MLA Style Guide
Developed by the Modern Language Association and used most often in the
humanities, the MLA style is a set of guidelines for writing research
papers that meet a certain set of scholarly standards. For a detailed
description of these standards, see
The MLA Handbook for Writers of
Research Papers (7th d.)
available online (contact the Reference Desk for Username and Password). at the Reference Desk, and on the shelf in Reference (2nd Floor) -- REF LB 2369.G53 2009. Below is a list of MLA-style cited
sources taken from that work.
Please Note: We've updated this page to reflect the most recent MLA guidlines in
The MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers, Seventh Edition. For highlights on the new guidlines see What's New in MLA Style by Bedford/St.Martin's.
MLA style requires that the list of Works Cited begin on a new page and the pages are numbered, continuing from the text. If your research paper ends on page 10, then your list of Works Cited would be page 11. Begin each entry flush with the left margin and if an entry runs more than one line, indent each subsequent line 5 spaces (1/2 inch). This is called a hanging indent. The entire list should be double spaced and alphabetized (unless your professor requires otherwise).
Whenever you incorporate other authors' text and ideas in your paper, you must indicate where in the text you refer to them. If you have a citation in the Works Cited page, you must have a corresponding parenthetical reference in the text of your paper. Links to MLA tutorials and guides from other colleges and universities can be found at the bottom of this page.
Book, one author
Wilson, Frank R. The Hand: How Its Use Shapes the Brain, and Human Culture.
New York: Pantheon, 1998. Print. Book, multiple authors
Marquart, James W., Sheldon Ekland Olson, and Jonathan R. Sorensen. The Rope, the Chair,
and the Needle: Capital Punishment in Texas, 2007. Austin: U of Texas P, 1994. Print. Article in a Newspaper
Goldberg, Vicki. "Photographing a Mexico Where Silence Reigned." New York Times 23 Mar.
1997, sec. 2: 39+. Print.(Note: For more than one author, follow the multiple-author format used for books.)
Article in a Scholarly Journal
Hallin, Daniel C. "Sound Bite News: Television Coverage of Elections, 1968-1988." Journal of
Communication. 42.2 (1992): 5-24. Print. (Note: For more than one author, follow the multiple-author format used for books.)
Article in a Magazine
Armstrong, Larry. "The Learning Revolution." Business Week 28 Feb. 1994 : 80-88. Print.
(Note: For more than one author, follow the multiple-author format used for books.)
Article in an Encyclopedia
Print:
"Abstract Expressionism." The New Encyclopedia Britannica . 15th ed. 2003. Print.
Online:
“de Kooning, Willem.” Encyclopaedia Britannica Online. Encyclopaedia Britannica, 2008.
Web. 15 May 2008. Film
The Dark Knight. Dir. Christopher Nolan. Perf. Christian Bale, Heath Ledger, and Aaron
Eckhart. Warner Bros., 2008. DVD. Article from an Online Subscription Service or Database
Ahn, Hyunchul, and Kyoung-jae Kim. "Using Algorithms to Optimize Nearest Neighbors
or Data Mining." Annals of Operations Research 263.1 (2008): 5-18. Academic Search Elite. Web. 25 Sept. 2008. Website
Page on a Website:
Utah Mine Rescue Funeral." CNN.com. Cable News Network, 7 Aug. 2007. Web
21 Aug. 2007. Entire Website -- No Author:
The Purdue OWL Family of Sites. The Writing Lab and OWL at Purdue and Purdue U, 2008.
Web. 23 April 2008. Website with an author or editor:
Eaves, Morris, Robert Essick, and Joseph Viscomi, eds. The William Blake Archive. Lib. of Cong.,
28 Sept. 2007. Web. 20 Nov. 2007. <http://www.blakearchive.org/blake/>(Note: Include the URL only if your instructor requires it).