THE MLA Format A presentation for Student Support Services participants Troy University Troy, AL Yahoo image

OBJECTIVES Help prepare participants for English and World Literature writing assignments. Teach participants correct application of the Modern Language Association (MLA) format. Help students avoid research plagiarism.

NEW MLA GUIDELINES IMPORTANT NOTE: The MLA guidelines have changed. Please see the online writing lab at Purdue for these updates. Some of the information in this PPT is outdated. For help in generating various types of works cited entries, check out: a-citiation-generator/ a-citiation-generator/

How to Avoid Plagiarism Charges Identify direct quotes. Cite your sources of direct quotes Give credit to a source that expresses uncommon knowledge. Cite idea sources, (show intellectual integrity), even if you paraphrase what you have read/researched. Source: “Research Documentation.” 7 Apr. 2009

What is the MLA style? The Modern Language Association (MLA) Style is widely used for identifying research sources. With MLA style, you briefly credit sources with parenthetical citations in the text of your paper, and give the complete description of each source in your Works Cited list. The Works Cited list, or Bibliography, is a list of all the sources used in your paper, arranged alphabetically by author's last name, or when there is no author, by the first word of the title (except A, An or The). [ ] Source cited verbatim: MLA Citation Examples. Honolulu Community College Library. 20 Sept Apr 2009.

Cite All Sources interviews – identify type of interview (personal, phone, , broadcast) online sites – give the URL address chat room conversations radio or television programs. personal letters. speeches. books. journals (volume and issue) magazines (volume and issue) newspapers tape, video, or CD recordings electronic databases Learn to format Works Cited entries (later in presentation) for different types of sources. Source: “Research Documentation.” 7 Apr

Cite All Sources of Evidence Quotations (direct or paraphrased) Statistics/numerical or quantitative data Graphs/visual rhetoric/charts Pictures/ illustrations Ideas or hypotheses Stories Lists Videos

Basic MLA Page Format... Usually requires no title page. First page has at left margin... the paper author’s full name; instructor’s name; course number; and the date in military form. The title of the paper is centered on the first page. The paper has a running header flush at the right margin, which includes the paper author’s last name and the page number inserted. The last page is the Works Cited page. Source: “Research Documentation.” 7 Apr

o Paper size inches x 11 inches. o Page margins -- (1) inch on all sides. o Text -- double-spaced. o Parenthetical citation – follows any direct quotation and looks like this: (Jones 55) -- Author’s last name and page number. o Paragraph -- indent five (5) spaces from left margin. o Block quotes -- indent five (5) to ten (10) spaces from left margin. Basic MLA Page Format (cont) Source: Gibaldi, Joseph and Walter Achtert. MLA Handbook. 3 rd ed. New York: The Modern Language Association, 1988.

MLA Sample (Page 1) John Doe Dr. Smith English May 2006 Kate Chopin’s Antagonized Protagonists in “The Story of an Hour” In one of her best known short stories, Kate Chopin presents Louise Mallard, a woman who feels both blessed and... Use one-inch margins. Double space text. Do not put a header on page 1. Do not include a title page.

MLA Sample (after page 1) Doe 1 After hearing of the news that her husband is dead, Louise begins to behave in an unexpected manner. She begins to rejoice at a time when others in similar circumstances might begin to grieve. She declares her self to be “free,” (Chopin, 2) which to readers that Louise previously felt... Use one- inch margins. Include a header flush with right margin. Double space text.

Doe 1 Works Cited “Essay.” Webster’s II Dictionary. 3 rd. ed Hacker, Diane. A Pocket Style Manual. 4 th ed. Boston: Bedford/St. Martin’s, Be sure to consult the latest edition of the MLA Handbook for instructions on citing different types of sources. MLA Sample (Works Cited page) Indent five (5) spaces

DIRECT QUOTES

Presenting Direct Quotes What is a Direct Quote? Words, phrases or sentences copied exactly (verbatim) from a primary or secondary source and used as evidence or support for a position. A direct quote can be in the form of prose or poetic verse.

Presenting Quotes (cont) Quotations are effective in research papers when used selectively. Quote only vital parts. Refrain from overuse of quoted material. If you directly quote information, give credit to the source of the quote.

Directly Quoting Short Quotes Prose quotations four lines or fewer requires no special emphasis other than “quotation marks” and thereafter, cite the source of the quote in parenthesis (Money 1). Incorporate quotes four lines or fewer into the text of your paper / essay. Do not present an Isolated Quote (one without proper transitioning).

Directly Quoting Longer Quotes Prose quotations longer than four lines should be set off from your text as a Blocked Quote. See next slide for example.

Block Quotes Sample in MS Word Formatting a Block Quote in Microsoft Word. Indiana University SouthBend. 07 Apr < LEARN HOW Click on picture to the left. Right click to Open hyperlink. Click on SHOW ME at lockformat.sht ml lockformat.sht ml

Reminder: No Dumping Allowed “ Dumped” quotation SAMPLE Many people believe that the residents of homeless shelters are just lazy and unmotivated, but such a view is much too simplistic. “Most people who end up in homeless shelters are suffering from schizophrenia, clinical depression, or post traumatic stress syndrome” (196). TRANSITION Morgan Davis reports that “Most...”

Works Cited Entries Two or More Works by the Same Authors [5.6.3] When citing two or more sources by the same author, give the name in the first entry only. For the next entries, type three hyphens, add a period, and skip a space (---. ) then give the title. The three hyphens stand for the name(s) in the preceding entry. SAMPLE Scott, Susan. Exploring Hanauma Bay. Honolulu: U of Hawaii P, Plants and Animals of Hawaii. Honolulu: Bess Press, Source: MLA Citation Examples. Honolul Community College Library. 07 Apr. 2009

Websites Author, if available. Title of the Site. Editor /(if available). Date and/or Version Number. Name of Sponsoring Institution. Date of Access. Encyclopedia Mythica Web. 13 May 2004.

Videos Title. Director, Producer, and/or Writer. Medium. Distributor, Year.

Interviews Name of Person Interviewed. Type of Interview (personal, telephone, , etc.). Date. Example: Clinton, Bill. Interview with Larry King. Larry King Live. CNN. 24 June 2004.

Online Periodicals (e-zines) Author. "Title of Article." Title of Publication publication date: Page(s) or Section(s) Type of source (web or print). Date retrieved. Example: Gundy, Jess. "The Complexities of Use of Force." Law and Order Dec Web. 13 May 2004.

Magazine and Journal (database) Author. "Title of Article." Title of Magazine Date: Page(s). Name of Database. Gale Group Databases. Honolulu Community Coll. Lib., HI. Date of Access. Author. "Title of Article." Title of Journal Volume number (Year): Page(s). Name of Database. Gale Group Databases. Honolulu Community Coll. Lib., HI. Date of Access.

Works Cited Gibaldi, Joseph and Walter Achtert. MLA Handbook. 3rd ed. New York: The Modern Language Association, “MLA Citation Examples.” Honolul Community College Library. 07 Apr < edu/legacylib/mlahcc.html> “Research Documentation. Troy University Writing Center. ” 7 Apr Yahooimages. 02 Apr <