Library

MLA Style Documentation

In citing books, normally arrange the information in the following order.

Author's name (surname, first name).
If there are more than three authors, you may name only the first and add et al.
Title of the book.
Name of the editor, translator or compiler.
Edition used.
Number(s) of the volumes(s) used.
Name of the series.
Place of publication, name of the publisher, and date of publication.
Page numbers.
Supplementary bibliographic information and annotation.

An entry in a list of works cited, usually has three main divisions – author's name, title, and publication information – each followed by a period and two spaces.

Sample entries are listed below:

A book by a single author:
Miller, Percy. How I achieved a fortune. New York: Unlimited, 1998.

Two or more books by the same author are alphabetized by title:
Guinness, Alec. Critical Essays: A collection. Chicago: Chicago Press, 1998.
---------------------, ed. Merle Stevens: Language and the Past. Englewood Cliffs: Prentice, 1997.

To cite a book by two or more authors, give their names in which they appear on the title page.
Plain, Victor, John Hyde and Diane Applebee. Up from the cradle of blues. Memphis: Memphis Press, 1996.

If a book has no author on the title page, begin with the title and alphabetize by the first word other than an article (a, an, the).

Encyclopedia of Photography. New York: Crown, 1997.
A Guide to Tourism. New Orleans: New Orleans Press, 1998.

Corporate author
American Cancer Society. Cancer Encyclopedia. New York, 1993.

Article in a reference book:
"Aids". The World Book Encyclopedia. 1996. ed.

Citing articles in periodicals include newspapers, magazines and scholarly journals. For scholarly journals the publication information generally include the journal title, the volume number, the year of publication, and the page numbers of the articles cited.

Periodicals are generally cited in the following order.

Author’s name.
"Title of article".
Name of the periodical.
Series number or name.
Volume number (for a scholarly journal).
Date of Publication.
Page numbers.

Article from a newspaper:
Tucke, Bryant. "How to Budget." USA Today 20 Jan. 1999: 6B.

An article from a magazine:
Gale, Florence. "Rap music for the new millennium." Vibe 1 Oct. 1999:30-38.

To cite a scholarly journal that includes only the issue numbers treat it as a volume number.
Bowering, George. "Canadian Imagination." Canadian Literature 108 (1988): 115-24.

If no author is given for the article, begin the entry with the title and alphabetize by title.
"Drunkproofing automobiles." Time 6 Apr. 1999: 36.

"A Traffic Ban Drives Rome Crazy." Newsweek 18 June 1998: 47.

Citing Electronic Sources – MLA Style

When citing electronic databases arrange the information in the following order:

Author’s name, if given (surname, first name).
Title of the article in quotations.
Name of publication.
Publication information.
Pages.
the word "Online".
Name of the source(InfoTrac) and the specific collection searched (Health Reference Center)
Accession number (article number if possible).
Give the date you accessed the information.

Scholarly journal sample – electronic source:
Ferriman, Anabel. "England launches campaign on teenage pregnancies." British 19 June (1999): Vol.318, 1946. Online. InfoTrac. Health Reference Center. A19027669. 9 Dec.1999.

Newspaper article sample – electronic source.
Potempa, Ann. "Daycare in short supply in Utah." Daily Herald 5 May 1999: 3 Online. InfoTrac. Newsbank. 9 Dec. 1999.

Citing materials from the Internet – MLA Style
Cite the full text Internet reference in the following order:

Author’s name, if given (surname, first name).
Title of the article in quotations, or the title of book underlined.
Publication information (varies depending on the type of material).
The name of the scholarly project, or site underlined (or use the designation home page).
Date of electronic publication or latest update.
Name of the institution or organization sponsoring the site.
Date of access.
URL in angle brackets.

Article in a scholarly journal:
McKenzie, Jamie. "Teaching to the Standard." From Now On: The Education Technology Journal 9.3 (1999) Nov. <www.fno.org/nov99/connov.html>.

Personal Site:
Lewis, Lennox. "Background." 1999. LLO, London, UK. Webmaster: Hagensand IT Inc. 9 Dec. 1999. <www.lenoxdonor-lewis.com>.
Suggestion: Record the URL for easier retrieval

For further information consult:

Gibaldi, Joseph. MLA Style Manual. 2th ed. New York, 1998.<http://www.mla.org>