Mrs. Prince s Guide to Formatting What is MLA Style?* MLA stands for the Modern Language Association. Every few years, this group creates a standardized way to set up specific types of papers (Humanities). In college, you will be exposed to a plethora of citation styles, but our goal for this class is to teach you how to follow one. As you set up your paper in MLA style, it s important that you follow their rules for the following pieces of your paper: Formatting and page layout Stylistic technicalities (e.g. abbreviations, footnotes, quotations) Citing sources (through both in-text citations and a works cited page) General Guidelines* Example of what your paper should look like below; list of essential elements are on the following page.
General Guidelines* 1. Do not refer to an author only by their first name. Always use their last name or their first and last name together. 2. Do not make a separate title page, unless your teacher specifically requests it 3. Double-space your paper and use 12 pt. Times New Roman font 4. The margins of your paper should be 1 on all sides 5. Indent the first line of paragraphs one half-inch from the left margin (Press tab key) 6. In the upper left-hand corner of the first page, list your name, your teacher's name, the class, and the date. Be sure to double-space this section. 7. Underline or use italics throughout your essay for the titles of longer works (long plays or full length books) 8. Put quotation marks around the titles of shorter works (short stories, poems, articles, or one-act plays) 9. You must cite any texts that you paraphrase or quote. If an idea you are using in your paper is not your original thought and it isn t common knowledge, You must cite it using both in-text citations and your works cited page. Failing to do so is considered plagiarism (even if it is accidental). In-Text Citations (Also known as parenthetical notations): 1. Whenever you quote a book or article, you must include the author s name and page number in parentheses after the quotation. It is clear that increased participation in class will lead to higher grades (Smith 34). 2. Do not put a comma between the name and number in parentheses. 3. If you have used the author s name in the sentence, there is no need to include it in the parentheses. Smith points out that increased participation in class will lead to higher grades (34). 4. When quoting poetry, you must include the line number being quoted. We see the poet s anguish when he asks What passing bells for these who die as cattle? (Owen 1). 5. When quoting a play, you must include the act, scene and line number being quoted. Polonius s assertion that if you are true to yourself, then Thou canst not then be false to any man (1.3.81) is good advice. 6. If you have found an article online with no author, put the title where you would have put the author s last name. According to an article in the Times, lack of sleep results in decreased focus ( Sleep 13). 7. If you are dealing with an online source that doesn t have an author or page numbers, use the title but not the page number. According to an article in the Times, lack of sleep results in decreased focus ( Sleep ).
Works Cited Page: At the end of your essay you must include a Works Cited Page, documenting your sources. Title this page as Works Cited, and write it in the center, at the top of the page. Your works cited should be listed alphabetically. You may use a citation maker machine to make your works cited page. I would recommend using www.easybib.com You may also use the chart below to help you cite your sources: For more detailed notes, refer to the Online Writing Lab (OWL) at Purdue University: https://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/747/22/
Quoting from Poems* When you write about a poem or refer to a poem in a literary response journal or an essay, you will frequently need to quote from it. Below are some rules to follow when you quote the words or title of a poem. Examples given in the rules are taken from the poem by William Stafford on the back of this page. Rule 1: Whenever you mention the title of a poem, put quotation marks around it. In Fifteen, William Stafford uses the accidental discovery of an abandoned motorcycle to show the speaker caught between childhood and adulthood. Rule 2: Whenever you quote a word or phrase that appears in the poem, put quotation marks around it and INTEGRATE the quoted material within your own sentence. The boy describes the motorcycle as if it were alive, calling it his companion, ready and friendly. Rule 3: Whenever you quote a phrase that begins on one line but ends on the next, indicate where the first line stops by using A SLASH MARK. The speaker indulged/a forward feeling, a tremble as he is torn between mounting the motorcycle and riding away, or dutifully looking for its owner. Rule 4: Whenever you quote four or more lines, indent the passage from both margins, but do not use quotation marks. Cite such a long passage only if it is especially significant. Introduce the quotation, copy the lines EXACTLY as they are in the poem, and then explain the relevance of the citation afterwards. The speaker briefly indulges the childish fantasy of stealing the motorcycle and riding away. This moment, however, is truly a bridge between childhood and adulthood. Rather than daydream of freedom, he thinks about the situation and crosses over to responsibility. The speaker chooses to look for the owner, just coming to, where he had flipped over the rail. He had blood on his hand, was pale -- I helped him walk to his machine. He ran his hand over it, called me good man, roared away. This experience implies that being a grownup is dangerous, and perhaps even joyless. An adult, free to fulfill the speaker s fantasy, risks real dangers. Stunned and wounded, the owner acknowledges the speaker s maturity by calling him good man. Something magical has been lost, however, in the transformation. The motorcycle itself has changed from a companion to a lifeless machine.
Quoting Short Stories* When you write about a short story or refer to a short story in a literary response journal or an essay, you will frequently need to quote from it. Below are some rules to follow when you refer to the title of a story or quote words from it. All the examples given in the rules are taken from the short story Test by Theodore Thomas. RULE 1: Whenever you mention the title of a short story, put quotation marks around it. Robert Proctor, the protagonist in Test, by Theodore Thomas, fails his driving test because he doesn t understand the rules. RULE 2: Whenever you quote an uncommon word or a longer phrase that appears in the story, put quotation marks around it and INTEGRATE the quoted material within your own sentence. Robert s compassionate nature is revealed in his concern for what might have happened to the sleeping girl. He knows that, had the accident been real, she would have passed unknowingly into the dark, heavy sleep of death. RULE 3: Whenever you quote a phrase that uses only part of a longer sentence, indicate where words have been omitted by using AN ELLIPSIS ( ) One of the most startling images in the story occurs in the last paragraph when the two men drag Robert Proctor out the door his rubber heels sliding along the two grooves worn into the floor. RULE 4: Whenever you quote two or more whole lines from the story, do not use quotation marks unless they enclose dialogue. Instead, write the lines from the story on separate, indented lines within your paragraph. When several lines are cited, they should be especially significant. You should set up the quote by introducing it and justify such a long quote by explaining its importance afterwards saying goodbye ). The theme of the story is revealed in the final interchange between Robert and the uniformed man. Robert says, You can t really mean this, I m still dreaming aren t I? This is still part of the test isn t it? The uniformed man said, How do any of us know? The author is saying that we never know when a seemingly simple action, like driving down a freeway, will have serious consequences. Our ability to make wise decisions may be tested at any time.