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MLA Format Issues

  1. All MLA citations should be double spaced.
  2. The first line should be flush with the left margin. All other lines should be indented.
  3. Use the author's full name as it appears on the title page, not an abbreviation. This may differ from the database where you originally found the citation.
  4. Capitalize every important word in the title. See MLA Handbook 3.6.1.
  5. Italicize titles of books and names of journals; put article titles in quotation marks. See MLA Handbook 3.3.
  6. If the book has a subtitle, put a colon between the main title and the subtitle. Subtitles must be included in the citation; use the title information provided on the title page of the book, not the spine or cover.
  7. If the place of publication lists several cities, use the first city given; do not include the state, province, or country after the city name. See MLA Handkbook 5.5.2.
  8. Publishers' names should be shortened by following the guidelines provided. See MLA Handbook 7.5.
  9. Include the medium of publication consulted. See MLA Handbook 5.4.1, 5.5.1, 5.6.2, 5.6.3, 5.6.4, etc.
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Dictionary Entry or Encyclopedia Article

Full publication information is not necessary for well-known reference books like Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary (just include edition number and year). The definition entry or article title, with or without an author (depends on source), is contained within quotation marks.

To cite an entire reference work, use the Books with an Editor or Books with an Author format as appropriate.

Matheson, Katy. "Improvisation." International Encyclopedia of Dance: A Project of Dance Perspectives Foundation. Ed. Selma Jeanne Cohen. Vol. 3. New York: Oxford UP, 1998. Print.

Note: If the articles are not listed alphabetically, give the inclusive page numbers for the article after the date of publication.

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Books with an Editor

Worell, Judith, ed. Encyclopedia of Women and Gender: Sex Similarities and Differences and the Impact of Society on Gender. San Diego: Academic, 2001. Print.
Tannen, Deborah, and Muriel Saville-Troike, eds. Perspectives on Silence. Norwood: Ablex, 1985. Print.
Shepherd, John, et al., eds. Continuum Encyclopedia of Popular Music of the World. 2nd ed. 7 vols. London: Continuum, 2003. Print.

Note: Use (ed.) or (eds.) to indicate editor(s). For major reference works with a large editorial board, list the name of the lead editor, followed by et al. See MLA Handbook 5.5.14.

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Book (single author)

Streeby, Shelly. American Sensations: Class, Empire, and the Production of Popular Culture. Berkeley: U of California P, 2002. Print.
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Book (multiple authors)

Holly, Mary Louise, Joanne M. Arhar, and Wendy C. Kasten. Action Research for Teachers: Traveling the Yellow Brick Road. Boston: Allyn & Bacon, 2009. Print.

Note: Use the order of authors listed on the title page. For books with more than three authors, you may list the first author followed by et al. or you may list all authors.

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Book in a Series

Vaughn, Jacqueline. Conflicts Over Natural Resources: A Reference Handbook. Santa Barbara: ABC-CLIO, 2007. Print. Contemporary World Issues.

Scholarly Journal Article

Quong, Jonathan. "Killing in Self-Defense." Ethics 119.3 (2009): 507-37. Print.

Note: For scholarly journal articles, include the volume and issue numbers if available. See MLA Handbook 5.4.1.

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Magazine Article

Gates, David and Raina Kelley. "Finding Neverland." Newsweek 13 July 2009: 34-39. Print.
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Newspaper Article

Coopers, Helene, and Abby Goodrough. "In Reunion Over Beers, No Apologies, but Cordial Plans to Have Lunch Sometime." New York Times 31 July 2009, natl. ed.: A23. Print.

Note: When the newspaper is not nationally published, and a city name is not included in the title, add it in brackets; for example: Globe and Mail [Toronto]

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Government Publication

United States. Dept. of Labor. Employer Centers and Childcare Liability Insurance. Washington: GPO, 1989. Print.

Note: For more examples of government publications, see MLA Handbook 5.5.20.

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Film, Videocassette or DVD Recording

The Wizard of Oz. Dir. Victor Fleming. Perf. Judy Garland, Frank Morgan, Ray Bolger, Bert Lahr, Jack Haley, Billie Burke, and Margaret Hamilton. 1939. MGM, 1998. DVD.
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Nonperiodical Publication Only on the Web

Most information on the Web is considered nonperiodical, meaning it does not come out on a regular schedule. Most newspaper and magazine Web sites fall into this category.

Sequence: Name of author, title of work (italicized) or in quotations if part of a larger site, title of the Web site italicized) if distinct from item, title of work, edition used, sponsor or publisher of the site (if not available, use N.p.), date of publication (if not available, use n.d.), medium (Web), date of access. The URL may be used for the site if you are instructed to use it by your instructor or if it would be difficult to locate otherwise. If the URL is required, add it to the end of the citation enclosed in angle brackets followed by a period; for example, <http://www.whitehouse.gov/>. See MLA Handbook 5.6.2b.

"Accounting." Encyclopaedia Britannica Online. Encyclopaedia Britannica, 2009. Web. 14 Aug. 2009.
"Muslim Women Uncover Myths about Jihad." CNN.com. Cable News Network, 12 Aug. 2009. Web. 12 Aug. 2009.
Page, Clarence. "Could Health Care be Obama's Iraq?" Editorial. Chicago Tribune. Chicago Tribune, 12 Aug. 2009. Web. 12 Aug. 2009.
United States. Dept. of Health and Human Services. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. "College Health and Safety." Family Health. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 6 Aug. 2009. Web. 15 Aug. 2009.
"Winston-Salem, NC." Map. Google Maps. Google, 2009. Web. 15 Sept. 2009.
ZSR Library. "Truncation." You Tube. You Tube, 17 Mar. 2008. Web. 14 Sept. 2009.
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Nonperiodical on the Web Cited with Print Publication Data

This category is for nonperiodical works that also appear in print, such as books scanned for viewing on the Web as well as disserations and theses. Many government documents also fall into this category.

Ashe, Samuel A'Court. History of North Carolina. 2 vols. Greensboro: Charles L. Van Noppen, 1908. Google Book Search. Web. 15 Aug. 2009.
Clark, Brian. Practicing Against What You Preach: A Social Values Perspective on Moral Hypocrisy. MA thesis Wake Forest U, May 2009. Wakespace Digital Archive. Web. 15 Aug. 2009.
United States. Dept. of Justice. Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention. Effectiveness of School-Based Violence Prevention Programs for Reducing Disruptive and Aggressive Behavior. By Sandra Jo Wilson and Mark W. Lipsey. May 2005. National Criminal Justice Reference Service. Web. 15 Aug. 2009.

Note: After the print publication data, include the name of the Web site, medium (Web), and date accessed.

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Scholarly Journal Article Only on the Web

Park, Choonkil, Won-Gil Park, and Abbas Najati. "Functional Equations Related to Inner Product Spaces." Abstract and Applied Analysis 2009 (2009): n. pag. Web. 15 Aug. 2009.
Westmoreland, Mark R. "Post-Orientalist Aesthetics: Experimental Film and Video in Lebanon." Invisible Culture: An Electronic Journal for Visual Culture 13.1 (2009): 37-57. Web. 3 Sept. 2009.

Note: Web publications often omit page numbers, or they number each article individually rather than sequentially. In both cases, use n. pag. in place of page numbers.

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Periodical Publication in an Online Database

Follow the instructions in the MLA Handbook 5.5 for print periodicals. Instead of using the term Print at the end of the citation, list the title of the database (italicized), medium (Web) and date accessed. If page range can be determined by using the PDF format, use that. If no page numbers are given, use n. pag.; if the page range is not continuous, use the first page number followed by a plus sign.

Arnas, Yasare Aktas. "The Effects of Television Food Advertisement on Children's Food Purchasing Requests." Pediatrics International 48.2 (2006): 135-45. Academic Search Premier. Web. 14 Aug. 2009.
Cocke, Elton C. "A Brief History of the Department of Biology of Wake Forest College." Bios 19.3 (1948): 179-84. JSTOR. Web. 16 Aug. 2009.
Story, Louise and Eric Dash. "Bankers Reaped Lavish Bonuses During Bailouts." New York Times 31 July 2009, late ed., Business and Finance sec.: 1+. Newspaper Source Plus. Web. 4 Sept. 2009.
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Citing Sources Within the Text of a Paper

The format for most in-text citations is the author's last name followed by the page from which the information came. This documentation usually comes at the end of the sentence and looks similar to this (Arnas 136). If more than one author has the same last name, the articles should be distinguished by using the first initial of each author, such as (Y. Arnas 136). If the work has more than one author, use the format used in the list of works cited, such as (Holly, Arhar, and Kosten 217) or (Shepherd et al. 780-81). If more than one work by the same author is cited, add a shorted version of the title; for example (Clark, Practicing 68).

If the author's name is mentioned in the sentence, give only the page number(s) needed to identify the source, such as (78) or (78-121). For long, indented quotes, put the page numbers at the end of the quote. For multivolume works, include the volume number (Matheson 2: 213-14).

When citing an entire work, such as a book, film, or Web site, it is often preferable to omit the parenthetical documentation and include the information in the text. For examples of this, as well as many other format guidelines, see the MLA Handbook, chapter 6.

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Getting Started

Consider the information here only as a starting point. If you encounter a case not covered in these examples, you are expected to consult the book for the correct answer.

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