1. MLA & You

2. Why is it important to know MLA?
Essential Question
Why is it important to know MLA?

3. What is MLA? Stands for Modern Language Association
International association that provides mechanics & rules for writing, researching, and documenting research.
Most common style for high schools and undergraduate college programs.
Used by many publishers & researchers as well

4. What is the Point?
To give proper credit to ideas and information that are not your own!
To avoid plagiarism!

5. Formatting Your Paper
First page of your paper should have the following:
Header in upper right hand corner with your last name and page number on each page, example: Smith 4
Heading - upper left hand corner with your name, your teacher’s name, due date, and class title
Title of your paper centered, two spaces below your main heading
Your entire paper should be double spaced, have 1” margins (top, bottom, left, right) and be typed in 12-pt Times New Roman font

6. First page of your research paper
Header- Last name & page # each page!
Double space
12 pt. Times New Roman
One in margins all the way around
Header – upper right hand corner, last name & page number
Double space entire paper
12 point Times New Roman font
1” margins – Top, Bottom, Left & Right

7. In-Text Citations

8. What is an in-text citation?
References to an author and page number inside your paper.
They always correspond to what’s on your Works Cited list!
They are found in parentheses, inside your paper, and can look like the examples below:
(Smith 14) or (14)

9. You do not need to cite… Common knowledge Your own opinions
A simple statement or basic fact that is likely to be known by a lot of people.
Your own opinions
Common sayings/proverbs
If you are unsure of whether or not you have to cite, just cite to be safe!
There are 365 days in a year
Elvis Presley is one of the most famous musicians in history
George Washington was the first President of the United States
Plants need water to grow
Opinions:
I feel the death penalty should be abolished
Society needs to do more to combat global warming
Common saying/proverbs:
you can’t judge a book by its’ cover
You can lead a horse to water but you can’t make it drink

10. Three types of in- text citations: Direct short quote
Direct long quote
Paraphrase
Write this one in your notes

11. Mention author in sentence = only need page number in citation (parentheses)
Example of a short quote where we mention the author:
According to Charles Dickens, the eighteenth century was both “the best of times and the worst of times” (35).
2) Do not mention author in sentence = need author’s last name and page number in citation
Example of a short quote where we do not mention the author:
The eighteenth century was both “the best of times and the worst of times” (Dickens 35).

12. Information taken word for word from the author
Direct Quotations:
Information taken word for word from the author
Does not have to be dialogue
Should contribute to and support your ideas
Always introduce your quotes! They need to flow with the rest of your paper!
Only select information that is important & relevant!
Don’t overuse direct quotes! Too many quotations in a paper conveys the impression that you have little to say for yourself
Write this one in your notes.

13. Word for word, exactly as it is written in your source
Direct Short Quotes
Word for word, exactly as it is written in your source
Four lines or less
No special formatting in the text
Enclose in quotation marks
Period comes after the parentheses (citation).
Write this down in your notes.

14. Direct short quote example
Mentioning author in the text: “He was obeyed,” writes Joseph Conrad of the company manager in Heart of Darkness, “yet he inspired neither love nor fear, nor even respect” (87). Not mentioning author in the text: The eighteenth century was both “the best of times and the worst of times” (Dickens 35). *period comes after the parentheses (citation) in short quotes!

15. Direct long quotes Also called a “block” quote
Must be at least five lines long
Introduce quote with a colon
Set apart from text by starting on a new line & indenting another inch from the 1” margin
Quote should be lined up to the right margin
Do not use quotation marks since quote is set apart from text and is easily recognizable as a direct long quote
Punctuation comes before the citation (parentheses).
Write this down in your notes.

16. In-Text Citations: Direct long quote
Introduce quote with a statement and put colon after introductory statement
In-Text Citations: Direct long quote
Example of Direct Long Quote:
At the conclusion of Lord of the Flies, Ralph and the other boys realize the horror of their actions:
The tears began to flow and sobs shook him. He gave himself 1” up to them now for the first time on the island; great, shuddering spasms of grief that seemed to wrench his whole body. His voice rose under the black smoke before the burning wreckage of the island; and infected by that emotion, the other little boys began to shake and sob too. (Golding 186)
Indent one inch from left margin (tab two times)& double space entire quote!
Quote should be lined up to the left margin
period comes before the parentheses (citation) in long quotes
Word for word, exactly as it is written in your source
More than four lines long – lines does not mean sentences!
Introduce quote with a colon
Start new line and indent one inch from the left margin (tab two times)
Entire quote should be lined up to the left
No quotation marks needed
Punctuation comes after the citation, or parentheses!
Long Quotes must be at least 5 lines long!

17. Taking something someone said and putting it into your own words
What is a paraphrase?
Taking something someone said and putting it into your own words
When you paraphrase you should be summarizing and condensing the author’s words
You must change more than just a few words!
You must always cite paraphrases!
Write this down in your notes.

18. Paraphrasing Tips You can’t paraphrase what you do not understand!
Read your sources/articles carefully!
Make sure you know what each word in article means!
Highlight the truly important facts.
Say what you’ve learned from the article in your own words without looking at the original.

19. If you have ideas from one source, in one paragraph, you may cite just once at the end of the paragraph, since the info would all be from the same source!!
In this case, you should mention the author in the beginning of the paragraph!
Write this down in your notes.

20. Type right alongside your text, no need to indent or start a new line
Format of a Paraphrase
Type right alongside your text, no need to indent or start a new line
Do not use quotation marks since these are your OWN WORDS!
Period comes after the citation, or parentheses.
There is no set length on a paraphrase
Example: (mentioning the author in the text)
As Wendy Martin suggested, Emily Dickenson firmly believed that we cannot fully comprehend life unless we also understand death (625).
notice, no quotation marks! period comes after the citation!
Write down everything except the example (title and 1-4 only).

21. Legitimate Paraphrase Example
Original:
The Antarctic is the vast source of cold on our planet, just as the sun is the source of our heat, and it exerts tremendous control on our climate. The cold ocean water around Antarctica flows north to mix with warmer water from the tropics, and its upwellings help to cool both the surface water and our atmosphere; Yet the fragility of this regulating system is now threatened by human activity.
From: Cousteau, Jean Michael. “Climate Change.” Discovery. May 2007: 17.
Paraphrased passage:
According to Jean Michael Cousteau, the activity of people is jeopardizing a delicate natural mechanism that controls the earth’s climate. He fears that human activity could interfere with the balance between the sun, the source of the earth’s heat, and the important source of cold from Antarctic waters that flow north and cool the oceans and atmosphere (17).

22. In-Text Citations When Information Is Missing

23. If you do not know the author of an article/source, you must put part of the title in the citation:
Example - article with no author:
(“Hurricane Katrina” 47)

24. If your source has no page numbers, how do you cite it in your paper?
(video/movie, interview, photo)
Mention the creator’s name (if you have one) and title of the work in the sentence – no citation in parentheses needed, since there will be no pages!
Example (film):
The PBS video titled Dust Bowl shows how hard it was to be a farmer in the southwestern plains of the United States during the 1930s.

25. Plagiarism
Write this down in your notes.

26. No Works Cited or in-text citations = plagiarism!!!!
Write this down in your notes.

27. Forms of Plagiarism
Borrowing someone’s paper and putting your name on it, trying to pass it off as your own.
Handing in the same paper twice, for two different grades!
Copying and pasting from the Internet, without paraphrasing (even if you cite it!)
Using too many of the author’s original words in your paraphrase (if it sounds a lot like the original, it’s probably not a good paraphrase)!
Write this down in your notes.

28. In-Text Citations & Works Cited Lists.. How they are related?
Pretend this is your paper. This is “an example of a short quote with an unknown author”(“Alexander” 51). This sentence is an example of a paraphrase (Lund 19).
All sources listed in your Works Cited list must be cited at least once in your paper!!!
Sample Works Cited “Alexander the Great.” World Book Encyclopedia Lund, Joe. Crime and Society. Miami: Watermark Books,

29. General Rules for Works Cited Pages in MLA Format
Double space everything on a Works Cited page.
Center the title Works Cited (no bold, italics, or underlining) and place it at the top of the page.
Use a “hanging indent” after the first line of each entry.
Write this down in your notes.
Bergen Community College © 2005

30. OK: so what does it look like?
Centered Title
“Hanging” Indent
I can’t edit this page because of the way it was created.
Everything is double-spaced, and there are no line spaces between entries.

31. General Rules for Works Cited Entries
The author is usually first in a Works Cited entry, followed by the source’s title(s) and publication information.
Place the titles of smaller works (articles, short stories, book chapters, poems, songs) in quotation marks.
Italicize the titles of larger works (books, journals, magazines, newspapers, and films).
Write this down in your notes.

32. More Rules for a Works Cited Page
Capitalize the first letter of each word in titles (except articles, short prepositions, or conjunctions).
Include publication medium (Print or Web) in each citation.
All Web sources need the date that the copyright or update date and the date the information was accessed from the Internet.
Write this down in your notes.

33. Works Cited Entry for a Web Site
In-text Citation
Columbia University Professor Jeffrey Johnson spent seventeen years recording the viewing habits of children in 707 families in Upstate New York and found that the ones “who watched one to three hours of television
each day were 60% more likely to be involved in assaults and fights as those who watched less TV” (“Research”).
Works Cited Entry
Works Cited
“Research on the Effects of Media Violence.” Media Awareness Network.
2005. Web. 12 Mar. 2005