MLA Citation MODERN LANGUAGE ASSOCIATION 8 TH EDITION

MLA Citation MODERN LANGUAGE ASSOCIATION 8 TH EDITION

MLA information is in your planner! Pages 6 and 7

Citation Why do we need it? § To give credit where credit is due. § Citation allows the reader to locate the direct source of the information. § Citation keeps academic integrity. § Citing sources allows the writer to avoid plagiarism. Plagiarism is using others' ideas, research or information and claiming that they are yours in order to receive benefit. § You need to cite your source even if you "paraphrase" their information--not just direct quotes.

Teachers RULE! • It is up to you to know what your teachers' requirements are. • Requirements may differ from teacher to teacher. • Our English and Social Studies Departments prefer to use the Modern Language Association (MLA) style of citation.

Will you really use this information in life? Yes! • You will be required to use some sort of citation during your time here at LHS. • Two and four year universities will require you to use citation as will technical schools. • You may not be required to use "MLA" style, but you will be required to use some type of citation method. So, learning this style of citation will be a good foundation for your future studies!

What’s new in the new MLA Handbook 8 th Edition? • No longer need to include “type” of source, like web or print. • New vocab: “core elements” and “container” • For books, the city of publication is no longer given. • The URL (without the http: //) is now given for a web source. • Sources on the “Notes” page are no longer indented.

MLA Core Elements General research tips: BEFORE you begin your research: Create a file in which you can take notes on your sources (working bibliography). Have this open (or minimized) when you are working in order to take quick notes. Know your source. Is it a credible one? Author? Reputable site? Peer reviewed? Updated information? *DURING your research take note of: Author(s) – all Title of source Title of container Other contributors Version Number Publisher Publication date Location *not all will be used Notice punctuation!

A container is any larger whole which holds a smaller source. Examples of smaller sources: • articles • videos • essays • poems • posts “Container” Examples of containers: • book that contains essays, stories or poems • periodical • website • database • encyclopedia • magazine

Examples

= Core Elements FINAL WORKS-CITED-LIST ENTRY Copeland, Edward. “Money. ” The Cambridge Companion to Jane Austen, edited by Copeland Juliet Mc. Master, Cambridge UP, 1997, pp. 131 -48.

FINAL WORKS-CITED-LIST ENTRY Copeland, Edward. “Money. ” The Cambridge Companion to Jane Austen, edited by Copeland Juliet Mc. Master, Cambridge UP, 1997, pp. 131 -48. pp. 131 -48. Book

FINAL WORKS-CITED-LIST ENTRY “Curiosity Rover Report (August 2015): Three Years on Mars!” NASA’s Journey to Mars: Videos, edited by Sarah Loff, National Aeronautics and Space Administration, 30 July 2015, www. nasa. gov/topics/journeytomars/videos/index. ht ml. Video on a Web Site

*There are THREE possible sections to a MLA formatted paper: 1. BODY with parenthetical references (your text) 2. NOTES page (use when you want to expand on a topic, but not include that information in your main paper) 3. WORKS CITED page (basically a bibliography) * A cover page is not required when using MLA style. However, your teacher might require it.

Here is how to format your MLA cover page: § This page is double spaced and the letters are centered. § Type the name of your university or college. § Skip to about one-third of the page and type your research paper title, include a subtitle if you have. § Skip several lines down and type your name, your course name and number, your instructor name and your paper’s due date Alternate First Page: If your instructor requires a cover page, you may omit the main heading on your first page. Here is an example of the first page if a cover page is used. You still need your last name and page number on the first page and every other pages. Sample MLA Format First Page with Cover Page

In-text, Parenthetical References These are written in the body of your text after you have made a reference to someone's work. Here is an example from an author named Smith: (Smith 72). The period goes after the reference. The author's name is given and the page number of the book that it was taken from. Then, the reader can look it up on the “Works Cited" page. Examples: Wordsworth stated that Romantic poetry was marked by a "spontaneous overflow of powerful feelings" (263). Romantic poetry is characterized by the "spontaneous overflow of powerful feelings" (Wordsworth 263).

Parenthetical References (in-text citations), and Notes using Superscripts More examples. . . We can deduce that the future Lady Bertram was beautiful as a young woman from the information that some of the family’s “acquaintance” consider the two younger sisters “quite as handsome as Miss Maria” (Austen 5). We also know Lady Bertram takes great stock in her beauty because she feels affronted that Mrs. Grant, the wife of the new parson who comes to live at Mansfield Park when Fanny is fifteen, has managed to secure a good match without the benefit of being “handsome” (31). Further, rather. . . 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. ¹ 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. A superscript is a letter, figure, or symbol that is written or printed above the line. Example: objections. ¹

Main Format of a MLA Research Paper § § § § § Use 1" margins on all sides (except for page numbers). Indent the first word of every paragraph 1/2 inch. Use Times New Roman font. Use 12 pt font. Double space your entire paper including the Notes and Works Cited pages. Leave one space after a period, not two. Look at an example for how to write the heading. For your title: DO NOT italicize, underline, put in quotes, boldface or use all caps. Use standard capitalization for your title: first letter of words only. Do not capitalize articles, prepositions and conjunctions such as: a, an, between, of, to, and, but, or, so, etc. Page numbers are used in the upper right hand corner, following your last name (1/2 inch from the top of the page: Minckler 1).

How to set up your MLA paper in Word:

Notes Page § Use endnotes to explain a point in your paper that does not quite fit in with the rest of your paper. § Endnotes begin on a new page after the paper, but before the “Works Cited” page. § Center the title “Notes” on the notes page. § Endnotes are double-spaced. § No indentation is used.

Works Cited Page § This is a list of all of the sources you used to write your paper. § Double space all entries. § Center “Works Cited” in the center top of your Hanging indention page. § Use a “hanging indention” of ½ inch for all entries. § Entries are alphabetical by author’s last name. If there is no author, then use the first noun in the title of the reference.

Questions? Having trouble? § Ask Mrs. Minckler, an English teacher or a business teacher for help. § Refer to the MLA Handbook and sample paper (copies at my desk). § Refer to your student planner. § Visit online resources: style. mla. org/ owl. english. purdue. edu/owl/ easybib. com

Visit the LHS Library web site for help!

Works Cited MLA Handbook, 2016. The Modern Language Association of America, 2016. “The MLA Style Center. ” The MLA Style Center, style. mla. org/. “Welcome to the Purdue OWL. ” Purdue OWL: MLA Formatting and Style Guide, Purdue University, owl. english. purdue. edu/owl/resource/747/01/.