MLA Citation Style

MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers, 7th edition

For Literature, Art and the Humanities

Citation Styles Handbook: MLA - Illinois Writer's Workshop

Color code

Author(s) <blue>	Date <red>	Title of Work <pink>	Title of Article <green>	Title of Periodical <purple>
Volume <orange>	Pages <lt blue>	Place (of publication) <brown>	Publisher <yellow>	Other information <gray>

 

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Blog

Begin the entry with the author's name, followed by the title or subject of the posting in quotation marks;"; the name of the blog in italics (if the blog doesn’t have a name, use the generic label Online Posting); the publisher or sponsor of the website (if not available use n.p.); date of post; medium of publication (Web); and your date of access. Then give the URL for the blog.

Supak, Susan. "Pesticides linked to frog mutations." Organic Gardening News and Advice. Blogspot, 2 Mar. 2006. Web. 13 Mar. 2008.

Book

Berger, Sharon. Allotment gardening : an organic guide for beginners. Devon: Green Books, Ltd., 2005. Print.

Book Article or Chapter

Begin with the name of the author of the chapter or selection, not with the name of the author of the book. Then give the title of the selection in quotes; the title of the book in italics; the name of the author or editor (preceded by "Ed." for "Edited by"); publication information; the pages on which the selection appears, and the medium you consulted (print or electronic).

Coleman, Eliot. "The new organic grower." Gardening When It Counts. Ed. Anna Kruger. Westport: Greenwood, 1995. 219-223. Print.

Book with an Editor

In place of the author, instead begin with the name of the editor followed by a comma and the abbreviation ed.

Kruger, Anna, ed. Gardening When It Counts. Westport: Greenwood, 2001. Print.

Doctoral Dissertations and Masters Theses

If the dissertation was published, include information as you would for a book, italicizing the title. After the title include the descriptive label Diss. and publication information. If you have the University Microfilms International (UMI) order number, you may also choose to include it.

Bishop, Karen Lynn. Documenting Institutional Identity: Strategic Writing in the IUPUI Comprehensive Campaign. Diss. Purdue University, 2002. Ann Arbor: UMI, 2004. Print.

If the dissertation was not publihsed, put the title in quotation marks, followed by the descriptive label, the name of the granting university, and the year. To site a Masters Thesis, substitute Diss. with appropriate label (MA thesis or MS thesis). If the dissertation is found using an online database, instead of concluding with medium (i.e. Print), include the title of the database (italicized), medium of publication (Web), and the date of access.

Feasel, Karen Elaine. "Profiles of personal agency: Ethnocultural variations in self-efficacy beliefs" Diss. University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, 1999. Proquest Digital Dissertations, Web. 29 Apr. 2010.

Stolley, Karl. "Toward a Conception of Religion as a Discursive Formation: Implications for Postmodern Composition Theory." MA thesis. Purdue University, 2002. Print.

eBook

If the electronic book also appears in print, include the name of the database in italics, the place of access, and the date of access.

Berger, Sharon. Allotment gardening : an organic guide for beginners. Devon: Green Books, Ltd., 2005. NetLibrary. Web. 18 Apr. 2009.

If the electronic book is being cited from an electronic device like the Kindle, Nook, or iPad, instead of the above, cite the medium of the publication. The medium is the specific type of electronic file used such as a Kindle file, Nook file, EPUB file, or PDF file.

Rowley, Hazel. Franklin and Eleanor: An Extraordinary Marriage. New York: Farrar, 2010. Kindle file.

Encyclopedia Article

When an encyclopedia or a dictionary is well known, simply list the author of the entry (if there is one), the title of the entry in quotes, the title of the reference work, the edition number (if any), and the date of the edition. If a reference work is not well known, provide full publication information as for other books.

Smith, Jessica. "Organic Gardening." The New Encyclopaedia Britannica: Macropaedia. 15th ed. 1987. Print.

Encyclopedia Article (Online)

If you access the article through an online database, include the regular publication information as you would for a print resource. After the date, include the name of the database in italics, the medium (Web), date of access and the URL.

"The Roman Empire, 14-284 C.E." The Encyclopedia of World History. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 2001. Credo Reference. Web. 12 Apr. 2010.

Journal Article

Found in print: Begin with the author, then the title of the article in quotation marks, the journal name in italics followed by the volume, issue if there is one, year, followed by a colon and inclusive page numbers and medium (Print). If pagination is not continuous, give the first page and a plus sign (54+).

Kliman, Bernice W. “Isabella in Measure for Measure.” Shakespeare Studies. 15 (1982): 137-148. Print.

Found online (not using a database): Begin by following the guidelines for a print journal. Most often, online journals will include volume and issue numbers like print publications, and oftentimes, there will be no page numbers in a web-only journal, in which case, replace page numbers with n. pag. Follow with date of publication, Web as medium of publication, and date of access.

Geier, Bryan. "Organic agriculture worldwide--a fast growing reality for 100% pesticide risk reduction." Acta-horticulturae. International Society of Horticultural Science. 525.1 (2000): 31-37. Web. 13 Apr. 2009.

Found using an online database: Cite online journal articles from an online database as you would a print one. Provide the database name in italics. Library information is no longer required. List the medium of publication as Web and end with the date of access.

Shelke, Karen. "How to say it organically: consumers are buying into organic foods; are you buying organic ingredients?" Food Processing. 66.4 (2005): 49-54. Academic OneFile. Web. 13 Mar. 2008.

Magazine Article

For the date, if the magazine is published every one or two weeks, include the full date. If it is published every month, include the month and year. Do not include the volume and issue numbers, even if they are given.

Donaldson, Doug. "When to buy organic." Better Homes and Gardens. Jun. 2007: 288. Print.

Movie

Begin with the title of the film in italics. For a film, cite the director and the lead actors or narrator ("Perf." or "Narr."), followed by the year of the film's release and the name of the distributor Followed by the medium (Film). For a videotape or DVD, after the distributor include the year the film was released in this medium and instead of concluding with Film as the medium add "Videocassette" or "DVD."

High Fidelity. Dir. Stephen Frears. Perf. John Cusack, Iben Hjejle, Jack Black, and Todd Louiso. 2000. Walt Disney Video, 2001. DVD.

Newspaper Article

In the publication title, omit introductory articles (a, an, the). If the title is in a language other than English, keep introductory articles. If the paper is nationally published, do not include a city of publication. If it is published locally, include city. If sections are paginated separately, include the section letter with the page numbers.

Found in Print:

Dillon, Sam. "Education standards likely to see toughening." New York Times 14 Apr. 2009: A3. Print.

Found through the online version:

Dillon, Sam. "Education standards likely to see toughening." New York Times 14 Apr. 2009. Web. 18 Apr. 2009.

Website

Begin with the name of the author or corporate author (if known) and the title of the site, italicized if it is an independent work, or in quotation marks if part of a larger work. The title of the entire website if different than the page title. Next, the publisher or sponsor (if not available use n.p.).e. Then give the date of publication or last update, the name of any sponsoring organization, the date you accessed the source. If your instructor requires a URL or if you think a reader will need the URL to find the site again, include and the URL in angle brackets. Provide as much of this information as is available.

Mayo Clinic Staff. “Organic foods: Are they safer? More nutritious?” Nutrition and Healthy Eating. Mayo Clinic, 20 Dec. 2006. Web. 13 Mar. 2008.

YouTube video

For videos, provide the author only if you are sure that person created the video. Do not list the person posting the video online as the author. If you are unsure, treat the citation as having no author. Follow the same standards for a regular web source with author, title of post, Online Posting, sponsor (YouTube), date of access, medium, and date of access. Note that the URL is not required by the MLA standards, but if you feel it is necessary to locate the page again, include the URL in angle brackets.

Has an author:

Takayma-Ogawa, J., & Willette, J. “What is information literacy” Online Posting. YouTube, 14 Mar. 2007. Web. 30 Apr. 2010.

Has no author:

“Slingshot fun.” Online Posting. YouTube, 29 January 2007. Web. 30 Apr. 2010.

Works of Art

Start with the artist's name (if known) then give the title of the artwork in italics. Provide the date of composition; if the date of composition is unknown, place the abbreviation n.d. in place of the date. Finally, provide the name of the institution that houses the artwork followed by the location of the institution.

Goya, Francisco. The Family of Charles IV. 1800. Museo del Prado, Madrid.

For photographic reproductions of artwork (e.g. images of artwork in a book), cite the bibliographic information as above followed by the information for the source in which the photograph appears, including page or reference numbers (plate, figure, etc.).

Goya, Francisco. The Family of Charles IV. 1800. Museo del Prado, Madrid. Gardener's Art Through the Ages. 10th ed. By Richard G. Tansey and Fred S. Kleiner. Fort Worth: Harcourt Brace. 939. Print.

General Rules

• The list of sources that you used should be titled "Works Cited."
• Arrange the items on your reference list alphabetically by author.
• Double space all lines
• Indent the second and following lines 5 spaces or one half inch. (In Word, use "Hanging Indent.")
• If no author is given, start with the title.
• Abbreviate the names of all months except May, June, and July.
• The 7th edition of MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers became available in spring 2009. This webpage reflects the update found in the 7th edition.

Based on  http://www2.liu.edu/cwis/cwp/library/workshop/citation.htm by Robert Delaney at B. Davis Schwartz Memorial Library, Long Island University.

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