MLA Style A Guide to Citing Sources First things first: What is a citation? MLA citation style Why you need to cite your sources How to cite your sources Works Cited list Parenthetical citations

First things first: What is a citation? A citation is a reference to a source used in a research project. Whenever you use another person’s ideas or words in a research paper, you must cite, or give credit, to that person. That’s called citing your source. Hughes, Langston. The Big Sea, An Autobiography. New York: Hill and Wang, 1963.

MLA citation style Citations must be accurate and standard so that anyone who reads your research can easily find the information you used. MLA style is a standard way of citing sources. Every researcher does it the same way. This means each source you use should be formatted in a specific way. MLA style was developed by the Modern Language Association.

Why you need to cite your sources so readers of your research can find out more about the topic to show that you understand your topic & really researched it to avoid plagiarism and give credit to the original author and source There are three important reasons to cite your sources.

Why you need to cite your sources Citations help you remember where you got your information. You can return to a source for more information or to clarify facts. Citations help your readers locate information when they want to do more research.

Why you need to cite your sources They also show that other people support what you’ve written about your topic. Citations show that your research was careful and thorough.

Why you need to cite your sources Citations give credit to people whose ideas you use. Plagiarism is using someone else’s ideas or knowledge without giving that person credit. Avoid plagiarism by giving people credit for their ideas and their words.

1.At the end of your paper, add a Works Cited list. Use two ways to cite your sources. How to cite your sources 1.Within the paper, use parenthetical citations.

How to cite your sources A Works Cited list is a list of all the sources you used in your research paper. Here are some entries for part of a Works Cited list. Hughes, Langston. The Big Sea, An Autobiography. New York: Hill and Wang, Philipson, Robert. “The Harlem Renaissance As Postcolonial Phenomenon.” African American Review 1 Sept. 2006:

Hughes, Langston. The Big Sea, An Autobiography. New York: Hill and Wang, Author’s last name, Author’s first name. Book Title. City of publication: Publisher’s name, year of publication. Works Cited list Books Here is the basic format for a book entry in a Works Cited list. Hughes, Langston. The Big Sea, An Autobiography. New York: Hill and Wang, Hughes, Langston. The Big Sea, An Autobiography. New York: Hill and Wang, 1963.

Periodicals are publications that are published regularly, or periodically, such as newspapers, magazines, and journals. Works Cited list Periodicals

Philipson, Robert. “The Harlem Renaissance As Postcolonial Phenomenon.” African American Review 1 Sept. 2006: Author’s last name, Author’s first name. “Article Title.” Magazine Name day Month year: page number(s). Here’s the basic format for a magazine article entry for the Works Cited list. Philipson, Robert. “The Harlem Renaissance As Postcolonial Phenomenon.” African American Review 1 Sept. 2006: Author’s last name, Author’s first name. “Article Title.” Magazine Name day Month year: page number(s). Works Cited list Periodicals Author’s last name, Author’s first name. “Article Title.” Magazine Name day Month year: page number(s). Philipson, Robert. “The Harlem Renaissance As Postcolonial Phenomenon.” African American Review 1 Sept. 2006: Author’s last name, Author’s first name. “Article Title.” Magazine Name day Month year: page number(s). Philipson, Robert. “The Harlem Renaissance As Postcolonial Phenomenon.” African American Review 1 Sept. 2006: Philipson, Robert. “The Harlem Renaissance As Postcolonial Phenomenon.” African American Review 1 Sept. 2006: Author’s last name, Author’s first name. “Article Title.” Magazine Name day Month year: page number(s).

Works Cited list Citing nonprint sources There are many other kinds of sources besides books and magazines. You might use TV programs, DVDs, CDs, or Websites. Websites can be very useful as source material, but you must cite them properly.

“Faces of the Renaissance.” Drop Me Off in Harlem. 20 March The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. 20 Nov Here’s the basic format for a Web site entry for the Works Cited list. Author’s last name, Author’s first name (if known). “Document Title.” Title of Web Site. day Month year of publication (or last update). Name of Sponsoring Institution. day Month year of access. Works Cited list Citing nonprint sources: Website “Faces of the Renaissance.” Drop Me Off in Harlem. 20 March The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. 20 Nov Author’s last name, Author’s first name (if known). “Document Title.” Title of Web Site. day Month year of publication (or last update). Name of Sponsoring Institution. day Month year of access.

Works Cited list Sources are put in the Works Cited list in alphabetical order, double- spaced, and indented one-half inch. Here is an excerpt from a final Works Cited page. Works Cited Hughes, Langston. The Big Sea, An Autobiography. New York: Hill and Wang, Philipson, Robert. “The Harlem Renaissance As Postcolonial Phenomenon.” African American Review 1 Sept. 2006:

Listing all your sources in the Works Cited list is an important part of your research paper. Parenthetical citations In the body of your paper, you also need to tell exactly where you found any information that came from other sources. You do that using a parenthetical citation.

Parenthetical citations A parenthetical citation appears in the body of your paper wherever you use another person’s ideas, facts, or words. A parenthetical citation always refers to a source in your Works Cited list.

Parenthetical citations To create a parenthetical citation, give the author’s last name and the page number(s) from the source. Put this information in parentheses at the end of the sentence, before the final punctuation. He sat listening to long, beautiful stories about freedom from his proud grandmother; and in her stories, there were no tears (Hughes 32). Hughes, Langston. The Big Sea, An Autobiography. New York: Hill and Wang, Readers can now find complete information about the source in your Works Cited list. He sat listening to long, beautiful stories about freedom from his proud grandmother; and in her stories, there were no tears (Hughes 32). Hughes, Langston. The Big Sea, An Autobiography. New York: Hill and Wang, 1963.

Parenthetical citations According to Hughes, he often listened to long, beautiful stories from his proud grandmother; in her stories, there were no tears (32). If the author’s name appears in the sentence, you need to cite only the page number(s) in parentheses. For sources without page numbers, like most Web sites, you should include the author’s name or the title of the source within the text instead of using parentheses. According to the Web page “Faces of the Renaissance” the years of the Harlem Renaissance were the years 1917 to According to Hughes, he often listened to long, beautiful stories from his proud grandmother; in her stories, there were no tears (32). According to the webpage “Faces of the Renaissance,” the years of the Harlem Renaissance were the years 1917 to 1935.

Your Turn All the examples in this presentation can be found in the MLA Works Cited List Example, which is part of the Student Handouts for the MLA/APA Styles feature. The handouts Your Turn: Create MLA Source Citations and Your Turn: Create MLA Parenthetical Citations also provide opportunities to practice creating sources and parenthetical citations.

The End