MLA Documentation

Research Paper Format

Paper:

– Standard typeface (Times New Roman)– Standard type size (12 point)– Left alignment– 8 1/2-by-11-inch paper– One inch margins (top, bottom, sides)– Double-spaced throughout– Indent first word of paragraph

Research Paper Format

Heading: – Flush Left on first page ONLY

• Your name • Instructor’s name• Course number • Date

Title:– Center

• Do not underline

Research Paper Format

Page Numbers—in the header:– Right-hand corner of page– One-half inch from top– Flush with right margin

• Your last name and page number– Consecutive numbers

• No hyphen, period, “page” separations

(Stith)

Parenthetical Citation

Example:

Paul Bunyan is an American folklore hero whose blue ox was a menace (Stout 65).

Works cited list:

Stout, Avery. American Folklore. New York: Collins, 1968.

(Stith)

Works Cited

• The last page(s) of the paper

• Center the title

• One inch from top of page

• Double-space throughout

• Begin entry flush with left margin

• Hanging indent if entry more than one line

• Alphabetical listing

(Stith)

Documenting Sources

Book by a single author:Author’s last name, first name. Title of book.

Place of publication: Name of Publisher,

Date.

For example:

Smith, John. Red Cars at Dawn. Cincinnati: Harper, 2005.

Documenting Sources

Book by two or more authors:Author’s last name, first name and 2nd author’s first

and last name. Title of book. Place of

Publication: Name of Publisher, Date.

For example:

Smith, John, and Mary Johnson. Unicorns and Purple Palaces. Cincinnati: Harper, 2005.

Documenting Sources

Two or more books by same author:Author’s last name, first name. Title of book.

Date of publication: Name of Publisher, Date.For example:

Smith, John, ed. Red Cars in the Evening. Cincinnati: Harper, 2005. ---, Why Black Cars Hide at Dawn. Cincinnati:

Harper, 2005.

Documenting Sources

Book by an editor:Editor's last name, first name, and abbreviation for

editor. Title of book. Place of publication: Name of publisher, date.

For example:

Lopate, Philip, ed. American Indians on the Wild West. Chicago: Doubleday, 1989.

Documenting Sources

An article in a magazine:Author’s last name, first name. “Title of article.”

Magazine name. The complete date: page numbers of the article.

For example:

Mrehta, Poual. “Pigs Fly First Class.” Comic Weekly. 4 Oct. 1999: 14-21.

Documenting Sources

Electronic publications:Author’s last name, first name (if known). “Title of

the document.” Information about electronic publication. Date site was last updated. Date of access. <URL>.

For example:

Rosen, Ron. “Computers Can Fly.” Electronic City. 2003. 5 Aug. 2004. <www.pigsfeet.org>.

Documenting Sources

Electronic publication with no author:“Title of the document.” Information about

electronic publication. Date of site update. Date of access. <URL>.

For example:

“When the Elephants Sang.” AnimalsOnline. 2003. 5 Aug. 2004. <www.Animalsonline.com>.

Documenting Sources

An article in a journal:Author’s last name, first name. “Title of the

article.” Publication Information.

For example:

Trumpeter, Jane. “Widgeons Are Loose in the Mall.” Children’s Digest. Philadelphia, 2004.

Documenting Sources

An anthology:Editor’s last name, first name, ed. Title of book.

Publication information.

For example:

Smith, John, ed. Red Cars at Dawn. Cincinnati: Harper, 2005.

Documenting Sources

A work in an anthology:Author, title, and (if relevant) translator of the part

of the book being cited, title of anthology, editor/translator/compiler, publication information, page numbers of the cited

piece.For example:

Smith, Isabel. “Frog’s Friend.” Trans. Andrew Marshall. Children’s Mythology. Ed. Tim Tottleberry. Pittsburg, 1979. 41-50.

Documenting Sources

An anonymous article:[Omit any initial, A, An, or The in the group name]

“Title of article.” Publication and complete date: pages of article.

For example:

“Beyond the Power Rangers: Forecasting New Heroes.” Highlights 15 Mar. 2001: 13-18.

Documenting Sources

Television or radio program:“Title of episode.” Title of program. Title of series.

Name of the network. Call letters, and city (if any). Complete broadcast date.

For example:

“Pigs In Space.” Muppets Live. Jim Henson’s Muppets. Universal. NBS, New York. 3 May 1987.

Documenting Sources

A lecture:Speaker’s last name, first name. “Title of the

presentation (or appropriate descriptors.” Sponsoring organization (if applicable). Location. Date.

For example:

Thergel, Suttud. “Shock-Proofing Your Semester.” PSA Student Senate. Rose Grounds, New

Delhi. 29 Dec. 1978.

Works CitedGibaldi, Joseph, ed. MLA Handbook for Writers of

Research Papers. New York, 2003.

OWL Online Writing Lab. 28 Nov. 2005. http://owl.english.purdue.edu/handouts/research/r_mla.html#Works-Cited.

Stith, Becca. “Citing Sources.” Blue Valley West High School. 28 Nov. 2005. www.bv.229.k12.ks.us/bvw_lmc/citing.htm.

Student Resource Center. Stong College. 28 Nov. 2005. http://www.yorku.ca/stong/production/.