MLA Style of Documentation Avoiding Plagiarism

Three reasons you must document your sources… *To discourage circulation of errors by providing your sources so your reader can decide for himself the authority of your information *To acknowledge earlier contributions to the research and give proper credit *To avoid plagiarism of another’s words or ideas

Citations – Why Bother? Shows amount of research you've done Strengthens and supports your own ideas Differentiates your original ideas and work from others Allows reader to trace ideas and quotes back to original source for follow up Protects your reputation Consistency

Plagiarism  Definition: Using others’ ideas & words without clearly acknowledging the source of that information. Why do we care? It’s ethical It’s the law Intellectual theft/artistic & intellectual ownership People need to be able to trace your research

How to Avoid Plagiarism? To avoid plagiarism, you must give credit whenever you use: Another person’s ideas, opinion or theory Any facts, statistics, graphs, drawings, photographs Any pieces of information that are not common knowledge Quotations of another person’s actual spoken or written words Paraphrase of another person’s spoken or written words

Parenthetical documentation ( ) acknowledges the source where you found the information for your research paper (last name and page number in parentheses) so that the reader can go to the works cited page and find the complete information about your source (author, title etc.) in case he wants to read the original source for himself.

Parenthetical/In-text Citation There are no commas and no p. or pg. or pp in a parenthetical reference. Only include the author’s last name and the page number. If the quote is at the end of a sentence, the period follows the reference in parentheses. “My name is Liz” (Minnerly 24).

MLA Style In MLA style, you acknowledge your sources by keying brief parenthetical citations in your text to an alphabetical list of works that appears at the end of the paper. Example in your paper: Ancient writers attributed the invention of the monochord to Pythagoras, who lived in the sixth century BC (Marcuse 197). In your Works Cited list: Marcuse, Sibyl. A Survey of Musical Instruments. New York: Harper, 1975.

Direct Quotations Use parenthetical references to show information obtained from other sources Put the author’s name and the page number after the reference – After receiving an editorial comment about ending a sentence with a preposition, Winston Churchill was reported to have said, “This is the sort of pedantry up with which I will not put” (Halle 166). Author & page #

Paraphrasing Information Paraphrasing information is usually preferable to quoting – Much of the deterioration of the Titanic is caused by visitors (Ballard 108). – Ballard argues that much of the deterioration of the Titanic is caused by visitors (108). Author and page number List only the page number if the author’s name has been given

Common Knowledge Information that could be found in a number of sources does not require a reference – The Titanic struck an iceberg and sank in No reference needed

Referencing within your paper MLA Style uses: Single author named in parentheses with page – (Jones 212) Single author named in a phrase – According to Jones, citing sources will help readers find materials in the future (212). Works with 4 or more authors – (Jones et al., 212)

No author? Use abbreviated title Full Title: Group Protests Stem Cell Research In text citation should lead use to your reference: (“Group Protests” 2)

If the same author is cited more than once on a row, state the author’s name only the first time. The next quotes have to end with (ibid, and the page #) Example: “change the possibilities of the art for practitioners and readers” (Leavis 2) “Jane Austen plots, and her novels in general, were put together very deliberately” (Ibid 7)

No page numbers? If web site & no page or section numbering, don’t use one If it includes fixed page numbers or section numbering such as numbered paragraphs, use those (Moulthrop, pars ).

Sample Signal Phrases As Joe Smith says, … (12). ….as demonstrated by Rider (202). …according to Carter (22-23). As Kaplansky et al. assert … (2212). Cartwright indicates that… (88). Smith implies… Jeffrey Fox reports… (A1). Researchers found… (9) Numbers represent page(s). No need to cite last name if you have within your sentence.

In-text reference to a paraphrase 1. A green fluorescent protein from jellyfish has been found to successfully combine with genes of many different organisms (Manning 2). 2. According to a Bioscience article by Manning, a green fluorescent protein from jellyfish has been found to successfully combine with genes of many different organisms (2).

Quoting a Quote Samuel Johnson admitted that Edmund Burke was an “extraordinary man” (qtd. in Boswell 2: 450). The in-text quotation reference has to appear more detailed in the bibliography as in the following manner: Work Cited Boswell, James. The Life of Johnson. Ed. George Birkbeck Hill and L. F. Powell. 6 vols. Oxford: Clarendon, Volume of book

How much is too much? Use quoted material sparingly Use only to support what you have written in your own words More than 4 lines? Indent the entire section David becomes identified and defined by James Steerforth, a young man with whom David is acquainted from his days at Salem House. Before meeting Steerforth, David accepts Steerforth’s name as an authoritative power: There was an old door in this playground, on which the boys had a custom of carving their names.... In my dread of the end of the vacation and their coming back, I could not read a boy’s name, without inquiring in what tone and with what emphasis he would read, “Take care of him. He bites.” There was one boy—a certain J. Steerforth—who cut his name very deep and very often, who I conceived, would read it in a rather strong voice, and afterwards pull my hair. (Dickens 68) For Steerforth, naming becomes an act of possession, as well as exploitation. Steerforth names David for his fresh look and innocence, but also uses the name Daisy to exploit David's romantic tendencies (Dyson 122).

What is a Works Cited page? Last page of your research paper Alphabetically arranged Double-spaced List of resources quoted or paraphrased in your paper

The correct order for the basic components of an MLA citation of a book is: 1. Author (last name first, first name) 2. Title of the Book (underlined) 3. The place of publication 4. The publisher 5. The copyright or publication date

It should look like this: Author (last name first). Title of the Book. Place of Publication: Publisher, Year. Example: Adams, Douglas. The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy. New York: Harmony, 1989.

Sample Entry for a Book Halle, Kay. The Irrepressible Churchill: Stories, Sayings and Impressions of Sir Winston Churchill. London: Robson, Author Title and subtitle Publication Date City where published Publishing Company

Sample Journal Article Entry Ballard, Robert D. “Why is Titanic Vanishing?” National Geographic (2004): Author Article Title between quotation marks Journal Title Date Pages Volume # and Issue #

Sample Web Page Entry “Odour-control Tax Credit In Place,” 15 Dec Province of Manitoba. 18 Dec html Guffey, Mary Ellen. 22-Jun guffey/students.htmlhttp:// guffey/students.html Title of the work Publication Date Name of the Web Page Access Date URL

CD-ROM Citations Periodical CD-ROM databases – Gilliland, Steve. “Keeping Track of your Time.” Computer Shopper. Jan. 1994:486 Magazine Article Summary. Computer Select CD-ROM. Aug. 1994, item

Sample Work Cited Page Works Cited Dickens, Charles. Bleak House New York: Penguin, David Copperfield New York: Houghton Mifflin, Miller, J. Hillis. Charles Dickens: The World and His Novels. Bloomington: U of Indiana P, Zwerdling, Alex. “Esther Summerson Rehabilitated.” PMLA 88 (May 1973):