MLA Format

MLA Format isn't exactly the most fun thing in
the world. As a student it was one of my least
favorite things to do, and as a teacher, it's one of
my least favorite things to teach. The problem is
that it’s not something that I can exactly teach
you—it’s something you have to practice and
practice until you get it right.

So what is MLA Format exactly?

MLA Format is a set of rules that help you
organize your essay. The main focus of the rules
is to provide a standard way for you to give
credit to sources that you use for your papers.
These credits are called citations.

You’re probably saying to yourself, “Rules? That
sounds boring and hard.”

And you’re right. It’s boring. And hard.

Fortunately for you, MLA isn’t something you
have to memorize. You have a handy handbook
(the Little Seagull Book) to refer to when you
need help. There are also a ton of websites out
there (the most reputable being the OWL at
Purdue).

There are also a ton of MLA generators out
there that you can use to generate your
citations. The problem with generators is that
they are frequently wrong. I get so many papers
that use those generators that end up being
wrong—and because the student hasn’t taken
the time to learn about citation, they don’t
understand why it’s wrong, and they aren't able
to correct it.

Citations are kind of a pain, I know, but they're
important. We cite to give credit to words
and ideas that aren’t ours. Note that ideas is
emphasized: if you're using someone else's idea,
you need to cite your source. If you don’t cite a
source you’re a thief. You’re stealing from them,
and you're lying to me.

That’s what plagiarism is: it’s not just copy-andpasting someone else’s words; it’s stealing their
ideas. And if you’re some kind of inhuman
monster who doesn’t see anything wrong with
that, then think about this: plagiarism will get
you kicked out of this class.

To cite properly, you must use two types of
citation: in-text citations and a works cited page.

When you quote or paraphrase a piece in your
paper (which you must do for this class), you
have to include the author’s name and the
location where you found that information
(most often, a page number). There are different
ways to use in-text citations, including direct
quotes and paraphrasing. Here are some
examples.

Direct quote without author referenced in
sentence:
The story says, “She took care of it as someone
else would his soul” (O’Connor, 321).

A direct quotation, with author referenced in
sentence:
O’Connor writes, “She took care of it as
someone else would his soul” (321).

A paraphrase without author referenced in
sentence:
The story compares the way Hulga takes care of
her leg to the way other people take care of
their soul (O’Connor 321).

Paraphrase with author referenced in sentence.
O’Connor compares the way Hulga takes cares of
her leg to the way other people take care of
their soul (321).

Not every in-text citation requires or can use a
page number. Web pages, hand outs, and many
other sources don’t use page numbers. Check
the “Class Resources” section for how to cite
things handed out in class and poems. Check
your Little Seagull book (starting on page 96) for
how to do in-text citation for other sources.

A Works Cited Page should be a separate page
and be an alphabetical list of all of the works
that you used for your paper. Based on the
sources that you used, there are different
formats to use for how to list the source. Check
for your type of source in the Little Seagull book
(starting on page 103).

The most common format you will use for any
source coming from our text book will be
“Works in an Anthology.” You can find that on
page 107 in your Little Seagull book.

Regardless on what source you use, however, you
must always try to include the following things:
•
•
•
•
•
•

author
title of the work
where it was published
publisher
date published
how it was published (print or web)

Again, this is really something you’ll have to
practice (which is exactly why we have a MLA
Format assignment this week).

I don’t expect you to be perfect at MLA Format
at first. In fact, I strongly encourage you to look
over these notes, the Class Resources section,
and your Little Seagull Handbook as you write
and edit your essays.

With practice and with my help, you can get
MLA Format down.

As always, if you have any questions, please feel
free to get in touch.

MLA Format

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