MLA Citations

Why do you need to know about this? Improper citations can lead to plagiarism and will be considered plagiarism in your continuing education. In college, no one will take the time to instruct you on how to use in-text citations. They will make you buy a Bedford Handbook and say, “Figure it out.”

Bottom Line You must give credit to the thinker or speaker of information you use. This needs to occur within the exact borrowed sentence, not at the end of that whole paragraph. Credit is always the creator (author, organization, title) and location (page number or section title) WHEN provided. Without both pieces, you have an incomplete citation

If you know the author of a print source… As demonstrated through college academics, “[o]ne hundred percent of all Berkley High School students go on to be wildly successful” (Ferrara 73). Name of author, one space, page number, no comma Period comes after the parentheses We can cite the page number because we know this is a print source (book).

If you know the author of a print source… In-text Example: Human beings have been described by Kenneth Burke as "symbol-using animals" (3). Human beings have been described as "symbol-using animals" (Burke 3). Corresponding Works Cited entry: Burke, Kenneth. Language as Symbolic Action: Essays on Life, Literature, and Method. Berkeley: U of California P, Print. We can cite the page number above because we know this is a print source (book).

If you know the author of a print source… In-text Example: Wordsworth stated that Romantic poetry was marked by a "spontaneous overflow of powerful feelings" (263). Romantic poetry is characterized by the "spontaneous overflow of powerful feelings" (Wordsworth 263). Wordsworth extensively explored the role of emotion in the creative process (263). Corresponding Works Cited entry: Wordsworth, William. Lyrical Ballads. London: Oxford U.P., Print. We can cite the page number above because we know this is a print source (book). Notice that since the author’s last name was provided in the sentence, it is not repeated in the citation.

If you know the authors of a print source… The authors state, "Tighter gun control in the United States erodes Second Amendment rights" (Smith, Yang, and Moore 76). For multiple authors: –List authors –separate the authors by comma –use “and,” provide page number with NO COMMA We can cite the page number because we know this is a print source (book).

If you don’t know the author of a print source… Your in-text citation should use a shortened version of the title of the article and the page number OR the name of the organization and the page number IF PROVIDED. There is one space between the title (or organization) and the page number. The period goes after the parentheses.

Online sources with section titles If you are citing a website that has an author or publishing organization AND section titles, your citation will look like this: (author’s last name, “Section Title”) (Smith, “Introduction to Sex Trafficking”) (CNN, “Outbreak of AIDS in Syria”) (OXFAM, “Famine in Sierra Leone”) Organization Name Section Title Yes, there is a comma here! Citing the section title earns a comma.

Online sources with section titles If you have mentioned the author or publishing organization in your signal phrase (stay tuned…), you would NOT repeat the name in the citation. (“Introduction to Sex Trafficking”)

This is an example of a section title. The citation for this would be: (Shah, “Climate Change and Global Warming Introduction”)

If you don’t know the author on a website… If you are using a website where there is no known author, make sure you cite using the first thing that appears in the works cited list which should be either the organization or title of article. If you don’t have a page number (because it’s a website), your SIGNAL PHRASE establishes the author and title of the article. You indicate the end of your borrowed material with a SOURCE- REFLECTIVE PHRASE

Signal Phrase – USE FOR ANY SOURCE If you are quoting someone, we need to know why we should listen to him/her. Tell us his/her credentials and background so we know he/she is a credible voice. After graduation from Harvard Medical School, Edward Dean spent ten years living in Haiti working as a general physician. Dean believes that the key to improving health care is improving the education system. Dean states, “You can’t import doctors for a number of different reasons…” (Parkins 64). This is the signal phrase! We can cite the page number because we know this is a print source (book).

Signal Phrase for a print source Asne Seierstad, author of The Bookseller of Kabul, spent three years living with the Khan family in Kabul. Regarding the treatment of women, Seierstad observed,“………” (43).

Signal Phrase If your research is longer than one sentence and is all from the same source, introduce the source by credentials before you start. Then finish with the source-reflective statement (stay tuned…!).

Signal Phrase A signal phrase is also use to explain how data has been collected in a study. “Dr. Otto Schaefer spent 30 years working in the wilderness of the Canadian Far North. He lived with a group of Inuits who, within a single generation, changed their Dr. Schaefer reported that once starch and refined sugars were introduced into the Inuit diet…”

If you don’t know the author of a online source… In-text Example: In an article entitled “Impact of Global Warming in North America” compiled by Global Warming Inc., the authors cite numerous sources of research about the impact global warming is currently having in North America. The North American region has “more readily accessible climatic data and more comprehensive programs to monitor and study environmental change...” [ INSERT SOURCE-REFLECTIVE STATEMENT] Corresponding Works Cited Entry: “The Impact of Global Warming in North America.” GLOBAL WARMING: Early Signs Web. 23 Mar Signal Phrase! Check out this quote integra- tion!

Source-Reflective Statement A statement that shows the end of the cited material and the beginning of your analysis. Use this INSTEAD OF a parenthetical citation WHEN NO PAGE NUMBER OR SECTION TITLE IS PROVIDED. For print sources, you do NOT use a source- reflective statements. They are only used for online sources where no page number is provided.

Source-Reflective Statement Dr. Loren Cordain, author of The Paleo Diet, an online blog, explains that by avoiding sugar, processed fats, dairy, grains, and starchy vegetables, individuals can reduce their risk of weight gain, heart disease, diabetes, and other diseases. Within her blog entry, Cordain promotes a healthy and pure diet to solve the problems of American obesity. Notice your signal phrase! This is a para- phrase of the research. This is your source- reflective statement. Your analysis comes AFTER this point.

Let’s Recap … Print source – give author and page number –Signal phrase for author’s name and page number in parenthetical citation Online source –Option 1: Give author in signal phrase and section title in parenthetical citation –Option 2 (only if no section title is given): Give author in signal phrase and source-reflective statement INSTEAD of a citation

Works Cited (format) Gleick, James. Chaos: Making a New Science. New York: Penguin, Print. Gillespie, Paula, and Neal Lerner. The Allyn and Bacon Guide to Peer Tutoring. Boston: Allyn, Print. Palmer, William J. Dickens and New Historicism. New York: St. Martin's, Print. Alphabetical order No numbers or bullet points Indent everything beyond first line All double spaced, no return between lines Every entry you cite in your paper MUST be on your Works Cited Every entry on your Works Cited MUST have been cited in your essay