Guide to MLA Parenthetical Documentation

[Pages:16]Guide to MLA Parenthetical Documentation

Basic In-Text Citation Rules

Any source information that you provide in-text must correspond to the source information on the Works Cited page. More specifically, whatever signal word or phrase you provide to your readers in the text, must be the first thing that appears on the lefthand margin of the corresponding entry in the Works Cited List.

When a Citation Is Not Needed

Common sense and ethics should determine your need for documenting sources. You do not need to give sources for familiar proverbs, well-known quotations or common knowledge.

MLA Style

The Modern Language Association (MLA) Style is widely used for identifying research sources. In MLA style you briefly credit sources with parenthetical citations in the text of your paper, and give the complete description of each source in your Works Cited list. The Works Cited list, or Bibliography, is a list of all the sources used in your paper, arranged alphabetically by author's last name, or when there is no author, by the first word of the title (except A, An or The).

For example:

In the text of your paper:

The first gambling Web site appeared in 1995, and online gambling has since become the most lucrative Internet business (Will 92).

or,

George Will reported that in 2002 Internet gambling surpassed pornography to become the Internet's most lucrative business (92).

In your Works Cited list:

Will, George F. "Electronic Morphine." Newsweek 25 Nov. 2002: 92.

The Modern Language Association (MLA) guidelines require that you cite the quotations, summaries, paraphrases, and other material used from sources within parentheses typically placed at the end of the sentence in which the quoted or paraphrased material appears. The parenthetical method replaces the use of citational footnotes. These in-text parenthetical citations correspond to the full bibliographic entries found in a list of references at the end of your paper. (Note that the titles of works are italicized, rather than underlined.) Unless otherwise indicated, on-line sources follow the same pattern as print versions.

The Rules:

1.) If you mention the author in the sentence introducing the quotation, then only the page number is required in the parenthesis--

Single author named in a signal phrase example:

Social historian Richard Sennett names the tendency to come to terms with difficult experiences a "purification process" whereby "threatening or painful dissonances are warded off to preserve intact a clear and articulated image of oneself and one's place in the world" (11).

2.) If you do not mention the author in the sentence introducing the quotation, then use of the author's last name and the page number is required in the parenthesis--

Single author named in parentheses example:

The tendency to come to terms with difficult experiences is referred to as a "purification process" whereby "threatening or painful dissonances are warded off to preserve intact a clear and articulated image of oneself and one's place in the world" (Sennett 11).

Two or more authors example:

Certain literacy theorists have gone so far as to declare that "the most significant elements of human culture are undoubtedly channeled through words, and reside in the particular range of meanings and attitudes which members of any society attach to their verbal symbols" (Goody and Watt 323).

Corporate author (organization, association, etc.) example:

The federal government has funded research concerning consumer protection and consumer transactions with online pharmacies (Food and Drug Administration 125).

2.) Without an author's name provided, use the title of the article/information

Works with no author example:

Several critics of the concept of the transparent society ask if a large society would be able to handle the complete loss of privacy ("Surveillance Society" 115).

Two or more works by the same author example:

In his investigation of social identity, The Uses of Disorder, Sennett defines adulthood as a stage where people "learn to tolerate painful ambiguity and uncertainty" (108).

In a surprising move, Richard Sennett combines the idea of power with that of virtue: "the idea of strength is complex in ordinary life because of what might be called the element of its integrity" (Authority 19).

Work found in an anthology or edited collection example:

(For an essay, short story, or other document included in an anthology or edited collection, use the name of the author of the work, not the editor of the anthology or collection, but use the page numbers from the anthology or collection). Here is an example:

Lawrence Rosenfield analyzes the way in which New York's Central Park held a socializing function for nineteenth-century residents similar to that of traditional republican civic oratory (222).

Bible passage example:

Unfortunately, the president could not recall the truism that "Wisdom is a fountain to one who has it, but folly is the punishment of fools" (New Oxford Annotated Bible, Prov. 20-22).

Secondary source of a quotation (someone quoted within the text of another author) example:

As Erickson reminds us, the early psychoanalysts focused on a single objective: "introspective honesty in the service of self-enlightenment" (qtd. in Weiland 42).

Basic Citation Rules of Internet Sources:

With more and more scholarly work being posted on the Internet, you may have to cite research you have completed in virtual environments. While many sources on the Internet should not be used for scholarly work, some Web sources are perfectly acceptable for research. When creating in-text citations for electronic, film, or Internet sources, remember that your citation must reference the source in your Works Cited.

Because Internet sources typically have no page or paragraph numbers, and Web sites in particular are often anonymous, people are often confused about how to refer to these sources within their papers. The answer is to cite the author's name whenever possible OR use the source's title otherwise (or a shortened version of the title). Since many web sources do not have page numbers, leave that portion of the citation blank.

Do not use page numbers assigned by the printer. Sources that are PDF files have page numbers that are stable and should be included in the parenthetical reference.

**Keep in mind that the primary purpose of an in-text citation is simply to point readers to the correct entry on the Works Cited Page.

Example of citing a website with an author Despite the many challenges she has faced on the Internet, the author still enjoys the "magic" of the MOO (Dibbell).

Example of citing a website without an author *NOTE - Many websites are anonymous. Cite the author's name or sponsor if available. If the author is unknown, use the source's title (or a shortened version of the title). For example:

Each of the teletubbies has his/her own language acquisition level, and, because of this, a child can identify and progress to the next language level when the child feels comfortable ("The Inside Story").

* NOTE ? use the title of the website/article you are using NOT the title of the website itself. For example, the NAACP website has an article on "Brown v. Board of Education." You would cite the "Brown v. Board of Education" in your essay not NAACP.

Citing Two Internet Sources Both with the Same Title:

If you are referencing two different sources but they have the same title, then after the title, list a shortened name of the website. For example:

One Jim Crow Law was that black men cannot offer to light a white woman's cigarette ("Jim Crow Laws" ? ). Additionally, black men were not allowed to drink from a white person's water fountain ("Jim Crow Laws" ? ).

**Provide partial URL's, like not .

OR

In your sentence before the citation, mention the website's name; in your citation use the title of the article. For example:

According to the VA Historical Society, one Jim Crow Law was that black men cannot offer to light a white woman's cigarette ("Jim Crow Laws"). Additionally, the PBS organization found that black men were not allowed to drink from a white person's water fountain ("Jim Crow Laws").

Additional Parenthetical Documentation for Internet Sources

A PERSONAL WEBSITE: My name is John Johnson, and this is my homepage (Johnson).

? A personal site's in-text citation is always the author, rather than the title, of the site.

AN ARTICLE IN A REFERENCE DATABASE: Fresco painting is ideal for making murals ("Fresco").

? This article came from the online reference database: The Encyclopedia Britannica. Notice that the title of the article is "Fresco" and that it appears between quotations marks because titles of works appearing in something larger (like a poem in book of poetry, or an article in a magazine, newspaper, or reference database) always appear between quotation marks.

? Longer titles are shortened to one or two concrete words from the title.

AN ARTICLE IN AN ONLINE JOURNAL: Among recent trends in youth music culture, perhaps none has been so widely reviled as the rise of a new generation of manufactured "teenybopper" pop acts (Wald, para. 1).

? A journal differs from a database in that a journal citation includes the name of the author who wrote the article. Also, notice that after the author's name is pars.1, because the quote comes from the first paragraph (pars.) of the article, and was numbered as such. When numbering with standard page numbers, no abbreviation is necessary to indicate that the number refers to a page.

A few quick tips on citing Internet sources in a works cited page:

? Always include the most specific web address possible at the end of the citation. Also, only include a line break before a period or after a slash in the web address.

? The web address should appear between "bent brackets" so that there is no confusion about where the web address begins and ends.

? When possible, it is a good idea to include two dates in your citation. The first will always be the date that the cited information appeared on to the website, while the second will always be the date that you accessed the website. This is done in case the website is updated and the information you cited is changed.

REMINDERS _ Make parenthetical citations brief and accurate. _ To avoid long parenthetical citations, place reference information, such as the author's name, in your sentence. _ Place a citation as close to the relevant material as possible without disrupting the sentence. _ Use one citation at the end of a long section of material that comes from one source and the same page(s)--do not cite at the end of each sentence in this case. _ Parenthetical citations always go outside of a quotation and always before a punctuation mark, such as a period.

EXCEPTIONS:

1.) If a quotation of over three lines, double indent the quotation, use no quotation marks, and place the parenthetical citation after the punctuation mark. Do not include a period after the parenthetical citation.

2.) If a quotation ends with a question mark (?) or an exclamation point (!), include the given punctuation followed by a closing quotation, then insert your parenthetical citation, and insert a period after your parenthetical citation.

* Place the parenthetical citations in your essay as your write. Do not wait until the essay is finished.

NON ? Internet Examples of In-Text Parenthetical Citation

Rather than clutter this guide with a different source to illustrate each variation in parenthetical documentation, all examples will refer to a single passage from an imaginary work titled: "Transgressing the Student Body: Tattoos and Taboos on the Contemporary College Campus." The author(s) and the format will vary as needed.

Mention the Author:

If you mention the author in the sentence introducing the quotation, then only the page number is required in the parenthesis--

Stanley Friedman believes that he has identified a motivational concept common to virtually all student tattoos:

Acquiring a tattoo while attending college can express a wide range of possible motivations, from self-expression to social conformity, from impulsive daring to selfdoubt. Motivation may even change over time for a single individual who acquires

more than one tattoo. But the common denominator appears to be identity formation, whether as positive process or personal crisis. (26-27)

Short Quotations (from 1 word to 4 lines):

[General Note: If in a single paragraph you cite repeatedly from the same source--with no intervening citations from other sources--then all parenthetical citations after the first one need only contain page numbers.]

One Author:

If the author were Stanley Friedman and the quoted words occurred on page 27 of a book or article, parenthetical documentation could look like one of these--

"Identity formation" appears to be the "common denominator" among reasons college students acquire a tattoo (Friedman 27).

[Note: No comma after the author's name and no p. before the page number.]

The "common denominator" among motivations for college students' tattoos is "identity formation" (Friedman 27).

[Note: The parenthesis is placed after any final quotation mark and before the period.]

Stanley Friedman maintains that one "common denominator" among the reasons college students acquire tattoos is "identity formation" (27).

[Note: If you name the author in your sentence, only the page number is required in the parenthesis.]

While Friedman claims that "identity formation" is a "common denominator" (27), he explores a wide range of motivations for acquiring a tattoo.

[Note: When there is a natural pause closer to your citation than the end of the sentence--usually signaled by a comma or semi-colon--you should place the parenthesis there.]

Two Authors:

If the authors were Stanley Friedman and Joyce Lindstrom--

"Identity formation" appears to be the "common denominator" among reasons college students acquire a tattoo (Friedman and Lindstrom 27).

[Note: For multiple authors, use "and" before the final name. See also "Three Authors" below.]

Two or more Authors with the Same Surname:

If your sources include authors with the same surnames, include their initials whenever their names occur in your text.

For example, if your sources contained two authors with the surname Friedman, you will need to add distinguishing initials to the name of each when it occurs in either a parenthetical citation-- (S. Friedman 27)--or in you own prose--"J. M. Friedman argues that . . ."

Three Authors:

If the authors were Stanley Friedman, Joyce Lindstrom, and Henry McCall--

"Identity formation" appears to be the "common denominator" among reasons college students acquire a tattoo (Friedman, Lindstrom, and McCall 27).

Or

Friedman, Lindstrom, and McCall argue that "identity formation" appears to be the "common denominator" among reasons college students acquire a tattoo (27).

More than Three Authors:

If the authors were Stanley Friedman, Joyce Lindstrom, Henry McCall, and Susan Hanes--

"Identity formation" appears to be the "common denominator" among reasons college students acquire a tattoo (Friedman et al. 27).

[Note: et al. is a Latin abbreviation for "et alii"--"and others." There is a period after al.]

Long Quotations (more than 4 lines):

These are set off by indenting each line as if for the start of a new paragraph (5 spaces). This indentation indicates that you are quoting, so use no quotation marks, and the line spacing before, within, and after the quotation remains the standard double space.

If the author were Stanley Friedman and the passage occurred on pages 26-27 of his book or article, parenthetical documentation would look like this--

Acquiring a tattoo while attending college can express a wide range of possible motivations, from self-expression to social conformity, from impulsive daring to selfdoubt. Motivation may even change over time for a single individual who acquires more than one tattoo. But the common denominator appears to be identity formation, whether as positive process or personal crisis. (Friedman 26-27)

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