Introduction to Chapter 24
Instructor's Notes
The Instructor's Resource Manual, which includes tips and special challenges for teaching this chapter, is available through the “Resources” panel.
Tutorials and LearningCurve activities on working with sources in MLA style are available at the end of this chapter.
Citing and Documenting Sources in MLA Style
When using the MLA system of documentation, include both an in-text citation and a list of works cited. In-text citations tell your readers where the ideas or words you have borrowed come from, and the entries in the works-cited list allow readers to locate your sources so that they can read more about your topic.
In most cases, include the author’s last name and the page number on which the borrowed material appears in the text of your research project. You can incorporate this information in two ways:
In most cases, you will want to use a signal phrase because doing so lets you put your source in context. The signal-phrase-plus-page-reference combination also allows you to make crystal clear where the source information begins and ends. Use a parenthetical citation alone when you have already identified the author or when citing the source of an uncontroversial fact.
The in-text citation should include as much information as is needed to lead readers to the source in your list of works cited and allow them to find the passage you are citing in that source. In most cases, that means the author’s last name and the page number on which the borrowed material appears. In some cases, you may need to include other information in your in-text citation (such as a brief version of the title if the author is unnamed or if you cite more than one work by this author). In a few cases, you may not be able to include a page reference, as, for example, when you cite a Web site or film. In such cases, you may include other identifying information, such as a paragraph number, section heading, or time stamp.
The most common types of in-text citations follow. For other, less common citation types, consult the MLA Handbook, Eighth Edition. Most libraries will own a copy or offer an online subscription to www.mla.org. If the MLA does not provide a model citation, use the information here to create a citation that will lead your readers to the source. (Citation managers like EndNote and RefWorks will format your citations in MLA style, but check them carefully, as the software sometimes makes errors and may not be up to date.)
