Aug 15, 2013 ... EPHS ENGLISH DEPARTMENT SURVIVAL MANUAL. (rev. ..... {Frankenstein; or,
The Modern ... pamphlets {Minnesota Drivers' Manual}.
EPHS ENGLISH DEPARTMENT SURVIVAL MANUAL (rev. 8/15/2013)
GRAMMAR RULES SUMMARY (GRS) SECTION Capitalization Rules Fragments and Run-ons End marks Commas Apostrophes Semicolons Colons Dashes Hyphens
rule # 1-3 4-5 6-10 11-24 25-31 32-35 36-42 43-46 47
SECTION Parentheses Quotation Marks & Italics Punctuating Dialogue and Direct Quotes Spelling and Word Choice Abbreviations / Numbers Agreement Pronoun Case Sentence Construction Miscellaneous
rule # 48 49-50 51-61 62-64 65-67 68-80 81-87 88-93 94
MANUSCRIPT FORMAT (MSF) ITEM General Information Sample First Page Sample First Page with Block Quote Sample Subsequent Page Outline Rules Sample Topic Outline #1 (single-spaced) Sample Topic Outline #2 (double-spaced)
page # MSF 1-2 MSF 3 MSF 4 MSF 5 MSF 6 MSF 9 MSF 10-11
PARENTHETICAL DOCUMENTATION & QUOTATIONS (PDQ) ITEM THE BASICS SECTION ONE: USING QUOTES 1. Credibility 2. When to Use DQ’s 3. When to Paraphrase 4. Lead-ins 5. Incorporating Quotes & Punctuating Them 6. Closing Punctuation 7. Block Quotations 8. Quoting Poems
PDQ page 1-4 5-27 5 6 6 7 8
ITEM 9. Quoting Plays 10. Quoting Quotes 11. Altering Quotes A. Ellipses B. Square Brackets 12. Interpolation 13. Errors in a DQ SECTION TWO:
PDQ page 18 19 22 22 24 25 26 27-43
FORMATTING REFERENCES
11 13 15
A. One Author B. Two or Three Authors C. Four Authors or More
27 28 28
ITEM D. Corporate Author E. No Author F. More Than One G. Editor, etc. H. Part of a Work I. Indirect (qtd. in) J. Prose K. Scripture L. Plays M. Poetry N. Entire Work 0. No Page
PDQ page 29 29 30 31 32 34 35 37 38 41 42 43
WORKS CITED (WC) GENERAL INFORMATION Sample works-cited page Works-cited formatting Frequently Ignored Details Getting started Types of sources Parts of a citation Missing facts of publication
page WC 1-8 WC 2 WC 3 WC 4 WC 5 WC 7
THE DETAILS Section A: Citing nonperiodical print publications (books, etc.) Section B: Citing periodical print publications (magazines, etc.) Section C: Citing Web sources Section D: Citing database sources Section E: Citing additional sources
page WC 9-54 WC 9 WC 22 WC 27 WC 40 WC 46
GRS 1
GRAMMAR RULES SUMMARY (GRS) (rev. 8/15/2013)
NOTE: Sources for this GRS are English Writing Skills, the 7th edition of the MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers, the Holt Handbook (third course 2003), and English teachers at Eden Prairie High School.
IN THIS DOCUMENT section Capitalization Rules Fragments and Run-ons End marks Commas Apostrophes Semicolons Colons Dashes Hyphens
rule # 1-3 4-5 6-10 11-24 25-31 32-35 36-42 43-46 47
section Parentheses Quotation Marks & Italics Punctuating Dialogue and Direct Quotations Spelling and Word Choice Abbreviations / Numbers Agreement Pronoun Case Sentence Construction Miscellaneous
rule # 48 49-50 51-61 62-64 65-67 68-80 81-87 88-93 94
CAPITALIZATION RULES Rule # 1.
Capitalize the first word in sentences, interjections, and incomplete questions. {The trees whispered.} Also, capitalize the first word in a quotation if the quotation is a complete sentence. {Still holding the letter, he said to her, "Where do you live?"}
2. Capitalize all proper nouns {Shakespeare} and proper adjectives. {the Canadian actress} NOTE: Capitalize the names of compass directions only if they refer to a specific region or are part of an address. {Don’t visit the Southwest in August. If the museum is located at 75 East Huron, it is not on the northwest side of the city.} NOTE: When a word like “dad” or “coach” is used as name, it is considered a proper noun. {My dad is a pilot. I have to ask Dad. His coach quit. Please talk to Coach about it.} NOTE: Specific time periods, eras, and historical events are considered proper nouns. {Middle Ages, Roaring Twenties, McCarthy Era, Civil Rights Movement, Arab Spring} However, concepts, theories, philosophies, etc., are not capitalized. {the struggle for civil rights, existentialism, psychoanalytic theory, feminism, democratic ideas} Occasionally, you will find variation in the capitalization of particular word (e.g. zeitgeist or Zeitgeist). When in doubt, check dictionaries, see if there is any consensus in how your research sources capitalize the word, and/or consult your teacher. In the text of your paper, be consistent with your choice about whether or not to capitalize the word. !!
3. Capitalize the first word, the last word, and all other important words in titles of any works of art. Words usually not capitalized are articles, prepositions, coordinating conjunctions: a, an, the, of, to, in, for, from, with, and, but, or, nor, for, yet, so. The words a, an, and the must be capitalized when they are the first words of the title. They are usually not capitalized, however, at the beginning of the names of most magazines and newspapers and are often left out of such titles.
GRS 2 NOTE: There are specific rules for why some titles are italicized and some titles are in quotation marks. See GRS rules 49-50. Examples: books Great Expectations, To Kill a Mockingbird, Out of Africa, periodicals Newsweek, poems "The Raven," short stories "The Scarlet Ibis," plays Hamlet, paintings Mona Lisa, movies Driving Miss Daisy, TV shows Saturday Night Live and other works of art.
FRAGMENTS and RUN-ONS 4.
A group of words that does not have a complete thought is called a fragment. As a general rule, do not use fragments in formal writing. A fragment may have a subject and a verb, but sometimes even with a subject and a verb, the sentence may not make sense. FRAGMENT Examples: After the rain. (no verb) Applauded the performer. (no subject) Because the boy finished. (has a subject and verb but doesn't make sense alone) Although she was tired. (“Although” is a subordinating conjunction signifying a dependent clause) NOTE: In an imperative sentence (a command), the subject of the sentence is understood to be YOU even if the word YOU is not in the sentence. An imperative sentence is not considered a fragment. For example: Take seven pieces of candy.
5. A run-on sentence consists of two or more sentences (independent clauses) joined by no mark of punctuation or by a comma. Run-on sentences should not be used in formal writing. Two independent clauses must be separated into two sentences OR may be joined together with a semi-colon (if the two independent clauses are closely related) OR may be connected by a comma followed by a conjunction (see GRS rule 13). Running two independent clauses together with a comma between them is also called a “comma splice” error. RUN-ON Examples: He took the exam last week he passed. The zookeeper fed the lions, there were ten of them.
END MARK RULES 6.
Use a period to end a declarative sentence. {This tale is true.}
7. Use a period after most abbreviations.
{Mr. Dickens wrote that novel.}
8. Use a question mark to end an interrogative sentence.
{Were you nervous?}
9. Use an exclamation mark after an exclamatory sentence. {Open the door!} 10. MLA FORMATTING RULE: When typing, always space once or twice (depending on instructor preference) after any sentence end mark (period, question mark, or exclamation mark). However, after abbreviations, only space once.
GRS 3
COMMA RULES NOTE: To understand several of the comma rules, you have to know the difference between a phrase and a clause. Here is the difference: a phrase is a group of words that hang together without BOTH a subject and a verb. EXAMPLES OF PHRASES: in the early morning OR after the creative writing class OR of the many senior captains OR shattering into many fragments OR in Tennyson’s beautiful poetry a clause is a group of words that contains a subject and a verb (predicate) and that functions as part of a sentence. There are two types of clauses: independent (a clause that can stand on its own as a sentence) and dependent or subordinate (a clause that cannot stand on its own as a sentence). EXAMPLES OF INDEPENDENT CLAUSES IN COMPLEX SENTENCES: She didn’t drive because the streets were frozen. OR Those were the houses that the tornado damaged. OR The coach planned to go on vacation although the game was on Friday. OR I will drive to New York if gasoline prices go down. EXAMPLES OF DEPENDENT (SUBORDINATE) CLAUSES IN THE ABOVE SENTENCES: because the streets were frozen OR that the tornado damaged OR although the game was on Friday OR if gasoline prices go down
SERIES
11.
Use a comma to separate a series (3 or more items). Use one less comma than the total number of items. {She wrote novels, short stories, plays, and poems.} Use semicolons to avoid confusion when items in a series already contain commas. {The winners are from Gary, Indiana; Chicago, Illinois; and Florence, Wisconsin.}
12.
2+ADJ Use a comma to separate two or more adjectives when the word "and" can be used in place of the comma. {We were being followed by a tall, mysterious stranger.} When there are two or more adjectives before a noun, do not use a comma before the final adjective if the adjective is thought of as part of the noun. {She had an old brick house. It was a crisp, clear fall day.}
13.
CC
Use a comma to separate two independent clauses connected with a coordinating conjunction
(and, but, or, nor, for, yet, so) {Jamie doesn't care for sports, and he doesn't like art. I love warm weather, so I moved to Hawaii. The tickets are inexpensive, but I have no money. Pablo eats neither fish nor meat, nor will he even kill an insect. She eats healthily, for she believes it will help her energy level.}
GRS 4
14.
INTRO WORD or “IW” Use a comma to separate an introductory word from the rest of the sentence. {Oh, it wasn't that important to me. Yes, I agree. However, the Monkees are still my favorite band.}
15.
INTRO PHRASE or “IP”
Use a comma to separate a rather long phrase (4+
words) from the rest of the sentence. {In Tennyson's beautiful poetry, I admire the imagery.} Some two or three word phrases require a comma if they are transitional phrases: By contrast, several painters use more shadows. After further thought, the coach decided to call another practice. By the way, your paper is due on Tuesday. In fact, seventeen people were convicted. NOTE: If there is a verb in the phrase, no matter how short it is, use a comma. {Working rapidly, he tried to meet the last deadline. Batting third, he waited in the dugout. }
16.
INTRO DEPENDENT CLAUSE or “IDC”
Use a comma to separate
a dependent clause (or subordinate) clause (a clause which cannot stand alone) from an independent clause (a clause which can stand alone) when the dependent clause comes first. {When her book was finished, Kate Mansfield was rather pleased.} IDC = intro dependent clause
IC = independent clause
{If gasoline prices go down, people will begin to travel more.} IDC = intro dependent clause
IC = independent clause
NOTE: Adverbial clauses may be elliptical. An elliptical clause is one in which a word or words have been omitted. In elliptical clauses the omitted words are understood by both the reader and the writer. In the examples below, the omitted words are shown in brackets. {When [she was] visiting Utah, Claire saw the Mormon Tabernacle Choir. When [I was] eating, I saw something moving in my salad.}
17.
DIR When a noun that is used to directly address someone begins a sentence, use a comma after it. {Jill, please do your beam routine one more time.} When you address someone directly using a noun at the end of a sentence, put a comma before it. {Do one hundred more push-ups, Arnold.} When you address someone directly using a noun in the middle of a sentence, put a comma before and after it. {I think, Rolf, that you should teach college courses.}
18.
NOT Use comma to separate contrasting words, phrases, and clauses introduced by the word "not." {This carton must be opened from the top, not from the bottom.}
GRS 5
19.
DQ Use a comma to introduce a direct quotation and to separate it from the rest of the sentence. {Dan said, "The soup is boiling." OR "Turn off the stove," said William.}
20.
DATES/ADDRESSES or “D/A” Use a comma to separate the day of the week, the day of the month, and the year in a date. Use a comma to separate parts of geographical names and to separate the name of a street, city, and state in an address. {On Thursday, December 10, 1953, we moved to 3319 Simpson Street, Evanston, Illinois.} NOTE: A comma is used to separate the last part of a geographical name, an address, or a date from the rest of the sentence. Notice the comma after Minnesota in the following example: {We sent the letter to Eden Prairie, Minnesota, early this morning.}
21.
TITLE
Use a comma to separate a person's name (or a company’s name) from a degree, a title, or
an affiliation that follows it. {I just met Lieutenant Mary Woodard, USMC.} If the degree, title, or affiliation comes in the middle of the sentence, put commas before and after it. {Melissa Adams, PhD, gave an award to Karen Anderson, MD. Henry Marquard, Jr., will be speaking.}
22.
NONESS
Use a comma (or a pair of commas if the nonessential phrases or clauses come in the middle of a sentence) to separate nonessential phrases or clauses from the rest of the sentence. {My brother, of course, is the only one who knows how to fix things like that.} If the element in question appears at the end of the sentence, be sure that it is truly non-essential before using a comma to separate the element from the rest of the sentence. See the two examples below. {Nancy gave one hundred dollars to Glenda, who had just arrived from Chicago.} {Nancy gave one hundred dollars to the woman who had just arrived from Chicago.} NOTE: Deciding whether to use the word "which" or "that" can be tricky. If you can drop the phrase or clause and not lose the point of the sentence, use "which." If you can't, use "that." Commas, which cut out the fat, go with which but never with that. Example 1: Buster's bulldog, which had one white ear, won first prize. In example 1, the "which had one white ear" is disposable or nonessential to the writer's purpose. Example 2: The dog that won first prize was Buster's bulldog. In example 2, "that won first prize" is essential, so it has no commas surrounding it. This sentence misses the point without the dependent clause, “that won first prize.” NOTE: Be sure to use paired commas with transitional or parenthetical expressions that interrupt the sentence. {We stayed, nevertheless, until the game had ended. The painter Georgia O’Keeffe, by the way, took up pottery late in life. The Nile, I think, is the longest river in the world.}
GRS 6
23.
APP
An appositive is a particular type of “nonessential.” An appositive is a noun or pronoun placed beside another noun or pronoun to identify or explain it. Use a comma (or a pair of commas if the appositive comes in the middle of the sentence) to separate the appositive from the rest of the sentence. An appositive might appear in any position in the sentence. {Jim Steeger, a friend of mine, volunteers whenever he is in town. OR The award was given to the volunteer, a friend of mine} However, there are times you do not enclose appositives within commas. If the appositive is a single word closely related to the preceding noun or pronoun or if you must have the appositive’s information to differentiate the first noun from other nouns like it, do not enclose the appositive within commas. Example: Shakespeare’s play Romeo and Juliet will be performed at the Guthrie. (Because Shakespeare wrote many plays, the title of the particular play in question is essential information. However, a comma would be needed in the following sentence because the play’s title is not essential to the meaning. My favorite play, Romeo and Juliet, is about two star-crossed lovers.)
24.
MLA FORMATTING RULE: Always space once after a comma when typing.
GRS 7
APOSTROPHES 25.
Use an apostrophe in a contraction to indicate the position of missing letter(s). {You’re late. Can’t he fix it? ‘Tis the season to be jolly. He graduated in the class of ’14.} NOTE: As a rule, avoid using contractions in formal writing such as academic writing and business communication.
26.
Add an apostrophe and an s to show the possessive case of a singular noun. {Bruce's attitude was philosophical. I stepped on the cat’s tail. The dress's lower half was ruined.} For a singular proper name ending in s, add only an apostrophe (dropping the additional s) if the name has two or more syllables and if the addition of s would make the name awkward to pronounce. {Ulysses’ plan, Laertes’ sword, Ms. Rawlings’ car} For a singular common noun ending in s, add both an apostrophe and an s if the added s is pronounced as a separate syllable. {the actress’s costumes, the platypus’s tail}
27.
If the noun is plural and doesn't end in s , add an apostrophe and an s to show the possessive case. {The children's menu was limited, and the men's room was filthy.}
28.
If the noun is plural and ends in s , add just the apostrophe to show the possessive case. {The Willises' car was stolen by the parking attendant. Sally’s parents' anger was obvious.}
29.
If two people possess something in common, consider them a single unit. Put a single apostrophe and an s at the end. {Sam and Janet's evening was ruined. Sam and Janet’s car was stolen.}
30.
If two people possess something (or some things) individually, rather than jointly, each name gets an apostrophe and an s. {Sam's and Janet's cars came from the same dealer.}
31.
Use an apostrophe and an s to form the plurals of all lower case letters, of some capital letters, of numerals, of symbols, and of words referred to as words. {She is in her early 20’s. The star player got hundreds of high 5’s after the game. Your last sentence had too many that’s in it. She got five CD's. I saw the Oakland A’s play. Make sure you dot all your i’s and cross all your t’s.} NOTE: Writing “twenties” {She is in her early twenties.} and “fives” {The star player got hundreds of high fives.} is better in formal writing. NOTE: Writers sometimes add only an s and do not use an apostrophe to form the plurals of such items— except lowercase letters—if the plural forms cannot be misread. {She got five CDs.} Because usage varies, be consistent. For example, if you write1920s (rather than 1920’s), you must do so consistently throughout your paper.
GRS 8
SEMICOLONS 32.
Use a semicolon to join independent clauses that are not already joined by a conjunction. {Some of the fans went home; others stayed until the bitter end.}
33.
Use a semicolon to join independent clauses separated by either a conjunctive adverb or a transitional expression. {The tickets were just too expensive; however, we borrowed the money.}
34.
Use semicolons when independent clauses or items in a series already contain commas. {The winners are from Gary, Indiana; Chicago, Illinois; and Florence, Wisconsin.}
35.
MLA FORMATTING RULE: When typing, space once after a semicolon.
COLONS 36.
Use a colon to separate a list of items from an introductory statement that contains a specific number or the words “AS FOLLOWS,” “THE FOLLOWING,” or “THESE.” {There were three things to consider: weather, terrain, and equipment.} {Do not bring the following items to class: cell phones, food, or dogs.} NOTE: A colon is generally not used after the words “FOR EXAMPLE,” “THAT IS,” “SUCH AS,” “NAMELY,” or “FOR INSTANCE.” Do not place a colon between a verb and its direct object or after a preposition. ERROR Example: The winner is: Laurie.
37.
Use a colon to introduce a formal or lengthy quotation. {On the pedestal these words appear: "My name is Ozymandias, king of kings."}
38.
Use a colon to introduce a statement that summarizes or explains the sentence before it. {The officers thought his excuse was valid: self-defense.} NOTE: If what comes after the colon is a complete sentence, start it with a capital letter. {My advice was this: Bring only one next time.}
39.
Use a colon to separate a salutation from the body of a business (formal) letter. {Dear Sir:}
40.
Use a colon to separate the hour and minutes in expressions of time. Do not space before or after the colon. {11:45}
41.
Use a colon to separate chapter numbers from verse numbers in references to passages from the Bible. Do not space before or after the colon. {Genesis 6:10}
42.
Use a colon and a space to separate a title from a subtitle in the title of your paper {Storytelling: Images from Film} or for a book {Roots: The Saga of an American Family} unless the author preferred to separate the subtitle another way. {Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus}
MLA FORMATTING RULE: Usually space once after a colon when typing.
GRS 9
DASHES 43. • •
Use a dash (or a pair of dashes) to indicate an interruption in thought or speech {I agree—but let me stress one other point. The party—I forgot to tell you—was not changed.} an unfinished statement, question, or sudden break in dialogue. {"What I meant was—,” Kim began as the doorbell rang. “But how will I ev—?” he began.}
44.
Use a dash (or a pair of dashes) to mean "namely," "that is," "in other words," and other similar expressions that come before an explanation. {The bush—the one in the front yard—needs to be trimmed.}
45.
Use a dash (or a pair of dashes) to enclose nonessential or parenthetical phrases that contain commas. {Some primitive tools—the knife, for example—have changed little over the centuries. Five states—California, Oregon, Washington, Alaska, and Hawaii— border the Pacific Ocean.} NOTE: Parentheses may also be used for nonessential information.
46.
MLA FORMATTING RULE: A dash is typed as two hyphens. Some word processing programs fuse the two hyphens to make a dash {—} and some don’t {--}. There are no spaces before or after the dash.
HYPHENS 47.
USE A HYPHEN a. with certain numbers {twenty-nine, forty-seven days} b. after certain prefixes {pre-Romantic, anti-American, pro-American} c. with two or more words used as one word {brother-in-law, jack-in-the-box} d. with a compound modifier preceding a noun {once-in-a-lifetime experience, an up-anddown relationship, a well-educated woman, a muscle-building routine, a workscited list, two-thirds majority, three-fourths empty} NOTE: When the compound modifier follows the noun, no hyphen is used {The woman was well educated.}. NOTE: If the noun doesn’t immediately follow, use no hyphen {three fourths of a cup}. e. within a word when a combination of letters might otherwise be confusing {re-create} and between syllables when a word is begun on one line and finished on the next. NOTE: When using a hyphen to divide words at the end of a line, place the hyphen only between syllables. Do not hyphenate words if doing so would leave just one letter on either line. If a word already contains a hyphen {self-control}, divide it only at the hyphen. {The library books were mistakenly placed in my bookcase. The items I was looking for fell in back of my old chapter books.
GRS 10
PARENTHESES 48.
Use parentheses to set off asides and explanations only when the material is not essential or when it consists of one or more sentences. {My eyes were filled with tears (I could not tell why), and at times a flood seemed to pour from my heart.}
QUOTATION MARKS and ITALICS, TITLES, etc. 49.
The titles of short works are put in quotation marks . short stories {We read "The Most Dangerous Game."} essays {We studied Thoreau's essay "Civil Disobedience."} encyclopedia articles {“Trampoline”} songs {"America the Beautiful"} short poems generally published in anthologies {"The Raven"} episodes of television shows {“The Trouble with Tribbles" (an episode of Star Trek)} magazine articles {“Sources of Energy”} newspaper articles {Did you read "Eagles Win Again" in today’s newspaper?} lectures {“Preparing for a Successful Interview” was a helpful lecture.} chapters of a book {We read chapter three, "Building A Nation," for homework.}
50.
The titles of long works are put in italics . books {Great Expectations}, pamphlets {Minnesota Drivers’ Manual} plays {Romeo and Juliet} book-length poems {Rime of the Ancient Mariner} newspaper titles {Eden Prairie News} magazine titles {Time} movies {The Shawshank Redemption} television and radio shows {Gilligan's Island} lengthy works of music {1812 Overture} CD or audiocassette or record album or DVD {Abbey Road } paintings {Mona Lisa} sculptures {Venus de Milo} ballets {Swan Lake} operas {Madame Butterfly} musicals {West Side Story} ships {Queen Elizabeth 2} aircraft {Air Force One} spacecraft {Mariner} NOTE: When you hand write, underline titles that should be placed in italics when typing.
GRS 11
50a. COURT CASES: Names of court cases are italicized in the text of your paper but NOT in your works-cited entry. This means that names of court cases that may appear in parenthetical references would NOT be italicized. Example of court case title as referenced in the text of your paper and in parenthetical reference:
The impact of the court’s decision in Brown v. Board of Education cannot be underestimated. Generations of legal scholars will continue to view it as foundational (“Ongoing Impact of Brown v. Board of Education”). NOTE: The court case name is italicized in the text, but it is not italicized in the parenthetical reference. Example of a works-cited entry for an article about a court case:
“Ongoing Impact of Brown v. Board of Education.” Education and the Law. Ed. Nicholas Finch. Vol. 3. New York: Harcourt, 1996. 245-253. Print. NOTE: The court case name is NOT italicized in the works-cited entry.
50b. CITING SACRED WORKS: Sacred works are an exception to some of the rules for formatting titles. Do not use italics or quotation marks for the books of the Bible, the word Bible, or titles of other sacred writings (Old Testament, Genesis, Talmud, Koran, etc.) {In our class, we read excerpts from the Bible. I especially liked the one from the book of Exodus.}
50c. TITLES WITHIN TITLES: Italicize a title normally indicated by italicizing when it appears within
a title enclosed in quotation marks. {“Romeo and Juliet and Renaissance Politics” (an article about a play)}. Use quotation marks around a title normally indicated by quotation marks when it appears within an italicized title. {“The Lottery” and Other Stories (a book of short stories)} Place single quotation marks around a quotation that appears within a title requiring quotation marks. {“Steve Jobs Advises ‘Stay Hungry! Stay Foolish!’”} For identifying an italicized title within an italicized title, the title within is neither italicized nor enclosed in quotation marks. {Approaches to Teaching Charles Dickens’ A Tale of Two Cities}
50d. SPECIAL USES FOR ITALICS Identify foreign words not commonly used in English by putting these words in italics. {The Renaissance courtier was expected to display sprezzatura, or nonchalance, in the face of adversity.} Identify words you wish to stress by putting these words in italics. {I am really tired.}
50e. SHORTENED TITLES If you cite a title often in the parenthetical references in your paper, you may, after stating the title in full at least once, use a shortened form, preferably a familiar or obvious one or the first few words of the title. {“Nightingale” for “Ode to a Nightingale”} {Owen Meany or A Prayer for A Prayer for Owen Meany}
GRS 12
PUNCTUATING DIALOGUE and DIRECT QUOTATIONS 51. MLA FORMATTING RULES FOR PUNCTUATION MARKS: 51a. Periods and commas ALWAYS go inside quotation marks. “I think you’re wrong,” Dan said. 51b. Colons and semicolons ALWAYS go outside quotation marks. Dan said, “I think you’re wrong”; he was asking us to re-examine our information. 51c. Question marks and exclamation marks go EITHER inside or outside the quotation mark depending on the situation. They go inside when the question or exclamation is part of what is quoted. She asked, “Who did it?” OR Did she say, “I’m quitting”? 51d. When the sentence, as well as the quotation at the end of the sentence, needs a question mark (or an exclamation point), use only ONE question mark (or exclamation point), and place it inside the closing quotation marks. Did she ask, “Is this fair?” If you are questioning an exclamation, do it like this: Is it true he yelled, “No!”?
52. Use quotation marks to begin and end a direct quotation. Separate the quoted material from the dialogue tag by commas. Do not use quotation marks to set off an indirect quotation. DIRECT: I said, “The fable by James Thurber will surprise you.” INDIRECT: I said that the fable by James Thurber would surprise you.
53. If a question mark or an exclamation point occurs where one of the separating commas should be used, omit the comma and use the question mark or exclamation point to separate the quoted material. “Don’t be late!” Bill warned.
54. The speaker’s words are set off from the rest of the sentence with quotation marks, and the first word of the quotation is capitalized. When the end of the quotation is also the end of the sentence, the period falls inside the quotation marks. He said, “We’ll discuss the fable in one hour.”
GRS 13 55.
Both parts of a divided quotation are enclosed in quotation marks. The first word of the second part is not capitalized unless it begins a new sentence. “This fable,” our teacher said, “is a twist of an old tale.”
56. Quotes within quotes: If you need to have one character directly quoting another character, then use double quotes for your main dialogue and single quotes for the quote-within-a-quote. “And then he said, ‘Mind your own business.’ The nerve!” she said. 57.
When you write dialogue, begin a new paragraph whenever the speaker changes. “Videotaping would be a great idea for our project,” declared Clarissa. “Not only is it a popular medium for today’s artists, but it has practical applications as well.” “You’re right,” Angela agreed. “Videotaping was helpful to us on the swimming team.” “I work with teacher training,” mused Carmen, ”and perhaps videotaping teachers at work would be helpful.” “Well, I guess we should all try it,” Clarissa said. “Let’s meet next week and compare our projects.”
58. Use a dash to indicate an abrupt break in thought or speech or an unfinished statement or question. “First of all,” he said, “if you can learn a simple trick, Scout, you’ll get along a lot better with all kinds of folks. You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view—” “Sir?” “—until you climb into his skin and walk around in it.” 59.
If you have the same speaker saying things that are separated by descriptive passages, you may choose to keep everything in one paragraph or separate parts into their own paragraphs. Make this decision using the same criteria you would use in deciding to start a new paragraph without dialogue. In other words, if you have more than one topic, give each its own paragraph. Just make sure it is clear that the dialogue belongs to the same speaker.
“If I didn’t go to school tomorrow, you’d force me to.” “Let us leave it at this,” said Atticus dryly. “You, Miss Scout Finch, are of the common folk. You must obey the law.” He said that the Ewells were members of an exclusive society made up of Ewells. In certain circumstances the common folk judiciously allowed them certain privileges by the simple method of becoming blind to some of the Ewells’ activities. They didn’t have to go to school, for one thing.
GRS 14
Another thing, Mr. Bob Ewell, Burris’s father, was permitted to hunt and trap out of season. “Atticus, that’s bad,” I said. In Maycomb County, hunting out of season was a misdemeanor at law, a capital felony in the eyes of the populace.
60.
Sometimes, one speaker’s words run for more than one paragraph. When this happens, use quotation marks at the beginning of the quotation, at the beginning of each subsequent paragraph, and at the end of the whole quotation. “I read a spell-binding mystery yesterday,” Agnes said. “It gripped me on the first page, and I couldn’t put the book down until I had finished. * “The plot is simple, almost classic. Five people are sitting in a room watching home movies. When the lights come on, one of the people is dead. Who did it? How was it done? * “Of course, no one has entered or left the room during the movies; thus, one of the other four people in the room has done it. I, of course, thought of poison—but that was wrong. * “Well, the detective arrives, and the questioning begins. As the story unfolds, you learn that everyone has a motive. The plot thickens. The mystery isn’t solved until the last page, and it had me fooled. Whew! I’m exhausted from the suspense!” ** “Wow, Agnes, you surely spoiled the book for me,” said Pam.
*There are no closing quotation marks here because Agnes continues. **There is a closing quotation mark here because Agnes is finished speaking. 61.
ELLIPSIS POINTS: Use three spaced ellipsis points (. . .) to indicate a pause in written dialogue. {“Well, . . . I don’t know,” Sarah answered.} When someone’s words “trail off,” you also use 3 ellipsis points. (Be sure to space between each one.) If the ellipsis points appear at the end of a sentence, you will need a fourth “dot” for the sentence period. “Mr. Ewell shouldn’t do that—” Note: an interruption is indicated by a dash. “Of course, he shouldn’t, but he’ll never change his ways. Are you going to take out your disapproval on his children?” “No, sir,” I murmured and made a final stand: “But if I keep on goin’ to school, we can’t ever read any more. . . .” “That’s really bothering you, isn’t it?” “Yes, sir.” When Atticus looked down at me, I saw the expression on his face that always made me expect something. “Do you know what a compromise is?” he asked.
GRS 15
SPELLING AND WORD CHOICE 62.
Regular Spelling and No-excuse Spelling Words
You have spelled a word
incorrectly. NOTE: Typos (typographical errors) count as spelling errors! NOTE: See the EPHS English Department for a complete list of the “No-excuse Spelling Words.” These words are generally penalized more than regular spelling words. Incorrect: Although it was hte best thingg I heard al year, her advize came as a suprise. Correct: Although it was the best thing I heard all year, her advice came as a surprise.
63.
HOMONYMS and HOMOPHONES HOMONYMS are words that are spelled the same but mean something different. Example: Orange means a color, and orange means a piece of fruit. HOMOPHONES are words that sound the same but are spelled differently. Example: She was too tired to eat two hamburgers.
64.
EXACT WORD (ew) or WORD CHOICE:
Be certain to select the exact word for
the intended meaning.
64a. FREQUENTLY CONFUSED WORDS: Some words can be confusing and should be considered carefully. {Affect is a verb which means to influence, but effect is most often used as a noun meaning the result of a process. Ramla hoped to affect the outcome of the discussion. She did not know what the effects of the decision would be.}
64b. MISUNDERSTOOD OR MISUSED WORDS: Some “EW” errors are marked when you have misunderstood or misused a word. ERROR Example: She was impressed with Gatsby’s lucrative appearance. The word “lucrative” means “producing money; profitable.” The writer probably chose the word “lucrative” to say that Gatsby appeared rich, but the word doesn’t really fit because Gatsby’s appearance indicates wealth but does not produce it.
GRS 16
64c. CONFUSING VERB RULES: TRANSITIVE vs. INTRANSITIVE VERBS: Use the intransitive verb when there isn't an object. Use the transitive verb when there is an object.
Intransitive = no object to lie present tense lie past lay past partic. lain w/ ing lying
to sit sit sat sat sitting
Transitive = takes object
to rise rise rose risen rising
to lay lay laid laid laying
to set set set set setting
to raise raise raised raised raising
{Robert lies on the mat to rest.
{Robert lay the book on the piano.
Yesterday, Robert lay on the mat for hours.
Yesterday, Robert laid the book on the piano.
Susan sits on the chair in the hallway.
Susan sets the table every evening.
Carina rises every morning at seven.}
Carina raises the flag at camp.}
64d. CHOOSING BETWEEN ADJECTIVES AND ADVERBS: ADJECTIVE FORM vs. ADVERB FORM? Use the adjective form when the word is being used to modify a noun or pronoun. Use the adverb form when the word is being used to modify a verb, adjective, or another adverb. Example adjectives good well (meaning health) bad safe real sure careful slow Example 1: Example 2:
Example 3:
Example adverbs well (meaning how positively something is done) badly safely really surely carefully slowly
How did you do in the game last night? Did you do well? adv. I feel bad about missing your concert. adj. I did badly on the geometry quiz last hour. adv.
GRS 17
ABBREVIATIONS 65.
As a rule, do not use abbreviations in formal and academic writing. When in doubt, write it out! ERROR Example: Jill missed the info because of her unex. absence. CORRECTED Example: Jill missed the information because of her unexcused absence. When you are allowed to use an abbreviation with a period, space once. {Mr. Adams will be home at 7:00 a.m. Dr. Carter and Mrs. Clark both worked for Elizabeth Jackson, PhD.}
66.
PUNCTUATING COMMON ABBREVIATIONS: Some abbreviations are not followed by a period: metric units {10 ml, 2 kg}, postal abbreviations for states in addresses {MN, NY, NJ}, most government agencies {NASA, FBI}, many large corporations {CBS, IBM}, and some common abbreviations {TV, AM, FM, mph, CD}. {Did you watch last night’s TV special on NBC? Does Ms. Sanchez work for NATO?}
NUMBERS 67a. Spell out numbers that can be written in one or two words and represent other numbers by
numerals. {We drove four hundred miles in seven hours. There were 175 guests at the party. She was thirty-six years old. They sold fifteen hundred raffle tickets. That house costs three million dollars. I took 2½ hours to complete the assignment. Her 101 dalmations were used in a famous movie.}
67b. Do not begin a sentence with a numeral. {Nineteen ninety-two began with a bang.} 67c. Except at the beginning of a sentence, always use numerals in the following instances:
with abbreviations (if allowed) or symbols {6 lbs., 4:20 p.m., 3%, $9, 8KB, 2”} • in addresses {4401 13th Avenue} • in dates {April 1, 2006} • in decimal fractions {8.3} • in page references {page 7} • for large numbers, you may use a combination of numerals and words {4.5 million}
67d. Express related numbers in the same style. {Only 5 of the 250 delegates voted. Exactly 3 automobiles and 129 trucks were recalled last year. From 1 billion to 1.3 billion shares were sold.}
GRS 18
67e. Treat percentages and amounts of money like other numbers: use numerals with the
appropriate symbols. {1%, $5.35, 45%, $3,000, 68¢, 100%} In discussions involving infrequent use of numbers, you may spell out a percentage or an amount of money if you can do so in three words or fewer {five dollars, forty-five percent, two thousand dollars, sixty-eight cents} Do not combine spelled forms of numbers with symbols.
67f. Dates and Times of the Day: Be consistent in writing dates. If you begin with the month, be sure to add a comma after the day and also after the year, unless another punctuation mark goes there, such a period or a question mark {July 22, 1999}. Do not use a comma between the month and year {August 2005}. Spell out centuries in lower case letters {the twentieth century}. Decades are usually written out without capitalization {the eighties}, but it is acceptable to express them in figures {the 1990s, the ‘60s}. Numerals are used to indicate most times of the day {2:00 p.m., the 6:20 flight}. Exceptions include time expressed in quarter and half house and in hours followed by “o’clock” {a quarter to twelve, half past ten, seven o’clock}.
67g. Inclusive Numbers: In a range of numbers, give the second number in full for numbers through ninety-nine {2-3, 10-12, 89-99}. For larger numbers, give only the last two digits of the second number, unless more are necessary {96-101 or 103-4 or 9231,003 or 1,608-774}. In a range of years beginning in AD 1000 or later, omit the first two digits of the second year if they are the same as the first two digits of the first year. Otherwise, write both years in full {2000-05, 1898-1901}.
GRS 19
AGREEMENT RULES (agr.) 68.
BASIC SUBJECT-VERB AGREEMENT: Singular subjects take singular verb forms. {Adam drives a car.} sing.
sing.
Plural subjects take plural verb forms. {Teachers drive me crazy.} pl.
69.
pl.
BASIC PRONOUN AGREEMENT: A pronoun must agree in number and gender with its antecedent (the word(s) to which a pronoun refers). When an antecedent is singular, a singular pronoun is used to refer to it. {The lady was a true magician, and she knew it.} sing.
sing.
When the antecedent is plural, a plural pronoun is used to refer to it. {The boys fill their knapsacks with food.} pl.
pl.
Of course, the verb used must also agree in number. {The lady was a true magician, and she knew it. sing.sing. sing.sing.
They fill their knapsacks with food.} pl. pl. pl.
69a. PRONOUN REFERENCE CLARITY: A pronoun must refer clearly to a specific noun or pronoun (an antecedent). If a reader cannot clearly identify a pronoun’s antecedent (either because it is missing or its antecedent is ambiguous), this is a pronoun reference error. ERROR Example 1: I believe they shouldn’t show violence on television. Who are “they”? The pronoun “they” doesn’t specifically identify anyone. CORRECTED Example 1: I believe broadcasters shouldn’t show violence on television. ERROR Example 2: Ron told Harry that Snape’s intentions were unclear, but he felt he couldn’t be trusted. Who does not trust whom? This sentence needs to be revised so that it is clear who “he” is. CORRECTED Example 2: Ron told Harry that Snape’s intentions were unclear, but Ron felt Snape couldn’t be trusted.
GRS 20
70.
SINGULAR INDEFINITE PRONOUNS: Some INDEFINITE PRONOUNS are ALWAYS SINGULAR—each, one, either, neither, much, everyone, everybody, anyone, anybody, someone, somebody, no one, nobody—and, therefore, they take singular verb forms and use singular pronouns to agree with them. {Everybody wants his or her coach to win the award. Each of the twins has her sing. sing. own distinct ways.}
sing.
sing.
sing.sing.
NOTE: When gender is unspecified and a singular possessive pronoun is needed, you must use his or her, not their. ERROR Example: An athlete must buy their own equipment. An athlete must buy his or her own equipment.
CORRECTED Example:
EVEN BETTER CORRECTED Example: Athletes must buy their own equipment.
71.
PLURAL INDEFINITE PRONOUNS: Some INDEFINITE PRONOUNS are ALWAYS PLURAL—several, few, both, many, others—and, therefore, they take plural verb forms and use plural pronouns to agree with them. {Both of the students want their coach to win the award. Few of the old Model T pl. Fords are left.} pl.
72.
pl.
pl.
pl.
AMBIGUOUS INDEFINITE PRONOUNS: Some INDEFINITE PRONOUNS—all, any, most, none, some—can be considered singular or plural depending on the situation. The pronoun must agree with its antecedent and take the appropriate (singular or plural) verb form. These pronouns—all, any, most, none, some—are considered singular when their meaning in the sentence is singular. {All of the meatloaf has been eaten.} All refers to the noun meatloaf, which is singular. {Most of the flood damage was minor.} Most refers to the noun damage, which is singular. {None of the milk is left } None refers to the noun milk, which is singular.} These pronouns—all, any, most, none, some—are considered plural when their meaning in the sentence is plural. {All of the aces were gone from the deck.} All refers to the noun aces, which is plural.
{Most of the tomatoes were ruined by the hail.} Most refers to the noun tomatoes, which is plural.
GRS 21
{None of the people named Jones were related to one another.} None refers to the noun people, which is plural. {None of the critics like the movie.} None refers to the noun critics, which is plural.
NOTE: The gender of the ambiguous pronoun is determined by the antecedent. {The captain of the men's team wants the trophy for himself.} sing.
73.
sing.
sing.
TWO SINGULAR SUBJECTS JOINED BY “AND” When two singular subjects are joined by AND, the verb must be in the plural form. Use a plural pronoun when referring to antecedents joined by AND. {The catcher and the pitcher discuss the signals they use.} plural
74.
plural
pl. pl.
TWO SINGULAR SUBJECTS JOINED BY “OR” or “NOR” When you have two singular subjects joined by OR or NOR, the verb must be in the singular form. Use a singular pronoun when referring to singular antecedents joined by OR or NOR. {Either Harold or Arnie drives his car to the game.} both singular sing. sing. sing. {Neither Laurie nor Linda takes her children to casinos.} both singular sing. sing. pl. {Neither Adam nor Eve takes his or her cat to the dentist.} both singular sing. sing. sing.sing.
75.
TWO PLURAL SUBJECTS JOINED BY “AND,” “OR,” or “NOR” When you have two plural subjects joined by AND, OR, or NOR the verb must be in the plural form. When two or more plural antecedents are joined by OR or NOR, use a plural pronoun. {Neither the teachers nor the students think that they should be charged.} plural
76.
pl.
pl.
ONE SINGULAR SUBJECT AND ONE PLURAL SUBJECT JOINED BY “OR” or “NOR” When you have one singular subject and one plural subject joined by OR or NOR, the verb agrees with the NEARER SUBJECT. {Either my brother or my parents have the house key.} sing.
plural
pl.
{Neither the bananas nor the melon is ripe.} pl.
sing. sing.
GRS 22
77.
COLLECTIVE NOUNS can be either singular or plural. {The group was preparing for its hike.} sing. sing.
“Group” is considered singular.
sing.
{The group were packing their backpacks.} pl.
78.
pl.
“Group” is considered plural.
pl.
PREPOSITIONAL PHRASES FOLLOWING SUBJECTS The number of a subject is not changed by a prepositional phrase following it. A verb agrees in number with the subject, not with the object of a preposition. {The robin in the bushes hunts worms. The actors in the play have practiced.} sing.
79.
sing.
pl.
pl.
SENTENCES BEGINNING WITH “THERE,” “HERE,” or in QUESTIONS When the subject follows the verb in sentences beginning with “there” or “here,” the subject and the verb must still agree. {There are several menus available. There is an extensive menu with many choices.} pl. verb
pl. subject
sing. verb
sing. subject
When the subject follows the verb in questions, the subject and the verb must still agree. {Who is the winner? sing.
sing.
What are the results?} pl.
pl.
80. TENSE AGREEMENT Be consistent with verb tense. Do not shift from one tense to another if the time frame for each action or state is the same. ERROR Example: At the reunion, the kids ate ice cream while the adults are sitting and talking. Below are two correction options depending on the context of the rest of the passage in which the sentence appears. CORRECTED Example Option 1: At the reunion, the kids ate ice cream while the adults sat and talked. CORRECTED Example Option 2: At the reunion, the kids are eating ice cream while the adults are sitting and talking.
GRS 23
PRONOUN CASE RULES Not only must pronouns AGREE with their antecedents in NUMBER and GENDER, but you must also be careful to choose the correct PRONOUN CASE. To understand the concept of “pronoun case,” you need to know the difference between a subject pronoun and an object pronoun.
SUBJECT PRONOUNS do action and fit in this blank.
______ swam in
the swamp.
1st 2nd 3rd
SUBJECT PRONOUNS SINGULAR PLURAL I 1st We you 2nd you (all) he 3rd they she it
Use the subject form of the pronoun when the following rules apply: 81.
USE A SUBJECT PRONOUN WHEN THE PRONOUN IS DOING THE ACTION (rule S1) Use a subject pronoun when the pronoun is doing the action (AV) or subject of the "to be" linking verb (LV) or "sensory" linking verb (LV). ACTION VERBS LINKING VERBS physical mental to be (8 total) sensory (12 total) to jump to think am taste grow to talk to remember is smell appear to dunk to dream are sound remain to smile to understand was seem turn were look be feel being become been stay ERROR Examples: Her jumps high. Me and him are going scuba diving. CORRECTED Examples: She jumps high. He and I are going scuba diving.
82.
USE A SUBJECT PRONOUN AFTER A “TO BE” VERB (rule S2) The "to be” verbs are the following: am, is, are, was, were, be, being, been. HINT! You should be able to exchange the pronoun in question and the subject of the sentence and still make sense. ERROR Examples: Yes, this is her. That could have been me. CORRECTED Examples: Yes, this is she. That could have been I.
GRS 24
83.
USE A SUBJECT PRONOUN AFTER AN “INCOMPLETE” CONSTRUCTION (rule S3) Incomplete constructions most typically use the words "than" and "as." ERROR Example 1: CORRECTED Example 1:
He is as careful as me. He is as careful as I. (The verb "am" is implied.)
ERROR Example 2: CORRECTED Example 2:
Karl swims faster than her. Karl swims faster than she. (The verb "does" is implied.)
NOTE: This rule can be tricky as in following sentence: Karl likes Melanie more than her. In this sentence, "her" is correct because the writer means to convey that Karl likes Melanie more than he likes another girl.
OBJECT PRONOUNS receive action and fit in this blank.
Olle gave
______ the Oscar.
1st 2nd 3rd
OBJECT PRONOUNS SINGULAR PLURAL me 1st us you 2nd you (all) him 3rd them her it
Use the object form of the pronoun when the following rules apply: 84.
USE AN OBJECT PRONOUN WHEN THE PRONOUN IS ACTING AS THE OBJECT IN A SENTENCE (rule O1) An object pronoun receives the action of the verb. ERROR Example: CORRECTED Example:
85.
The teacher gave Sally and I a weird look. The teacher gave Sally and me a weird look.
USE AN OBJECT PRONOUN WHEN THE PRONOUN IS THE OBJECT IN A PREPOSITIONAL PHRASE (rule O2) Prepositions are small connecting words such as: up, around, in, over, with, for, from, to, between, up, around, in, over, etc. They would typically fit in a sentence such as this:
“The magic squirrel ran ____ the magic tree.” Prepositions always come in phrases. Prepositional phrases have this type of construction:
(_______________ + _________________ + ____________________) a preposition
any modifiers a noun or pronoun acting as the (adjectives or adverbs ONLY) “OBJECT of the PREPOSTION”
Example 1:
(______in______ + _____the early______ + _______morning_______) a preposition
any modifiers
a noun or pronoun acting as the “OBJECT of the PREPOSTION”
GRS 25 Example 2:
(______to______ + _______________ + __________him__________) a preposition
any modifiers
a noun or pronoun acting as the “OBJECT of the PREPOSTION”
So, PRONOUN CASE RULE O2 says that when a pronoun acts as the OBJECT in a prepositional phrase, that pronoun must be in the OBJECT FORM. The prepositional phrases are placed in parentheses below. ERROR Example 1: She gave a test (to he). Mr. Olson gave keys (to Sam and she). CORRECTED Example 1: She gave a test (to him). Mr. Olson gave keys (to Sam and her).
ERROR Example 2: CORRECTED Example 2:
(Between you and I), I can't stand his tie. (Between you and me), I can't stand his tie.
86. WHO vs. WHOM? Who and whom are used to introduce adjective clauses and noun clauses. Who is always used as the subject of the clause. Example:
The woman (who came to the door) was Ms. Anderson. (Who is the subject of the adjective clause.)
Whom functions as an object, usually either a direct object or an object of a preposition. Example 1:
Chris is the person (whom I’d recommend for the job.) (Whom is the direct object in the adjective clause.)
Example 2:
Do not ask (for whom the bell tolls.) (Whom is the object of the preposition for the noun clause.)
Example 3:
(Whom the police suspect) has not yet been announced. (Whom is receiving the action of being suspected in the noun clause which acts as the subject of the main clause.)
NOTE: You must determine the use of who or whom as it functions within the clause; avoid being distracted by the sentence as a whole. Use whoever as the subject of the clause. Example 1: ( Whoever passed the test) must have been a genius. (Whoever is DOING the action of passing in the noun clause which acts as the subject of the main clause.)
GRS 26 Example 2: The prize is given (to whoever wins the most points.) (Whoever is DOING the action of winning in the noun clause. The entire noun clause is the object of the preposition.) Use whomever for an object within the clause. Example 3: The honor is given (to whomever the coach recommends.) (Whomever is RECEIVING the action of being recommended in the noun clause of which “coach” is the subject. The entire noun clause is the object of the preposition.)
87.
(myself, yourself, himself, herself, itself, ourselves, yourselves, themselves) are used only for two purposes:
REFLEXIVE PRONOUNS •
to emphasize {I did all by myself.
I can’t believe the detective himself was the
murderer.} •
to refer to the subject {He calls himself
a fool. They consider themselves lucky.}
Bill cut him while shaving this morning. (Bill was the only one shaving. He was the one injured.) CORRECTED Example 1: Bill cut himself while shaving this morning. ERROR Example 1:
ERROR Example 2: Call Pam or myself this afternoon. CORRECTED Example 2: Call Pam or me this afternoon. (Object pronoun needed)
ERROR Example 3: You will be helped by Susan or myself. CORRECTED Example 3: You will be helped by Susan or me. (Object pronoun needed)
GRS 27
Sentence Construction Errors 88.
AWKWARD (awk):
An error marked “awkward” means poor sentence construction has blurred the intended meaning of your sentence. The sentence must be rewritten to achieve clarity. Some "awkward" errors probably result from sloppy cutting and pasting of text in your paper. ERROR Example 1: In the Middle Ages, peasants and serfs the bottom of the social order around the time of the Middle Ages suffered at the bottom of the social order. Excessively wordy or imprecise constructions can obscure the focus of the sentence. ERROR Example 2: The id can be seen or is revealed when Hamlet acts to seek immediate gratification when it comes to his secret desires, wishes, and fears that are most on his mind because he is an id-driven character.
89.
Missing Word(s):
The error of an omitted word is indicated by a caret mark
^.
ERROR Example: When she was a child, she lived ^ China. CORRECT Example: When she was a child, she lived in China.
90.
Parallelism:
||
Lack of parallelism is indicated by marking the error . Parallel structure means using the same phrasing, verb construction, etc., to show that two or more ideas have the same level of importance or are similar in content and function. Faulty parallelism occurs most often with items or clauses in a series as in the following example: ERROR Example 1: When my grandmother's bowling team gets together, they love eating pizza, watching ESPN, and to play Guitar Hero. The above sentence needs to be revised so that all elements in the list have the same form. CORRECTED Example 1: When my grandmother's bowling team gets together, they love eating pizza, watching ESPN, and playing Guitar Hero. ERROR Example 2: A good auto mechanic can help you with all areas of car care: regular oil changes, routine system checks, periodic safety inspections, and doing the scheduled maintenance. The above sentence needs to be revised so that all elements in the list have the same form. CORRECTED Example 2: A good auto mechanic can help you with all areas of car care: regular oil changes, routine system checks, periodic safety inspections, and scheduled maintenance.
GRS 28 Some parallelism errors require reworking the sentence. ERROR Example: His friends were loud, rude, and caused extensive damage to the library. CORRECTED Example: His friends were loud and rude, and they caused extensive damage to the library. EVEN BETTER CORRECTED Example: His loud, rude friends caused extensive damage to the library.
91.
Misplaced Modifier (mm):
Make sure that modifiers are placed closest to the word(s)
they modify. A modifier is misplaced when it seems to modify a noun or pronoun other than the one it was meant to modify. MISPLACED ERROR Example 1:
I found a note stating that Marvin was planning on breaking up with Matilda in the lunchroom.
Question? Where does the prepositional phrase "in the lunchroom" really belong? CORRECTED Example 1: I found a note in the lunchroom stating that Marvin was planning on breaking up with Matilda. MISPLACED ERROR Example 2: Pam and her family saw the majestic Rocky Mountains flying to Utah. CORRECTED Example 2:
92.
Dangling Modifier:
Flying to Utah, Pam and her family saw the majestic Rocky Mountains. A modifier is called dangling when the sentence contains no word or
words for it to modify. DANGLING ERROR Example: Listening to the news flash, it was hard to believe the story was possible. Question?
Who was “listening to the news flash”?
CORRECTED Example: Listening to the news flash, we found it hard to believe the story. EVEN BETTER CORRECTED Example: As we listened to the news flash, we found it hard to believe the story.
GRS 29
93.
TABOO WORDS and PHRASES:
Unless you are writing a personal narrative, a work of fiction, or some other assignment for which your teacher has given alternative style guidelines, you must adhere to the conventions of formal academic writing.
93a. In a formal essay, NEVER address the reader as “you.” Do not use “your” or “yours” or “yourself” or the “understood you” either. ERROR Example 1: In Of Mice and Men, you can see Steinbeck's theme of loneliness. CORRECTED Example 1: In Of Mice and Men, one can see Steinbeck's theme of loneliness. EVEN BETTER CORRECTED Example: Steinbeck weaves the theme of loneliness throughout Of Mice and Men.
ERROR Example 2:: Just imagine sitting in Hamlet’s living room. (The subject is still understood to be “you” even if the word “you” is not physically present!) CORRECTED Example 2: It would be very difficult for someone to imagine sitting in Hamlet’s living room.
93b. In a formal essay or research paper, NEVER use the first person (I, me, my, mine, we, us, our, ours) except in direct quotes.
93c. In a formal essay or research paper, avoid using contractions, colloquialisms, clichés, and slang.
ERROR Example: For some strange reason, the guy in Of Mice and Men wasn't totally freaked out when he had to knock off his buddy, or whatever.
MISCELLANEOUS ERRORS 94. 95. 96. 97. 98. 99. 100.
MSF 1
MANUSCRIPT FORM (MSF) (rev. 8/15/2013)
NOTE: Sources for this document are English Writing Skills, the 7th edition of the MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers, the Holt Handbook (third course 2003), and English teachers at Eden Prairie High School.
IN THIS DOCUMENT Item General Information Sample First Page Sample First Page with Block Quote Sample Subsequent Page Outline Rules Sample Topic Outline #1 (singlespaced) Sample Topic Outline #2 (Doublespaced)
Page # MSF 1-2 MSF 3 MSF 4 MSF 5 MSF 6 MSF 9 MSF 10-11
CORRECT MANUSCRIPT FORM (MLA FORMAT) FOR A FORMAL PAPER: GENERAL INFORMATION 1. CHOICE OF INK AND FONT AND SPACING Use only black ink. Use an easily readable font (such as Times New Roman) in which the style contrasts clearly with the italic. Set the font to a standard size (usually 12-point). Keep the font choice and font size consistent. Double-space the entire paper, including quotations and the list of works cited. Leave one space after a period or a question mark or an exclamation point unless your instructor prefers two spaces. 2. MARGINS on the left, right, and bottom must be a minimum of one inch. Do not justify right margin. See SAMPLE #1--FIRST PAGE OF A PAPER (page MSF 3). If a quotation extends to more than four lines when run into the text (called a “block quotation”), set it off from your text by beginning a new line, indenting one inch from the left margin, and double-spacing (DS) it, without adding quotation marks. See SAMPLE #2--FIRST PAGE OF A PAPER WITH BLOCK QUOTATION (page MSF 4). 3. HEADING AND TITLE Your heading is placed flush on the left 1” margin. Double-space your name, the teacher’s name, the class title, and the due date (date, month, year). If you are writing the paper with a partner, put both names—each on its own line. Double-space after the heading and center the title. Do not italicize, underline, put in quotation marks or boldface, or type the title in all capital letters. Titles should be capitalized according to rules for capitalization of titles. (See the Grammar Rules Summary, or GRS, rule 3.) Use the same font size for the title as the rest of the paper. Do not put a period after the title.
MSF 2 4. DOUBLE-SPACE THE TEXT Double space down from the title to the first line of the text. Double spacing must continue throughout the paper, with no extra spaces between paragraphs. NOTE: Many word processing programs automatically add an extra line space each time you hit return. You may need to adjust your default or paragraph settings and select “Don’t automatically add space between paragraphs.” 5. PAGE NUMBERING Type your last name and page number in the upper right corner, one-half inch down from the top edge and flush with the 1” right margin. Do not write the word “page” before the page number or any abbreviation for the word “page.” Do the same for all subsequent pages. However, there is no heading on subsequent pages. The text on all subsequent pages begins one inch down. If you are writing the paper with a partner, put both last names in the upper right corner. For example: Hudson and Baldwin 2. See SAMPLE #3—SUBSEQUENT PAGE OF A PAPER (page MSF 5). 6. WHAT ABOUT TYPOGRAPHICAL ERRORS? Edit your paper carefully before printing, but if you must fix a typographical error on your final copy, all typographical errors may be corrected neatly with correction fluid and black ink. Write your letters no larger than the type used. If a finished page contains more than three or four corrections, however, it should be retyped. A final copy should have no cross-outs. A so-called “typo” is still counted as a spelling error. 7. USE ONLY ONE SIDE OF THE PAPER
Do not type on the back of a sheet of paper.
MSF 3
SAMPLE #1--FIRST PAGE OF A PAPER down 1”
down ½ ”
Baldwin 1 1” margin
1” margin
Samantha Baldwin DS
Mr. Holm DS
English 10 DS
15 May 2009 Note: no commas are used! DS
Marriage as a Dubious Goal in Mansfield Park indent 1/2”
DS
Jane Austen’s 1814 novel Mansfield Park begins and ends with the topic of marriage. In
this regard it seems to fit into the genre of the courtship novel, a form popular in the eighteenth century in which the plot is driven by the heroine’s difficulties in attracting an offer from the proper suitor. According to Katherine Sobba Green, the courtship novel “detailed a young woman’s entrance into society, the problems arising from that situation, her courtship, and finally her choice (almost always fortunate) among suitors” (2). Often the heroine and her eventual husband are kept apart initially by misunderstanding, by the hero’s misguided attraction to another, by financial obstacles, or by family objections. The overcoming of these problems, with the marriage of the newly united couple, forms the happy ending anticipated by readers. Sometimes, as in a Shakespearean comedy, there are multiple marriages happily celebrated; this is the case, for example, in Austen’s own Pride and Prejudice. Despite the fact that Mansfield Park ends with the marriage of the heroine, Fanny Price, to the man whom she has set her heart on, her cousin Edmund Bertram, the novel expresses a strong degree of ambivalence toward the pursuit and achievement of marriage, especially for women. For Fanny, marriage may be a matter of the heart, but for other characters in the novel, marriage—or the desire for marriage—is precipitated by, among other things, vanity, financial considerations, boredom, the desire to “disoblige” one’s family (Austen, Mansfield 5) 1” minimum bottom margin
MSF 4
SAMPLE #2--FIRST PAGE OF A PAPER WITH BLOCK QUOTATION down 1” 1” margin
down ½ ”
Baldwin 1 1” margin
Samantha Baldwin DS
Mr. Holm DS
English 10 DS
15 May 2009 Note: no commas are used! DS
Ellington’s Adventures in Music and Geography indent 1/2”
DS
In studying the influence of Latin American, African, and Asian music on modern
American composers, music historians tend to discuss such figures as Aaron Copland, George Henry Cowell, Alan Hovhaness, and John Cage (Griffiths). They usually overlook Duke Ellington, whom Gunther Schuller rightly calls “one of America’s great composers” (318), because are familiar only with Ellington’s popular pieces. Still little known are the many orchestral suites Ellington composed, several of which explore his impressions of the people, places, and music of many countries. Not all music critics, however, have ignored Ellington’s excursions into longer musical pieces. Raymond Horricks compared him with Ravel, Delius, and Debussy: indent 1”
The continually enquiring mind of Ellington [. . .] has sought to extend steadily the imaginative boundaries of the musical form on which it subsists. [. . .] Ellington since the mid-1930s has been engaged upon extending both the imagery and the formal construction of written jazz. To this day, critics have marveled at the way Ellington dared to reach such heights. (122-23)
Ellington’s earliest attempts to move beyond the four-minute limit imposed by the composers 1” minimum bottom margin
MSF 5
SAMPLE #3--SUBSEQUENT PAGE OF A PAPER
Type your last name and page number in the upper right corner, one-half inch down from the top edge and flush with the 1” right margin. Do not write the word “page” before the page number or use any abbreviation for the word “page.” The text on all subsequent pages begins one inch down. If you are writing the paper with a partner, put both last names in the upper right corner in the same order on all pages. For example: Hudson and Baldwin 2.
MSF 6
REQUIREMENTS AND MANUSCRIPT FORM FOR AN OUTLINE 1. TYPES OF OUTLINES The MLA Handbook (7th ed.) suggests that if an outline is required and needs to be submitted formally with your paper, you should ask your instructor for the form of the outline you are to use. The two most common forms are the topic outline (which only uses short phrases) and the sentence outline (which requires the use of complete sentences throughout). No period is required at the end of a topic outline entry. Sentence outline entries must be given proper end punctuation. 2. CHOICE OF INK AND FONT AND SPACING Use only black ink. Use an easily readable font (such as Times New Roman) in which the style contrasts clearly with the italic. Set the font to a standard size (usually 12-point). Keep the font choice and font size consistent. Leave one space after a period or a question mark or an exclamation point unless your instructor prefers two spaces. 3. MARGINS on the left, right, and bottom must be a minimum of one inch. Do not justify right margin. 4. NAME, PAGE NUMBERING, AND TITLE Type your last name and page number in the upper right-hand corner, one-half inch down from the top edge and flush with the 1” right margin. If your outline is the first page of your paper, then your outline will be considered “page one.” Do not write the word “page” before the page number or any abbreviation for the word “page.” Do this on the first page as well as all subsequent pages of the outline. Do not use the word “outline” as the title of the outline. Use the title of your paper. Center this title one inch down from the top of the page. Put this title in capital letters and lower case letters. Do not italicize, underline, put in quotation marks or boldface, or type the title in all capital letters. Use the same font size for the title as the rest of the paper. Do not put a period after the title. Double-space after the heading and center the title. 5. WHAT ABOUT TYPOGRAPHICAL ERRORS? Edit your paper carefully before printing, but if you must fix a typographical error on your final copy, all typographical errors may be corrected neatly with correction fluid and black ink. Write your letters no larger than the type used. If a finished page contains more than three or four corrections, however, it should be retyped. A final copy should have no cross-outs. A so-called “typo” is still counted as a spelling error. 6. USE ONLY ONE SIDE OF THE PAPER
Do not type on the back of a sheet of paper.
7. SPACING THE OUTLINE Correctly spacing the outline can be quite challenging. Be sure to turn the auto-formatting feature off. Auto-formatting on most computers does not use MLA defaults. Double-space down from the title to the first line of the outline. As far as spacing the rest of the outline, you have a choice here. Ask your teacher which spacing style he or she prefers. You may either single-space the entire outline (See SAMPLE #1—SINGLE-SPACED OUTLINE on page MSF 9) or double-space each section of the outline and double-space between the major sections of the outline (See SAMPLE #2—DOUBLE-SPACED OUTLINE on page MSF 10).
MSF 7 8. INTRODUCTION AND CONCLUSION your introduction and conclusion should each have at least two major subdivisions (A, B). 9. HOW IS THE OUTLINE ORDERED? The descending parts of an outline are labeled like this:
I. A. B. C. 1. 2.
a. b. (1) (2)
(a) (b)
II. A. B.
1. 2. 1. a. b. 2. a. b.
C. 10. DIVISIONS IN THE OUTLINE Use Roman numerals for main topics. Minor topics are given capital letters. Sub-topics are given Arabic numbers. Then, detail is given in lower case letters.
11. INDENTING Indent all sub-topics. Indent so that all letters or numbers of the same kind will come directly under one another in a vertical line. Leave one space after the period unless your instructor prefers two spaces. LINE UP ALL PERIODS! This is harder to do than you might think it is.
12. BALANCE THE OUTLINE All letters or numbers must describe a topic or sub-topic in your outline. If you don’t have a topic or a sub-topic for a particular line in your outline, remove the
MSF 8 letter or number rather than leaving it blank. However, remember that there must always be at least two sub-topics under every topic. This means there must be a II to complement every I, a B to complement every A, a 2 to complement every 1 and so forth. However, if you happen to have three sub-topics under a topic, that doesn’t mean you must have three topics under the next topic. For example, if under major division II, you have an A, B, and a C, this doesn’t mean that under major division III, you MUST an A, B, and a C. 13. WHAT IF THERE REALLY IS ONLY ONE DETAIL? If you want to include only one detail, use a dash (--) beside the entry and then write the detail. Do not space before or after the dash. Example: I. Staff who office in English department A. English teachers 1. Mr. Welshons 2. Ms. Strampe 3. Ms. Wallenberg 4. Mr. Olson B. Office assistant—Ms. Peterson 14. CAPITALIZATION Begin each entry with a capital letter. Only capitalize the first word of each entry unless a proper noun or proper adjective appears in the entry. 15. TOPICS MUST RELATE A sub-topic must belong under the main topic beneath which it is placed. It must be closely related to the topic above it. ERROR example: I. Dull board games A. Sorry B. Monopoly C. Shuffleboard Note: Shuffleboard doesn’t belong here; it’s not a board game.
MSF 9
SAMPLE TOPIC OUTLINE #1—SINGLE-SPACED STYLE ½ inch down
Anderson 1 DS
Historical Significance of Beowulf DS 1”
I. Introduction A. Attention-getter B. Thesis statement
Note: Only capitalize the “T” in “Thesis,” not the “s” in “statement.”
DS
II. Ideal hero standards A. Courage B. Heroic code C. Death over dishonor D. Avoidance of hubris DS
III. Social structure A. Historical background of origin of the tale B. Explanation of the tribal system C. Expectations 1. King 2. Nation D. Role of women DS
IV. Religious values A. Existent Christian beliefs Note: Capitalize the “C” because “Christian” is a proper adjective. B. Relevant Christian beliefs in the tale 1. Only went to battle with monsters 2. Grendel’s relation to Cain 3. God as the final judge of eternal life C. Prevalence of pagan beliefs 1. Impossibility of the coexistence of heroic code and Christian beliefs 1” min. 2. The importance of fate 3. Moral standards vs. religious guidelines 4. Final important ideas DS
V. Conclusion A. Restatement of thesis and main ideas B. Concluding observations
1” min. margin
st
MSF 10
SAMPLE TOPIC OUTLINE #2—DOUBLE-SPACED STYLE 1 PAGE ½ inch down
Harrison 1 DS
Heroism and Beowulf: A Definition or a Feeling? DS 1”
I. Introduction DS
A. Attention getter DS
B. Thesis statement DS
1. Anglo-Saxon lens
1” min.
DS
2. Modern lens DS
3. Personal lens DS
II. Anglo-Saxon perception of what makes a hero DS
A. Deeds DS
1. Beowulf kills three monsters DS
2. Helps society DS
B. Physical prowess DS
C. Confidence DS
1. Beowulf mirrors Grendel
Note: Capitalize the “G” because “Grendel” is a proper noun
DS
2. Beowulf defends his claim DS
III. Modern perception of what makes a hero DS
A. Humility 1. Not shown when Beowulf fights weaponless DS
2. Not shown with Beowulf’s last requests DS
B. Leadership DS
1. Beowulf is last survivor; people don’t care DS
2. Gives up too easily DS
a. Compared to firefighters in World Trade Center attacks
DS
b. Martin Luther King, Jr.
DS
c. Ruben “The Hurricane” Carter
DS 1” min. margin
MSF 11
SAMPLE TOPIC OUTLINE #2—2nd PAGE ½ inch down
Harrison 2 DS
C. Celebrity status DS
1. Constantly under the radar
1” min.
DS
2. Weaknesses are noticed DS 1”
IV. Personal perception of what makes a hero DS
A. Contribution to society DS
B. Above and beyond normal human action DS
V. Conclusion DS
A. Restatement of thesis and ideas DS
B. Conclusion statement 1” min. margin
PDQ 1
PARENTHETICAL DOCUMENTATION & QUOTATIONS (PDQ) (rev. 8/15/2013)
NOTE: Sources for this document are the 7th edition of the MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers and English teachers at Eden Prairie High School.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
THE BASICS SECTION ONE: USING QUOTES 1. Credibility 2. When to Use DQ’s 3. When to Paraphrase 4. Lead-ins 5. Incorporating Quotes & Punctuating Them 6. Closing Punctuation 7. Block Quotations 8. Quoting Poems
PDQ page 1-4 5-27 5 6 6 7 8 11 13 15
9. Quoting Plays 10. Quoting Quotes 11. Altering Quotes A. Ellipses B. Square Brackets 12. Interpolation 13. Errors in a DQ SECTION TWO: FORMATTING OF PARENTHETICAL REFERENCES A. One Author B. Two or Three Authors C. Four Authors or More
PDQ page 18 19 22 22 24 25 26 27-43 27 28 28
D. Corporate Author E. No Author F. More Than One G. Editor, etc. H. Part of a Work I. Indirect (qtd. in) J. Prose K. Scripture L. Plays M. Poetry N. Entire Work O. No Page
PDQ page 29 29 30 31 32 34 35 37 38 41 42 43
PARENTHETICAL DOCUMENTATION: THE BASICS 1. What is “parenthetical documentation”? Along with your “works cited,” or what was formerly called a “bibliography,” parenthetical documentation is a way to tell your readers not only what works you used in writing the paper but also, according to the 7th edition of the MLA Handbook, “what you derived from each source and where in the work you found the material. The most practical way to supply this information is to insert a brief parenthetical acknowledgment (called a “parenthetical reference”) in your paper wherever you incorporate another’s words, facts, or ideas. Usually the author’s last name and a page reference are enough to identify the source and the specific location from which you borrowed material” (214). EXAMPLE OF PARENTHETICAL DOCUMENTATION: Medieval Europe was a place both of “raids, pillages, slavery, and extortion” and of “traveling merchants, monetary exchange, towns if not cities, and active markets in grain” (Townsend 10).
PDQ 2 According to the 7th edition of the MLA Handbook, the parenthetical reference “(Townsend 10)” indicates that the quotations come from page 10 of a work by Townsend. Given the author’s last name, your readers can find complete publication information for the source in the alphabetically arranged list of works cited that follows the text of your paper (214). EXAMPLE OF CORRESPONDING WORKS CITED ENTRY: Townsend, Robert M. The Medieval Village Economy. Princeton: Princeton UP, 1993. Print.
2. When is a parenthetical reference needed? Readers expect to see a parenthetical reference following each direct quotation. When you paraphrase ideas or information from one of your research sources, a parenthetical reference is also required. Even if you’ve introduced a source once in your paper and included a parenthetical reference, you need to continue adding parenthetical references for each new quotation or paraphrase from that source. You are more likely to lose points for leaving out parenthetical references than for putting in too many. So, when in doubt, don’t leave the parenthetical reference out!
3. How does the parenthetical documentation relate to the works-cited page? The parenthetical documentation must exactly match the corresponding entries in your list of works cited. The author’s name or title of the work must be clearly identified either in the text leading up to the quote or paraphrase or else must appear in the parenthetical reference. EXAMPLE OF PARENTHETICAL DOCUMENTATION: According to Karl F. Zender, Romeo and Juliet presents an opposition between two worlds: “the world of the everyday,” associated with the adults in the play, and “the world of romance,” associated with the two lovers (138). Romeo and Juliet’s language of love nevertheless becomes “fully responsive to the tang of actuality” (141). Shakespeare’s choice of words is particularly telling in the balcony scene as the word “variable” can be defined as “fickle” (“Variable,” def. 2b).
PDQ 3 EXAMPLE OF CORRESPONDING WORKS-CITED ENTRIES: Works Cited “Variable.” Def. 2b. The Oxford English Dictionary. 2nd ed. 1992. Print. Zender, Karl F. “Loving Shakespeare’s Lovers: Character Growth in Romeo and
Juliet.” Approaches to Teaching Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet. Ed. Maurice Hunt. New York: MLA, 2000. 137-43. Print.
4. Where should the parenthetical documentation be placed? The citation must be placed so that it is clear which ideas have been taken from a source; at the same time, you do not want to impede the flow of your sentence. Whenever possible, place your parenthetical citation closest to the place where you have stated the quote or idea you have “borrowed.” The parenthetical documentation is usually at the end of a sentence. By convention, commas and periods go inside quotation marks, but a parenthetical reference changes this rule. At the end of the quoted material, place the closing quotation marks, followed by the parenthetical reference, and then finally the ending punctuation for the sentence. This will seem odd because you are essentially putting the punctuation mark for the sentence on hold, but the closing quotation marks and the parenthetical reference should be thought of as part of the sentence and therefore must be enclosed in the punctuation for the sentence. See Guideline 6: HAPPY ENDINGS--CLOSING PUNCTUATION FOR SENTENCES WITH DIRECT QUOTES in this document for more details, including what to do if your quote ends with a period or an exclamation point, but the basic formula is
” ( ).
When citing a quotation, end quotation marks are placed BEFORE the parenthetical reference as in the following examples. EXAMPLES (DQ’s): It may be true that “in the appreciation of medieval art the attitude of the observer is of primary importance” (Beauvais 136).
One critic observed, “Wilson’s poetry, filled with odd ideas, reflects his reclusive nature” (Stark 24-25).
PDQ 4 When paraphrasing, sentence punctuation FOLLOWS parenthetical documentation as in the following examples. EXAMPLES (PARAPHRASES): The poet Wilson was a recluse with odd ideas (Stark 24-25).
According to many English instructors, a neat paper makes a better impression (Nebeker and Wallenberg 422). To avoid interrupting the flow of your writing, place the parenthetical reference where a pause would naturally occur as near as possible to the material documented. If it is not possible to put the citation at the end of the sentence, try to place it next to a natural “rest” point in the sentence. EXAMPLE: This policy, although strongly opposed by Carlson (Strand 56), was eventually adopted. Parenthetical documentation directly after a quotation follows the closing quotation mark. EXAMPLE: In the late Renaissance, Machiavelli contended that human beings were by nature “ungrateful” and “mutable” (1240), and Montaigne thought them “miserable and puny” (1343).
PDQ 5
SECTION ONE: USING QUOTES NOTE: The following guidelines are adapted from the 7th edition of the MLA Handbook and Susan M. Hubbuch’s Writing Research Papers Across the Curriculum (3rd edition). Because the purpose of a research paper or an analytical essay is to synthesize your thoughts with what other writers or researchers have written about a particular topic, much of your paper will reference, by direct quote, paraphrase, or summary, the information from the sources you have used. When writing a research paper, it may be helpful to think of yourself as a complier and analyst rather than an author. Unlike other types of writing assignments, your research paper should show what you learned about your topic and where you learned it rather than focusing primarily on your own thoughts and ideas. Thus, knowing how to skillfully integrate the thoughts and words of other authors is crucial to your success. Equally crucial is giving proper credit to your sources by correctly documenting your references. This section will cover how to use quotes and paraphrases. The second section of this document will cover the particulars of the parenthetical documentation for those quotes and paraphrases. Remember that documentation of sources must be done as you compose your paper. NEVER CUT AND PASTE WORDS FROM A SOURCE INTO YOUR PAPER WITHOUT ADDING QUOTATION MARKS AND A REFERENCE TO THE AUTHOR AND THE PAGE NUMBER (if available).
Guideline 1: ENSURING CREDIBILITY OF SOURCES & REFERENCING SOURCES IN YOUR TEXT Using parenthetical documentation is not enough to assure your reader that your sources are reliable or credible. You must establish credibility directly in your paper. If you cannot establish credibility, be highly skeptical of using the source. Be particularly skeptical of Web sites that end in .com! Check with your teacher for further direction on this issue. In order to ensure credibility, you must include the author’s credentials the first time you cite the author in your paper. This means giving a brief description of the position the author holds or what the author has written, etc., that qualifies him or her as a source of information for the topic you are writing about. EXAMPLE: According to Lynda Ruce, professor of English literature at Harvard University, “E.D. Hirsch’s ideas on cultural literacy are key to every teacher’s curriculum” (75). NOTE: In this parenthetical documentation, only the page number (75) instead of (Ruce 75) needs to be included because the author’s name was given within the text.
PDQ 6 The first time you talk about each source in your paper, use the author's full name. After the first mention, you should then refer to the author by last name only, unless more information is required to distinguish the name from other sources in your paper. EXAMPLE: F. Scott Fitzgerald, author of The Great Gatsby, brought the Jazz Age to life in his writing. In Gatsby, Fitzgerald describes the splendor of Gatsby's mansion and the squalor of Wilson's garage equally vividly (78). NOTE: In addition to showing how Fitzgerald's name is used after the first full reference, the example above shows how to use a shortened version of a title. According the MLA Handbook, "If you cite a title often in the text of your paper, you may, after stating the title in full at least once, use a shortened form, preferably a familiar or obvious one" (92).
Guideline 2: WHEN TO USE DIRECT QUOTES When you take another writer’s exact words and copy them down in your paper, that is called a “direct quotation.” The words in the original source MAY or MAY NOT have quotation marks already around them. For example, the quotation may be a passage of dialogue spoken by a character in a novel and may already be in quotation marks, or the quotation may be the words of the narrator, which might not be in quotation marks. The definition of “direct quotation,” then, does not depend on whether or not the cited author originally had quotation marks around the words. If you copy down anything word for word, you must use quotation marks, and you must acknowledge the source. You must copy down the direct quotation EXACTLY as you found it in its original source. Don’t overuse direct quotations in your papers. Experienced writers occasionally quote directly from their sources, but they don’t let other people write their essays for them. Rather, they quote the words of other people when the idea they are developing involves the perspective or point of view of another person--a point of view that is best established or illustrated by this person’s exact words. Note that in most cases the point of view can be established or illustrated by quoting just a few words or perhaps a sentence. When you choose to use the exact words of your source, you must use quotation marks and you must ALWAYS INTEGRATE the quoted material into your own writing. See Guideline 4: ALWAYS LEAD INTO (INTEGRATE) DQ’S below about how to lead into quotes and how to embed quotes into sentences.
Guideline 3: WHEN TO USE PARAPHRASES When you summarize or otherwise put into your own words the information or ideas of another author, you are paraphrasing. Don't think of paraphrasing as simply a way to avoid using quotation marks. Being able to summarize and to make analytical references to the source material you read shows your skill as a reader and a writer. If you use skillful paraphrases for most of your information, the direct quotes you choose to use will be more powerful. A skillful paraphrase means you are doing more than taking a quote and changing just enough words to say that the quote is now "in your own words." Most often, you will give your reader a summary of the main idea that a source presented.
PDQ 7 EXAMPLE: In his discussion of the need for a green revolution, Friedman is critical of those who characterize saving the planet as something we can accomplish with easy and painless lifestyle changes (78). This sentence summarizes multiple paragraphs of Friedman's argument and could be used as lead-in to a well-chosen quote from the book. Remember that PARAPHRASES HAVE THE SAME REQUIREMENTS FOR PARENTHETICAL DOCUMENTATION AS QUOTES DO. You must give credit, even when you have summarized or changed the wording. Refer to section two of this document for details about using parenthetical documentation with paraphrases.
Guideline 4: ALWAYS LEAD INTO (INTEGRATE) DQ’s First, quoted material should NEVER stand alone in your paper. ALWAYS lead into quotations with your own words, either by setting up the context for the material you are quoting or by incorporating the words of others in your own sentences. DO NOT PLACE QUOTATIONS BACK-TO-BACK LIKE THIS: The value of many diet drugs is highly questionable. “Starch blockers are a fraud” (Kline 62). “Many hunger suppressants are dangerous because they raise blood pressure” (Suter 82). HERE IS A BETTER APPROACH: The value of many diet drugs is highly questionable. Based on a series of studies he has conducted, Dr Benjamin Kline flatly states that “[s]tarch blockers are a fraud” (62). Tests of other diet drugs reveal potentially dangerous side effects. A report by the Science Research Institute concludes, “Many hunger suppressants are dangerous because they raise blood pressure” (Suter 82). As seen in the example above, quote ONLY those words, phrases, or sentences necessary to make your point about the author’s point of view. Do not use the words of another to express ideas that you can just as easily express in your own words.
PDQ 8
Guideline 5: 101 WAYS TO INCORPORATE QUOTES & HOW TO PUNCTUATE YOUR WAY INTO THEM Okay, there are not actually 101 ways. But good writers will use a variety of sentence constructions for the material they are quoting. As long as your sentences remain clear and grammatically correct, you can incorporate quotes in a variety of ways. For example: ONE WAY TO DO IT: Shelley held a bold view: “Poets are the unacknowledged legislators of the World” (794). ANOTHER WAY TO DO IT: Shelley thought poets “the unacknowledged legislators of the World" (794). YET ANOTHER WAY TO DO IT:
“Poets,” according to Shelley, “are the
unacknowledged legislators of the World” (794). Notice the differences in punctuation in the examples above. According to the 7th edition of the MLA Handbook, “Whether set off from the text or run into it, quoted material is usually preceded by a colon if the quotation is formally introduced and by a comma or no punctuation if the quotation is an integral part of the sentence structure” (102). Some techniques for incorporating quoted material include using a lead-in statement with a "verb of saying" (71), using a lead-in statement followed by a colon, and embedding. You can put a quote in your paper by using a lead-in statement with a "verb of saying" (71). A “verb of saying” sets the reader up to expect the quote. A verb of saying could be as basic as “said” or could be a more specific verb such as one of the following: thought, concluded, observed, explained, conjectured, surmised, determined, revealed, argued, etc. To create an effective lead-in, the first part of your sentence should set up the quote by telling who (author, researcher, organization, study, etc.) said (or thought, concluded, observed, etc.) the idea in the quote.
PDQ 9 EXAMPLES OF VERB OF SAYING LEAD-INS: Hardy writes, According to Peterson, Willey has concluded, The National Safety Council argues, Generally, a verb of saying is followed by a comma and then by the quoted sentence or phrase. If the quote that follows the verb of saying and the comma is a complete sentence, begin the quote with a capital letter. EXAMPLE: Dr. Carl Smith has concluded, “There is no evidence that large doses of vitamin C have any beneficial effect” (134). However, if you use the word that with the verb or saying, you eliminate the need for a comma. With the word that, you integrate the quote into the grammatical structure of your sentence; therefore, do not begin the quote with a capital letter, even if it is capitalized in the source. EXAMPLE: Dr. Carl Smith has concluded that “[t]here is no evidence that large doses of vitamin C have any beneficial effect” (134). Note that the change from the upper-case "T" in the original quote to the lower-case "t" requires brackets [ ] to indicate an alteration to the quoted material. See Guideline 11: ALTERING QUOTATIONS below for more details about when brackets are needed. Remember that your lead-in can always be rephrased to avoid awkward alterations of quotes. See the examples of embedded quotes below. Note that a lead-in statement does not always have to be at the beginning of a sentence. EXAMPLES: Joseph Conrad writes of the company manager in Heart of
Darkness, “He was obeyed, yet he inspired neither love nor fear, nor even respect” (87). OR
PDQ 10 “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).
A quote can also be set up using a lead-in statement followed by a colon. According to the MLA Handbook, "Use a colon to introduce a quotation that is independent from the structure of the main sentence" (71). EXAMPLES: Dr. Carl Smith doubts the value of taking large amounts of vitamin C: “There is no evidence that large doses of vitamin C have any beneficial effect” (134). In The Awakening, Mme Ratignolle exhorts Robert Lebrun to stop flirting with Edna: “She is not one of us; she is not like us” (Chopin 42).
Embedding quoted material into your sentence means that you are taking directly quoted words or phrases from your source and using them, with quotation marks, within the grammatical structure of your own sentence. Embedding allows you to smoothly integrate quotes and to highlight only the most powerful language of the source material. EXAMPLES: Dr. Carl Smith sees "no evidence" of any benefit from taking "large amounts of vitamin C" (134).
For Charles Dickens the eighteenth century was both “the best of times” and “the worst of times” (35).
NOTE: When you are embedding quoted material, even if you are directly quoting only part of a sentence from your source, you do NOT need to use ellipses marks to indicate that you cut part of the quote. According to the 7th ed. MLA Handbook, "You need not always reproduce complete sentences. Sometimes you may want to quote just a word or phrase as part of your sentence. [. . .] If you quote only a word or a phrase, it will be obvious that you left out some of the original sentence" (93, 97). For more about when ellipsis marks are needed, see section A of Guideline 11: ALTERING QUOTATIONS.
PDQ 11 When writing about literature, you should not retell the story to set up a quote, but you do need to give some context. Your lead-in for the quote must establish who is speaking and give some information about what is happening at that point the novel, play, etc. so that quote will make sense. EXAMPLE: Perhaps it is his relationship with Julia that emboldens Winston to take the risk of declaring, "We are enemies of the Party," to O'Brien (Orwell 170).
Guideline 6: HAPPY ENDINGS--CLOSING PUNCTUATION FOR SENTENCES WITH DIRECT QUOTES Incorporating quotes into sentences upsets the normal order of punctuation. You are taking sentences-which might end in periods, exclamation points, or question marks--from a source and making them part of your sentence, which will have its own ending punctuation. In most cases the sentence(s) being quoted yield their original punctuation to integrate with your sentence. Suppose you want to quote the following sentence: “This above all, to thine own self be true.” If you put the quote at the end of the sentence, the period has to be pushed away from its original placement so that the sentence can include the closing quotation marks and the parenthetical reference. Placed at the end of a sentence with a quote in this way, the period is serving as closing punctuation for both the quote and the containing sentence (your sentence that contains the quoted material). EXAMPLE: Speaking about the importance of honesty, Polonius says, “This above all, to thine own self be true" (1.3.78). If you begin your sentence with this line, you have to replace the closing period with a punctuation mark appropriate to the new context in your sentence. In this case, the period becomes a comma. EXAMPLE: “This above all, to thine own self be true,” says Polonius about the importance of honesty (1.3.78). In general, the ending punctuation of the quoted material will be changed or moved to integrate into your sentence or to include the parenthetical reference, but QUOTES ENDING IN QUESTION MARKS OR EXCLAMATION POINTS GET TO KEEP THEIR ENDING PUNCTUATION INSIDE THE QUOTATION MARKS. This is because the question mark or exclamation point relates to the quoted material, not the entire containing sentence. EXAMPLES: Audiences love when the poet asks, "Are we losing our conviction?" (Mali 74).
PDQ 12 “How can I describe my emotions at this catastrophe?” (42) wonders the doctor in Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein.
Audiences love when the poet yells, "The concept of conviction has been lost in society today!" (Mali 74). Note that in the examples above, the containing sentences end in a period. Each tricky combination of quotation and sentence punctuation has its own complications. Sometimes the quoted sentence ends in a period, but the containing sentence ends in a question mark or an exclamation point. In the example below, the period from the quoted sentence is dropped in favor of the question mark that ends the containing sentence. EXAMPLE: Do audiences applaud when Mali says, "You’ve got to speak with it, too" (Mali 74)? Here are some additional examples of quotation and sentence punctuation combinations. If you are asking a question about someone’s quoted question, your sentence, as well as the quoted question at the end of the sentence, would seem to both need a question mark. However, use only ONE question mark. Place it INSIDE the closing quotation marks like this: EXAMPLE: Would Taylor Mali ever ask, “How much should teachers make?” (Mali 7). If you are asking a question about someone’s quoted exclamation, the exclamation needs an exclamation mark, and your question would need its own question mark like this: EXAMPLE: Is it true Billy Collins yelled, “The poets did it!” (Collins 89)? If you are quoting someone who is quoting someone else who is asking a question or exclaiming something, then it would look like this: EXAMPLE: Diana Fu states, “I love it when Mali asks, ‘Are we losing our conviction?’” (Fu 74).
PDQ 13 If you are quoting someone who is quoting someone else’s statement, it would look like this: EXAMPLE: Diana Fu states, “My favorite part of the performance is when Taylor Mali says, ‘You’ve got to speak with it, too’” (Fu 75). If you are quoting someone who is asking about someone else’s exclamation or question, it would look like this: EXAMPLE: Diana Fu asks, “Did you hear Taylor Mali say, ‘The concept of conviction has been lost in society today’?” (Fu 80).
Guideline 7: HOW TO DO BLOCK QUOTES If you need to use a long prose passage of quoted material--one that will run more than four lines in your paper--you need to format it as a block quotation. Two of the fundamental rules for using quoted material change with block quotes: Do NOT use quotation marks with a block quote, and put the parenthetical reference OUTSIDE the closing punctuation rather than inside. You make the block quote clear to the reader by indenting the entire quote one inch in from the left margin. Regarding block quotations, the 7th ed. MLA Handbook states: "A colon generally introduces a quotation displayed in this way, though sometimes the context may require a different mark of punctuation or none at all. If you quote only a single paragraph or part of one, do not indent the first line more than the rest" (94). In summary, here are the steps to formatting a block quotation: (1) (2) (3) (4) (5)
Do not use quotation marks! Double space down from the text before and after the quotation. Indent one inch in from left-hand, one-inch margin. The right margin should be flush with the usual one-inch margin. Double space the quote when typing. The final sentence in the block quote should end with whatever punctuation it had in the original source. The parenthetical reference follows the ending punctuation. Do not add any additional punctuation after the reference.
PDQ 14
EXAMPLE: 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 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. (186)
PDQ 15
Guideline 8: HOW TO QUOTE POEMS Quoting poetry requires particular attention because the placement of words into lines and the arrangement of those lines on the page were given particular attention by the poet. If you quote from more than one line of a poem, you must indicate the line breaks. Non-standard capitalization is often used in poetry, and your incorporation of quotes from a poem needs to preserve the poet's choices. DO NOT CHANGE CAPITALIZATION WHEN YOU QUOTE POETRY. Your word processing program may try to “help you out” by automatically standardizing capitalization as you type, but you must double check to be sure you are keeping the capitalization of the poem as the poet intended. NOTE: The parenthetical references for poems give line numbers rather than page numbers. See heading M. CITING COMMON WORKS OF LITERATURE: POETRY of section two in this document for details about parenthetical references for poetry. The following explanations and examples come directly from pages 95-96 of the 7th ed. MLA Handbook. If you quote part or all of a single line of verse that does not require special emphasis, put it in quotation marks within your text. Bradstreet frames the poem with a sense of mortality: “All things within this fading world hath end” (1). You may also incorporate two or three lines in this way, using a forward slash (also called a virgule) with a space on each side of the slash to indicate the line breaks. Reflecting on the “incident” in Baltimore, Cullen concludes, “Of all the things that happened there / That’s all that I remember” (11-12). Verse quotations of four or more lines should begin on a new line. Unless the quotation involves unusual spacing, indent each line one inch from the left margin and double-space between lines, adding no quotation marks that do not appear in the original. A parenthetical reference for a verse quotation set off from the text follows the last line of the quotation (as in quotations of prose); a parenthetical reference that will not fit on the line should appear on a new line, flush with the right margin of the page.
PDQ 16
Elizabeth Bishop’s “In the Waiting Room” is rich in evocative detail: It was winter. It got dark early. The waiting room was full of grown-up people, arctics and overcoats, lamps and magazines. (6-10) A line that is too long to fit within the right margin should be continued on the next line and the continuation indented an additional quarter inch. You may reduce the indention of the quotation to less than one inch from the left margin if doing so will eliminate the need for such continuations. If the spatial arrangement of the original lines, including indention and spacing within and between them, is unusual, reproduce it as accurately as possible. E. E. Cummings concludes the poem with this vivid description of a carefree scene, reinforced by the carefree form of the lines themselves: it’s spring and the goat-footed balloonMan far and wee (16-24)
whistles
PDQ 17 When a verse quotation begins in the middle of a line, the partial line should be positioned where it is in the original and not shifted to the left margin. In “I Sit and Sew,” by Alice Dunbar-Nelson, the speaker laments that social convention compels her to sit uselessly while her male compatriots lie in need on the battlefield: My soul in pity flings Appealing cries, yearning only to go There in that holocaust of hell, those fields of woe— But—I must sit and sew. (11-14) NOTE: If you need to make an omission in your quote of poetry, you use ellipsis marks with square brackets (see section A of Guideline 11: ALTERING QUOTATIONS) as you would with other types of sources, but if you want to leave out a line or more of a poem that appears in block format in your paper, you indicate the omission with a line of spaced periods. According the 7th ed. MLA Handbook, “The omission of a line or more in the middle of a poetry quotation that is set off from the text is indicated by a line of spaced periods approximately the length of a complete line of the quoted poem” (100). EXAMPLE OF A QUOTATION OMITTING A LINE OR MORE IN THE MIDDLE: Elizabeth Bishop’s “In the Waiting Room” is rich in evocative detail: In Worcester, Massachusetts, I went with Aunt Consuelo to keep her dentist’s appointment ............................. It was winter. It got dark early. (1-3, 6-7)
PDQ 18
Guideline 9: HOW TO QUOTE PLAYS If you are quoting a short (fewer than four lines as typed in your paper) passage of dialogue from one character, you can incorporate it into your paper in the same way you would use any other direct quotation. If you want to quote an exchange of dialogue between two characters or a passage including dialogue and stage directions, you need to set the quoted material off from the text in the same way you would for a block quotation. The following explanations and examples come directly from pages 96-7 of the 7th ed. MLA Handbook. If you quote dialogue between two or more characters in a play, set the quotation off from your text. Begin each part of the dialogue with the appropriate character’s name indented one inch from the left margin and written in all capital letters: HAMLET. Follow the name with a period, and start the quotation. Indent all subsequent lines in that character’s speech an additional quarter inch. When the dialogue shifts to another character, start a new line indented one inch from the left margin. Maintain this pattern throughout the entire quotation. Marguerite Duras’s screenplay for Hiroshima mon amour suggests at the outset the profound difference between observation and experience: HE. You saw nothing in Hiroshima. Nothing. SHE. I saw everything. Everything. . . . The hospital, for instance, I saw it. I’m sure I did. There is a hospital in Hiroshima. How could I help seeing it? HE. You did not see the hospital in Hiroshima. You saw nothing in Hiroshima. (2505-06)
PDQ 19
A short time later Lear loses the final symbol of his former power, the soldiers who make up his train: GONERIL.
Hear me, my lord.
What need you five-and-twenty, ten or five, To follow in a house where twice so many Have a command to tend you? REGAN.
What need one?
LEAR. O, reason not the need! (2.4.254-58) In general, stage directions are treated like other quoted text: they should be reproduced exactly as they appear in the original source. When stage directions interrupt the grammatical sense of your sentence, they may be replaced with an ellipsis.
Guideline 10: HOW TO QUOTE QUOTES Especially when writing about literature, you may need to quote material that is already in quotation marks in your source. For example, you might want to quote dialogue from a novel or short story, or you might be working with a newspaper article that includes quotes from interviews. To clarify which material appeared in quotation marks in the original source, use a combination of single and double quotation marks. In the example below, the quote includes both narration and dialogue. In the original source, the dialogue portion appeared with double quotation marks, but because the entire passage requires quotation marks in your paper, you would need to change the double quotation marks around the dialogue into single quotation marks. EXAMPLE: Dickens underscores Darnay’s naïveté about Carton’s impending sacrifice when he describes Darnay’s reaction to the drug by saying, “The pen dropped from Darnay’s fingers on the table, and he looked about him vacantly. ‘What vapour is that?’ he asked” (440). If the beginning or end of a quote within a quote coincides with the beginning or end of the full quote, adding the single quotation mark to the double will result in a group of three.
PDQ 20 EXAMPLES: Dickens uses the seamstress to draw the final portrait of Carton’s compassion: “‘Are you dying for him?’ she whispered” (444). If you want to include an exchange of dialogue, you will need to format the passage as a block quote even if it runs less than four lines. Each time the speaker changes in printed dialogue, a new paragraph is needed, so using a block quote format will show the paragraphing of your original source. See Guideline 7: HOW TO DO BLOCK QUOTES. Because of the block quote format, you do not need quotation marks around the whole passage, so you simply reproduce the quotation marks as they originally appear in the source. Remember to place your parenthetical reference outside the final punctuation or final quotation mark of the quote. EXAMPLE: Dickens uses the seamstress to draw the final portrait of Carton’s compassion: “Are you dying for him?” she whispered. “And his wife and child. Hush! Yes.” “O you will let me hold your brave hand, stranger?” “Hush! Yes, my poor sister; to the last.” (444) The most important thing you can do to clarify quotes within quotes is establish context and identify the speaker(s) and or author(s) in your lead-in to the quote! This is especially true when you are using quotes within quotes that will require referencing an indirect source (see heading I. CITING INDIRECT SOURCES in section two). For example, if a reporter named Jones interviews President Obama and then writes a newspaper article that includes quotes from Obama and you want to use one of the quotes from Obama in your paper, Obama would be considered an indirect source. If you use a passage from the newspaper article that includes the words of both Jones and Obama, set the context up as you lead into the quote and use single quotation marks within the double quotation marks to show which words were in quotations in the original source.
PDQ 21
EXAMPLE OF A QUOTE FROM AN INDIRECT SOURCE WITHIN A QUOTE: In his interview with Obama for the Washington Post, Jones writes, “The president responded to his critics by inviting them to ‘get out and talk to the people’” (A14). Notice that in the example above, the parenthetical reference does not include “qtd. in” (quoted in) because the full context for the quote was given in the lead-in. If you use the quote in such a way that you leave Jones out, you must indicate that Obama’s words are found in Jones’ article by using “qtd. in” in your parenthetical reference. Otherwise, your reader may be looking for Obama on your works-cited page. EXAMPLE OF A QUOTE FROM AN INDIRECT SOURCE GIVEN WITH SUPPORTING CONTEXT: President Obama has recently told his critics to “get out and talk to the people” (qtd. in Jones A14). In the example above, single quotation marks are not combined with double quotation marks because no other words from the original source appear in the quote. The combination of single and double quotation marks is only needed when words or phrases that appear in quotation marks in the original source are quoted along with additional words or phrases from the original source. ERROR EXAMPLE OF UNNECESSARY SINGLE QUOTATION MARKS ADDED TO DOUBLE QUOTATION MARKS: After his sentence has been handed down, Darnay tells Lucie, “’We shall meet again where the weary are at rest’” (418). DO IT THIS WAY INSTEAD: After his sentence has been handed down, Darnay tells Lucie, “We shall meet again where the weary are at rest” (418).
PDQ 22 According to the 7th ed. MLA Handbook, “When a quotation consists entirely of material enclosed by quotation marks in the source work, usually one pair of double quotation marks is sufficient, provided that the introductory wording makes clear the special character of the quoted material” (102).
Guideline 11: ALTERING QUOTATIONS Occasionally it will be necessary to alter quotations slightly to meet the needs of your paper. Modifications include omitting a word or words and making changes to the spelling, capitalization, or interior punctuation of the quote. Such modifications are acceptable ONLY if you do not misrepresent the meaning of the original words and ONLY if you use the accepted means of indicating that the material is being modified. REMEMBER THAT IN MANY INSTANCES, YOU CAN AVOID AWKWARD CONSTUCTIONS WITH ELLIPSES BY REPHRASING YOUR LEAD-IN FOR A QUOTE OR BY EMBEDDING KEY PHRASES FROM A QUOTE INTO YOUR OWN SENTENCE.
Section A: Ellipses When you need to take words out of a quote, indicate the omission of a word or words by inserting three ellipsis points [. . .] where the word or words are omitted. Type a space between each ellipsis point. If you insert ellipses following a period, the period should retain its place following the last word of the sentence, followed by a space and then the three ellipsis marks, each with a space between them, for what will look like a total of four periods. However, if a parenthetical reference follows the ellipsis at the end of your sentence, use three periods with a space before each, and place the sentence period after the final parenthesis. COMPLETE ORIGINAL QUOTE EXAMPLE: “In the corporate structure as in government, the rhetoric of achievement, of single-minded devotion to the task at hand—the rhetoric of performance, efficiency, and productivity—no longer provides an accurate description of the struggle for personal survival” (Lasch 61). EDITED EXAMPLE: “In the corporate structure as in government, the rhetoric of achievement [. . .] no longer provides an accurate description of the struggle for personal survival” (Lasch 61).
PDQ 23 Note that while ellipses are required when you omit something from the middle of a direct quote, you do NOT need to begin and end every quote in your paper with ellipses, even if you don't begin each quote with the beginning of the original sentence or end it where the original sentence ended. By embedding the quote in your own sentence or by clearly leading into the quote, you make it obvious that you are quoting only a part of the author’s original sentence. EXAMPLE OF UNNECESSARY ELLIPSES: In John Frederick’s view, this minor confrontation represented “[. . .] a critical turning point [. . .]” (88) in the relationship of these two countries.
EXAMPLE OF ACCEPTED FORM: In John Frederick’s view, this minor confrontation represented “a critical turning point” (88) in the relationship of these two countries. Ellipses should be used at the beginning and ends of quoted passages only if there is a chance your reader will misinterpret the quote without the ellipses. If you have cut off a quote in such a way that it would be important for reader to know that you have interrupted the words of the author, you should use ellipses to indicate the break. EXAMPLE OF A QUOTATION REQUIRING ELLIPSES TO PREVENT MISINTERPRETATION: If you presented a quote in this way: Bingham notes, "The therapy sessions have been most successful with groups that promote open communication while maintaining a consistent respect for privacy" (45). But the full quote read as follows: "The therapy sessions have been most successful with groups that promote open communication while maintaining a consistent respect for privacy and that do not include dangerous criminals" (45).
PDQ 24 Then ellipses marks at the end of the quote would be helpful! This will let the reader know there may be additional requirements for success in group therapy: Bingham notes, "The therapy sessions have been most successful with groups that promote open communication while maintaining a consistent respect for privacy [. . .]" (45).
Section B: Square Brackets Why do some ellipses have square brackets around them? In addition to indicating the omission of words in quotes, ellipses can also be used to indicated a pause or a trailing off in narration or dialogue. If you and the author you are quoting both used ellipses, it could be unclear which ellipses were in the original and which ellipses you added. To solve any potential confusion, you should put brackets around ellipses that you place inside the quoted material. While the 7th ed. of the MLA Handbook recommends that brackets [ ] around ellipses need only be used when the material being quoted also contains ellipses, at EPHS, we are requiring the use of the square brackets around any changes you make within a quote, including inserted ellipsis marks . EXAMPLE: "Well, Atticus, I was just sayin' [. . .] that entailments are bad an' all that, but you said not to worry, it takes a long time sometimes . . . that you all'd ride it out together" (Lee 154). The three ellipsis points in the second sentence do NOT have square brackets around them because Harper Lee put those ellipsis points in, not the student who wrote the paper. According the 7th ed. MLA Handbook, quotations "must reproduce the original sources exactly. Unless indicated in brackets or parentheses [. . .], changes must not be made in the spelling, capitalization, or interior punctuation of the source" (92-3). Whenever possible, rework the way you are incorporating your quote into the text to avoid making changes to the spelling, capitalization, or interior punctuation of the quote. If you must alter the spelling, capitalization, or interior punctuation of the quote, indicate the change with square brackets. EXAMPLE: In fact, as Tomalin notes, in the late eighteenth century, “[s]eparate bedrooms was the usual form of birth control” (7), but this method clearly was not always used.
PDQ 25
Guideline 12: HOW TO DO INTERPOLATIONS You will sometimes need to add insertions (called “interpolations”) or other alterations to a quote to help the reader understand the quote. According the 7th ed. MLA Handbook, "Occasionally, you may decide that a quotation will be unclear or confusing to your reader unless you provide supplementary information. [. . .] While such contributions to a quotation are permissible, you should keep them to a minimum and make sure to distinguish them from the original" (101). Use square brackets [ ] whenever you add anything within a quote. Sometimes a quote contains ambiguous pronouns. Do not simply change the quote to use the name instead of the pronoun. Using square brackets, you can add the name after the pronoun. COMPLETE ORIGINAL QUOTE EXAMPLE: “Perhaps he was unwilling to kill because he was mad or because he believed it to be morally wrong” (Holm 23).
EDITED EXAMPLE: “Perhaps he [Hamlet] was unwilling to kill because he was mad or because he believed it to be morally wrong” (Holm 23). ANOTHER EXAMPLE OF ADDING CLARIFYING INSERTIONS: In the first act, Hamlet soliloquizes, “Why she [Gertrude] would hang on him [Hamlet’s father] / As if increase of appetite had grown / By what it fed on [. . .]” (1.1.143-145).
OR, MINIMIZE INSERTIONS BY REPHRASING YOUR LEAD IN: In the first act, Hamlet soliloquizes about his mother's previous devotion to his father by describing how Gertrude “would hang on him / As if increase of appetite had grown / By what it fed on [. . .]” (1.1.143-145). If a quote contains a word or phrase that you would like to draw the reader's attention to, you could put the world or phrase in bold type or italics, but to let the reader know that the bold type or italics were not in the original source, use square brackets and add the phrase [emphasis added] after the world or phrase you altered.
EXAMPLE: Lincoln specifically advocated a government "for the people [emphasis added]" (Shaw 521).
PDQ 26
Guideline 13: WHAT TO DO IF YOU FIND AN ERROR IN A DQ Occasionally, you will find grammatical errors or logic errors in the original source you are using. First of all, be wary of a source that has errors. Such errors (even if they may simply be typos) undermine the credibility of a source. If you do intend to use the source despite the error(s), you will need to let your reader know that it wasn’t you who made the error. You will need to assure your reader that the quotation is accurate even though the spelling or grammar might make the reader think otherwise. Make insertions to explain errors by inserting the Latin abbreviation [sic] (which means “thus” or “so”) in square brackets in the quotation right after the error. This means “I (the writer) know there is an error in the original here, but that’s the way I found it.” YOU DO NOT HAVE PERMISSION TO CORRECT THE ERROR! EXAMPLE USING [SIC]: Shaw admitted, “Nothing can extinguish my interest in Shakespear’s [sic] works” (43).
PDQ 27
SECTION TWO: BASIC FORMATTING FOR PARENTHETICAL REFERENCES WHAT GOES INTO THE PARENTHETICAL DOCUMENTATION? If you have used the author’s name as part of your lead-in sentence, you need to cite only the page number(s). According to the 7th edition of the MLA Handbook, “If, for example, you include an author’s name in a sentence, you need not repeat the name in the parenthetical page citation that follows, provided that the reference is clearly to the work of the author you mention” (216). Make sure the information in the sentence makes the author’s identity clear. (To be on the safe side, however, it may be fine with your teacher to repeat the author’s name in the parenthetical documentation. Check with your teacher.) EXAMPLE (DQ): Sheila Stark stated, “Wilson’s poetry, filled with odd ideas, reflects his reclusive nature” (24-25). EXAMPLE (PARAPHRASE): Sheila Stark points out that Wilson was a recluse with odd ideas (24-25).
A. WITH ONE AUTHOR 1. For use of a source that is listed in the works cited by the name of the author (or editor, translator, or narrator), the parenthetical reference begins with the author’s last name and then the page number. EXAMPLE:
Many short stories published today leave the reader bewildered
because they have no clear beginnings and no obvious endings (Fullmer 139). 2. In a parenthetical reference to one of two or more works by the same author, put a comma after the author’s last name and add the title of the work (if brief) or a shortened version and the relevant page reference. EXAMPLE: (Steinbeck, Grapes of Wrath 75) EXAMPLE:
(Steinbeck, Of Mice and Men 3)
Pip and Estella’s first encounters (Dickens, Great Expectations 54)
differ markedly from the early days of games and play known to Ebenezer and Belle (Dickens, A Christmas Carol 36).
PDQ 28 EXAMPLE OF SHORTENED VERSION OF TITLE: Suppose two novels by Ken Kesey were used in your paper. They are Caverns and One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest. Here’s how you would do their respective parenthetical references: (Kesey, Caverns 87) AND (Kesey, Cuckoo’s Nest 3) If you state the author’s name in the text, give only the title and page reference in the parentheses. EXAMPLE: For Charles Dickens, his own philosophy must have matched Gradgrind’s when the remorseful father confesses to Louisa, “I have supposed the head to be all-sufficient” (Hard Times 217). 3. If you have sources in the works-cited list with more than one author with the same last name, you must add the first initial to the parenthetical reference. EXAMPLE:
(R. Olson 184-185)
AND
(C. Olson 43)
B. WITH TWO OR THREE AUTHORS 1. For use of a source written by two or three authors (or editors, translators, or narrators), include all of the authors. EXAMPLE:
This policy, although strongly opposed by Carlson (Winter and
Murray 68), was later adopted by Thomas (Olson, Smith, and Peterson 70). 2. For use of a source written by two or three authors (or editors, translators, or narrators) with more than one author with the same last name, you must add the first initial to the parenthetical reference. EXAMPLE: (Olson, A. Smith, and W. Smith 46)
C. WITH FOUR AUTHORS OR MORE For use of a source written by four or more authors (or editors, translators, or narrators), only list the first author followed by the Latin abbreviation “et al.” EXAMPLE: Medieval Europe was a place of extortion (Lauser et al. 2425-33).
PDQ 29
D. WITH A CORPORATE AUTHOR For use of a source written by a corporate author, use the corporate name as the author. EXAMPLE: (National Research Council 15) If the name is long, you may use shortened terms that are commonly abbreviated. See pages 240257 in the 7th edition of the MLA Handbook for widely accepted abbreviations. EXAMPLE: (Natl. Research Council 15) You may also simply include a long name for a corporate author in the text itself so that reading is not interrupted by an extended parenthetical reference.
EXAMPLE: According to a study sponsored by the National Research Council, the population was increasing by more than one million annually (15).
E. WITH NO AUTHOR (ANONYMOUS WORKS), CITE BY TITLE According to the 7th edition of the MLA Handbook, “In a parenthetical reference to a work alphabetized by title in the list of works cited, the full title (if brief) or a shortened version precedes the page, paragraph, section, or reference number or numbers [. . .], unless the title appears in your text. When abbreviating the title, begin with the word by which it is alphabetized. Do not, for example, shorten the title Glossary of Terms Used in Heraldry to Heraldry because this abbreviation would lead your reader to look for the bibliographic [works-cited] entry under h rather than g” (223). If two or more anonymous sources have the same title, you “add a publication fact, such as a date, that distinguishes the works” (215). EXAMPLE: The brief but dramatic conclusion of the book climaxes in revealing the symbolism of the farmer’s snowy owl (“Dueling”). In winter the snowy owl feeds primarily on small rodents (“Snowy Owl,” Hinterland), but in spring it also feeds on the eggs of much larger waterfowl, such as geese and swans (“Snowy Owl,” Arctic).
PDQ 30 CORRESPONDING WORKS-CITED ENTRIES: Works Cited “Dueling Protagonists in Struggle of the North and Slumber.”Swedish
Novelists. Association of Swedish Arts and Letters,15 May 2008. Web. 7 Aug. 2009. “Snowy Owl.” Arctic Studies Center. Natl. Museum of Natural History of the Smithsonian Inst., 2004. Web. 8 Aug. 2009. “Snowy Owl.” Hinterland Who’s Who. Canadian Wildlife Service, 2006. Web. 8 Aug. 2009.
F. CITING MORE THAN ONE WORK IN A SINGLE PARENTHETICAL REFERENCE According to the 7th edition of the MLA Handbook, “If you wish to include two or more works in a single parenthetical reference, cite each work as you normally would in a reference and use semicolons to separate the citations” (229).
EXAMPLES:
(Collins 47; Mali 101-33) (Nat’l Research Council 25-35; Fu 78)
PDQ 31
G. WITH EDITOR, TRANSLATOR, OR COMPILER If the source is listed on the works-cited page by the name of an editor, translator, or compiler, do not use abbreviations such as ed., trans., and comp. after the name in the parenthetical documentation. In the example below, Burton Raffel translated the anonymous epic poem Beowulf. Lines 104-106 were used. Note: In citing line numbers for poetry, do not use the abbreviation l. or ll., which can be confused with numerals. Instead, initially use the word line or lines and then, having established that the numbers designate lines, give the numbers alone. EXAMPLE: The poet implies something diabolical about Grendel’s origin, as evidenced in this description: “He was spawned in that slime, / Conceived by a pair of those monsters born / Of Cain [. . .]” (lines 104-106). However, further into the text, it may be argued that a divine presence may be at work orchestrating Beowulf’s ability to conquer Grendel and, therefore, evil itself. Hrothgar states, “Our Holy Father / Has sent him as a sign of His grace, a mark / Of His favor, to help us defeat Grendel / And to end that terror” (Raffel 381-384). CORRESPONDING WORKS-CITED ENTRY: Works Cited Raffel, Burton, trans. Beowulf. New York: New American Library, 1963. Print.
PDQ 32
H. CITING PART OF A WORK According to pages 220-1 in the 7th edition of the MLA Handbook, “If you quote, paraphrase, or otherwise use a specific passage in a book, an article, or another work, give the relevant page or section (e.g., paragraph) number or numbers. When the author’s name is in your text, give only the number reference in parentheses, but if the context does not clearly identify the author, add the author’s last name before the reference. Leave a space between them, but do not insert punctuation or, for a page reference, the word page or pages or the abbreviation p. or pp.” EXAMPLE: Atwell suggests that “[a] topic conference gets a writer talking” (101). CORRESPONDING WORKS-CITED ENTRY: Works Cited Atwell, Nancie. “Responding to Writers and Writing.” In the Middle: Writing,
Reading, and Learning with Adolescents. Portsmouth: Boynton Cook, 1987. 88-121. Print. “If your source uses explicit paragraph numbers rather than page numbers—as, for example, some electronic publications do—give the relevant number or numbers preceded by the abbreviation par. or pars. If the author’s name begins such a citation, place a comma after the name” (221). EXAMPLE: Chan claims that “Eagleton has belittled the gains of postmodernism” (par. 41). CORRESPONDING WORKS-CITED ENTRY: Works Cited Chan, Evans. “Postmodernism and Hong Kong Cinema.” Postmodern Culture 10.3 (2000): n. pag. Project Muse. Web. 20 May 2002. If another kind of section is numbered in the source, either write out the word for the section or use a standard abbreviation (see pages 240-247 in the 7th edition of the MLA Handbook for accepted abbreviations). EXAMPLE: The Committee on Scholarly Editions provides an annotated bibliography on the theory of textual editing (sec. 4).
PDQ 33 CORRESPONDING WORKS-CITED ENTRY: Works Cited Committee on Scholarly Editions. “Guidelines for Editors of Scholarly Editions.” Modern Language Association. MLA, 25 Sept. 2007. Web. 22 Jan. 2008. When a source has no page numbers or any other kind of reference numbers (as is often the case with Web sources), no number can be given in the parenthetical reference. The work must be cited in its entirety though you may indicate in your text an approximate location of the cited passage (e.g., “in the final third of his article, Jones argues for a revisionist interpretation”). DO NOT USE THE PAGE NUMBERS OF YOUR PRINT-OUTS. EXAMPLE: The utilitarianism of the Victorians “attempted to reduce decision-making about human actions to a ‘felicific calculus’” (Everett). CORRESPONDING WORKS-CITED ENTRY: Works Cited Everett, Glenn. “Utilitarianism.” The Victorian Web. Ed. George P. Landow. U Scholars Programme, Natl. U of Singapore, 11 Oct. 2002. Web. 18 May 2007.
PDQ 34
I. CITING INDIRECT SOURCES: USING THE ABBREVIATION “qtd. in” According to the 7th edition of the MLA Handbook, “Whenever you can, take material from the original source, not a secondhand one. Sometimes, however, only an indirect source is available— for example, someone’s published account of another’s spoken remarks. If what you quote or paraphrase is itself a quotation, put the abbreviation qtd. in (“quoted in”) before the indirect source you cite in your parenthetical reference” (226). So, if you are using a secondary source which quotes a primary source (which you have not actually used), you need to include “qtd.” in the parenthetical documentation. EXAMPLE: Dean agrees with Jeremiah Reedy, a classics professor at Macalester College in St. Paul, who said, “You cannot read in the abstract [. . .], but you have to have the background knowledge E.D. Hirsch thinks is taken for granted by publishers of books, magazines, and newspapers” (qtd. in Dean 79). EXAMPLE (WITH A DIRECT QUOTE): Samuel Johnson admitted that Edmund Burke was an “extraordinary man” (qtd. in Boswell 2: 450). NOTE: There is a “2” after Boswell followed by a colon because Boswell’s The Life of Johnson has 6 volumes to it. The “2” refers to volume 2, and 450 is the page number. CORRESPONDING WORKS-CITED ENTRY: Works Cited Boswell, James. The Life of Johnson. Ed. George Birkbeck Hill and L. F. Powell. 6 vols. Oxford: Clarendon, 1934-50. Print.
PDQ 35
EXAMPLE (WITH A PARAPHRASE): The commentary of the sixteenth-century literary scholars Segni and Salviati shows them to be less than faithful followers of Aristotle (qtd. in Weinberg 1: 405, 616-617).
CORRESPONDING WORKS-CITED ENTRY: Works Cited Weinberg, Bernard. A History of Literary Criticism in the Italian
Renaissance. 2 vols. Chicago: U of Chicago P, 1961. Print.
PDQ 36
J. CITING COMMON WORKS OF LITERATURE: PROSE According to the 7th edition of the MLA Handbook, “In a reference to a classic prose work, such as a novel or play, that is available in several editions, it is helpful to provide more information than just a page number for the edition used; a chapter number, for example, would help readers to locate a quotation in any copy of a novel. In such a reference, give the page number first, add a semicolon, and then give other identifying information, using appropriate abbreviations [. . .]” (226). EXAMPLE 1: Raskolnikov first appears in Crime and Punishment as a man contemplating a terrible act but frightened of meeting his talkative landlady on the stairs (Dostoevsky 1; pt. 1, ch. 1).
EXAMPLE 2: It is not until the middle of To Kill a Mockingbird that the reader fully understands the futility of impacting the jury (Lee 211; ch. 23). NOTE: If your source is unpaginated but has chapter numbers, use them.
EXAMPLE 3: Douglass notes that he had “no accurate knowledge” of his date of birth, “never having had any authentic record containing it” (ch. 1).
PDQ 37
K. CITING SCRIPTURE According to the 7th edition of the MLA Handbook, “When citing scripture, provide an entry in the works-cited list for the edition you consulted. While general terms like Bible, Talmud, and Koran are not italicized, full and shortened titles of specific editions are italicized. The first time you borrow from a particular work of scripture in your manuscript, state in the text or in a parenthetical citation the element that begins the entry in the works-cited list (usually the title of the edition but sometimes an editor’s or a translator’s name). Identify the borrowing by divisions of the work—for the Bible, give the name of the book and chapter and verse numbers—rather than by a page number. Subsequent citations of the same edition may provide division numbers alone (see the New Jerusalem Bible example)” (227). When included in parenthetical references, the titles of the books of the Bible and of famous literary works are often abbreviated (1 Chron. 21.8, Rev. 21.3, Oth. 4.2.7–13, FQ 3.3.53.3) NOTE: According to page 91 in the 7th edition of the MLA Handbook, “the convention of using italics and quotation marks to indicate titles does not generally apply to the names of scriptural writings (including all books and versions of the Bible); of laws, acts, and similar political documents; of musical compositions identified by form, number, and key; of series, societies, buildings, and monuments; and of conferences, seminars, workshops, and courses.” The following terms all appear without italics or quotation marks: Bible, Old Testament, Genesis, Gospels, Talmud, Koran, Upanishads. EXAMPLE: In one of the most vivid prophetic visions in the Bible, Ezekiel saw “what seemed to be four living creatures,” each with the faces of a man, a lion, an ox, and an eagle (New Jerusalem Bible, Ezek. 1.5-10). John of Patmos echoes this passage when describing his vision (Rev. 4.6-8).
CORRESPONDING WORKS-CITED ENTRY: Works Cited
The New Jerusalem Bible. Henry Wansbrough, gen. ed. New York: Doubleday, 1985. Print.
PDQ 38
L. CITING COMMON WORKS OF LITERATURE: PLAYS In citing plays, cite by division (act, scene, line numbers) rather than page numbers. In general, use arabic numerals rather than roman numerals for division and page numbers. Do not cite the playwright’s name in the parenthetical documentation if the authorship has already been established. Let’s say you are writing an analysis of Shakespeare’s Hamlet. THIS IS THE ONLY SHAKESPEARE PLAY YOU ARE REFERENCING IN YOUR PAPER. For the very FIRST reference to the play, you are discussing a passage in act 3, scene 1, lines 56-58. Your very first parenthetical reference, then, would look like this: EXAMPLE: The psychological aspects of Hamlet become most obvious in his fourth soliloquy when he contemplates the meaning of life (Shakespeare 3.1.56-58). Once you have established that you are using Shakespeare’s Hamlet for the entire paper, all subsequent parenthetical references need not include Shakespeare or Hamlet. If your second reference is to act 3, scene 1, line 202, your parenthetical reference would look like this: EXAMPLE: Claudius’ comment that “[m]adness in great ones must not unwatched go” (3.1.202) clearly shows his suspicion of Hamlet. If your paper includes parenthetical references to more than just one work of literature, make sure the information in the parenthetical references clearly indicates to which work you are referring. In the example below, Shakespeare as playwright of Romeo and Juliet has already been clearly established. All subsequent references to Romeo and Juliet can include an abbreviated form of the title provided that you clearly introduce the abbreviation in parentheses immediately after the first use of the full title in the text. According to page 250 in the 7th edition of the MLA Handbook, “Abbreviating titles is
appropriate, for example, if you repeatedly cite a variety of works by the same author. In such a discussion, abbreviations make for more concise parenthetical documentation [. . .] than the usual shortened titles would. [. . .] See pages 250-256 in the 7th edition of the MLA Handbook for commonly accepted abbreviations of literary works. If your work of literature does not appear on the MLA Handbook abbreviations list, the MLA Handbook suggests, “you may use the abbreviations you find in your sources, or you may devise simple, unambiguous abbreviations of your own” (250).
PDQ 39 EXAMPLE: According to Karl F. Zender, Romeo and Juliet (Rom.) presents an opposition between two worlds: “the world of the everyday,” associated with the adults in the play, and “the world of romance,” associated with the two lovers (138). Romeo and Juliet’s language of love nevertheless becomes “fully responsive to the tang of actuality” (141). This is evident in the famous balcony scene when Juliet advises Romeo to “swear not by the moon, th’ inconstant moon, / That monthly changes in circle orb, / Lest that thy love prove likewise variable” (Rom. 2.2.109-111). Shakespeare’s choice of words is particularly telling here because the word “variable” can be defined as “fickle” (“Variable,” def. 2b).
EXAMPLE OF CORRESPONDING WORKS-CITED ENTRIES:
Works Cited Shakespeare, William. Romeo and Juliet. Ed. J. A. Bryant, Jr. New York: New American Library, 1998. Print. “Variable.” Def. 2b. The Oxford English Dictionary. 2nd ed. 1992. Print. Zender, Karl F. “Loving Shakespeare’s Lovers: Character Growth in Romeo and
Juliet.” Approaches to Teaching Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet. Ed. Maurice Hunt. New York: MLA, 2000. 137-43. Print.
Let’s say you are writing an analysis of Shakespeare’s Hamlet and Macbeth. Because you are referencing more than one Shakespeare play, you are going to need to distinguish one from the other very clearly in your parenthetical references. For your very FIRST references to the plays, you are going to use Shakespeare as well as the play titles in full in your parenthetical references.
PDQ 40 EXAMPLE: One Shakespearean protagonist seems resolute at first when he asserts, “Haste me to know’t, that I, with wings as swift / As meditation [. . .] / May sweep to my revenge” (Shakespeare, Hamlet 1.5.35-37), but he soon has second thoughts. Another tragic figure, initially described as “too full o’ th’ milk of human kindness” (Shakespeare, Macbeth 1.5.17), quickly descends into horrific slaughter. CORRESPONDING WORKS-CITED ENTRIES: Works Cited Shakespeare, William. Hamlet. Ed. Barbara A. Mowat and Paul Werstine. New York: Washington Square-Pocket, 1992. Print. ---. Macbeth. Ed. Barbara A. Mowat and Paul Werstine. New York: Washington Square-Pocket, 1992. Print. Now that Shakespeare, the titles of the plays, and the abbreviations you will use have been established, all subsequent references must include abbreviated forms of the titles. EXAMPLE: One Shakespearean protagonist seems resolute at first when he asserts, “Haste me to know’t, that I, with wings as swift / As meditation [. . .] / May sweep to my revenge” (Ham. 1.5.35-37), but he soon has second thoughts. Another tragic figure, initially described as “too full o’ th’ milk of human kindness” (Mac. 1.5.17), quickly descends into horrific slaughter.
PDQ 41
M. CITING COMMON WORKS OF LITERATURE: POETRY According to the 7th edition of the MLA Handbook, in citing line numbers for poetry, “do not use the abbreviation l. or ll., which can be confused with numerals. Instead, initially use the word line or lines and then, having established that the numbers designate lines, give the numbers alone” (227). EXAMPLE: When Keats concludes, “Beauty is truth, truth beauty” (line 49), the reader is reminded of the same message he presents in “Ode to a Nightingale,” another of his famous poems. So important is beauty to Keats that it “is all / Ye know on earth, and all ye need to know” (49-50). According to the 7th edition of the MLA Handbook, “A parenthetical reference for a verse quotation set off from the text follows the last line of the quotation (as in quotations of prose)” (95). EXAMPLE: Elizabeth Bishop’s “In the Waiting Room” is rich in evocative detail: It was winter. It got dark early. The waiting room was full of grown-up people, arctics and overcoats, lamps and magazines. (6-10)
REMINDERS WHEN CITING POETRY! 1. You do not need to put the poet's name in the parenthetical reference IF the poet’s name is included in the lead-in to the quote. EXAMPLE: Reflecting on the "incident" in Baltimore, Cullen concludes, "Of all the things that happened there / That's all that I remember" (11-12). NOTE: "T" is capitalized in the word "that’s" because it was capitalized in the original poem.
PDQ 42 2. When talking about the poet, NEVER refer to the poet by his/her first name. For example, do not call Shakespeare “William” or John Keats “John.” 3. With subsequent quotations from the same poem, you do not need to put the poet’s name. For example, the first time you quote from the poem, the parenthetical documentation for lines 7-8 cited in Eavan Boland's poem, "It's a Woman's World," would look like this: (Boland 7-8). After the first citation, you can simply do this--(12-15)--as long as it is very clear this is the SAME Eavan Boland poem you have been discussing. 4. When switching discussion in your paper from one poet to another poet, be sure to include the poet's name again for the parenthetical reference: (Cullen 19-21). NOTE: Keep this very clear! This may mean continuing to use the author’s name and poem title and line numbers for the rest of the paper. 5. If you have been discussing Eavan Boland's poem, "It's a Woman's World," and now want to switch to discussing another Eavan Boland poem, "Outside History," you will now need to also cite the name of the poem to distinguish these two poems. The first citation would like this: (Boland, "It's a Woman's World" 8-10). The next citation would like this: (Boland, "Outside History" 3-4).
N. CITING AN ENTIRE WORK According to the 7th edition of the MLA Handbook, “If you are citing an entire work [. . .] rather than a specific part of it, the author’s name in the text may be the only documentation required” (216). If you cite an entire text in this way, be sure to include the book on your works-cited list. EXAMPLE: Holm has devoted an entire book to the subject. The 7th edition of the MLA Handbook, suggests, however, that if, for the reader’s convenience, you want to “name the book in your text, you could recast the sentence” (216). EXAMPLE: Holm has devoted an entire book, Struggles of the Gifted, to the subject.
PDQ 43
O. CITING WORKS WITHOUT PAGE NUMBERS Especially with the increase in Web-based research, you are likely to encounter sources with no page numbers. Remember that the fundamental purpose of parenthetical documentation is to direct the reader to the right information on your works-cited page. Thus, for each paraphrase or quote in your paper, you need to give the reader the key piece of information needed--the name of the author (or, if no author, the title of the work). It is best to give that information in your lead-in to the quote or paraphrase. If your source has no page numbers, that does not excuse you from including a parenthetical reference. If you can't give a page number, at a minimum, your parenthetical reference must give the name of the author (or the title if you are listing by title). Additionally, the 7th ed. MLA Handbook offers some suggestions for information that you could use in place of page numbers: "Identify the location of the borrowed information as specifically as possible. Sources include a variety of reference markers to help users locate passages. [. . .] In a reference to a common work of literature, it is sometimes helpful to give information other than, or in addition to, the page number—for example, the chapter, book, or stanza number or the numbers of the act, scene, and line. [. . .] A page reference is unnecessary if you use a passage from a one-page work. Electronic publications sometimes include paragraph numbers or other kinds of reference numbers. Of course, sources such as films, television broadcasts, performances, and electronic sources with no pagination or other type of reference markers cannot be cited by number. Such works are usually cited in their entirety and often by title" (215).
WC 1 General Info.
WORKS CITED (MLA) (rev. 8/15/13)
NOTE: Many of the explanations and actual examples come from the 7th edition of the MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers.
TABLE OF CONTENTS General Information
WC 1-8
The Details
WC 9-54
Sample works-cited page Works-cited formatting Frequently ignored details Getting started Types of sources Parts of a citation Missing facts of publication
WC 2 WC 3 WC 4 WC 5
Section A: Citing nonperiodical print publications (books, etc.) Section B: Citing periodical print publications (magazines, etc.) Section C: Citing Web sources Section D: Citing database sources Section E: Citing additional sources If you didn’t find what you needed . . . Annotated bibliography
WC 9
WC 7
WC 22 WC 27 WC 40 WC 46 WC 53 WC 54
WORKS CITED: GENERAL INFORMATION •
•
•
•
•
The list of works cited is vital to the credibility of your research paper. Your reader will turn to the works-cited page to see how you have researched your topic and to ensure that you are not guilty of plagiarism. The works-cited page coordinates with parenthetical documentation in the MLA (Modern Language Association) documentation style. Within the text of your paper, parenthetical documentation provides a brief reference to the sources you are quoting or paraphrasing. The works-cited page gives your reader the detailed information about each source you used. YOUR PARENTHETICAL REFERENCES AND YOUR WORKS-CITED ENTRIES MUST MATCH. To avoid plagiarism and to save yourself extra work, INCLUDE PARENTHETICAL DOCUMENTATION AND PREPARE THE LIST OF WORKS CITED AS YOU WRITE YOUR PAPER. Do not wait to add it all when you’ve finished your paper. Do not rely on a word processing program or Web application to generate your workscited page. Many variables affect the formatting of information in a citation, and you will need to thoughtfully evaluate how each of your sources should be cited. A subscription service or an online database such as Academic Search Premier may provide a citation at the end of an article you are using in your research, but you cannot assume this citation is done correctly. You will need to take the information given there and put it into the correct MLA format (refer to section D of this document).
WC 2 General Info.
Here is an example of a list of WORKS CITED: Erickson 5 Works Cited “Frederick Douglass.” Civil War Journal. Narr. Danny Glover. Dir. Craig Haffner. Arts and Entertainment Network. 6 Apr. 1993. Television. Gilman, Sander, et al. Hysteria beyond Freud. Berkeley: U of California P, 1993. Print. It’s a Wonderful Life. Dir. Frank Capra. Perf. James Stewart, Donna Reed, Lionel Barrymore, and Thomas Mitchell. 1946. Republic, 2001. DVD. Ouellette, Marc. “Theories, Memories, Bodies, and Artists.” Editorial. Reconstruction 7.4 (2007): n. pag. Web. 5 June 2008. Sears, Barry. Afterword. The Jungle. By Upton Sinclair. New York: Signet, 2001. 343-47. Print. Tatar, Maria. Off with Their Heads! Fairy Tales and the Culture of Childhood. Princeton: Princeton UP, 1992. Print. “Tinker v. Des Moines Independent Community School District.” Oyez. Chicago-Kent College of Law, 2011. Web. 25 Sept. 2013. Wente, Margaret. "In the Best Interests of the Child?" Globe and Mail [Toronto] 30 Sept. 2006: A25. Academic Search Premier. Web. 21 Feb. 2009. Zeitz, Joshua. “The Roaring Twenties.” The Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History. The Gilder Lehrman Institute, 23 Mar. 2012. Web. 15 May 2013.
WC 3 General Info.
FORMAT FOR THE WORKS CITED
1. Your works-cited page always goes at the end of your paper. Make sure you continue the pagination used for the text of the paper. 2. Always type your works-cited page. Type your last name and the page number in the upper right hand corner, half an inch from the top and flush with the right margin. 3. Center the words Works Cited an inch from the top edge of the paper. Note that “Works Cited” as the title of this page in your paper is capitalized and not hyphenated. (When referring to a “works-cited page,” a hyphen is used because “works” and “cited” form a compound adjective modifying “page.”) If you are citing only one source, your page should be titled “Work Cited.” Note: Use the title “Works Cited” rather than “Bibliography.” 4. Use one-inch left and right margins. The bottom margin must be a minimum of one inch. 5. Double space (DS) the entire document (no extra spaces should appear between “Works Cited” and the first entry (see sample on WC 2). 6. Use hanging indentation. This means that if an entry runs more than one line, indent the second and any subsequent lines one-half inch from the left margin. 7. Alphabetize the entries by the authors’ last names. 8. If there is no author, begin the entry with the title of the book or article and alphabetize by the first important word in the title (excluding articles: a, an, the). 9. Never number the entries. 10. Continue your Works Cited on as many pages as necessary. The top margin is 1” on all subsequent pages. Do not repeat the title “Works Cited” on any of the subsequent pages, but do put your last name and the page number in the upper right.
WC 4 General Info.
WORKS-CITED FIDs (Frequently Ignored Details that result in errors): 1. Even if the important words in an article title are not capitalized in the original source, capitalize each important word in your list of works cited (see rule number 3 in the GRS for details about capitalizing titles). 2. Pay close attention to the punctuation within the citation. In general, periods are used to separate the parts of the entry. A period follows the author's name, and another period follows the title, etc., but the details of each entry will determine the details of the punctuation. For example, a period follows the title of a book, but no period is used between the title of a periodical and its publication date. Find an example that most closely matches your citation and check for the punctuation usage. Remember that all citations end with a period. 3. Note that only the first name listed in any citation is inverted (last name first, first name last). This is done for alphabetizing. Any other names in a citation should be written normally. Names in a series (multiple authors, etc.) should be given in the order in which they appear in the source. 4. When a full date appears in works-cited entry, it must be written in the day-month-year style (2 Mar. 2009). Dates written in this style require no commas. With the exceptions of May, June, and July, abbreviate the names of all months (Jan., Feb., Mar., Apr., Aug., Sept., Oct., Nov., Dec.) 5. If you are unable to find information such as the publisher, city of publication, etc., the omission must be noted in your citation (see heading "What to do if you're missing some facts of publication" below). Sometimes information is available but is difficult to find. Ask your instructor for help if you think information is missing. 6. When you have finished your paper and your list of works cited, go back and cross check in your paper to make sure your citations match your parenthetical references. Make sure you have a citation for every source in your paper and that every citation on your workscited list is a source you actually used in your paper. 7. According to the MLA Handbook, 7th ed. (pp. 247-49), you should give a shortened form of the publisher's name. “Harcourt Brace” shortens to “Harcourt.” "Charles Scribner's Sons" shortens to "Scribner's," etc. You should omit articles (An, An, The), business abbreviations (Co., Corp., Inc., Ltd.), and descriptive words (Books, House, Press, Publishers). When citing a university press, however, always add the abbreviations for "University" and "Press" (Ohio State UP or U of Chicago P) because the university itself may publish independently of its press (Ohio State U). 8. Citing a source with multiple authors or editors, citing multiple works by the same author, and listing a translator, editor, or compiler all require particular formatting. In this document, those guidelines are covered in detail in Sec. A (headings 2-6). This information is not repeated in as much detail in other parts of the document, so if you have questions about how to list authors, editors, etc. for sources described in the other sections, refer back to Sec. A.
WC 5 General Info.
WORKS CITED: GETTING STARTED Types of sources To know how to build an entry on your list of works cited, you must first determine what kind of source material you are working with. There are dozens of possibilities. Your source could be anything from a simple book with a single author to a Web publication of a previously published chapter of an anthology with no listed author and four or more editors and a translator. This document covers guidelines for many types of source citations, but it is not exhaustive. If you do not find the information you need here, access a reference copy of the MLA Handbook, seventh edition.
Parts of a citation Not every citation will have exactly the same components, but the purpose of each citation is to provide your reader with enough information that he or she could find the same source to check your work or to do further research. For each of these components, your exact citation will vary. Building your citation becomes an “IF, THEN” process. For example, IF the article you are citing has no author listed, THEN start the citation with the article title. You will go through a series of these “IF, THEN” questions to find out how each citation should appear. YOU WILL NEED TO SEARCH OUT THE DETAILS! AUTHOR'S NAME Each entry on your works-cited page begins with the author's name, last name first. IF your source has more than one author, a corporate author, no author, or if the same author will appear more than once on your works-cited page, THEN you need to follow the guidelines specific to those cases. Under some circumstances, an editor, compiler, translator, or performer (e.g., film actor) should be listed first. Note: If an author’s initial is given or the author's name includes an essential suffix (like Jr.), you must include the initial or suffix on the list of works cited, but you should omit titles, affiliations, or degrees ("Anthony T. Boyle, PhD" would be listed in a works-cited entry as "Boyle, Anthony T."). TITLE The type of source will determine if title is italicized or put in quotation marks. Possible types of titles include: article, book, dictionary or encyclopedia entry, Web page, chapter in a book or anthology, poem, short story, song or ablum title, film, etc. IF the source is part of a larger work--an article in a magazine, a chapter in a book, a page on a Web site, an entry in a dictionary, a song on an album, an episode of a television series, etc.— THEN next list the title of that larger work (italicized)--the name of the magazine, book, Web site, dictionary, album, television series, etc. IF your source has an editor or translator, THEN that information should follow the title. SERIES, VOLUME, ISSUE, or EDITION INFORMATION Some citations require additional information between the title and the publication information. IF the source is a journal with a series name or a volume and issue number, or if the source is an edition or part of series with numbered volumes, THEN put that information next.
WC 6 General Info. PUBLICATION INFORMATION The publication information is the WHERE, WHO, and WHEN about how your source was published. The details and formatting of this part of your citation will depend on the type of source. IF you are using a MAGAZINE or JOURNAL ARTICLE as a source, THEN your citation will not include a publisher (since you've already given the title of the magazine or journal). The details of the publication date will depend on the type of periodical. IF you are using a BOOK or other non-periodical print source, THEN your publication information will look like this: City of Publication: Publisher, year. IF you have a WEB source, THEN you need to include the publisher (or sponsoring organization) of the Web site and the publication date (also called posting date or most recent copyright date). Web Source Note: Internet sources often lack credibility, so listing the publisher of the site is important in establishing the academic validity of your research. If you cannot determine who published the site, or you find that the publisher is not academically credible, you should consider looking for an alternative source. Web Source Note: Many scholarly or journalistic sources you access on the Internet will have come from original print sources such as books, journals, or newspapers. You must include information about the print publication AND the Web source you used to access it. Carefully look through the section on Web sources to know how to do these citations. INCLUSIVE PAGE NUMBERS Not all sources need inclusive page numbers. In general, IF the source you are using is contained within a larger work--an article in a magazine, a poem in an anthology--THEN you need to cite the inclusive page numbers. For a Web source, inclusive page numbers are needed if the source was originally a type of print source requiring inclusive page numbers. When inclusive page numbers are needed in your citation, give the entire range of pages for your source. DO NOT JUST LIST THE NUMBERS OF THE PAGES YOU USED. MEDIUM of PUBLICATION You must end your citation by identifying the medium, or type, of the source you are citing. Most often, this will be either Print or Web, but it could be another medium such as Radio, DVD, Map, Photograph, Lecture. For digital media, identify the medium as specifically as possible: Kindle file, Nook file, EPUB file, or PDF file. If you cannot identify the file type, use Digital file. IF you are using a Web source, THEN the medium of publication, "Web," must be followed by the ACCESS DATE (the date you found the information on the site). Examples of works-cited entries author
book title
city of pub.
publisher
year of pub.
Schlosser, Eric. Fast Food Nation. New York: Perennial-Harper, 2005. Print.
article title
authors
medium of pub.
magazine title
Weintraub, Arlene, and Laura Cohen. “A Thousand-Year Plan for Nuclear Waste.” Business Week 6 May 2002: 94-96. Print. pub. date
inclusive page num.
medium of pub.
WC 7 General Info. article title
Web site pub.
Web site title
pub. date
med. of pub.
“Utah Mine Rescue Funeral.” Utah Online. Intermountain Media, 1 Aug. 2007. Web. 7 Aug. 2007. access date article title
author
magazine title
inclusive page num.
Thomas, Chandra R. "The Storm Within." Essence Sept. 2008: 148+. Student Edition. Web. 3 Nov. pub. date
2008. med. of pub.
subscription service
access date
WHAT TO DO IF YOU’RE MISSING SOME FACTS OF PUBLICATION FOLLOW THESE STEPS: 1. Check with your teacher. Perhaps he/she can locate the information in an obscure place. 2. If there is no author listed, simply omit the information about the author and alphabetize the entry by the first letter of the title. (Do not alphabetize “A,” “An,” “The.”) 3. Use the following abbreviations in place of the missing information: • no place of publication = n.p. or N.p. (N.p.: U of Gotham P, 2003.) •
no publisher given = n.p. or N.p. (New York: n.p., 2003.)
•
no date of publication = n.d. or N.d. (New York: U of Gotham P, n.d.)
•
no page numbers given = n. pag. or N. pag. Note that there is a space after the “n.” (New York: U of Gotham P, 2003. N. pag.)
Note: In these abbreviations, the capitalization of the "n." will vary depending on placement. If the abbreviation follows a period, the "N." should be capitalized. If it follows any other text or mark of punctuation, the "n." should be written in lower case. Book with no city of publication, no publisher, no date
Note: A source missing this much information would be unusual and would not be considered Carlson, Jennifer. Staying on the Beam. N.p.: n.p., n.d. Print. credible. Magazine article with no page numbers listed Sime, Suzie. “Beatlefest.” Rolling Stone 22 Dec. 1992: n. pag. Print. Article from a Web site with no publisher Lessig, Lawrence. “Free Debates: More Republicans Call on RNC.” Lessig 2.0. N.p., 4 May 2007. Web. 15 May 2008.
Web Source Note: Use of N.p. for "No Publisher" should be rare! Identifying Web site publishers is essential for credibility, so if you cannot find a publisher, you probably should not use that Web site.
WC 8 General Info.
THE DETAILS: Table of Contents Section A: CITING NONPERIODICAL PRINT PUBLICATIONS (BOOKS, ETC.) FINDING NEEDED INFORMATION BOOKS OR PAMPHLETS 1. Book or pamphlet with an author 2. An anonymous book 3. A book with an editor instead of an author 4. A book with multiple authors or editors 5. A book with a translator, editor, compiler, or adapter 6. Two or more books by the same author 7. A book by a corporate author 8. A government publication 9. A play 10. A pamphlet, brochure, or press release 11. A book that has a subtitle 12. A book with more than one city listed on its title page 13. Multivolume works 14. Books with edition numbers 15. Citing sacred works USING ONLY PART OF A BOOK 16. Using only an introduction, preface, foreword, or afterword 17. Using only a titled chapter or titled article 18. Selection from a textbook or anthology REFERENCE BOOKS 19. Familiar reference books 20. Less-familiar reference books
Section B: CITING PERIODICAL PRINT PUBLICATIONS (MAGAZINES, ETC.) FINDING NEEDED INFORMATION MAGAZINE or JOURNAL ARTICLES 21. Article in a magazine 22. Article in a scholarly journal NEWSPAPER ARTICLES 23. Basic newspaper article 24. An editorial or letter to the editor 25. A review (of a book, play, movie, etc.)
Section C: CITING WEB SOURCES ONLINE SOURCES: GENERAL INFO. 26. How to do a works-cited entry for a Web source 27. Other online content (E-mail, You Tube, etc.) 28. A work on the Web that also has print publication data 29. A work on the Web that also has publication data for a non-print medium
Section D: CITING DATABASES DATABASE SOURCES: GENERAL INFO. 30. How to do a works-cited entry for a database source
Section E: CITING ADDITIONAL SOURCES—Including E-Publications 31. 32. 33. 34. 35. 36. 37. 38. 39. 40.
E-books through a library or Web site E-books through an electronic reader A tweet Interview that is part of a publication, reading, or program Interview you conducted personally Television or radio program Sound recordings such as audiocassettes, LPs, CDs Films or video recordings A lecture, speech, address, or reading Notes from information learned in a classroom
WC 9 Sec. A: Books, etc.
Section A: CITING NONPERIODICAL PRINT PUBLICATIONS (BOOKS, ETC.) Finding needed information: Most of the information you need will be on the book's title page and copyright page (the page following the title page). Title Page
The title page of a book, with full title, author’s name, publisher, and city of publication. • • •
Give the author’s name as on the title page. Reverse the name for alphabetizing: “Franke, Damon.” Place a colon between a main title and a subtitle (unless the main title ends in a question mark or an exclamation point). Follow the capitalization rules regardless of how the title is printed on the title page: Modernist Heresies: British Literary History, 1883–1924.
Copyright Page •
•
The year of publication (2008). If no year appears on the title page, look on the copyright page. Usually the latest copyright date should be cited. If several cities are listed in the book, give only the first. It is not necessary to identify a state, province, or country after the city name. Shorten the publisher’s name. If the year of publication is not recorded on the title page, use the latest copyright date.
Based on this information, your citation would look like this: Franke, Damon. Modernist Heresies: British Literary History, 1883-1924. Columbus: Ohio State UP, 2008. Print.
WC 10 Sec. A: Books, etc.
BOOKS OR PAMPHLETS 1.
Book or pamphlet with an author • • •
Start with the author’s name (last, first) followed by a period. Then write the title (italicized) with a period following it. Next, list the three “facts of publication.” • The first fact of publication is the city (NOT the state) where the book was published and a colon. • The second fact of publication is the name of the publisher and a comma. According to the MLA Handbook, 7th edition (pp. 247-49), you should give a shortened form of the publisher's name. “Harcourt Brace” shortens to “Harcourt.” "Charles Scribner's Sons" shortens to "Scribner's," etc. You should omit articles (An, An, The), business abbreviations (Co., Corp., Inc., Ltd.), and descriptive words (Books, House, Press, Publishers). When citing a university press, however, always add the abbreviations for "University" and "Press" (Ohio State UP or U of Chicago P) because the university itself may publish independently of its press (Ohio State U). The third fact of publication is the year of publication or most recent copyright date and a period. • If you cannot find any of these necessary facts, bring your book to your teacher. • After consulting your teacher and finding a fact of publication truly missing, use the appropriate abbreviation to show something is missing and that you have not forgotten it. Put a period after the year of publication and then give the medium of publication by writing "Print." Always end your citation with a period. •
•
Kirby, David. What Is a Book? Athens: U of Georgia P, 2002. Print. Le Carré, John [David Cornwell]. The Constant Gardener. New York: Scribner’s, 2001. Print. Yousef, Nancy. Isolated Cases: The Anxieties of Autonomy in Enlightenment Philosophy and Romantic Literature. Ithaca: Cornell UP, 2004. Print. Wallenberg, Linda. Fundamental Gymnastics. Minneapolis: Lerner, 1995. Print. 2.
An anonymous book (one with no author) • •
If you cannot find an author, have your teacher check the book. If you still cannot find an author, simply begin the entry with the first word of the title. THERE IS NOT A SPECIAL ABBREVIATION TO USE FOR “NO AUTHOR.”
Seeking the Truth. Chicago: Harper & Row, 1997. Print.
WC 11 Sec. A: Books, etc. 3.
A book with an editor instead of an author •
If the book lists an editor rather than an author, begin your citation with the editor's name. Write “ed” after the editor’s name. Make sure you put a comma before the “ed.”
Tobin, Mike, ed. A Basketball Player’s Guide to Athletic Scholarships. Minneapolis: Lerner, 1995. Print. Note: If you find an editor rather than an author on the title page, you may be working with an anthology or compilation in which different chapters or selections are written by different authors. If you are using only a selection from an anthology or a chapter of a book rather than the entire book, the name of author of the selection you are using is more relevant information than the name of the editor of the book. In this case, you would list the author and title of the selection first, followed by information about the book and the editor of the book (see heading number 18 below). 4.
A book with multiple authors or editors • •
Only the first name listed in any citation is inverted (last name first, first name last). This is done for alphabetizing. All other names in a citation should be written normally. Always give names in the order they are listed on the title page.
TWO AUTHORS •
If the book you’re using has two authors, list the author first whose name appears first on the title page (last name, first name). Follow the first author's name with a comma and the word "and." Then give the next author’s name (first name, then last name).
Givens, Roger, and Robert D. Novak. The Frustration of Power. New York: Random, 1971. Print.
TWO EDITORS •
Format as you would for two authors, but put a comma and “eds.” after the second editor’s name.
Gandson, Marian, and Robert A. Bragg, eds. Crossing the Divide. New York: Longman, 1971. Print.
THREE AUTHORS or EDITORS Goertz, Patti, Lynda Richey, and Linda R. Wallenberg. The Sound of Language. Bloomington: Indiana UP, 1999. Print. Olson, Rolf, Jayson Sandeen, and Craig Hollenbeck, eds. Round Lake Musings. Minneapolis: Vanity Publishers, 1941. Print.
WC 12 Sec. A: Books, etc.
MORE THAN THREE AUTHORS OR EDITORS •
If there are more than three authors or editors, use the name of the first author listed. Follow the name with a comma and the Latin abbreviation “et al." (meaning "and others"). NOTE: The MLA Handbook, 7th ed. (p. 155), states that you may give all names in full as they appear on the title page if you choose not to use “et al.”
Rabin, Eric, et al. No Place Else: Explorations in Utopian Fiction. London: Cassell, 1983. Print. Gilman, Sharon, et al., eds. Hysteria Beyond Freud. Berkeley: U of California P, 1993. Print. 5.
A book with a translator, editor, compiler, or adapter •
• •
Unless your paper focuses specifically on the work of a translator, editor, compiler, or adapter, this information is secondary to the name of the author and the title of the source. Thus, in the works-cited entry, the name of a translator, editor, compiler, or adapter follows the title. Use the appropriate abbreviation (Trans., Ed., Comp., or Adapt.) and then give the name. If the book has an editor as well as a translator, give the names, with appropriate abbreviations, in the order in which they appear on the title page.
Chaucer, Geoffrey. The Canterbury Tales. Trans. R. M. Lumiansky. New York: Washington SquarePocket, 1971. Print. Dostoevsky, Feodor. Crime and Punishment. Trans. Jessie Coulson. Ed. George Gibian. New York: Norton, 1964. Print. •
Even if there is no author given, list the translator’s name after the title (unless you're focusing of the work of the translator).
Beowulf. Trans. E. Talbot Donaldson. Ed. Nicholas Howe. New York: Norton, 2001. Print. •
If you are focusing on the work of the translator (or editor, etc.), begin the entry with the translator’s name, followed by a comma and the abbreviation “trans.” (translator), and give the author’s name, preceded by the word “By,” after the title.
Paulsen, Valdemar, trans. “Thumbelina.” Andersen’s Fairy Tales. By Hans Christian Andersen. New York: Barnes & Noble,1995. 24-38. Print. Wallentin, Axel, comp. The Cinderella Saga. Uppsala: Bernadotte, 1974. Print. Yemslie, Peter, and Don Ferguson, adapts. Walt Disney’s The Sorcerer’s Apprentice. New York: Golden, n.d. Print.
WC 13 Sec. A: Books, etc. 6.
Two or more books by the same author •
To cite two or more books by the same author, give the name in the first entry only. Thereafter, in place of the name, type three hyphens, followed by a period and the title.
Frye, Northrop. Anatomy of Criticism: Four Essays. Princeton: Princeton UP, 1957. Print. ---, trans. Beowulf. Lincoln: U of Nebraska P, 2000. Print. ---. The Double Vision: Language and Meaning in Religion. Toronto: U of Toronto P, 1991. Print. ---, ed. Sound and Poetry. New York: Columbia UP, 1957. Print. Note: In the entry directly above, Northrop Frye was the editor of Sound and Poetry, not the author. For the Beowulf entry, he was the translator. When an abbreviation such as "trans." or "ed." is needed following the three hyphens, use a comma instead of a period after the hyphens. •
If the author that is listed more than once is also the first of multiple authors for another entry, repeat the author's name rather than using the three hyphens.
Tannen, Deborah. Talking Voices: Repetition, Dialogue, and Imagery in Conversational Discourse. 2nd ed. New York: Cambridge UP, 2007. Print. ---. You’re Wearing That? Understanding Mothers and Daughters in Conversation. New York: Ballantine-Random, 2006. Print. Tannen, Deborah, and Roy O. Freedle, eds. Linguistics in Context: Connecting Observation and Understanding. Norwood: Ablex, 1988. Print. 7.
A book by a corporate author rather than a single author or several authors • • •
A corporate author may be a commission, an association, a committee, or any other group whose individual members are not identified on the title page. Cite the book by the corporate author, even if the corporate author is the publisher. Omit any initial article (A, An, The) in the name of the corporate author and do not abbreviate the name.
American Medical Association. The American Medical Association Encyclopedia of Medicine. Ed. Charles B. Clayman. New York: Random House, 1989. Print.
WC 14 Sec. A: Books, etc. 8.
A government publication •
• • •
In general, if you do not know the writer of the document, cite as author the government agency that issued it—that is, state the name of the government first, followed by the name of the agency, using an abbreviation if the context makes it clear. The title of the publication (italicized) should follow immediately. The usual publication information comes next (i.e., place, publisher, date, and the medium of publication consulted). In citing the Congressional Record (abbreviated Cong. Rec.), give only the date, page numbers, and medium of publication consulted.
Cong. Rec. 7 Feb. 1973: 3831-51. Print. •
Additional examples:
Great Britain. Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries, and Food. Our Countryside, the Future: A Fair Deal for Rural England. London: HMSO, 2000. Print. New York State. Commission on the Adirondacks in the Twenty-First Century. The Adirondack Park in the Twenty-First Century. Albany: State of New York, 1990. Print. United Nations. Consequences of Rapid Population Growth in Developing Countries. New York: Taylor, 1991. Print. United States. Cong. House. Joint Committee on the Investigation of the Pearl Harbor Attack. Hearings. 79th Cong., 1st and 2nd sess. 32 vols. Washington: GPO, 1946. Print. Note: Documentation for government sources can be very detailed. Refer to the MLA Handbook, 7th ed. (pp. 174-76), for more specific information. 9.
A play •
Follow the same format that you would use for a regular book.
Shakespeare, William. Macbeth. Ed. Barbara A. Mowat and Paul Werstine. New York: Washington Square-Pocket, 1992. Print. ---. The Tragedy of Romeo and Juliet. Ed. Edward Hubler, New York: Signet, 1969. Print. Note: Plays are often found in anthologies or collections. If you are using a copy of a play from your textbook or another collection, you need to cite the textbook or collection as well. Follow the guidelines in heading number 18 below.
WC 15 Sec. A: Books, etc. 10.
A pamphlet, brochure, or press release •
Follow the same format that you would use for a regular book.
Best Museums: New York City. New York: Triple A, 1993. Print. 11.
A book that has a subtitle •
Use the colon to separate the main title from the subtitle. In the example below, Sweden is the main title, and Land of the Midnight Sun is the subtitle.
Fredrickson, Elsie. Sweden: Land of the Midnight Sun. Stockholm: Kungen Royalty, 1905. Print. 12.
A book with more than one city listed on its title page • •
Use only the first city listed! In the example below, the title page listed New York, London, and Tokyo. Use only New York.
Faulkner, William. The Sound and the Fury. New York: Simon, 1929. Print. 13.
Multivolume works •
If you are using only one volume of a multivolume work, state the number of the volume in the works-cited entry (“Vol. 2”). The volume number should follow the title of the book and the editor's name (if any). The volume number should come just before the city of publication.
Wellek, René. A History of Modern Criticism, 1750-1950. Vol. 5. New Haven: Yale UP, 1986. Print. 14.
Books with edition numbers •
If the book you are using has been published in multiple editions, identify the edition in your entry by number (2nd ed., 3rd ed., 4th ed.), by name (Rev. ed., for “Revised edition”; Abr. ed., for “Abridged edition”), or by year (2008 ed.)—whichever the title page indicates. The edition number comes after the name of the editor, translator, or compiler, if there is one, or otherwise after the title of the book.
Murasaki Shikibu. The Tale of Genji. Trans. Edward G. Seidensticker. Abr. ed. New York: VintageRandom, 1985. Print. Newcomb, Horace, ed. Television: The Critical View. 7th ed. New York: Oxford UP, 2007. Print. Note: In a work with both a volume number and an edition number, the edition number should be listed before the volume number.
WC 16 Sec. A: Books, etc. Stowe, Harriet Beecher. “Sojourner Truth, the Libyan Sibyl.” 1863. The Heath Anthology of American Literature. Ed. Paul Lauter et al. 5th ed. Vol. B. Boston: Houghton, 2006. 2601-09. Print. 15.
Citing sacred works •
•
Sacred works are an exception to some of the rules for formatting titles. Do not use italics or quotation marks for the books of the Bible, the word Bible, or titles of other sacred writings (Old Testament, Genesis, Talmud, Koran, etc.). In the example below, the 9th chapter, verses 8-11, in the book of Leviticus was used.
Leviticus 9.8-11. The Holy Bible. New York: World Publishing, 1953. Print. •
Standard rules do apply when you are using a specifically named edition of a sacred work: The New Jerusalem Bible, The Interlinear Bible, The Teenager’s Bible, or The Talmud of the Land of Israel: A Preliminary Translation and Explanation. In the list of works cited, treat individually published editions of sacred works like any other published book. Further clarification of this may be found in the MLA Handbook, 7th ed., pp. 91-92, 164.
The New Jerusalem Bible. Henry Wansbrough, gen. ed. New York: Doubleday, 1985. Print.
USING ONLY PART OF A BOOK (OR PAMPHLET) When you list a book on your works-cited page, it is understood that you probably did not use the entire book in your research. This is why page numbers are included in the parenthetical documentation within your paper. In general, therefore, page numbers are not needed in a workscited entry for a book. IF, however, you use a named part of a book--such as a preface, a titled chapter, or a selection in an anthology--THEN your works-cited entry must include both the title and the inclusive page numbers of that specific part of the book. 16.
Using only an introduction, preface, foreword, or afterword •
•
Begin with the name of the author of the introduction, preface, or afterward and then give the descriptive name of the part being cited, capitalized but neither italicized nor enclosed in quotation marks (Introduction, Preface, Foreword, Afterword). When the author of the introduction (or preface, foreword, or afterword) did not write or edit the rest of the book, list the introduction’s author first, then the word “Introduction,” then the title of the book, and finally the word “By” followed by the book author’s name.
Sears, Barry. Afterword. The Jungle. By Upton Sinclair. New York: Signet, 2001. 343-47. Print.
WC 17 Sec. A: Books, etc. •
When the author of the introduction (or preface, foreword, or afterword) also edited the book, list this person’s name only once at the beginning of the entry.
Lumiansky, R. M. Introduction. Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales. New York: Washington SquarePocket, 1948. xiii-xxix. Print. •
If the author of the complete work is also the writer of the introduction, preface, foreword, or afterword, repeat only the author's last name after "By." However, if the complete work is by a single author and is not edited by someone else, do not create an entry for an introduction, a preface, or another part by the author. Instead, create an entry for the work as a whole.
Borges, Jorge Luis. Foreword. Selected Poems, 1923-1967. By Borges. Ed. Norman Thomas Di Giovanni. New York: Delta-Dell, 1973. xv-xvi. Print. •
If the introduction (or preface, foreword, or afterword) has a title, give the title, enclosed in quotation marks, immediately after the author's name.
Brodsky, Joseph. “Poetry as a Form of Resistance to Reality.” Foreword. Winter Dialogue. By Tomas Venclova. Evanston: Hydra-Northwestern UP, 1997. vii-xviii. Print. •
17.
All citations for an introduction, a forward, a preface, or an afterword must list inclusive page numbers following the publication date. Inclusive page numbers means the entire range of pages of the introduction, etc., not just the pages you used. For an introduction, a preface, or a forward found at the beginning of a book before the regular pagination has begun, these numbers may be roman numerals (e.g., xv-xvi). Do not use any abbreviation such as "p." or "pp." with the inclusive page numbers.
Using only a titled chapter or titled article in a book or pamphlet • When the author(s) who wrote/edited the book also wrote the article or chapter you used, put the title of the chapter or article (in quotation marks) after the author's name. Then give the title of the book and the publication information as you normally would. Following the publication information, give the inclusive page numbers for the article or chapter.
Goodall, Jane. “Primate Research is Inhumane.” Is Animal Experimentation Justified? San Diego: Greenhaven, 1989. 95-100. Print.
WC 18 Sec. A: Books, etc. •
When the book has an editor(s) who was NOT the author who wrote the article or chapter you used, put the editor's name after the title of the book.
Allen, Anita. “New Horizons.” Is Animal Experimentation Justified? Ed. Jane Goodall. San Diego: Greenhaven, 1989. 295-300. Print. NOTE: When the abbreviation "Ed." comes before the editor's name, it is an abbreviation for "Edited by," so even with multiple names, if "Edited by" comes before the name(s) use “Ed.,” not “Eds.” 18.
Selection from a textbook, anthology, or compilation •
•
•
As with entries for other named portions within larger works, begin with the author and title of the selection you have used. Depending on what type of work it is, either italicize the selection’s title or put it in quotation marks (see GRS rules #49 & 50 re: titles). Next, list the title of the book (italicized) in which the selection is found. Most anthologies or compilations will list an editor or complier. In your works-cited entry, the name of the editor or compiler appears after the title of the book. Use the appropriate abbreviation ("Ed." for Edited by or "Comp." for Compiled by) before the name of the editor or compiler. The publication information for the book follows the information about the editor or compiler. Following the publication information, list the inclusive page numbers for the selection you are citing and the medium of publication (Print).
Hansberry, Lorraine. A Raisin in the Sun. Black Theatre: A Twentieth-Century Collection of the Work of Its Best Playwrights. Ed. Lindsay Patterson. New York: Dodd, 1971. 3-27. Print. More, Hannah. “The Black Slave Trade: A Poem.” British Women Poets of the Romantic Era. Ed. Paula R. Feldman. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins UP, 1997. 472-82. Print. •
If the selection has no author listed, begin with the title.
“A Witchcraft Story.” The Hopi Way: Tales from a Vanishing Culture. Comp. Mando Sevillano. Flagstaff: Northland, 1986. 33-42. Print.
WC 19 Sec. A: Books, etc.
•
A textbook or anthology may have many editors or compilers. List them in the order they appear on the title page, but if more than three names are given, list only the first, followed by the abbreviation "et al."
NOTE: When the abbreviation "Ed." comes before the editor's name, it is an abbreviation for "Edited by," so even with multiple names, if "Edited by" comes before the name(s) use “Ed.,” not “Eds.” Franklin, Benjamin. “Emigration to America.” The Faber Book of America. Ed. Christopher Ricks and William L. Vance. Boston: Faber, 1992. 24-26. Print. “The Medieval Period: 1066-1485.” Literature: The British Tradition. Ed. Roger Babusci et al. Englewood Cliffs: Prentice-Hall, 1994. 69-79. Print. •
Some textbooks may list many contributors or advisory board members but do not designate an editor or editors. In this case, give only the title of the book.
Connell, Richard. “The Most Dangerous Game.” Literature: Timeless Voices, Timeless Themes. Upper Saddle River: Prentice-Hall, 2002. 19-36. Print. • If you need to include a translator in your citation, first determine if the translator translated only the selection you are referencing or the entire book. If the entire anthology or compilation was translated by the same person, list the name after the title of the book. Before the name, use the abbreviation "Trans." for "Translated by." Franco, Veronica. “To the Painter Jacopo Tintoretto.” Poems and Selected Letters. Ed. and trans. Ann Rosalind Jones and Margaret F. Rosenthal. Chicago: U of Chicago P, 1998. 35-37. Print. •
If the translator translated only the selection you are citing, list the translator's name following the title of the selection.
Beowulf. Trans. Burton Raffel. Literature: The British Tradition. Ed. Roger Babusci et al. Englewood Cliffs: Prentice-Hall, 1994. 20-46. Print. Zhang, Jie. “Love Must Not Be Forgotten.” Trans. Gladys Yang. World Literature. By Susan Wittig Albert et al. Austin: Holt, 1993. 1414-1426. Print.
WC 20 Sec. A: Books, etc.
REFERENCE BOOKS: Familiar and Less Familiar 19.
Familiar reference books (almanacs, dictionaries, encyclopedias) •
•
•
Treat an encyclopedia article or a dictionary entry as you would a piece in a collection, but when citing familiar reference books, do not give full publication information. For such works, list ONLY the edition (if stated), the year of publication, and the medium of publication. The page number(s) will not appear in your citation, but make a note of the page number(s) as you do your research. You will need the page number(s) for your parenthetical documentation. If the article is unsigned, give the title of the article first (in quotation marks).
“Japan.” The Encyclopedia Americana. 2004 ed. Print. •
If the article is signed (meaning an author’s name is given--usually at the end of the article), begin the citation with the author's last name.
McGehee, Catherine. “Virginia.” World Book Encyclopedia. 1992 ed. Print.
DICTIONARY DEFINITIONS • •
If your paper includes the definition of a word, begin your works-cited entry with the word you looked up (in quotation marks). If the dictionary gives several definitions for the same word and you are citing only one specific definition, you must add the abbreviation “Def.” (“Definition”) and the appropriate designation (e.g. number, letter).
“Hero.” Def. 3c. New Collegiate Dictionary. 2nd ed. 1989. Print. Note: You DO need page numbers for parenthetical citations, so make note of them! 20.
Less-familiar reference books (dictionaries or encyclopedias for specific subjects) • When citing less-familiar, specialized reference books, give full publication information. Note: If the encyclopedia or dictionary arranges articles alphabetically, omit inclusive page numbers. If entries are arranged non-alphabetically (e.g., by topic), list inclusive page numbers after the year of publication. Allen, Anita L. “Privacy in Health Care.” Encyclopedia of Bioethics. Ed. Stephen G. Post. 3rd ed. Vol. 4. New York: Macmillan-Thomson, 2004. Print. Le Patourel, John. “Normans and Normandy.” Dictionary of the Middle Ages. Ed. Joseph R. Strayer. Vol. 9. New York: Scribner’s, 1987. Print.
WC 21 Sec. A: Books, etc. •
Reference sources for court cases
Blankenau, Joe, and Mark Leeper. “Tinker v. Des Moines: Random School Searches.” Students’ Rights. Ed. Jamura Carroll. Detroit: Greenhaven, 2005. 102-111. Print. NOTES ON FORMATTING FOR COURT CASE TITLES Names of court cases are italicized in the text of your paper but NOT in your works-cited entry. This means that names of court cases that may appear in parenthetical references would NOT be italicized. Example of court case title as referenced in the text of your paper and in parenthetical reference:
The impact of the court’s decision in Brown v. Board of Education cannot be underestimated. Generations of legal scholars will continue to view it as foundational (“Ongoing Impact of Brown v. Board of Education”). NOTE: The court case name is italicized in the text, but it is not italicized in the parenthetical
reference. Example of a works-cited entry for an article about a court case:
“Ongoing Impact of Brown v. Board of Education.” Education and the Law. Ed. Nicholas Finch. Vol. 3. New York: Harcourt, 1996. 245-253. Print. NOTE: The court case name is NOT italicized in the works-cited entry.
WC 22 Sec. B: Magazines, etc.
Section B: CITING PERIODICAL PRINT PUBLICATIONS (MAGAZINES, ETC.)
Finding needed information: To build a works-cited entry for a periodical, you will need to find the author, the tile of the article, the name of the journal or magazine, the date of publication, and the inclusive page numbers.
•
The author and title. Take the author’s name and the title from the article itself, not from the cover or the table of contents.
•
Note: Citations for scholarly journals, which are excellent sources for academic research, require more specific information than magazines or other periodicals (see "scholarly journals" heading below). Publication information for a scholarly journal usually appears on the cover or title page.
MAGAZINE or JOURNAL ARTICLES 21.
Article in a magazine •
• • •
The entry for an article in a periodical (magazines, etc.), like that for a book, has three main divisions: o Author’s name o Title of the article o Publication information List the author's name (last name first), followed by a period, and then give the title of the article (in quotation marks), followed by a period. After the title of the article, list the name of the magazine (in italics). Do not place any punctuation between the title of the magazine and the date Next, give the complete date (beginning with the day and abbreviating the month, except for May, June, and July), followed by a colon and the inclusive page numbers of the article. End the citation with the medium of publication (Print.).
WC 23 Sec. B: Magazines, etc.
•
The example below shows that Mike Grant wrote the article “Building a Championship Football Program,” which appeared in Sports Illustrated magazine on November 11, 2004, on pages 15-17.
Grant, Mike. “Building a Championship Football Program.” Sports Illustrated 11 Nov. 2004: 15-17. Print. • •
Note: There is no period between the title of a magazine (or any other periodical) and the publication date. Magazine articles are often not printed on consecutive pages. For example, an article might begin on page 16 and then conclude on pages 49-50. For such articles, write only the first page number and a plus sign, leaving no intervening space (example: 16+), but MAKE A NOTE OF THE PAGE NUMBER(S) AS YOU DO YOUR RESEARCH. You will need the page number(s) for your parenthetical documentation.
Laskin, Sheldon H. “Jena: A Missed Opportunity for Healing.” Tikkun Nov.-Dec. 2007: 29+. Print. • •
Do not give the volume and issue numbers of a magazine even if they are listed. If no author’s name is given for the article you are citing, begin the entry with the title. Ignore “A,” “An,” or “The” when you alphabetize the entry.
“Siskel and Ebert Love the Movies.” People 21 June 1994: 32+. Print. 22.
Article in a scholarly journal •
•
•
•
•
A scholarly journal is a periodical similar to magazine, but while a magazine is usually a commercial publication, a scholarly journal is generally published by an academic institution or by a professional or scholarly organization with a focus on particular field of study. For your works-cited page, the most important distinction between a magazine and an academic journal concerns volume and issue numbers. While you do not include volume and issue numbers for magazines, you must include them for scholarly journals. Scholarly journals may be published monthly, quarterly, or even less often. These journals are intended for use in ongoing academic study, so it is assumed that the issues will be bound together or republished in volumes (usually one volume for each year). Because of this, an entire year of issues may have continuous pagination. For example, if an issue you're looking at starts with page 210 rather than page 1, it may be that page 1 was the first page of issue number 1 for the year, and you are looking at issue number 3. The works-cited entry for an article in a printed scholarly journal has three main divisions: o Author’s name o Title of the article o Publication information In general, after the author's name, give the title of the article (in quotation marks), the journal title (italicized), the volume number, a period, the issue number, the year of
WC 24 Sec. B: Magazines, etc.
publication (in parentheses), a colon, the inclusive page numbers, a period, the medium of publication consulted, and a period. Piper, Andrew. “Rethinking the Print Object: Goethe and the Book of Everything.” PMLA 121.1 (2006): 124-38. Print.
•
The publication information for a scholarly journal. Take the information—the journal title, volume number, issue number, and year of publication—from the cover or title page of the journal. Omit any introductory A, An, or The in the journal title, and italicize the journal title. Place a period between the volume and issue numbers. A colon, the inclusive page numbers for the entire article, and the medium of publication consulted normally conclude the citation: “Critical Inquiry 34.2 (2008): 313–35. Print.”
Barthelme, Frederick. “Architecture.” Kansas Quarterly 13.3-4 (1981): 77-80. Print. Tibullus, Albius. “How to Be Tibullus.” Trans. David Wray. Chicago Review 48.4 (2002-03): 10206. Print. •
Note: For information on how to handle variations in publication information for scholarly journals (published without volume numbers, etc.), see the 7th ed. MLA Handbook (pp. 137-141).
NEWSPAPER ARTICLES 23.
Basic newspaper article format •
•
•
As with any source, begin with the author's name and the article title. The article title should be in quotation marks and should be capitalized according to standard rules, even if it is not properly capitalized in the original. Next, write the title of the newspaper. Give the name as it appears on the masthead but omit any introductory article (New York Times, not The New York Times). Note: There is no period after the title of the newspaper! If the city of publication is not included in the name of a locally published newspaper, add the city in square brackets after the name (Star-Ledger [Newark]). For nationally published newspapers, you do not need to add the city of publication. Next, give the complete date (day, month, and year), followed by a colon and a space (or place the colon after a section number, if needed--see examples below).
WC 25 Sec. B: Magazines, etc.
• • •
•
Abbreviate the names of all months except May, June, and July. Do not give the volume and issue numbers even if they are listed. Next, give the page number(s). Newspapers use a variety of ways to identify sections and page numbers. Below are some possible variations for different styles. Remember to end each citation with "Print." to indicate the medium of publication. For sections labeled with letters and paginated separately, the section letter is sometimes part of each page number: “A1,” “B1,” “C5,” “D3.” Copy the page number(s) exactly.
Thomas, Vince. “Eden Prairie Shoots for Another Title.” Star Tribune [Minneapolis] 2 Jan. 1993: A3. Print. •
Sometimes a section is paginated separately and given a section number or letter, but the section designation is not part of the page numbers. In this case, put a comma after the date and add the abbreviation sec., the appropriate letter or number, a colon, the page number or numbers, and the medium of publication.
“Wrestling Coach Attacks Alligator.” Observer [Smithfield, FL] 14 Aug. 1991, sec. 4: 5. Print. •
For sections paginated separately and designated only by title rather than by a number or letter, give the title of the section, followed by the abbreviation sec.
Dwyer, Jim. “Yeats Meets the Digital Age, Full of Passionate Intensity.” New York Times 20 July 2008, early ed., Arts and Leisure sec.: 1+. Print. •
Newspaper articles are often not printed on consecutive pages. For example, an article might begin on page 1 and then skip to page 16. For such articles, write only the first page number and a plus sign, leaving no intervening space (examples: 6+ or C3+).
Anderson, Sonja. “Analysis of Doyle’s ‘The Speckled Band’ Today.” USA Today 2 Mar. 1996: B1+. Print.
•
If no author’s name is given for the article you are citing, begin the entry with the title. Ignore “A,” “An,” or “The” when you alphabetize the entry.
“Analysis of Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird.” Chicago Tribune 16 Mar. 1966: E3-4. Print. 24.
An editorial or letter to the editor •
•
Whether in a newspaper or magazine, an editorial or letter to the editor will follow the same format as any other article but must include the appropriate descriptive label (Editorial or Letter). For an editorial, the label follows the title.
Gergen, David. “A Question of Values.” Editorial. US News and World Report 11 Feb. 2002: 72. Print.
“It’s Subpoena Time.” Editorial. New York Times 8 June 2007, late ed.: A28. Print.
WC 26 Sec. B: Magazines, etc.
•
For a letter, the label follows the author's name. Letters are untitled. Letters may be printed with a subject headline, but this headline should not be considered a title.
Schlesinger, Arthur, Jr. Letter. New York Review of Books 8 Apr. 2004: 84. Print.
25.
A review (of a book, play, movie, etc.) • •
• •
To cite a review, give the reviewer’s name and the title of the review (if there is one). Next, write “Rev. of” (neither italicized nor enclosed in quotation marks), the title of the work(s) reviewed, a comma, the word "by," and the name of the author. If the work of someone other than an author—say, an editor, a translator, or a director—is reviewed, use the appropriate abbreviation, such as ed., trans., or dir., instead of by. For a review of a performance, add pertinent information about the production, such as the names of key performers. Remember to correctly format the title of the work reviewed (either italicized or in quotation marks) Conclude the entry with the name of the periodical and the rest of the publication information, ending with the medium of publication (Print.).
Mendelsohn, Daniel. “September 11 at the Movies.” Rev. of United 93, dir. Paul Greengrass, and World Trade Center, dir. Oliver Stone. New York Review of Books 21 Sept. 2006: 43-46. Print. •
If the review is titled but unsigned, begin the entry with the title of the review and alphabetize by that title.
“Racial Stereotype Busters: Black Scientists Who Made a Difference.” Rev. of American Science Leaders. Journal of Blacks in Higher Education 25 (1999): 133-34. Print. •
If the review isn’t titled or signed, begin the entry with “Rev. of” and alphabetize by the title of the work reviewed. In the example below, the word Anthology is alphabetized, not “Rev.”
Rev. of Anthology of Danish Literature, ed. F. J. Billeskov Jansen and P. M. Mitchell. Times Literary Supplement 7 July 1972: 785. Print.
WC 27 Sec. C: Web Sources
Section C: CITING WEB SOURCES
ONLINE SOURCES: GENERAL INFO. •
Although you may do most of your research online, this section on citing for Web publications comes after the sections about citing print publications for a good reason: Many of the sources you access online are reprints or variations of print sources. Therefore, MANY OF YOUR ENTRIES FOR WEB SOURCES WILL FOLLOW THE FORMAT FOR PRINT SOURCES AND THEN GIVE ADDITIONAL WEB INFORMATION, SO YOU WILL NEED TO REFER BACK TO SECTIONS A & B FOR DETAILS.
•
In general, citations of Web publications share some traits with those of print publications and other traits with those of reprinted works, broadcasts, and live performances. For example, most works on the Web have an author, a title, and publication information and are thus similar to print publications. But while readers seeking a cited print publication can be reasonably assured that a copy in a local library will be identical to the copy you used, they can be less certain that a Web publication will be the same. Because electronic texts can be changed often and can be distributed in multiple databases and accessed through a variety of interfaces displayed on different kinds of equipment, information about where (site title and publisher) and when (publication date and access date) you found the reference material cited in your paper is crucial to giving your work credibility and avoiding plagiarism.
•
With the huge variety of information and the many different mediums available online, it would be impossible to anticipate every possible type of Web citation. The MLA Handbook recognizes that sometimes you must improvise to record the important information from online sources. When you are unsure about how to do a particular online-source citation, look for citation formats given in the sections about print and other mediums and use those as models.
•
Many Web sources do not supply all desired information, so writers must often settle for citing whatever information is available to them. Previously, citations for Web sources did not include notations for missing information, but the 7th edition of the MLA Handbook requires that you note missing information with the same abbreviations you would use for information missing from a print citation. See the heading "What to do if you're missing some facts of publication" on page 7 of this document.
•
The 7th edition of the MLA Handbook recommends that URLs no longer be included in citations for Web sources but notes that you must include URLs if your instructor requires them or if the reader would be unable to locate your source without the URL.
•
If you must include a URL, give it immediately following the date of access, a period, and a space. Enclose the URL in angle brackets and conclude with a period. If a URL must be divided between two lines, break it only after the double slashes or a single slash; do not put a hyphen at the break or allow your word-processing program to do so. If possible, give the complete address, including http, for the specific work you are citing.
WC 28 Sec. C: Web Sources
Eaves, Morris, Robert Essick, and Joseph Viscomi, eds. The William Blake Archive. Lib. of Cong., 28 Sept. 2007. Web. 20 Nov. 2007. .
Finding needed information: When you are doing research online, it is often difficult to tell exactly what you are looking at. If you go to Google and enter your research topic in the search engine, you get a results page with everything from encyclopedias to advertising. This is one of the reasons that databases--available through the Media Center or public library--are superior to regular, open-Web search engines. See Section D for details about citing sources you access through databases. When you use the Internet for research, you must understand the following: • The difference between .com, .gov, .org, .edu, and .net • How the type of site influences the content you might find • The difference between sites that are “open sourced” or “crowd sourced” (such as Wikipedia and Ask.com) and more credible sites where contributors are qualified or monitored When you are looking at research sources online, you must spend some time exploring the site to determine if the source is credible and to locate the information you need for your workscited page.
Check each Web site for credibility: Can you find . . . • • • •
•
an author or authors for the material you are reading? credentials--academic degrees, job titles, biographical info., etc.--for the author(s)? a “home” page that clarifies the title of the site, shows how the site is organized, and may list the site publisher? an "about us" page that tells you who is publishing and editing the site and what their credentials are? The site publisher is not always easy to find, but if you are using an academically credible site, you should be able to identify the site publisher. If you cannot find a site publisher, continue researching for a more credible source. In the rare instances that you decide to use a source without a clearly identifiable publisher, use the abbreviation "N.p." for "No publisher" in your workscited entry. dates? Does the article or page you are reading have a date to tell you when it was posted on the site? Does the site have a copyright date or a "last updated" date?
WC 29 Sec. C: Web Sources
Article or page you want to cite
site title
article/page title author
site publisher
Notice that the site title, The Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History, appears on each page. This helps you confirm that you have the correct site title. The site publisher, The Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History, is listed on the bottom of each page.
Check at least 3 pages for each Web site: the article you want to use, the “home” page, and the “about us” page. Look top to bottom on each page to be sure you have the correct site title, publisher, and date.
copyright/publication date
The article does not have a specific date, so you should use the copyright date. It is given here as 2009-2013, but on your Works Cited, use only the most recent date—2013.
“Home” page
On the following page, see the works-cited entry for this Web source. “About us” page
The menu of information on this “about us” page can help you confirm credibility because it leads you details about who is writing and editing the site.
WC 30 Sec. C: Web Sources
26.
HOW TO DO A WORKS-CITED ENTRY FOR A WEB SOURCE A TYPICAL WORKS-CITED ENTRY FOR A WEB SOURCE article/page title author
site title
Zeitz, Joshua. “The Roaring Twenties.” The Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History. The Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History, 2013. Web. 15 May 2013. site publisher
•
access date
publication date
An entry for a nonperiodical publication (including everything from article to a photograph) on the Web usually contains most of the following components, in sequence: 1. Name of the author, compiler, director, editor, narrator, performer, or translator of the work (See headings 3-6 in section A for how list more than one author, listing an editor or translator, etc.). If no author, etc., is given, begin with the title of the work. 2. Title of the Web page or article (in regular type with quotation marks) 3. Title of the overall Web site (italicized) 4. Publisher or sponsor of the site; if not available, use N.p. 5. Date of publication (day, month, and year, as available); if nothing is available, use n.d. Find the date of publication specific to the article or part of the site you are using. If you don't find a date on the material you are using, look for a date for the entire site, such as a copyright date or a "last updated" date. 6. Medium of publication (Web) 7. Date of access (day, month, and year). Because the Internet is always changing, the access date is important to show the reader when the information was found on the site. Use the date that you found the source online, not the date your paper is due. If you are using a paper copy of Internet research (e.g., a packet of articles given to you by your teacher), check to see if there is an access date on the print out. If you can still find the source online, update the access information to reflect the date you saw it online. Note: Works found only on the Web (meaning they don't exist in print or any other non-online medium) are not expected to have page numbers, so the n. pag. (abbreviation for "no page") is not needed.
WC 31 Sec. C: Web Sources
•
Each item in the citation is followed by a period except the publisher or sponsor, which is followed by a comma.
•
A genre label may be used for untitled works or for clarification, as in the "Maplewood" Map example below. A genre label (e.g., Map, Photograph, Advertisement, etc.) is neither italicized nor enclosed in quotation marks and goes after the author's name if there is no title, or after the title if the source has a title.
“Maplewood, New Jersey.” Map. Google Maps. Google, 15 May 2008. Web. 15 May 2008.
SAMPLE ENTRIES FOR DIFFERENT TYPES OF WEB SOURCES •
The following examples are labeled to show how some different types of sources would appear on the works-cited page. Note that almost all Internet sources are online versions of types of sources that are also found in other mediums (print, etc.). Thus, full details for the formatting of each different type of source are not given here.
AN ENTIRE WEB SITE Eaves, Morris. The William Blake Archive. Lib. of Cong., 8 May 2008. Web. 15 May 2008. AN ONLINE ARTICLE Green, Joshua. “The Rove Presidency.” The Atlantic. Atlantic Monthly Group, Sept. 2007. Web. 15 May 2008. AN ONLINE ARTICLE BY A CORPORATE AUTHOR Committee on Scholarly Editions. “Guidelines for Editors of Scholarly Editions.” Modern Language Association. MLA, 25 Sept. 2007. Web. 15 May 2008. AN ONLINE ARTICLE ABOUT A COURT CASE “Tinker v. Des Moines Independent Community School District.” Oyez. Chicago-Kent College of Law, 2011. Web. 25 Sept. 2013. Note: Names of court cases are italicized in the text of your paper but NOT in your work-cited entry. This means that names of court cases that may appear in parenthetical references would NOT be italicized.
WC 32 Sec. C: Web Sources
AN ONLINE NEWS ARTICLE Quade, Alex. “Elite Team Rescues Troops behind Enemy Lines.” CNN. Cable News Network, 19 Mar. 2007. Web. 15 May 2008.
AN ONLINE NEWS ARTICLE WITH NO AUTHOR GIVEN “Six Charged in Terror Plot.” Toronto Sun. Canoe Sun Media, 8 May 2007. Web. 9 May 2013.
AN ONLINE EDITORIAL “The Scientists Speak.” Editorial. New York Times. New York Times, 20 Nov. 2007. Web. 15 May 2008.
AN ONLINE INTERVIEW Nebeker, Rachel. Interview by Charles Bernstein. Dalkey Archive Press. Dalkey Archive P, n.d. Web. 17 Aug. 1993.
AN ONLINE COPY OF A POEM Eliot, T. S. "The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock." Poetry Foundation. Poetry Foundation, 2013. Web. 14 Feb. 2011.
A MUSICAL PERFORMANCE VIEWED ONLINE Concerto Palatino, perf. “Canzon à 6 per l’Epistola.” By Giovanni Priuli. Boston Early Music Festival and Exhibition. Boston Early Music Festival, 2003. Web. 20 July 2007.
WC 33 Sec. C: Web Sources
AN ARTICLE IN AN ONLINE ENCYCLOPEDIA “Child Labor.” Britannica Academic Edition. Encyclopaedia Britannica, 2008. Web. 15 May 2008.
A RADIO BROADCAST ACCESSED ONLINE “Hourly News Summary.” National Public Radio. Natl. Public Radio, 20 July 2007. Web. 8 Aug. 2007. AN ONLINE CHART “Verb Tenses.” Chart. The OWL at Purdue. Purdue U Online Writing Lab, 2001. Web. 15 May 2008.
AN ONLINE AUDIO FILE site editor
Yager, Susan, narr. “The Former Age.” By Geoffrey Chaucer. Chaucer Metapage. Ed. Mark E. Allen et al. U of North Carolina, 13 Feb. 2007. Web. 30 Nov. 2007. NOTE: The above example shows how to include an editor or creator of the overall Web site.
WC 34 Sec. C: Web Sources
27.
OTHER ONLINE CONTENT (E-mail, You Tube, etc.)
The Internet is creative, collaborative, instant, and evolving--and therefore difficult to cite in MLA format. When you need to site Web content that does not clearly fall under any of the headings given, answering the following questions will help you decide how to build your citation: What content from the Web source was your paper focused on? What information would be most necessary for someone to find that source? Here are some examples of how citations from the Web site Despair might vary depending on the content used. The "Customer Disservice" example is a citation for a page on the Web site, so it follows the format you would use for an article on a Web site. "Customer Disservice." Despair. Despair, Inc., 2009. Web. 19 Nov. 2009. The examples below are not articles or Web pages, so genre labels (Audio clip, Lithograph, etc.) are used to specifically identify the content. "Angry, Incoherent Voicemail." Audio clip. Despair. Despair, Inc., 2010. Web. 25 Nov. 2010. "Motivation." Lithograph. Despair. Despair, Inc., 2011. Web. 10 Dec. 2012. "Social Media Venn Diagram." T-shirt graphic. Despair. Despair, Inc., 2012. Web. 2 Nov. 2013. E-MAIL Kunka, Andrew. "Re: Modernist Literature." Message to the author. 15 Nov. 2000. E-mail. DISCUSSION BOARD POSTING Salmar1515 [Sal Hernan]. “Re: Best Strategy: Fenced Pastures vs. Number of Rooms?” Discussion board posting. BoardGameGeek. BoardGameGeek, 29 Sept. 2008. Web. 5 Apr. 2009. YOU TUBE You Tube is exceptionally sloppy about properly crediting content and probably would not be considered a reputable academic source. Try to find the content you wish to reference from another source that might give you more information for a citation and might be easier for someone else to find later. So, avoid using You Tube as a source whenever possible. However, if you have decided to use You Tube, here’s what you need to know. Almost any search on You Tube generates multiple results, so you need to direct your reader to the exact video you used. Sometimes, if you are citing general content, it may not matter exactly which video someone views as your You Tube citation. For example, if you wanted to cite the video of Susan Boyle
WC 35 Sec. C: Web Sources
singing "I Dreamed a Dream," the same content could easily be found on dozens of different You Tube postings, so a simple citation such as the following may be sufficient: Boyle, Susan, perf. "I Dreamed a Dream." By Claude-Michel Schönberg. You Tube. You Tube, 16 Apr. 2009. Web. 19 Nov. 2009. If your paper focused on the event of Boyle's first performance on Britain's Got Talent, you would need to make sure your citation directed the reader to a video of the broadcast. Boyle, Susan, perf. "I Dreamed a Dream." By Claude-Michel Schönberg. "Episode One." Britain's Got Talent. You Tube. You Tube, 11 Apr. 2009. Web. 19 Nov. 2009. Most citations need to be more specific. If, for example, you wanted to cite a piece of music called "Pavane for a Dead Princess" by Maurice Ravel, you might try to use a simple citation: Ravel, Maurice. "Pavane for a Dead Princess." You Tube. You Tube, 2009. Web. 19 Nov. 2009. However, if your reader searched You Tube for "Ravel Pavane," over sixty videos entries would come up, and it would be impossible to know which one you used as your source. Did you mean the amateur solo piano performance, the ballet filmed on the streets of Los Angeles, the electric guitar arrangement, or some other recording? You need additional information to make your citation more specific. You could start your citation with the name of the person who posted the video you used, but that might result in mistaken credit--you don’t want your reader to think that someone named "LegitClassicsFan" had composed Ravel's "Pavane." You could list the entry by the performer(s), and that would be appropriate if your paper focused on the specific performance or performer(s). However, many You Tube postings do not include information about the performer(s), and even if you did narrow down your citation to something like Hewitt, Angela, perf. "Pavane for a Dead Princess." By Maurice Ravel. You Tube, etc., you might still end up with more than one entry. You might intend to direct your reader to a video of Hewitt playing "Pavane," but your reader might end up watching a video of someone skateboarding with Hewitt's performance of "Pavane" used as background music. For any You Tube citation, you will have to use the information available and decide what will best direct your reader to the source you used. Remember that the best way to get to your reader to a specific video on You Tube may be to include a URL. Even though URLs are no longer required, the MLA Handbook does state that they can be used when needed for clarity. YOU TUBE CITATION WITH URL INCLUDED Hewitt, Angela, perf. "Pavane for a Dead Princess." By Maurice Ravel. You Tube. You Tube, 4 Nov. 2007. Web. 20 Nov. 2009..
WC 36 Sec. C: Web Sources
TED TALK CITATION Rosling, Hans. "Hans Rosling on HIV: New Fact and Stunning Data Visuals." TED Conference Feb. 2009. Lecture. TED: Ideas Worth Spreading. TED, May 2009. Web. 15 Oct. 2009. NOTE: Be sure to include the occasion as well as the date the lecture was filmed, when it was loaded to the TED site, and your own access date.
WC 37 Sec. C: Web Sources
28.
A work on the Web that ALSO has PRINT publication data •
If the work you are citing also appeared in print, you may determine that it is important to include the information about the print publication as part of your entry. A book that was scanned for access in a database, for example, is usually cited in this way (e.g., an online text of Hamlet). Websites devoted to particular issues or topics may post articles that originally appeared in print, so if information about an original print publication is given, you should include it to add credibility to your source. Note: If the article you are using comes from a subscription service such as Academic Search Premier or from a scholarly journal, follow the specific guidelines below.
•
Begin the entry with the relevant facts about the print publication (see Sec. A of this document for books or Sec. B for magazines or other periodicals). Instead of concluding with Print as the medium of publication, record the following information in sequence: 1. Title of the database or Web site (italicized) 2. Medium of publication consulted (Web) 3. Date of access (day, month, and year)
•
Depending on the type of original print source, you may need to list inclusive page numbers in your citation or, if no page numbers are available, use the abbreviation N. pag. Look at the print guidelines for the type of source you are using--IF PAGE NUMBERS WOULD BE REQUIRED FOR A CITATION OF THE PRINT SOURCE, YOU MUST INCLUDE THEM (OR NOTE THEIR ABSENCE) IN YOUR CITATION OF THE WEB SOURCE. In general, if the source you are using is contained within a larger work--an article in a magazine, a poem in an anthology--then you need to cite the inclusive page numbers. (For more on works requiring inclusive page numbers, see 16-18 in Sec. A of this document.)
Example of how print publication information is included for a book found on a web site: book title
city of print pub.
Cascardi, Anthony J. Ideologies of History in the Spanish Golden Age. University Park: Pennsylvania State UP, 1997. Penn State Romance Studies. Web. 12 Mar. 2007. site title
print publisher print pub. date
AN ONLINE PUBLICATION OF A PREVIOUSLY PUBLISHED BOOK Child, L. Maria, ed. The Freedmen’s Book. Boston, 1866. Google Book Search. Web. 15 May 2008.
WC 38 Sec. C: Web Sources
AN ONLINE PUBLICATION OF A PREVIOUSLY PUBLISHED MAGAZINE ARTICLE "Art: Plastic Advertisements." Time 6 Feb. 1928: n. pag. Time.com. Web. 19 Nov. 2009.
AN ONLINE PUBLICATION OF A PREVIOUSLY PUBLISHED NEWSPAPER ARTICLE Comins, Lyse. "Addictive Games People Play." Daily News [Durbin] 19 Nov. 2009: 13. IOL. Web.19 Nov. 2009.
AN ONLINE PUBLICATION OF A WORK PREVIOUSLY PUBLISHED IN A COLLECTION
Bierce, Ambrose. “Academy.” The Devil’s Dictionary. The Collected Works of Ambrose Bierce. Vol. 7. New York: Neale, 1911. N. pag. The Ambrose Bierce Project. Web. 15 Apr. 2008.
AN ONLINE PUBLICATION OF A PREVIOUSLY PUBLISHED PAMPHLET Heim, Michael Henry, and Andrzej W. Tymowski. Guidelines for the Translation of Social Science Texts. New York: ACLS, 2006. American Council of Learned Societies. Web. 15 May 2008.
AN ONLINE PUBLICATION OF A POEM PREVIOUSLY PUBLISHED IN A BOOK Whittier, John G. “A Prayer.” The Freedmen’s Book. Ed. L. Maria Child. Boston, 1866. 178. Google Book Search. Web. 15 May 2008. •
You may add supplementary information about the database or Web site (such as the name of its editor, sponsor, or publisher) following its name.
Ovid. Metamorphoses. Trans. Arthur Golding. London, 1567. The Perseus Digital Library. Ed. Gregory Crane. Tufts U. Web. 12 Mar. 2007.
WC 39 Sec. C: Web Sources
29.
A work on the Web that also has publication data for another medium BESIDES PRINT (music, television, photos, etc.)
Note: This section is for non-print works found on the Web that are also found offline (such as a song you listened to online that can also be found on a CD). If your source only exists online and is not published in another medium, use the guidelines found above under heading 26, "A work cited only on the Web." •
The Web presents images (still and moving) and sound as well as written text. It is sometimes important to indicate that a source online is available in another medium besides print. If you viewed a digitized version of a film on the Web, for example, you may want to include in your entry the details usually cited for a film. To document sources such as these, begin the entry by following the recommendations in Sec. D of this document, but drop the medium of original publication (e.g., Television, Photograph, etc.). Conclude the entry with the following items: 1. Title of the database or Web site (italicized) 2. Medium of publication consulted (Web) 3. Date of access (day, month, and year)
AN ONLINE PUBLICATION OF A WORK OF ART Bruegel, Pieter the Elder. Landscape with the Fall of Icarus.1555. Musées Royaux des Beaux-Arts, Brussels. Web Gallery of Art. Web.16 Nov. 2009. A FILM VIEWED ONLINE The Great Train Robbery. Dir. Edward Porter. Thomas Edison, 1903. Internet Archive. Web. 5 June 2008. AN ONLINE PUBLICATION OF A PHOTOGRAPH HELD IN A COLLECTION Lange, Dorothea. The Migrant Mother. 1936. Prints and Photographs Div., Lib. of Cong. Dorothea Lange: Photographer of the People. Web. 9 May 2007. AN ONLINE PUBLICATION OF A DOCUMENT HELD IN A COLLECTION “Protest on Behalf of Southern Women.” 1932. Mary Cornelia Barker Papers. Robert W. Woodruff Lib., Emory U. Online Manuscript Resources in Southern Women’s History. Web. 5 June 200
WC 40 Sec. D: Database Sources
Section D: CITING DATABASE SOURCES
DATABASE SOURCES: GENERAL INFO. What are database sources? A database is an organized, searchable collection of information from a variety of sources. If you are doing online research through a library, you are likely to use a database (e.g., Academic Search Premier, Discovering Collection, JSTOR, Global Issues in Context, ProQuest Newstand). Databases are sometimes called subscription services because schools and libraries pay a fee to offer their users access to the content. Databases require passwords and cannot be accessed through a regular search engine like Google. For academic research, database sources have many advantages over sources you can access from an open-Web search engine like Google. A search engine like Google is driven by commercial interests which influence the order and variety of your results. In contrast, the databases you will access through libraries are designed for academic research and, depending on the focus of the particular database, will offer you a range of resources--from articles in popular magazines to advanced scientific research published by universities. Additionally, databases will help you find articles you would be able to access through open-Web sites. Specifically, you will be able to find articles from scholarly journals. Scholarly journals feature peer-reviewed academic writing and research, which are considered the "gold standard" for academic credibility. Your teacher or librarian can help you choose the most helpful databases for your research topic. 30.
HOW TO DO A WORKS-CITED ENTRY FOR A DATABASE SOURCE
Finding needed information: A database will always clearly list the original source of any article. FOR YOUR WORK-CITED PAGE, YOU CANNOT JUST LIST THE ARTICLE AND THE DATABASE NAME. You need to find the original publication information--the title of the magazine, journal, or other source in which the article was originally published. Most databases will list this information in several places: on the search results page, at the top of the article page or PDF, and sometimes at the end of the article. Identifying key information for the works-cited entry: Top of the database page
name of database
Notice how the information from the database is put into MLA format in the example that follows.
Entry on the search results page Article title
volume & issue inclusive page numbers
author
journal/periodical title
original publication date
WC 41 Sec. D: Database Sources
A TYPICAL WORKS-CITED ENTRY FOR A DATABASE SOURCE journal title (always use italics) author
article title
inclusive page numbers
Donoghue, Denis. "Upstairs and Downstairs in Amherst." New Criterion 29.8 (Apr. 2011): 4-8. Literary Reference Center Plus. Web. 2 Nov. 2012. database title (always use italics)
volume & issue numbers
original publication date
your access date
Details for the works-cited entry: Note: The details listed here are for an article citation because articles are the most common resource accessed from databases, but you may find a book or other type of source within a database. See the examples at the end of this section for details about formatting other types of sources accessed in databases. 1. List the author's name (last name first) followed by a period (See headings 3-6 in section A for how list more than one author, listing an editor or translator, etc.). 2. Next give the title of the article (in quotation marks) followed by a period (remember to put the period inside the quotation marks). 3. After the title of the article, list the name of the magazine or journal (in italics). Do not place any punctuation following the italicized title of the magazine or journal. 4. Next, list the volume and issue number, if given. Do not use abbreviations for volume or issue. Just give the two numbers (volume number first) with a period in between the numbers. For example, a source that says “Vol. 94 Issue 12” should appear as 94.12 in your works-cited entry. 5. Next, give the publication date. When the publication date follows the volume and issue numbers, the date must be in parentheses. If volume and issue numbers are not given, the date follows the title of the magazine or journal and is NOT put in parentheses. Depending on how often the magazine or journal is published, the date may be a full date (12 Mar. 2010), a month and year (Apr. 2011), or a season and year (Fall 2009). Remember to abbreviate every month except for May, June, and July. 6. After the date, put a colon followed by the inclusive page numbers. If no page numbers are given, write n. pag. to indicate “no page.” Put a period after the page number(s) or the n. pag. This is that last part of the original publication information. 7. Next, you give the information about how you accessed the article. First, list the name of the database you used followed by a period. Database titles are always in italics. 8. Following the database title, write Web as the medium of publication followed by a period. Even though your source was originally printed, use Web to show how you accessed the source. 9. End the citation with the date of access (day, month, and year) followed by a period. This is the date you looked at the source.
WC 42 Sec. D: Database Sources
Reminders for database source works-cited entries:
•
Differences between original articles and articles reproduced in databases: Many databases include digital scans of entire periodicals that were previously published in print; often these scans present facsimiles of the printed works. Other databases compile articles from different periodicals, sometimes organizing the articles by subject. In some databases, typographic features and even the pagination found in print versions may be altered or lost. Sometimes copyrighted third-party materials (illustrations or text) in a print version may have been eliminated because permission for the electronic publication could not be cleared. Web presentations of periodicals may include enhancements, such as hypertextual links, sound recordings, and film clips that are not present in their print counterparts. Because of these possible variations, it is important that your workscited entry shows exactly where you found the version of the material you are citing.
•
Pagination: A periodical article reproduced in a database might not include page numbers. If possible, give the inclusive page numbers or, when pagination is not continuous, the first page number and a plus sign; if pagination is not available, use n. pag.
•
Use Web (not Print) as your medium of publication. Even if the article you are citing is from a print source, you must list the medium of publication as Web because you accessed it through the online database.
BEWARE OF ERRORS IN THE CITATIONS THAT DATABASES GENERATE! If the subscription service or database you are using generates a citation, it is most likely not correctly formatted for your works-cited page. The software that the databases use sometimes includes extra information in the article titles, sometimes generates a title in all capital letters or all lowercase, etc. Copying and Pasting Note: If you are copying and pasting information for a source citation, some formatting details, such as italics, may be lost. Check the details carefully before finalizing your citation. Capitalization Note: You must follow the rules of capitalization for an article title (see GRS rule 3) even if the database shows the article title without proper capitalization. ERROR Example: The following citation has been copied and pasted from the "source citation" on an article found in the Global Issues in Context database. This citation is close to being in correct MLA format, but it still contains some errors. Reynolds, Neil. "Dropout rate too high? let's try child labour." Globe & Mail [Toronto, Canada] 7 Feb. 2011: A13. Global Issues In Context. Web. 8 Aug. 2013.
WC 43 Sec. D: Database Sources
Problems with this ERROR Example: Incorrect capitalization of article title, failure to indicate that the article is an editorial, missing double spacing, missing italics for titles, and missing hanging indentation. The italics, double spacing, and hanging indentation were all lost in the process of copying and pasting the citation. CORRECTED Example: Reynolds, Neil. "Dropout Rate Too High? Let's Try Child Labour." Editorial. Globe & Mail [Toronto, Canada] 7 Feb. 2011: A13. Global Issues In Context. Web. 8 Aug. 2013. NOTE ON ARTICLE TITLES MADE UNREASONABLY LONG BY ADDITIONAL TEXT: Databases will sometimes generate unreasonably long, nonsensical article titles. It appears that descriptive taglines, quotes, etc. are sometimes tacked onto the original title, and it can be difficult to tell what the original title is. Some article titles are lengthy and include a subtitle (e.g. “Roots, Wings, and the Tyranny of Eggs: Mothering as Conflict in A Raisin in the Sun”), but if you find that the database has generated a title that includes more than a simple subtitle, you can shorten it. Shorten an unreasonably long title by ending it at the first punctuation mark that makes sense. If you are unsure about how to shorten a title, consult your teacher. ERROR Example of Title Made Long by Additional Text: Johnson, Sarah Anne. "What's a memoir writer to do? The James Frey controversy thrust issues of 'truth,' memory and methodology into the spotlight; we ask five accomplished authors to weigh in on the debate over a much-loved genre." Interview. Writer 119.11 (Nov. 2006): 2023. Academic Search Premier. Web. 5 Jan. 2013. CORRECTED Example: Johnson, Sarah Anne. "What's a Memoir Writer to Do?” Interview. Writer 119.11 (Nov. 2006): 2023. Academic Search Premier. Web. 5 Jan. 2013.
WC 44 Sec. D: Database Sources
SAMPLE ENTRIES FOR DIFFERENT TYPES OF DATABASE SOURCES ARTICLES ACCESSED THROUGH DATABASES Pham, Alex. "Turning Lyrics Into Dollars." Billboard 124.45 (15 Dec. 2012): 18-19. MAS UltraSchool Edition. Web. 28 Sept. 2013. Tolson, Nancy. “Making Books Available: The Role of Early Libraries, Librarians, and Booksellers in the Promotion of African American Children’s Literature.” African American Review 32.1 (1998): 9-16. JSTOR. Web. 5 June 2008. AN ARTICLE (without volume and issue numbers) ACCESSED THROUGH A DATABASE
Petit, Charles W. “Angry Sun.” US News and World Report 10 Nov. 2003: 12. Global Issues in Context. Web. 9 Nov. 2013. AN ARTICLE (without inclusive page numbers) ACCESSED THROUGH A DATABASE Chan, Evans. “Postmodernism and Hong Kong Cinema.” Postmodern Culture 10.3 (2000): n. pag. Student Edition. Web. 5 June 2008. Note: Some articles, such as reviews, interviews, and editorials, require an identifying label, as seen in the next two examples. A REVIEW ACCESSED THROUGH A DATABASE Evangelista, Stefano. Rev. of Victorian and Edwardian Responses to the Italian Renaissance, ed. John E. Law and Lene Østermark-Johansen. Victorian Studies 46.4 (2006): 729-31. Academic Search Premier. Web. 12 Mar. 2007. AN EDITORIAL ACCESSED THROUGH A DATABASE Rosenberg, Mark. “Something Old, Something New . . . .” Editorial. Canadian Journal on Aging 26.2 (2007): 81. Project Muse. Web. 30 Nov. 2007.
WC 45 Sec. D: Database Sources
AN ARTICLE FROM AN ONLINE BOOK ACCESSED THROUGH A DATABASE Kar, Prafulla C. "The Image of the Vanishing African in Chinua Achebe's Novels." DISCovering Authors. Online ed. Detroit: Gale, 2003. Discovering Collection. Web. 9 Mar. 2012. AN ENTRY FROM A REFERENCE BOOK ACCESSED THROUGH A DATABASE "Garcia Marquez, Gabriel." Benet's Reader's Encyclopedia. HarperCollins, 1987. 366. Student Edition. Web. 17 Dec. 2011. AN ARTICLE ABOUT A COURT CASE ACCESSED THROUGH A DATABASE Blacher, Michael, and Roger Weaver. “Fullmer v. Evanston: The Internet and Free Speech.” Independent School 72.2 (2013): 80-85. Academic Search Premier. 25 July 2013. NOTES ON FORMATTING FOR COURT CASE TITLES Names of court cases are italicized in the text of your paper but NOT in your works-cited entry. Therefore, names of court cases that may appear in parenthetical references would NOT be italicized. Example of court case title as referenced in the text of your paper and in parenthetical reference:
As important as free speech is to Americans, it is something of a surprise that the Supreme Court did not address its first case involving the free speech rights of students until its 1969 landmark decision in Tinker v. Des Moines Independent Community School District (“Supreme Court Update: Tinker v. Des Moines” 245). NOTE: The court case name is italicized in the text, but it is not italicized in the parenthetical
reference. Example of a works-cited entry for an article about a court case:
“Supreme Court Update: Tinker v. Des Moines post Morse v. Frederick.” Education and the Law 19.3(2007): 245-253. Academic Search Premiere. Web. 7 Sept. 2013. NOTE: The court case name is NOT italicized in the works-cited entry.
WC 46 Sec. E: Additional Sources
Section E: CITING ADDITIONAL SOURCES—including E-Publications
E-books •
•
31.
There is a difference between e-books that you access through an electronic reader, such as a Kindle, and electronic copies of books that you access online. E-books accessed online, through library collections or sites such as Google Books, should be treated as Web sources in terms of works-cited entries. For an e-book you access on an electronic device rather than the Web, you will list the type of file as the medium of publication (see examples below). If you access the e-book through the Internet, you use must identify the title of the Web site or database you use, and you must list Web as the medium of publication.
Citing E-books accessed through a Web site or a library’s electronic collection
AN ELECTRONIC REPRODUCTION OF A BOOK ACCESSED THROUGH A WEB SITE
Nebeker, Ryan. The Arcadian Gardener’s Book. New York: St. Martin’s, 1994. Google Book Search. Web. 8 Aug. 2008.
AN ELECTRONIC REPRODUCTION OF A BOOK ACCESSED THROUGH A LIBRARY
Dixon, Maurice, ed. Critical Insights: “The Wasteland.” New York: Harper, 2003. Literary Reference Center Plus. Web. 8 Mar. 2012.
32. Citing E-books accessed on an electronic device •
In general, a work formatted for reading on an electronic device like Kindle, Nook, and iPad is covered by the guidelines for a digital file in the 7th edition of the MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers (5.7.18). Begin the entry in the works-cited list like the entry for a comparable printed work, and end it with a designation of the medium of publication. The medium is the type of electronic file, such as Kindle file, Nook file, EPUB file, or PDF file. If you cannot identify the file type, use Digital file. Here is an example:
Rowley, Hazel. Franklin and Eleanor: An Extraordinary Marriage. New York: Farrar, 2010. Kindle file.
WC 47 Sec. E: Additional Sources
Note about pagination for parenthetical references for an e-book accessed on an electronic reader : Most electronic readers include a page numbering system. Do not cite this numbering because the page numbers might be different for other readers. If the work is divided into numbered sections like chapters, the numbers of those sections may be cited, with a label identifying the nature of the number (e.g. ch., par., sec. for chapter, paragraph, or section). Example of a parenthetical reference: According to author Hazel Rowley, Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt began their honeymoon with a week’s stay at Hyde Park (ch. 2). Note: If you do not include the author’s name in the lead-in for the quote or paraphrase, put the author’s last name in the parenthetical reference. See the following example. Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt began their honeymoon with a week’s stay at Hyde Park (Rowley, ch. 2).
33. Citing a tweet •
•
Begin the entry in the works-cited list with the author’s real name and, in parentheses, user name, if both are known and they differ. If only the user name is known, give only the user name. Next, provide the entire text of the tweet in quotation marks, without changing the capitalization. Conclude the entry with the date and time of the message and the medium of publication (Tweet). For example:
Athar, Sohaib (ReallyVirtual). “Helicopter hovering above Abbottabad at 1AM (is a rare event).” 1 May 2011, 3:58 p.m. Tweet.
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The date and time of a message on Twitter reflect the reader’s time zone. Readers in different time zones see different times and, possibly, dates on the same tweet. The date and time that were in effect for the writer of the tweet when it was transmitted are normally not known. Thus, the date and time displayed on Twitter are only approximate guides to the timing of a tweet. However, they allow a researcher to precisely compare the timing of tweets as long as the tweets are all read in a single time zone.
WC 48 Sec. E: Additional Sources
INTERVIEWS •
An interview may be one that you conducted in person or one you read, saw, or heard. For any type of interview, begin your works-cited entry with the name of the person who was interviewed (last name first).
34. Interview that is part of a publication, recording, or program •
If the interview is part of a publication, recording, or program, enclose the title of the interview in quotation marks. Next, give the title of the publication, recording, or program and other publication information appropriate to the medium (see headings for books, etc., if needed). Conclude with the medium of publication.
Blanchett, Cate. “In Character with: Cate Blanchett.” Notes on a Scandal. Dir. Richard Eyre. Fox Searchlight, 2006. DVD. •
If the interview is untitled, use the descriptive label Interview, neither italicized nor enclosed in quotation marks.
Gordimer, Nadine. Interview. New York Times 10 Oct. 1991, late ed.: C25. Print. •
The interviewer’s name may be added if known and pertinent to your paper.
Wiesel, Elie. Interview by Ted Koppel. Nightline. ABC. WABC, New York. 18 Apr. 2002. Television. •
If the interview was published independently (not part of a book, recording, program, etc.), italicize the title.
Lansbury, Angela. Interview. Off-Camera: Conversations with the Makers of Prime-Time Television. By Richard Levinson and William Link. New York: Plume-NAL, 1986. 72-86. Print.
35. Interview you conducted personally • •
To cite an interview that you conducted, give the name of the person interviewed, the kind of interview (Personal interview, Telephone interview), and the date. Note: A citation for an e-mail interview will need additional information as a Web source. See section C.
Jordan, Michael. Personal interview. 10 Dec. 2008. O’Neil, Shaquille. Telephone interview. 11 Dec. 2008.
WC 49 Sec. E: Additional Sources
TV/RADIO PROGRAMS 36. Television or radio program •
•
The information in an entry for a television or radio program usually appears in the following order: 1. Title of the episode or segment, if appropriate (in quotation marks) 2. Title of the program or series (italicized) 3. Name of the network (if any) 4. Call letters and city of the local station (if any) 5. Broadcast date 6. Medium of reception (e.g., Radio, Television) 7. Supplementary information For the inclusion of other information that may be pertinent (e.g., performers, director, narrator, number of episodes), see the sample entries. In general, information relating to a particular episode follows the title of the episode, while information referring to a series follows the title of the series.
“Frankenstein: The Making of the Monster.” Great Books. Narr. Donald Sutherland. Writ. Eugenie Vink. Dir. Jonathan Ward. Learning Channel. 8 Sept. 1993. Television. “The Phantom of Corleone.” Narr. Steve Kroft. Sixty Minutes. CBS. WCBS, New York, 10 Dec. 2006. Television. “Shakespearean Putdowns.” Narr. Robert Siegel and Linda Wertheimer. All Things Considered. Natl. Public Radio. WNYC, New York, 6 Apr. 1994. Radio. •
If your reference is primarily to the work of a particular individual, cite that person’s name before the title.
Welles, Orson, dir. “The War of the Worlds.” By H. G. Wells. Adapt. Howard Koch. Mercury Theatre on the Air. CBS Radio. WCBS, New York, 30 Oct. 1938. Radio.
WC 50 Sec. E: Additional Sources
SOUND RECORDINGS 37. Sound recordings such as an audiocassette or a CD • •
• •
In an entry for a commercially available recording, which person is cited first (e.g., the composer, conductor, or performer) depends on the desired emphasis. List the title of the recording (or the titles of the works included), the artist(s), the manufacturer (Capitol, for example), and the year of issue (if the year is unknown, write n.d.). Indicate the medium, neither italicized nor enclosed in quotation marks, after the date of publication: Audiocassette, Audiotape (reel-to-reel tape), or CD (compact disc). Place a comma between the manufacturer and the date; periods follow the other items. If relevant, you may wish to indicate, in addition to the year of issue, the date of recording (see Ellington example below).
Ellington, Duke, cond. First Carnegie Hall Concert. Duke Ellington Orch. Rec. 23 Jan. 1943. Prestige, 1977. LP. Sondheim, Stephen. Passion. Orch. Jonathan Tunick. Perf. Donna Murphy, Jere Shea, and Marin Mazzie. Cond. Paul Gemignani. Angel, 1994. CD. •
If you are citing a specific song, place its title (in quotation marks) before the title of the recording.
Bono, Brian Eno, the Edge, and Luciano Pavarotti. “Miss Sarajevo.” Pavarotti and Friends for the Children of Bosnia. London, 1996. CD. •
Treat a spoken word recording as you would a musical recording. Begin with the speaker, the writer, or the production director, depending on the desired emphasis. You may add the original publication date of the work immediately after the title (see Burnett example below).
Burnett, Frances Hodgson. The Secret Garden. 1911. Narr. Helena Bonham Carter. Penguin-High Bridge, 1993. Audiocassette. Note: Remember that the details for this type of entry depend on how a source is used in your paper. In the example above, if your paper was focused on Helena Bonham Carter's narration rather than on Burnett's novel, the entry would begin with Carter's name: Bonham Carter, Helena, narr. The Secret Garden. By Frances Hodgson Burnett. 1911. PenguinHigh Bridge, 1993. Audiocassette. Note: For a sound recording or sound clip you accessed online, see Sec. C on Web sources.
WC 51 Sec. E: Additional Sources
FILMS/VIDEO RECORDINGS 38. Films or video recordings Note: For a film or film clip you accessed online, you will need to include information about the Web publication. See sec. C for details. • •
A film entry usually begins with the title, italicized, and includes the director, the distributor, the year of release, and the medium consulted. Try to include other relevant information–such as the names of the writer(s), performers, and producer(s)–between the title and the distributor.
It’s a Wonderful Life. Dir. Frank Capra. Perf. James Stewart, Donna Reed, Lionel Barrymore, and Thomas Mitchell. RKO, 1946. Film. Like Water for Chocolate [Como agua para chocolate]. Screenplay by Laura Esquivel. Dir. Alfonso Arau. Perf. Lumi Cavazos, Marco Lombardi, and Regina Torne. Miramax, 1993. Film.
•
If you are citing the contribution of a particular individual, begin with that person’s name.
Chaplin, Charles, dir. Modern Times. Perf. Chaplin and Paulette Goddard. United Artists, 1936. Film. •
Cite a DVD (digital videodisc), videocassette, laser disc, slide program, or filmstrip as you would a film. Indicate the specific medium at the end of the works-cited entry. Include the original release date when it is relevant.
Alcohol Use and Its Medical Consequences. Prod. Project Cork, Dartmouth Medical School. MilnerFenwick, 1982. Slide program. It’s a Wonderful Life. Dir. Frank Capra. Perf. James Stewart, Donna Reed, Lionel Barrymore, and Thomas Mitchell. 1946. Republic, 2001. DVD.
WC 52 Sec. E: Additional Sources
ORAL PRESENTATIONS, INCLUDING CLASS NOTES 39. A lecture, a speech, an address, or a reading •
•
In a citation of an oral presentation, give the following information: o the speaker’s name o the title of the presentation (if known), in quotation marks o the meeting and sponsoring organization (if applicable) o the location o the date At the end of the citation, use an appropriate descriptive label (Address, Lecture, Keynote speech, Reading), neither italicized nor enclosed in quotation marks, to indicate the form of delivery.
Alter, Robert, and Marilynne Robinson. “The Psalms: A Reading and Conversation.” 92nd Street Y, New York. 17 Dec. 2007. Reading. Atwood, Margaret. “Silencing the Scream.” Boundaries of the Imagination Forum. MLA Annual Convention. Royal York Hotel, Toronto. 29 Dec. 1993. Address.
40. Notes from information learned in a classroom •
In a citation of material learned in the classroom, format your entry as you would for a lecture (see preceding section), but use your teacher's name as the speaker. The topic of the class lecture (if known) should be written quotation marks as the title. Next, give the name of the class, the location, and the date. End the citation with the descriptive label "Lecture."
Born, Steve. “Causes of the Civil War.” American History Class. Eden Prairie High School, Eden Prairie. 10 Nov. 2006. Lecture. Olson, Rolf. “Imagery in Heart of Darkness.” Advanced Placement English 12. Eden Prairie High School, Eden Prairie. 9 Feb. 2009. Lecture.
WC 53
IF YOU DIDN'T FIND WHAT YOU NEEDED . . . In the seventh edition of the MLA Handbook, chapter five ("Documentation: Preparing the List of Works Cited") covers nearly sixty different types of sources. Because this document has been prepared for student use, we have not included every possible entry from the MLA Handbook. If you are using a type of source not covered in this document, refer to the MLA Handbook for more specific information. Note: Topics in the MLA Handbook are formatted in a sub-numbering system within each chapter. Thus, a heading numbered 5.4.3 would be found in chapter five, under heading number four, subheading number three. Here is a list of sub-headings found in chapter five of the MLA Handbook that were NOT INCLUDED in this document. 5. Documentation: Preparing the List of Works Cited 5.3. The List of Works Cited o 5.3.6. Cross-References 5.4. Citing Periodical Print Publications o 5.4.3. An Article in a Scholarly Journal That Uses Only Issue Numbers o 5.4.4. An Article in a Scholarly Journal with More Than One Series o 5.4.8. An Abstract in an Abstracts Journal o 5.4.12. A Serialized Article o 5.4.13. A Special Issue 5.5. Citing Nonperiodical Print Publications o 5.5.10. A Scholarly Edition o 5.5.12. An Illustrated Book or a Graphic Narrative o 5.5.15. A Book in a Series o 5.5.16. A Republished Book or Journal Issue o 5.5.17. A Publisher’s Imprint o 5.5.18. A Book with Multiple Publishers o 5.5.21. The Published Proceedings of a Conference o 5.5.22. A Book in a Language Other Than English o 5.5.23. A Book Published before 1900 o 5.5.25. An Unpublished Dissertation o 5.5.26. A Published Dissertation 5.6. Citing Web Publications 5.7. Citing Additional Common Sources o 5.7.4. A Performance o 5.7.5. A Musical Score or Libretto o 5.7.6. A Work of Visual Art o 5.7.8. A Map or Chart o 5.7.9. A Cartoon or Comic Strip o 5.7.10. An Advertisement o 5.7.12. A Manuscript or Typescript o 5.7.13. A Letter, a Memo, or an E-Mail Message o 5.7.14. A Legal Source o 5.7.15. An Article in a Microform Collection of Articles o 5.7.16. An Article Reprinted in a Loose-Leaf Collection of Articles o 5.7.17. A Publication on CD-ROM or DVD-ROM o 5.7.18. A Digital File 5.8. A Work in More Than One Publication Medium
WC 54
WHAT IS AN ANNOTATED BIBLIOGRAPHY? An annotated bibliography is a list of citations to books, articles, and documents followed by a brief (usually about 150 words) descriptive and evaluative paragraph, the annotation. The purpose of the annotation is to inform the reader of the relevance, accuracy, and quality of the sources cited.
THE PROCESS Creating an annotated bibliography calls for the application of a variety of intellectual skills: concise exposition, succinct analysis, and informed library research. First, locate and record citations to books, periodicals, and documents that may contain useful information and ideas on your topic. Briefly examine and review the actual items. Then choose those works that provide a variety of perspectives on your topic. Cite the book, article, or document using the appropriate style, in our case this would be MLA style. Write a concise annotation that summarizes the central theme and scope of the book or article. Include one or more sentences that (a) state the purpose or intended audience, (b) examine the authority or background of the author, (c) comment on timeliness, (d) evaluate the objectivity or bias, (e) compare or contrast this work with another you have cited, or (f) explain how this work illuminates your research paper topic. EXAMPLE ANNOTATED BIBLIOGRAPHY ENTRY This example uses the MLA format for the journal citation. NOTE: Standard MLA practice requires double spacing within citations. Waite, Linda J., Frances Kobrin Goldscheider, and Christina Witsberger. “Nonfamily Living and the Erosion of Traditional Family Orientations Among Young Adults." American Sociological Review 51 (1986): 541-554. Print. The authors, researchers at the Rand Corporation and Brown University, use data from the National Longitudinal Surveys of Young Women and Young Men to test their hypothesis that nonfamily living by young adults alters their attitudes, values, plans, and expectations, moving them away from their belief in traditional sex roles. They find their hypothesis strongly supported in young females, while the effects were fewer in studies of young males. In contrast, an earlier study by Williams cited below shows no significant gender differences in sex role attitudes as a result of nonfamily living. The purpose of the article is to inform the reader, and the authors remain objective. The article provides useful information for the historical section of my paper; however, both studies mentioned are more than 20 years old.
Michael Engle, Amy Blumenthal, and Tony Cosgrave Reference Department at Cornell University URL: http://www.library.cornell.edu/olinuris/ref/research/skill28.htm
WC 55
SHORT FORM for THE WORKS CITED (rev. 2014) REMINDERS! Alphabetize all entries. Cross check your works-cited page & your parenthetical references. They must match and everything must be referenced. Double check punctuation. Include medium of publication: Print, Web, CD, DVD, Photo, Lecture, etc. Properly capitalize all titles. Use hanging indentation. Double space.
Examples of works-cited entries author
book title
publisher
city of pub.
year of pub.
Schlosser, Eric. Fast Food Nation. New York: Perennial-Harper, 2005. Print.
medium of pub. inclusive page num.
authors
pub. date
magazine title
article title
Weintraub, Arlene, and Laura Cohen. “A Thousand-Year Plan for Nuclear Waste.” Business Week 6 May 2002: 94-96. Print. medium of pub. article title
web site title
web site pub.
pub. date
med. of pub.
“Utah Mine Rescue Funeral. ”Utah Online. Intermountain Media, 21 Aug. 2007. Web. 21 Aug. 2007. pub. date author
article title
database title inclusive page num.
Thomas, Bev. "Inquiry." Spectrum 5.2 (2010): 3-8. Academic Search Premier. Web. 3 Mar. 2013. journal title
access date
volume & issue #
med. of pub. access date
Parts of a Citation
If your source has no author, list by title on the works-cited page and in parenthetical references. For other missing information, you must use the appropriate abbreviation: N.p. for no place of publication, N.p. for no publisher, N.d. for no date, and N. pag. for no page. (Note: if the abbreviation follows a period, the "N." should be capitalized. If it follows any other text or mark of punctuation, the "n." should be written in lower case.) Not all sources need inclusive page numbers. In general, if the source you are using is contained within a larger work--an article in a magazine, a poem in an anthology--then you need to cite the inclusive page numbers. For a Web source, inclusive page numbers are needed if the source was originally a type of print source requiring inclusive page numbers.
PRINT SOURCES Author(s). “Title of Article.” Title of Magazine date of publication. inclusive page numbers. Print. Author(s). Title of Book. City of Publication: Publisher, year of publication. Print. Author(s). “Title of Chapter or Selection.” Title of Book. City of Publication: Publisher, year of publication. inclusive page numbers (or N. pag.). Print. WEB SOURCE Author(s). “Title of Article or Web Page.” Title of Web Site. Publisher of Web Site (or N.p.), publication (or posting/copyright) date. Web. access date. DATABASE SOURCES Author(s). “Title of Article.” Title of Magazine date of publication. inclusive page numbers (or N. pag.). Name of Database.Web. access date. Author(s). “Title of Article.” Title of Journal volume number. issue number: (date of publication). inclusive page numbers (or N. pag.). Name of Database.Web. access date.
