MLA (Modern Language Association)

Citation and Format Style Guide

This guide provides examples of citations you might use in research papers following the MLA standard. It is an interpretation of MLA standard for citing resources. For precise MLA guidelines, see MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers by Joseph Gibaldi, sixth edition (LB2369.G53 2003 Ref.). You may also want to consult A Pocket Style Manual by Diana Hacker, second edition (PE1408.H26 1997 Ref.). Both of these books are shelved at the Reference Desk.

Examples for Quick Reference

Book:
Mortimer, Kenneth P. and T.R. McConnell.  Sharing Authority Effectively: Participation,

         Interaction, and Discretion.  San Francisco: Jossey-Bass Publishers, 1978.

Journal Article:
Meyers, Jeffrey.  "Bogie in Africa."  American Scholar 66 (1997): 237-50.

Website:
Site, AuthorOf.  Title Of Site.  2 Feb. 2000. (Date you last accessed the site.)  .

In-Text Citation Format:
(Mortimer and McConnell 103).

*NOTE: these are examples of citations that are most frequently used; however, MLA contains many different conditions and nuances for in-text citations and the reference list. If your citation does not fit the examples below (i.e. encyclopedia, magazine, etc.), see the more extensive MLA Guide or consult the MLA handbook.

Paper Format and Reference List

A paper written according to MLA style will document outside sources in at least two ways: (1) a parenthetical reference in the text and (2) inclusion in a list of Works Cited. Occasionally, additional documentation will occur in endnotes or footnotes.

The list of Works Cited appears at the end of the paper and is an alphabetical list (by author's or editor's last name) of all the sources that are cited within the text of the paper. If the work has no author or editor, then include it in the alphabetical list by the first key word in the title. Your Works Cited list should begin on a new page after the last page of text, and the title "Works Cited" should be centered at the top of the page.