In web sources providing the author s last name and the paragraph number is preferred. Example: Medieval Europe was a place both of raids, pillages, slavery, and extortion and of traveling merchants, monetary exchange, towns if not cities, and active markets in grain (Townsend par. 10).
MLA In-Text Citations Formulas Formula: If no author is listed (no matter the type of source), use the title of the article (shortened if longer than 5 words). Example: Medieval Europe was a place both of raids, pillages, slavery, and extortion and of traveling merchants, monetary exchange, towns if not cities, and active markets in grain ( A History of the Middle Ages 10).
MLA In-Text Citations Formulas Formula: The author s name can be referred to within the sentence and as a result not be mentioned in the parenthetical citation. Example: According to Mike Townsend, Medieval Europe was a place both of raids, pillages, slavery, and extortion and of traveling merchants, monetary exchange, towns if not cities, and active markets in grain (10).
MLA In-Text Citations Specs If using the title, remember to use correct punctuation: italicize book titles, use quotation marks for journal articles, short stories, book chapters, etc. Periods go after the parenthesis. Whatever is in the first space of the works cited, end-text citation goes in the parenthetical citation. They are a matching pair.
MLA Body Paragraph Example Laham, Nick. Strike Out. Current Events, 2 March 2002, p. 7. Rules for Election to the Hall of Fame. The National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum, 2009, First, steroid users should be banned from the baseball Hall of Fame because they are role models for so many young athletes. The http://baseballhall.org/hall-of-famers/bbwaarules-for-election. Hall of Fame is considered to be a place where the best of the best are displayed. Many families visit Hall of Fame museums and see all the people who were inducted due to their excellence in a player s record, playing ability, integrity, sportsmanship, character, and contributions ( Rules for Election to the Hall of Fame par. 2). Young athletes look up to players like Mark McGwire and Sammy Sosa because they were breaking records in baseball and making the news. Imagine how crushing it was for these little leaguers to find out their favorite batter was juiced up with illegal steroids. If they get in the Hall of Fame, then that might give the wrong idea to the young athletes who look up to them. It might suggest that cheating is rewarded. After he was found guilty of using steroids, A- Rod admitted that he was sorry for his mistake and that he hope[s] kids would not make the same mistake that he did (Laham 7). Allowing substance-abusing athletes to remain in the Hall of Fame or to be inducted after they have admitted guilt might only unfortunately positively reinforce their crimes.
MLA Guided Practice 1) Write a Work Cited entry for the following source. Author: James Debrie Title: Days of Thunder City: Boston Publisher: Verizon, Inc. Date: 2004
MLA Guided Practice 1) Does yours look like this? Debrie, James. Days of Thunder. Verizon, Inc., 2004.
MLA Guided Practice 2) Write a Work Cited entry for the following source. Author: Annalyse Burton Title of Article: Mark Twain: The Satirist Title of Container: The Literati Publication Date: July 19, 1999 Pages: 125, 127, 128, 129 Electronic Database: OneFile Location: www.theliterati.com/marktwain Access Date: April 27, 2011
MLA Guided Practice 2) Does yours look like this? Burton, Annalyse. Mark Twain: The Satirist. The Literati, 19 July 1999, vol. 125, pp. 127-29, OneFile. www.theliterati.com/marktwain.
MLA Guided Practice 3) You incorporated this quote from Paul Mariani s book Dream Song: The Life of John Berryman from page 273 in your research. Finish the parenthetical citation. Researchers have documented alcohol-related upheavals in John Berryman s life, including loss of friends, family, and a future in college.
MLA Guided Practice 3) Does your parenthetical citation look like this? According to biographer Paul Mariani, Researchers have documented alcohol-related upheavals in John Berryman s life, including loss of friends, family, and a future in college (273).
MLA Guided Practice 4) You wrote the following sentence using information from Family Therapy: A Systems Approach, which is an article on the website WebMD. You found it on April 12, 2014, and the copyright date is 2011. No author is available. Finish the parenthetical citation. Some researchers trace the causes of alcohol dependence to flawed family structures.
MLA Guided Practice 4) Does yours look like this? Some researchers trace the causes of alcohol dependence to flawed family structures ( Family Therapy: A Systems Approach par. 5).
Helpful Sources Purdue s OWL Website Harbrace Handbook MLA Handbook
MLA Closure Reflection Rate the following on a scale of 1-5 (5 being that you feel great!) and explain why. 1) My feelings about understanding the need for citing sources correctly. 2) My feelings about properly citing textual evidence in the body of the paper. 3) My feelings about creating works cited entries.
Researcher s Log for MLA Tip: While researching, be sure to locate the following information for all sources you plan to use in your paper. A good idea is to write a short summary of each source and how you plan to use it. Summary (or info from this source you want to cite): Author Source Container Other Contributors Version Number Publisher Publication Date Location
MLA End-Text Formatting Cheat Sheet Example Formulas Example Entries Book Formula: Last name, First name. Title of Source. Publisher, Date of Publication. Bronte, Charlotte. Jane Eyre. Signet Classics, 2008. Journal/Magazine in Print Formula: Last name, First name. Title of Source/Article. Title of Container (Magazine or Newspaper), Day Month Year, Page number(s). Web Database Magazine/Journal Article Formula: Last name, First name. Title of Source/Article. Title of Container (Journal), Vol.#, no.#, Year, page(s), Online Database Name, Location. Website Formula: Last name, First name. Title of Article. Title of Container, Day Month Year of Publication, URL. Powell, Frances. Lady Diana: The People s Princess. Newsweek, 20 November 1995, pp. 25-28. Reese, Patty. Christianity in America. The Christian Journal, vol.6, no. 2, 2009, pp. 1+, Expanded Academic, www.thechristainjournal.com/chrsitianityinamerica Smith, Beth. Something Rotten in the Big Apple. NewYorkNews.com, 17 June 2002, www.newyorknews.com/somethingisrotten. MLA style Formatting rules include: The list of Works Cited start on a new page at the end of your paper. Continue page numbering from the body of your paper. Center the title Works Cited, one inch from the top. Alphabetize entries by the author s last name. If no author, alphabetize by the title. Use hanging indent. If the source is on the works cited page, it must be used in the paper. 9 components
MLA Researcher s Rubric/Checklist If the source is on the works cited page, it must be used in the paper. The inside of the parenthesis must match the first of the Works Cited entry that it corresponds with. References in your paper must clearly point to specific sources in your list of Works Cited. In most cases, providing the author s last name and the page number is sufficient: Medieval Europe was a place both of raids, pillages, slavery, and extortion and of traveling merchants, monetary exchange, towns if not cities, and active markets in grain (Townsend 10). If you have several works by the same author, also include the title (abbreviated if long): (Frye, Double Vision 85). If no author is listed, use the title of the article (shortened if longer than 5 words): Cyberbullying is a direct result of increased access to technology ( The New Face of Bullying 17). If using the title, remember to use correct punctuation: italicize book titles, use quotation marks for journal articles, short stories, book chapters, etc. Periods go after the parenthesis. For a citation from a website with no specific page numbers, use the author s last name and paragraph number (Townsend par. 5). The author s name can be referred to within the sentence: Tannen has argued this point.. (178-85). or the author s name can be referred to within the parenthetical reference: This point has already been argued (Tannen 178-85). Whatever is in the first space of the works cited, end-text citation goes in the parenthetical citation.
MLA Rubric/Checklist Student Name: *Please note: This is an all or nothing checklist. If you do it right once, but not again, you will not get credit. Please check carefully and be consistent. Each component is worth 10 points. 1. Headers correct (last name and page # on all pages included Work Cited on top right aligned & MLA heading on first page) 2. If a source is present on the works cited page, it s present in the paper. EVERY SINGLE TIME. 3. Everything double spaced 4. The title on both the paper and Works Cited page is centered beneath the header above the first paragraph in regular font, not bold, not underlined, not larger, not quoted, etc. 5. Work(s) Cited page included as last page 6. Work(s) Cited entries are hanging indented 7. Work(s) Cited entries are in alphabetical order 8. periods after parenthesis for in-text citations and other punctuation in citations and titles correct 9. in-text citations have proper formatting based on the type of source 10. End-text citations are correct formatting based on the type of source Score:
MLA S BIG NINE