MLA format

The MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers is the official style guide of the Modern Language Association of America, from whom the style takes its name. The Modern Language Association of America supports scholars who study the literature and culture of English and other languages. The MLA format documentation style is generally used by language, literature, and other humanities scholars, and it would be most appropriate to use when writing about topics related to these disciplines, such as literature, language usage, art, and various types of media.

Since scholars who use MLA style can be working from texts that are centuries old and are published in a variety of editions, the MLA citation style privileges the names of the author and the text; therefore, the last name of the author of the text is given in the in-text citations, but not the publication year. And on the works cited page, MLA’s name for the bibliography at the end of the paper, the author’s name and the title of the text come before any of the publication information.

Because many texts can be found in a variety of locations, it is important to write down all of the bibliographic information while researching and taking notes. When you are including a direct quotation from a text, people will want to find that particular passage; therefore. It Is Important to Include the specific publication information with the copyright year and any other relevant unique identifiers in your works cited (how many different editions of Shakespeare’s work have you seen in your academic studies?). Because the Internet is a dynamic medium and changes can occur so quickly. It is wise to print copies of your source documents. Also, in your works cited you must include both the date the page was posted and the date you accessed It. Type the URL after the date of access, enclose it in angle brackets, and end the citation with a period.

For example, if you found a copy of Shakespeare’s Taming of the Shrew on the Internet, the full bibliographic citation according to MLA style would look like this:

MLA Book Found on Internet (static) • Citation Elements: book, single author, editor, digital, online

Shakespeare, William. The Taming of the Shrew. Ed. Amanda

Author’s name and the title of the text. Name of the editor. The date the researcher accessed the Website.

Copyright years as listed by the Web site.

MLA format recommends that you note the URL to the specific Web site for easy access within brackets.

Headers and Page Numbers In the upper right corner of each page, include a header with your last name and the page number. All pages in the paper should be consecutively numbered. The header is placed one-half inch from the top of the page and one inch from the right side of the page. Including the header on the first page of the paper is optional, but it must be Included on all subsequent pages.

Section Headings

If your paper is long enough and It includes coherent sections, and even subsections, you might consider including section headings In your paper. MLA format does not prescribe specific guidelines for section headings. For each section use an Arabic numeral with a relevant title. Make sure that all of your section titles are syntactically parallel. In other words, if you start your first section title with a noun, start all of your section titles with nouns. For example, the following outline could represent section headings from a paper in MLA style. Ultimately, MLA format emphasizes that section headings be concise, well-organized, and above all, consistent.

Visuals

MLA style divides visuals into two categories: tables and figures. Whenever you place visuals into your text, you must place them as close as possible to the paragraph referring to them.

Tables

If you are presenting numerical data in a table format, label the table with the word Table (not Italicized), an Arabic numeral, and a title. The label and title are placed on top of the table as it appears in your text. If you are reprinting the table from an outside source, you must include the full bibliographic citation for the table directly under the table (not at the end of your paper in the works cited list).

Essay Format

Essays should be stapled or paper-clipped in the upper left corner. Don’t fold or tear pages to hold them together -that’s like shouting, “This essay wasn’t very important to me!”—not a message you want to send. Most college instructors don’t like binders or plastic covers. Essays should be typed or printed on blank white 8 ^1/2” by 11″ paper. Common fonts include 12-point Times Roman and Arial. Print in black ink.

Use one-inch margins on all sides (except for the page numbers). The essay should be double-spaced throughout (including quotations, notes, and the list of works cited, except where exceptions are noted below), with no blank lines between paragraphs. The first line of each new paragraph has a left-indent of a half-inch. Paragraphs are left-justified. In the days of typewriters and non-proportional fonts, it was common to put two spaces between sentences to improve readability. But if you print from a computer, just one space between sentences (and elsewhere) will work well (do a global scarch-and-replace when you’re done, to get rid of the stray spaces that creep in).

Page Numbers

Place page numbers a half-inch from the top or bottom edge of the paper, flush with the right margin. Type your last name before the page number, except for APA style, which requires as a manuscript header the first couple of words from your title placed before the page number. If you have a title page, count it for purposes of pagination. Don’t print the page number on the title page, except in APA style. Word processors can do all of this automatically.

Italics or Underlining

Both italics and underlining convey emphasis and are used for the titles of books. Use one or the other and be consistent. (Don’t use bold face, except for headings of sections or figures.) Use italics or underlining for foreign words or words you are pointing to as words:

Machiavelli also uses virtu in its traditional sense of goodness or morality.

Yoga and yoke derive from a common Sanskrit root.

Some foreign words have made it into common English usage and don’t take italics. If you’re unsure, consult your dictionary. Using italics for emphasis should be avoided in academic writing.

Title and Identification

Your essay’s title (usually between seven and fifteen words) should not be italicized or put in quotation marks (though if you are giving the title of a book or essay, or using a quotation in your title, then formal those words accordingly). The title should be more than a bare-bones identifier (not “Essay #1” or “Essay on Management“). It should signal to the reader what your essay is about:

Mysteries of State: An Absolute Concept and Its Late Medieval Origins

"Hell Strives with Grace": Reflections on the Theme of Providence in Marlowe

As these examples show, titles often consist of two elements joined with a colon — typically, one of the elements is general or creative, and the other is more specific.

APA style requires a separate title page. Other formats leave it to the instructor’s discretion. Short papers in the humanities usually don’t have separate title pages.

Corrections

Sometimes you will discover mistakes in a final draft, with no time to print out a corrected version. In such cases, you should strike through the mistake and write the correction above the line in question, marking the insertion point with a caret:

The World Bank was established in 1947. 1945

it’s usually okay to turn in an essay with one or two such corrections.