MLA Citation Guide

MLA Citation Guide Morgan State University, New Library
http://www.morgan.edu/library

Correctly citing sources in writing a research paper or preparing a presentation is an important step in the
research process. Humanities and history primarily use the MLA Style. Below you will find examples of
MLA Style as a starting point to citing resources. Please refer to the MLA Handbook, located at the
Information Desk, for more detailed information.

Please note: MLA recommends double-spacing both within & between citations. Refer to your
instructor for individual preferences.

Books:
Basic Form - Author name. Title of the book. Publisher location: Publisher name, Publication date, Publication medium
(Print.)

Examples - Craven, Thomas. Modern Art: The Men, the Movements, the Meaning. New York: Simon, 1940. Print.

Rabkin, Eric S., Martin H. Greenberg, and Joseph D. Olander, eds. No Place Else: Explorations in Utopian and
Dystopian Fiction. 3rd ed. Carbondale: Southern Illinois UP, 1983. Print.

Calvino, Italo. “Cybenetics and Ghosts.” The Uses of Literature: Essays. Trans. Patrick Creagh. San Diego:
Harcourt, 1982. 3-27. Print.

Magazines and Newspaper Articles:
Basic Form - Author name. “Title of the article.” Publication title Date: Pages. Publication medium (Print.)

Examples - Barasch, Marc Ian. “Extreme Altruists.” Psychology Today Apr. 2005: 78-82. Print.

Nitkin, David. “By Blocking Ehrlich’s Nominees in Senate, Miller Seeks Leverage.” Baltimore Sun 16 Mar.
2005, final ed., Business sec.: 1A+. Print.

Scholarly Articles:
Basic Form - Author name. “Title of the article.” Journal title Volume. Issue (Year): Pages. Publication medium (Print.)

Examples - Strauss, Linda C., and J. Fredericks Volkwein. “Predictors of Student Commitment at Two-Year and Four-
Year Institutions.” Journal of Higher Education 75 (2004): 203-27. Print.

Hallin, Daniel C. “Sound Bite News: Television Coverage of Elections, 1968-1988.” Journal of Communication
42.2 (1992): 5-24. Print.

Articles Retrieved from Online Databases:
Basic Form - Author name. “Title of the article.” Title of journal or magazine Publication information. Database name.
Publication medium (Web.) Access date. (If page numbers are not continuous, give the first page
number followed by a plus sign; if pagination is not known, use “n.pag.”)

Examples -
Scholarly - Ikeda, Hideo, Kouya Shiraisi and Yasuyuki Ogata. “Illegitimate recombination mediated by double-strand
break and end-joining in Escherichis coli.” Advances in Biophysics 38 (2004): 3-20. ScienceDirect.
Web. 9 June 2009.

Kerstetter, Kathleen. “Education applications of podcasting in the music classroom.” Music Educators Journal
95.4 (Jun 2009): n. pag. ProQuest Education Journals. Web. 9 June 2009.

Magazine - Caryl, Christian. “How to catch a tiger in Sri Lanka.” Newsweek 153.22 (1 Jun 2009): 8. Academic Search
Complete. Web. 9 June 2009.

Newspaper - de la Merced, Michael J. “Court clears path for Chrysler [National Desk].” New York Times 1 Jun 2009, late
ed. (East Coast): A14+. Proquest Newspapers. Web. 9 June 2009.

Videocassettes & DVDs:
Basic Form - Title. Director. If pertinent, include screenwriters, performers, producer, and original release date.
Distributor, Release date. Publication medium (Videocassette or DVD.)

Examples - As I Remember It: A Portrait of Dorothy West. Dir. Salem Mekuria. Mekuria Productions in assoc. with
WGBH. Women Make Moves, 1991. Videocassette.

Heroes and Cowards. Learning Corp. of America, 1974. Videocassette.

Web Pages:
Basic Form - Author (or one of the following: Editor, Compiler, Translator). “Title of the work.” Title of overall website.
Publisher or sponsor (if none found, use “N.p.”), Date of publication (or “n.d.” for no date).
Publication medium (Web.) Date of access. (Note: use a generic label such as Home page,
Introduction, or Online posting for untitled pages. Do not put these in quotations or italics)

Example - “The Murder of the handicapped.” United States Holocaust Memorial Museum. United States Holocaust
Memorial Museum, n.d. Web 9 June 2009.

Originally avail. in print – Original publication info. Title of database or Web site. Publication medium (Web.) Access
date.

Example - Rhys, Ernest, ed. The Haunters & the Haunted. London: D. O’Connor, 1921. Bartleby.com. Web. 9
June 2009.

Avail. In medium other than print – Original publication infor. Title of database or Web site. Publ. medium (Web.)
Access date.

Example - Sinclair, Peter. Climate denial crock of the week: the “temp leads carbon” crock. 20 April 2009.
YouTube.com. Web. 9 June 2009.

Parenthetical References:

Parenthetical references or references within the text of a research paper must point to a specific source in that paper’s list of
works citied. These references must be as specific as possible and generally consist of the author or authors’ names and the
relevant page numbers of the information discussed. If the author’s name is clearly identified in your text, put the number
reference in parentheses. Otherwise, the references are placed within parentheses with a space between the author’s name
and the page numbers. Below are a few common examples. For more specific information, consult at the Information Desk.

Books and Articles (Remember, these refer directly to the sources in your list of works cited.

One work by a single author in the list of works cited: (Craven 15-21)

More than one author with the same last name – add first initial: (E. Rabkin 125-131) or (H. Rabkin 125-131)

If two of more authors have the same first initial as well as the same last name – use full first names:
(Eric Rabkin 125-131)

When there is more than one author of a work: (Smith and Jones 58-62) or (Smith, Jones, and Riggs 58-62)

If there are more than three authors, follow the form used in the list of works cited. Write out all the authors names
of abbreviate with “et al.” (Smith, Jones, Riggs, and Samms 58-62) or (Smith et. Al. 58062)

When citing from a multivolume work, include the volume number followed by a colon before the page numbers;
(Peterson 4: 115-117)

When the work is listed by title in the List of Works Cited, use the full title or the first part of the title in place of an
author: (Capital Punishment in America since World War II 212) or (Capital Punishment 212)

Web Pages and Videotapes –
When citing an electronic source that does not have page numbers or any other type of reference markers, it is usually
easier to refer to it directly with the text. If you listed the source by author in your list of works cited, refer to it by author.
If you listed it by title, refer to it by title.
David Maura’s Dave’s Math Tables provides a wonderful resource for algebra students or
Dave’s Math Tables, by David Maura, provides a wonderful resource for algebra students

This handout has derived from: MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers. 7th ed. New York: MLA, 2009. Print
For additional examples and information, ask at the Information Desk. *Thanks to Hagerstown CC for their help.

MLA Citation Guide

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