MLA Citation Style Guide

MLA Handbook

Bibliographic Format for References

Based on the MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers, 6th ed., 2003.

Copies available at Main Library Reference and Student Learning Center Reference desks
(LB2369 .G53 2003).

In MLA style, sources are acknowledged by short parenthetical citations in the text instead of numbered footnotes. The parenthetical citation includes just enough information to point the reader to the complete information about the source in the Works Cited list. The parenthetical usually includes the author's last name (if an anonymous work, the first one or two words from the title), and the page number cited. Leave the author's name out of the parenthetical if it is clearly stated in your sentence. When your Works Cited list includes more than one work by an author, the parenthetical should include part of the title, i.e., (Nielsen, Hypertext 141). If the entire work is being acknowledged, or there is no page or paragraph number (as in the case of many online works), incorporate the author's name into the sentence instead of using a parenthetical.

Type of Entry	Works Cited list	Citation in Text

Book - single author	Nielsen, Jakob. Hypertext & Hypermedia. Boston: Academic Press Professional, 1993.	(Nielsen 141)

Book - more than one author	Gilbert, Sandra M., and Susan Gubar. The Madwoman in the Attic. New Haven: Yale UP, 1979.	(Gilbert and Gubar 9)

Work in an anthology	Hooker, Thomas. "A True Sight of Sin." The American Puritans: Their Prose and Poetry. Ed. Perry Miller. New York: Columbia UP, 1982. 153-64.	(Hooker 154)

Newspaper article (unsigned)	"Give Georgia More HOPE." Atlanta Journal Constitution 18 Dec. 1994: G6.	("Give" G6)

Newspaper article from online database When citing an online source, include the publication date (5 June 1998) and the date you visited the site (25 Sept. 2003).	Fletcher, Michael A. "Study Finds Wide Racial Disparity in Death Penalty." Washington Post 5 June 1998: A24. LexisNexis Academic: News. GALILEO. 25 Sept. 2003 <http://www.galileo.usg.edu>.	Mention in your text: "Fletcher reports..." See section 6.4.1 of the MLA Handbook for more information.

Magazine article	Cowley, Geoffrey. "I'd Toddle a Mile for a Camel." Newsweek 23 Dec. 1991: 70-71.	(Cowley 70)

Journal article (continuous pagination)	Levin, Richard. "The Poetics and Politics of Bardicide." PMLA 105 (1990): 491-505.	(Levin 498)

Journal article (issues paged separately)	Snodgrass, Susan. "The Rubbish Heap of History." Art in America 88.5 (2000): 156-57.	(Snodgrass 156)

Article from an online database When citing an online source, include the publication date (1998) and the date you visited the site (25 Sept. 2003).	Voss, Paul J. "Debris from Heaven in Paradise Lost." English Language Notes 35.3 (1998): 37-41. Academic Search Premier. EBSCOhost. GALILEO. 25 Sept. 2003 <http://www.galileo.usg.edu>.	Mention in your text: "According to Voss..." See section 6.4.1 of the MLA Handbook for more information.

Article from a Web site When citing an online source, include the publication date (13 July 2000) and the date you visited the site (25 Sept. 2003).	Blume, Harvey. "Geek Studies." Atlantic Online 13 July 2000. 25 Sept. 2003 <http://www.theatlantic.com/ unbound/crosscurrents/cc2000-07-13.htm>.	Mention in your text: "Harvey Blume states..." See section 6.4.1of the MLA Handbook for more information.

Reprinted article	Parks, Edd Winfield. "Edna St. Vincent Millay." The Sewanee Review 38.1 (1930): 42-49. Rpt. in Twentieth Century Literary Criticism. Ed. Sharon K. Hall. Vol. 4. Detroit: Gale, 1981. 310-11.	(Parks 311)

Article from well-known encyclopedia (unsigned)	"Tutankhamen." The New Encyclopaedia Britannica: Micropaedia. 15th ed. 1994.	("Tutankhamen")

Article from lesser-known encyclopedia (signed) If a reference source is arranged alphabetically, you don't need to include the article's page numbers or volume number in Works Cited.	Schafer, Elizabeth D. "Andrew's Raid." Encyclopedia of the American Civil War. Eds. David S. Heidler and Jeanne T. Heidler. 5 vols. Santa Barbara: ABC-CLIO, 2000.	(Schafer 53)

Article from online encyclopedia on GALILEO (paid for by UGA Libraries) When citing an online source, include the publication date (1992) and the date you visited the site (25 Sept. 2003).	Killam, G.D. "Chinua Achebe." Dictionary of Literary Biography. Ed. Bernth Lindfors and Reinhard Sander. Vol. 117. Detroit: Gale, 1992. 15-34. Literature Resource Center. Gale. U of Georgia Lib. 25 Sept. 2003 <http://www.galileo.usg.edu>.	Mention in your text: "Killam's analysis..." See section 6.4.1 of the MLA Handbook for more information.

Entire Web site When citing an online source, include the publication date (2003) and the date you visited the site (25 Sept. 2003).	Electronic Poetry Center. 2003. SUNY Buffalo. 25 Sept. 2003 <http://epc.buffalo.edu>.	Mention in your text: "The Electronic Poetry Center archives..." See section 6.4.1 of the MLA Handbook for more information.

Web page within a larger Web site When citing an online source, include the publication date (1999) and the date you visited the site (25 Sept. 2003).	Martin, Thomas R. "An Overview of Classical Greek History from Homer to Alexander." Perseus Digital Library. Ed. Gregory R. Crane. 1999. Tufts U. 25 Sept. 2003 <http://perseus. tufts.edu>.	(Martin 4.8.IV) If the site has section or paragraph numbers

Film or video See section 5.8 of the MLA Handbook for citing radio, TV, live performances, recordings, interviews, and works of art.	Taxi Driver. Screenplay by Paul Schrader. Dir. Martin Scorsese. Perf. Robert De Niro, Cybill Shepherd, and Jodie Foster. Columbia Pictures, 1976.	Mention in your text: "The violence in Taxi Driver..." See section 6.4.1 of the MLA Handbook for more information.