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Citation Guides

MLA

Table of Contents

MLA Citations

MLA Handbook, 9th ed., Ref. LB 2369.G53 2021

Core Elements

 

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Citations are comprised of a series of nine "core elements" in the following order. The core elements are as follows:

Author(s).

Title of Source.

Title of Container,

Other Contributors,

Version,

Number,

Publisher,

Publication Date,

Location.

An element should be omitted from the entry if it is not relevant to the work being documented.  Each core element should be followed by the above punctuation, unless it is the final element, which should end with a period. These changes reflect the difficulties in citing the ever growing forms of information that are sometimes difficult to fit into traditional style guidelines  This is particularly true for non-print items and is intended to simplify the process of creating citations. This guide will explain each core element and give examples.

A newly created citation, regardless of the type of source, will look like this:

Author(s). Title of Source. Title of Container, Other Contributors, Version, Number, Publisher, Publication Date, Location.

Containers are the name given to the entity in which an article is located i.e. the journal, the magazine, the newspaper, etc. However, when those entities are located within another container such as a database, that container should also be cited. The second container should be cited as follows after the initial citation:

Title of Second Container, Other Contributors, Version, Number, Publisher, Publication Date, Location. (Date of access - optional, usually used if there is no published date online).

Core Elements Defined

Author

The term author is defined as the person or group primarily responsible for producing the work or the aspect of the work that is being cited. If the role of that person or group is something other than creating the work's main content, follow the name(s) with a label that describes the role i.e. editor(s), translator(s), etc. Pseudonyms, including online user names, usually function as the author names.

Regardless of role, the following rules will apply regarding the number of people involved in the author role:

One person: Last name, first name.

Two people: Last name, first name, and first name last name.

Three or more people: Last name, first name, et al.

 


Title of Source

The title of the source is dependent on whether it is a stand alone work or a greater part of a whole. Stand alone works will be italicized and parts of a work will be in quotation marks.

Note: When the source is a stand alone work, even if it is part of a collection, the title will be italicized because it is considered a stand alone work within a stand alone work:


Title of Container

Container is the term used for the larger whole when the cited source is only a part thereof. Usually it will be italicized followed by a comma allowing for further details about the container. 


Other Contributors

In addition to the author, other individuals such as editors or translators may have contributed to the creation of a source. In such cases, these individuals and their roles need to be cited. Some of the more common roles are as follows: adapted by, directed by, edited by, illustrated by, introduction by, narrated by, performance by, and translated by.


Version

If the source carries a notation indicating that it is a version of a work released in more than one form, identify the version in your entry.


Number

If a source is part of a multi-volume set, indicate the number of the consulted volume. For journals, there may be a volume, issue, and/or number.


Publisher

The publisher is the organization primarily responsible for producing the source or making it available to the public. If two or more organizations are named in the source and they seem equally responsible for the work, cite each of them, separating the names with a forward slash (/).


Publication Date

Sources, especially those published online, may be associated with more than one publication date. When a source has more than one date, cite the date that is most meaningful or relevant to your use of the source. Typically you will write the date as you find it. In cases where there is a time along with the date, include the time. For books with multiple copyright dates, use the most recent.

Note: All months except for May, June, and July are abbreviated to three letters followed by a period.


Location

How to cite where a work is located depends on the type of source that it is. For print sources, a page number (p.) or a range of page numbers (pp.) identifies the location. For online sources, the web address or URL should be used. If it is in the work, the DOI is preferable to a URL.

Book

Choose a book type.

 

More in-text Citation Information


Book with One Author

MLA Manual p. 313

Works Cited Format: In-text Citation:

Author's Last Name, Author's First Name. Title of Source. Publisher, Publication Date.

Zelizer, Barbie. Remembering to Forget: Holocaust Memory through the Camera's Eye. U of Chicago P, 2003.

(Zelizer 52)

Or:

Zelizer (52) states that...


Book with Two Authors

MLA Manual p. 313

Works Cited Format: In-text Citation:

First Author's Last Name, First Author's First Name, and Second Author's First Name Second Author's Last Name. Title of Source. Publisher, Publication Date.

Mock, Douglas W., and Geoffrey A. Parker. The Evolution of Sibling Rivalry. Oxford UP, 1997.

(Mock and Parker 73)

Or:

Mock and Parker (73) subscribe to the theory that siblings ...

 


Book with Three or More Authors

MLA Manual p. 313

Works Cited Format: In-text Citation:

Author's Last Name, Author's First Name, et al. Title of Source. Publisher, Publication Date.

Garner, Judith F., et al. Strategic Nursing Management: Power and Responsibility in a New Era. Aspen, 1990.

(Garner et al. 142)

Or:

As Garner et al. (142) assert about managing health care units...


Book with Organization as Author

MLA Manual p. 313

A work may be created by an organization rather than an individual. In such cases the organization becomes the author.

Works Cited Format: In-text Citation:

Organization's Name. Title of Source. Publisher, Publication Date.

United Nations. Consequences of Rapid Population Growth in Developing Countries. Taylor and Francis, 1991.

United States, Department of Labor. Child Care: A Workforce Issue. Government Printing Office, 1988.

Note: If you are documenting two or more works by the same government, substitute three hyphens for any name repeated from the previous entry. All the names are arranged from the largest entity to the smallest.

United States, Congress, House.

---, ---, Senate.

---, Department of Health and Human Services, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

(United Nations 82)

 

(United States, Dept. of Labor 147)

Book with Organization as Author and Publisher

MLA Manual p. 314

Works Cited Format: In-text Citation:

Title of Source. Publisher, Publication Date. Optional Element - Identifier.

Reading at Risk: A Survey of Literary Reading in America. National Endowment for the Arts, June 2004. Research Division Report 46.

Note: When the author of a work and the publisher are the same, skip the author altogether and list the organization as the publisher.

Note: For the in-text citation, if the title of a work is longer than a noun phrase, abbreviate to the initial noun phrase. The abbreviated title should begin with the word by which the title is alphabetized. If the title does not begin with a noun phrase, cite the first word if it is enough to direct the reader to the correct entry:

Reading at Risk: A Survey of Literary Reading in America becomes Reading

And Quiet Flows the Don becomes And

 

 

 

(Reading 19)


No Author

MLA Manual p. 313

When a work is published without an author, begin the entry with the title of the work.

Works Cited Format: In-text Citation:

Title of Source. Other Contributors, Publisher, Publication Date.

Beowulf. Translated by Alan Sullivan and Timothy Murphy, edited by Sarah Anderson, Pearson, 2004

 

 

(Beowulf 723)


Book Chapter

MLA Manual p. 314

Works Cited Format: In-text Citation:

Author's Last Name, Author's First Name. "Title of Source." Title of Container, Other Contributors, Publisher, Publication Date, Location.

Benedict, Karen. "Archival Ethics." Managing Archives and Archival Institutions, edited by James Gregory Bradsher, U of Chicago P, 1998, pp. 174-84.

 

 

(Benedict 176)


Anthology/Edited Book

MLA Manual p. 314

Works Cited Format: In-text Citation:

Editor's Last Name, Editor's First Name, editor. Title of Source. Publisher, Publication Date.

Alberro, Alexander and Blake Stimson, editors. Conceptual Art: A Critical Anthology. MIT P, 2000.

Note: If there is more than one editor, the rules are the same as for multiple authors. 

 

 

(Alberro and Stimson 53)

Collection of Essays

MLA Manual p. 317

Works Cited Format:

In-text Citation:

The Entire Collection:

Author's Last Name, Author's First Name. Title of Source. Other Contributors, Publisher, Publication Date.

Montaigne, Michel de. The Complete Essays. Translated and edited by M. A. Screech, Penguin Books, 1993.

OR

A Specific Essay:

Author's Last Name, Author's First Name. "Title of Source." Title of Container, Other Contributors, Publisher, Publication Date, Location.

Montaigne, Michel de. "On the Cannibals." The Complete Essays, translated and edited by M. A. Screech, Penguin Books, 1993, pp. 228-241.

Note: If the translator and the editor are the same person, the titles can be combined and listed in the same order as on the title page of the original. Cite the author of the specific essay in-text not whoever is responsible for the collection. In this example Montaigne is the author of the essay and Screech is the person responsible for the collection.

 

 

(Montaigne 230)

 

 

OR

 

 

(Montaigne  230)

Poetry

MLA Manual p. 317

Works Cited Format: In-text Citation:

Poem Within a Collection by the Same Author

Author's Last Name, Author's First Name. "Title of Source." Title of Container, Other Contributors, Publisher, Publication Date, Location.

Frost, Robert. "The Road Not Taken." Complete Poems of Robert Frost, Holt, Reinhart, and Winston, 1964, p. 131.

OR

Poem Within an Anthology

Author's Last Name, Author's First Name. "Title of Source." Title of Container, Other Contributors, Version, Publisher, Publication Date, Location.

Frost, Robert. "The Road Not Taken." The Norton Anthology of Modern Poetry, edited by Richard Ellmann and Robert O'Clair, W. W. Norton, 1988, pp. 247-48.

 

 

 

 

(Frost 131)

Play

MLA Manual p. 317

Works Cited Format: In-text Citation:

Stand-Alone Play

Author's Last Name, Author's First Name. Title of Source. Publisher, Publication Date.

Shepard, Sam. True West. Nelson Doubleday, 1981.

OR

Play Within an Anthology

Author's Last Name, Author's First Name. Title of SourceTitle of Container, Other Contributors, Version, Publisher, Publication Date, Location.

Shakespeare, William. King Lear. The Norton Shakespeare, general editor, Stephen Greenblatt, 2nd ed., W. W. Norton, 2008, pp. 2325-2567.

 

 

 

(Shepard 63)

OR

 

 

 

 

(Lear 3.2.1-9)


Edition Other than First

MLA Manual p. 315

Works Cited Format: In-text Citation:

Author's Last Name, Author's First Name. Title of Source. Version, Publisher, Publication Date.

Bukatko, Danuta, and Marvin A. Daehler. Child Development: A Thematic Approach. 5th ed., Houghton Mifflin, 2004.

 

 

(Bukatko and Daehler 78)


Translated Work

MLA Manual p. 314

Works Cited Format: In-text Citation:

Author's Last Name, Author's First Name. Title of Source. Other Contributors, Publisher, Publication Date.

Freud, Sigmund. The Interpretation of Dreams. Translated by Joyce Crick, Oxford UP, 1999.

 

 

(Freud 28)


Multivolume Work (Citing Only One Volume)

MLA Manual p. 316

Works Cited Format: In-text Citation:

Author's Last Name, Author's First Name. Title of Source. Number, Publisher, Publication Date.

Cook, Blanche Weisen. Eleanor Roosevelt. Vol. 1, Viking, 1992.

 

(Cook 52)


Multivolume Work (Citing All the Volumes)

MLA Manual p. 316

  Works Cited Format: In-text Citation:

Author's Last Name, Author's First Name. Title of Source. Publisher, Publication Date(s). Total Number of Volumes.

Cook, Blanche Weisen. Eleanor Roosevelt. Viking, 1992-1999. 2 vols.

(Cook 1: 52)

Or:

Cook talks about Roosevelt's early life incident (1: 52).

Note: In the parenthetical reference, cite the volume number and the page number. Use a colon and a space before the page number.


Encyclopedia Entry

MLA Manual pp. 327-328

Works Cited Format: In-text Citation:

Author's Last Name, Author's First Name. "Title of Source." Title of Container, Other Contributors, Version, Number, Publisher, Publication Date.

Dowrick, Peter W. "Behavioral Medicine." The Corsini Encyclopedia of Psychology and Behavioral Science, edited by W. Edward Craighead and Charles B. Nemeroff, 3rd ed., vol. 1, Wiley, 2001.

 

 

 

(Dowrick 188)


Foreword, Preface, Introduction, or Afterword

MLA Manual p. 317

Works Cited Format: In-text Citation:

Author's Last Name, Author's First Name. "Title of Source." Foreword [or Preface, Introduction or Afterword]. Title of Container, Other Contributors, Publisher, Publication Date, Location.

Alberro, Alexander. "Reconsidering Conceptual Art, 1966-1977." Preface. Conceptual Art: A Critical Anthology, edited by Alexander Alberro and Blake Stimson, MIT P, 2000, pp. xvi-xxxvii.

Note: If the author of the foreword, preface, introduction or afterword is also the author of the book, give only the author's surname after By.

Hobbs, Robert. Introduction. Lee Krasner, by Hobbs, Abbeville, 1993, pp. 7-11.

 

 

 

(Alberro xvii)

 

 

 

(Hobbs 10)


A Reprinted Scholarly Work in a Collection

MLA Manual p. 315

Works Cited Format: In-text Citation:

Author's Last Name, Author's First Name. "Title of Source." Title of Container, Version, Number, Publication Date, Location. Title of Second Container, Other Contributors, Version, Number, Publisher, Publication Date, Location.

Simone, Irene. "Some Aspects of Virginia Woolf's Imagery." English Studies, vol. 41, 1960, pp. 180-196. Twentieth Century Literary Criticism, edited by Dennis Poupard, vol. 20, Gale, 1992, pp. 405-08.

 

 

 

(Simon 405)


Ebook

Choose an ebook type

 

More in-text Citation Information


Ebook (Chapter)

MLA Manual p. 317

Works Cited Format: In-text Citation:

Author's Last Name, Author's First Name. "Title of Source." Title of Container, Other Contributors, Publisher, Publication Date, Location. Title of Second Container, Location. Date of Access.

Dray, Andy. "Vanilloids as Analgesics." Novel Aspects of Pain Management: Opioids and Beyond, edited by Jana Sawynok and Alan Cowan, Wiley-Liss, 1999, pp. 117-134. eBook Collection, libdb.fairfield.edu/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=nlebk&AN=35309&site=ehost-live&scope=site&ebv=EB&ppid=pp_COVER. Accessed 21 Jan. 2017.

Note: Date of Access at the end of the citation is an "optional element" that may be included at your discretion if you feel it is necessary and/or will help the reader to find the source.

 

 

(Dray 119)


Ebook (Entire Book)

MLA Manual p. 313

Works Cited Format: In-text Citation:

Author's Last Name, Author's First Name. Title of Source. Publisher, Publication Date. Title of Second Container, Location. Date of Access.

Douglas, William O., and James O'Fallon. Nature's Justice: Writings of William O. Douglas. Oregon State UP, 2000. eBook Collection, libdb.fairfield.edu/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=nlebk&AN=90991&site=ehost-live&scope=site&ebv=EB&ppid=pp_C. Accessed 21 Jan. 2017.

Note: Date of Access at the end of the citation is an "optional element" that may be included at your discretion if you feel it is necessary and/or will help the reader to find the source.

 

 

(Douglas and O'Fallon 186)

Religious and Classical Works


Religious Works

MLA Manual p. 339

Works Cited Format: In-text Citation:

Title of Source. Other Contributors, Publisher, Publication Date.

The New Jerusalem Bible. General editor, Henry Wansbrough, Doubleday, 1985.

Note: The first time you cite the Bible, italicize the version of the Bible you are using, then include book, chapter and verse. For all subsequent citations using the same version, leave out the version name. The book name may be abbreviated if they have a longer title (ex. Gen. instead of Genesis). 

(New Jerusalem Bible, Ezek. 1.5-10)

And:

(for subsequent in-text citations)

(Ezek. 1. 5-10)


Religious Work Translation 

MLA Manual p. 339

Works Cited Format:

In-text Citation:

 Title of Source. Translated by First Name Last Name, Publisher, Date.

The Qur'an. Translated by M.A.S. Abdel Haleem, Oxford UP, 2015.

 

(The Qur'an 15.17)

 


Classical Works

MLA Manual p. 339

Works Cited Format: In-text Citation:

Last Name, First Name. Title of Source. Other Contributors, Publisher, Publication Date, Location.

Plato. The Republic. Translated by Benjamin Jowett, The Internet Classics Archive, 1994,  http://classics.mit.edu/Plato/republic.html

 

 

(Plato 20c-24e)

Journal Article

Choose a journal type

 

More in-text Citation Information


Journal Article from Library Database

MLA Manual p. 320

Works Cited Format: In-text Citation:

Author's Last Name, Author's First Name. "Title of Source." Title of Container, Number, Publication Date, Location. Title of Second Container, Location. Date of Access.

Goldman, Anne. "Questions of Transport: Reading Primo Levi Reading Dante." The Georgia Review, vol. 64, no. 1, 2010, pp. 69-88. JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/41403188. Accessed 21 Jan. 2017.

Note: Date of Access at the end of the citation is an "optional element" that may be included at your discretion if you feel it is necessary and/or will help the reader to find the source.

 

 

 

(Goldman 71)


Online Journal Article

MLA Manual p. 320

Works Cited Format: In-text Citation:

Author's Last Name, Author's First Name. "Title of Source." Title of Container, Number, Publication Date, Location. Title of Second Container, Location. 

Chan, Evans.  "Postmodernism and Hong Kong Cinema." Postmodern Culture, vol. 10, no. 3, May 2000. Project Muse, https://doi:10.1353/pmc.2000.0021.

Note: If a journal article has a Digital Object Identifier (DOI), use the DOI in place of a URL.  A DOI consists of a series of digits (and sometimes letters).

 

 

(Chan)


Print Journal Article

MLA Manual p. 319

Works Cited Format: In-text Citation:

Author's Last Name, Author's First Name. "Title of Source." Title of Container, Number, Publication Date, Location.

Greenberg, Anna. "Race, Religiosity, and the Women's Vote." Women & Politics, vol. 22, no. 3, 2001, pp. 59-82.

 

 

(Greenberg 73)


Review

MLA Manual p. 323

Works Cited Format: In-text Citation:

Review Author's Last Name, Review Author's First Name. "Title of Review [if there is one]." Review of Title of Work Being Reviewed, by Author's Name. Title of Container, Publication Date, Location.

Ellis, Nadia. "London Chiming." Review of Postcolonial London: Rewriting the Metropolis, by John McLeod. Postcolonial Studies, vol. 9, no. 3, 2006, pp. 337-42.

Note: The title of the work being reviewed should be in italics for books, plays, and films, and in quotation marks for articles, poems, and short stories.

 

 

 

(Ellis 338)

Magazine Article

Choose a magazine type

 

More in-text Citation Information


Magazine Article from Library Database

MLA Manual p. 323

Works Cited Format: In-text Citation:

Author Last Name, Author First Name. "Title of Source." Title of Container, Publication Date, Location. Title of Second Container, Location. Date of Access. 

Brown, Rob. "The Last Boom Industry." New Statesman, 26 March 2012, p. 15. Academic OneFile, http://libdb.fairfield.edu/login?url=https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=aph&AN=73888977&site=ehost-live&scope=site. Accessed 21 Jan. 2017.

Note: For articles not printed on consecutive pages, give the first page number followed by a plus sign. For magazines published weekly or biweekly, give the complete date of publication (day month year).

 

 

 

(Brown 15)


Magazine Article from Online Website

MLA Manual p. 323

Works Cited Format: In-text Citation:

Author Last Name, Author First Name. "Title of Source." Title of Container, Publication Date, Location. Date of Access.

Brown, David. "Why is NASA Neglecting Venus?" The Atlantic, 19 Jan. 2017, www.theatlantic.com/science/archive/2017/01/venus-lost-generation/513479/. Accessed 21 Jan. 2017.

 

 

(Brown)


 Print Magazine Article

MLA Manual p. 323

Works Cited Format: In-text Citation:

Author's Last Name, Author's First Name. "Title of Source." Title of Container, Number, Publication Date, Location.

Ravilious, Kate. "Scots on the Rocks: Mountaineering Archaeologists Reach New Heights of Discovery." Archaeology, Nov.- Dec. 2006, pp. 16-21.

Note: For articles not printed on consecutive pages, give the first page number followed by a plus sign. For magazines published weekly or biweekly, give the complete date of publication (day month year).

 

 

(Ravilious 17)

Newspaper Article

Choose a newspaper type

 

More in-text Citation Information


Newspaper Article from Library Database

MLA Manual pp. 321-322

Works Cited Format: In-text Citation:

Author's Last Name, Author's First Name. "Title of Source." Title of Container, Version, Publication Date, Location. Title of Second Container, Location. Date of Access.

Harmon, Amy. "DNA Gatherers Hit a Snag: The Tribes Don't Trust Them." The New York Times, late ed. (East Coast), 10 Dec. 2006, p. 1.1. ProQuest Historical Newspapers: The New York Times, libdb.fairfield.edu/login?url=http://search.proquest.com/docview/433461714?accountid=10796. Accessed 24 Jan. 2017.

 

 

(Harmon 1)


Article from Newspaper Website

MLA Manual pp. 321-322

Works Cited Format: In-text Citation:

Author's Last Name, Author's First Name. "Title of Source." Title of Container, Publication Date, Location. Date of Access.

Harmon, Amy. "DNA Gatherers Hit a Snag: The Tribes Don't Trust Them." The New York Times, 10 Dec. 2006, www.nytimes.com/2006/12/10/us/10dna.html. Accessed 24 Jan. 2017.

 

 

(Harmon)


Print Newspaper Article

MLA Manual pp. 321-322

Works Cited Format: In-text Citation:

Author's Last Name, Author's First Name. "Title of Source." Title of Container, Version, Publication Date, Location.

Donelly, John. "SARS Authority Picked to Lead Health Group." Boston Globe, first ed., 9 Nov. 2006, p. A14.

Notes: For articles not printed on consecutive pages, give the first page number followed by a plus sign.

 

 

(Donelly 14)


Newspaper Article with Unknown Author

MLA Manual pp. 321-322

Works Cited Format: In-text Citation:

"Title of Source." Title of Container, Version, Publication Date, Location.

"Number of Out-of-Wedlock Births a Record." Hartford Courant, New Haven County/Shoreline ed., 26 Nov. 2006, p. A7.

Note: Within the works cited list, alphabetize works with no author by the first significant word in the title, omitting articles such as a, an and the.

According to the newspaper article "Number of Out-of-Wedlock Births a Record," the number of unwed mothers giving birth in their twenties has risen dramatically.

Or:

The number of unwed mothers giving birth in their twenties has risen dramatically. (Number of Out-of-Wedlock Births)

Note: For the parenthetical reference use a shortened version of the title in place of the author's name.


Letter to Editor

MLA Manual pp. 321-322

Works Cited Format: In-text Citation:

Author's Last Name, Author's First Name. Letter. Title of Source, Version, Date of Publication, Location.

Arsham, Jane. Letter. Boston Globe, first ed., 9 Nov. 2006, p. A.16.

In her letter to the editor, Arsham stated that she felt as though her American citizenship had been usurped. (A.16)

 

Generative AI


Generative AI

Citing AI depends on how you are using it. AI should not be considered an author. For more information see MLA’s style site.

Always check your syllabus to see what your professor’s policy on AI is. If it’s not on the syllabus, just ask.

Works Cited Format: In-text Citation:

Quoting Text:

“Describe the symbolism of the green light in the book The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald” prompt. ChatGPT, 13 Feb. version, OpenAI, 8 Mar. 2023, chat.openai.com/chat

 

 

(“Describe the symbolism”)

 

Paraphrasing text:

“In 200 words, describe the symbolism of the green light in The Great Gatsby” follow-up prompt to list sources. ChatGPT, 13 Feb. version, OpenAI, 4 Mar. 2023, chat.openai.com/chat.

 

(“In 200 words”)

Citing creative visual works:

“Pointillist painting of a sheep in a sunny field of blue flowers” prompt, DALL-E, version 2, OpenAI, 14 Mar. 2023, labs.openai.com/.

(“Pointillist painting”)

Quoting Creative Textual Works:

“The Sunflower” villanelle about a sunflower. ChatGPT, 14 Mar. version, OpenAI, 8 Mar. 2023, chat.openai.com/chat.

(“The Sunflower”)

Citing Secondary Sources Used by an AI Tool:

Cite it as that particular book, article, website, etc.

 

Government Reports and Cases

Governmental and Organizational Reports

MLA Manual pp. 338, 343-344

Works Cited Format:

In-text Citation:

Name of Author(s)/Organization. Title of Source. Publisher, Publication Date, URL [if online]. Optional Element - Identifier.

KewalRamani, Angela, et al. Status and Trends in the Education of Racial and Ethnic Minorities. National Center for Educational Statistics, Institute of Education Sciences, U.S. Department of Education, 2007, https://nces.ed.gov/pubs2007/2007039.pdf. NCES 2007-039.

OR

Health System Profile - Egypt. World Health Organization, 2006, http://apps.who.int/medicinedocs/documents/s17293e/s17293e.pdf.

Note: When the author of a work and the publisher are the same, skip the author altogether and list the organization as the publisher.

 

 

 (KewalRamani et al. 44)

 

 

OR

 

 (Health System Profile 33)


U.S. Supreme Court Case

MLA Manual p. 344

Works Cited Format: In-text Citation:

Government Author. Title of Source. Date of decision, Title of Website, Location URL.

United States, Supreme Court. Torres v. Puerto Rico, 18 June 1979, Library of Congress, https://loc.gov/item/usrep442465.

 

In the United States Supreme Court case Torres v. Puerto Rico...


State Supreme Court Case

MLA Manual p. 346

Works Cited Format: In-text Citation:

Government Author. Title of Source. Date of decision, Title of Website, Location URL.

Connecticut, Supreme Court. Sheff v. O'Neil. 9 Jul. 1996, State of Connecticut Judicial Branch, https://www.jud.ct.gov/external/news/sheff/htm.

 

In the Supreme Court case Sheff v. O'Neil...

Website, Blog, or Social Media

Choose a source type

 

More in-text Citation Information


Website

MLA Manual p. 324

Works Cited Format: In-text Citation:

Author Last Name, Author First Name [or the person(s) putting it together]. Title of Container [webpage], Version, Publisher [sponsor], Publication Date, Location. Date of Access. 

Hollmichel, Stefanie. So Many Books, 2007-2016, somanybooksblog.com. Accessed 30 Jan. 2017.

Note: If some of the citation information is missing, use what is available.

 

 

(Hollmichel)

Website Page

MLA Manual pp. 317, 324

Works Cited Format: In-text Citation:

Author Last Name, Author First Name. "Title of Source." Title of Container, Publication Date, Location. Title of Second Container, Location. Date of Access. 

Kazer, Meredith. "Dean's Message." Fairfield University, 2 Dec. 2016, www.fairfield.edu/enewsletters/egannewsletter/featurestories/deansmessage.html. Accessed 30 Jan. 2017.

"U.S. Legislators on Opioid Panel at Fairfield University." Fairfield University, 6 Dec. 2016, www.fairfield.edu/enewsletters/egannewsletter/featurestories/uslegislatorsonopioidpanelatfairfielduniversity.html. Accessed 30 Jan. 2017.

Note: If some of the citation information is missing, use what is available.

 

 

 

(Kazer)

 

 

("U.S. Legislators")


Blog Posting

MLA Manual p. 326

Works Cited Format: In-text Citation:

Author Last Name, Author First Name. "Title of Source." Title of Container, Publication Date, Location. Date of Access. 

Agarwal, Kritka. "Monumental Effort Historians and the Creation of the National Monument to Reconstruction." AHA Today, 24 Jan. 2017, blog.historians.org/2017/01/national-monument-reconstruction/. Accessed 30 Jan. 2017.

Note: If some citation information is missing, use what is available.

 

 

(Agarwal)

Comment on Post or Article

MLA Manual p. 326

Works Cited Format: In-text Citation:

Author (username). Comment on "Title of Source." Title of Container, Publication Date, Location.

hds. Comment on "How Different Types of Museums Approach Participation." Museum 2.0, 9 Feb. 2010, 606 p.m.https://museumtwo.blogspot.com/2010/02/how-different-types-of-museums-approach.html.

Note: If the author of the comment has used a screen name, then use the screen name in your reference.

 

 

(hds)


Facebook Post

MLA Manual pp. 326-327

Works Cited Format: In-text Citation:

Author Last Name, First Name or Organization. "Title of Source." Title of Container, Publication Date, Location.

American Psychological Association. "Are you setting some goals to ring in the new year?"  Facebook, 31 Dec. 2019,  https://www.facebook.com/pg/AmericanPsychologicalAssociation/posts/.

Note: If writing for publication may want to self-archive any social media updates

 

 

(American Psychological Association)


Tweet

MLA Manual pp. 326-327

Works Cited Format: In-text Citation:

Author (username). [Titter Handle]. "Title of Source." Title of Container, Publication Date, Location. 

DiMenna-Nyselius Library. [@FairfieldULib]. "Recently added titles to our Popular Reading Collection. Search the entire collection here: http://bit.ly/popularreadingTwitter, 10 Mar. 2021, https://twitter.com/FairfieldULib/status/1369697825563508736?cxt=HHwWgIC05cq6koImAAAA.

Note: If writing for publication you may want to self-archive any social media updates

 

 

 

(DiMenna-Nyselius Library)

Instagram

MLA Manual pp. 326-327

Works Cited Format: In-text Citation:

Author Last Name, First Name or Organization. "Title of Source." Title of Container, Publication Date, Location.

Obama, Michelle. Video of "Long An Province, Vietnam". Instagram, 20 Dec. 2019, https://www.instagram.com/p/B6TD-pnADuQ/

Note: If writing for publication may want to self-archive any social media updates

 

 

(Obama)

E-mail, Personal Communication, and Class Materials

Choose a source type

 

More in-text Citation Information


E-mail

MLA Manual p. 337

Works Cited Format: In-text Citation:

E-mail Author's Last Name, E-mail Author's First Name. Email to recipient or entity. Publication Date [date of e-mail].

Smith, Barbara. E-mail to Janet Cummings. 6 Dec. 2006.

 

(Smith)


Electronic Mailing List (List-serv)

MLA Manual p. 337

Works Cited Format: In-text Citation:

Message Author's Last Name, Message Author's First Name. "Title of Source." [taken from subject line of message] Title of Container, Publication Date, Location. Date of Access.

Abungu, Lorna. "Valuing Ethnographic Objects." ICME electronic mailing list, 13 Apr. 2007, groups.yahoo.com/group/icme/message/155. Accessed 4 Feb. 2017.

 

 

(Abungu)


Personal Communication

MLA Manual p. 336

Works Cited Format: In-text Citation:

Author's Last Name, Author's First Name. Type of Source. Publication Date [date of letter].

Carroll, Jonathan. Letter to the author. 6 Jun 2012.

 

(Carroll)


Speech

MLA Manual p. 335

Works Cited Format:

In-text Citation:

Author's Last Name, Author's First Name. "Title of Source." [Description or title of event where the speech took place], Date, Location. Optional Element [Descriptive term for source].

Attwood, Margaret. "Silencing the Scream." Boundaries of the Imagination Forum, MLA Annual Convention, 29 Dec. 1993, Royal York Hotel, Toronto. Address.

 

 

 

(Attwood)

 


Classroom materials

MLA Manual p. 341

Works Cited Format:

In-text Citation:

Author's Last Name, Author's First Name. "Title of Source." Course number: Course Title, complied/written/taught by First Name Last Name, School, Date, Location. Optional URL.

Course pack:

Jackson, Shirley. "The Lottery." Course pack for English 285: American Short Story Writers, complied by Anne Smith, spring 2015, Iowa State University.

Online powerpoint or lecture:

"Slides 040720." Introduction to Digital Media Theory, taught by Kathleen Fitzpatrick. D2L, Michigan State U, 7 Apr. 2020, d2l.msu.edu/d2l/lecontent/909183/viewContent/8746820/View.

 

 

 

 

(Jackson)

 

 

 

 

Audio/Video and Performance

Choose a source type

 
 

When you are citing online videos, movies, and television shows you may also include the location of where you viewed the video at the end of the citation. For example add the following to the end of your citation:

  • Netflix, www.netflix.com.
  • Hulu, www.hulu.com.
  • Amazon, www.amazon.com.

More in-text Citation Information


Online Video

MLA Manual p. 329

Works Cited Format: In-text Citation:

"Title of Source." Title of Container, Publisher, Publication Date, Location.

"Fairfield Rising." YouTube, uploaded by Fairfield University, 5 Jan. 2017, www.youtube.com/watch?v=EgAEaRT8CMs.

Note: When an online video features a speaker, begin the entry with that person's name.

Parcak, Sarah, speaker. "Archeology from space." YouTube, uploaded by TED, 14 Jun. 2012, www.youtube.com/watch?v=YFC5CwZVCEw.

("Fairfield Rising")

 

 

 

 

("Archaeology from space")


Motion Picture

MLA Manual p. 328

Works Cited Format: In-text Citation:

Title of Source [name of film]. Other Contributors [typically the director at a minimum and other key contributors as needed or desired], Publisher [film studio or distributor], Publication Date [date of release].

Rear Window. Directed by Alfred Hitchcock, screenplay by John Michael Hayes, performances by James Stewart and Grace Kelly, Universal Pictures, 1954.

Note: If citing the contribution of a specific person, start the work cited entry with that person's name.

Hitchcock, Alfred, director. Rear Window. Universal Pictures, 1954.

Note: You may also include the location of where you viewed the video at the end of the citation. For example add the following to the end of your citation:  Hulu, www.hulu.com.

 

 

 

(Rear Window)

 

 

 

(Hitchcock)


Television Episode

MLA Manual pp. 329-330

Works Cited Format: In-text Citation:

"Title of episode." Title of Source [title of series], Other Contributors, Number, Publisher, Publication Date.

"Hush." Buffy the Vampire Slayer, created by Joss Whedon, performance by Sarah Michelle Gellar, season 4, episode 10, Mutant Enemy, 1999. 

In the episode "Hush"...

Note: The full title can be included if it is short, otherwise an abbreviated version is acceptable. When abbreviating, begin with the word by which it is alphabetized.


Television Series

MLA Manual pp. 328-330

Works Cited Format: In-text Citation:

Title of Source. Other Contributors, Publisher, Date of Publication.

Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Created by Joss Whedon, performance by Sarah Michelle Gellar, Mutant Enemy, 1997-2003.

Note: You may also include the location of where you viewed the video at the end of the citation. For example add the following to the end of your citation:  Netflix, www.netflix.com.

In the series Buffy the Vampire Slayer...

Note: The full title can be included if it is short, otherwise an abbreviated version is acceptable. When abbreviating, begin with the word by which it is alphabetized.


Sound Recording (Individual Tracks)

MLA Manual p. 330

Works Cited Format: In-text Citation:

Author's Last Name, Author's First Name [composer, conductor, or performer depending on your emphasis]. "Title of Source [title of piece]. Title of Container, Other Contributors, Publisher [manufacturer], Publication Date [year of issue].

CD:

Dylan, Bob. "All Along the Watchtower." Electric Ladyland, performed by Jimi Hendrix, MCA, 1993.

Spotify:

Dylan, Bob. "All Along the Watchtower." Electric Ladyland, performed by Jimi Hendrix, MCA, 1993. Spotify, open.spotify.com/track/0Fnb2pfBfu0ka33d6Yki17

Jimi Hendrix gives a famous performance of Dylan's "All Along the Watchtower" on the album Electric Ladyland.

Or:

(Dylan)


Sound Recording (Entire Album)

MLA Manual p. 330

Works Cited Format: In-text Citation:

Author's Last Name, Author's First Name [composer, conductor, or performer depending on your emphasis]. Title of Source [title of album]. Other Contributors, Publisher [manufacturer], Publication Date [year of issue].

Horowitz, Vladimir. The Last Recording. Sony Classical, 1990.

 

 

(Horowitz)


Audiobook

MLA Manual p. 330

Works Cited Format: In-text Citation:

Author's Last Name, Author's First Name. Title of Source. Publisher, Publication Date. Optional Element.

Joyce, James. Dubliners. HarperCollins, 2005. Audiobook.

Note: Core elements may be accompanied by optional elements to further describe the type of work.

 

(Joyce)


Podcast

MLA Manual p. 331

Works Cited Format: In-text Citation:

Host Last Name, Host First Name [or producer or performer if there is one, if not start with title]. "Title of Source [title of piece]. Title of Container, Publisher, Publication Date [Day Month Year], URL.

Vedantam, Shankar. "Meaning at Work: How We Shape and Think About Our Jobs."  Hidden Brain from NPR, 19 Sep. 2019, https://www.npr.org/2019/09/12/760255265/finding-meaning-at-work-how-we-shape-and-thing-about-our-jobs.

 

 

(Vedantam)


Performance (Live)

MLA Manual pp. 334-335

Works Cited Format: In-text Citation:

Last Name, First Name.  "Title of Source." Title of Container, Date [Day Month Year], Location.

Play:

Cinderella. Performance by Enchantment Theater Company. 15 Oct. 2006, Regina A. Quick Center for the Arts, Fairfield. 

Concert:

Lizzo. Concert. South by Southwest, 15 Mar. 2019, Stubb's, Austin.

Dance: 

Alvin Ailey Dance Theater. 2018 Ailey Spirit Gala Performance. 14 Jun. 2018, Lincoln Center, New York. 

 

 

 

(Cinderella)

 

(Lizzo)

 

 

(Alvin Ailey Dance Theater)

Image or Advertisement

Choose a source type

 

More in-text Citation Information


Online Images

MLA Manual pp. 331-333

Works Cited Format: In-text Citation:

Artist's Last Name, Artist's First Name. Title of Source. Date, Location. Title of Second Container, Location. Date of Access.

Hopper, Edward. Early Sunday Morning. 1930, Whitney Museum of American Art, New York. The Whitney's Collection, collection.whitney.org/object/46345. Accessed 4 Feb. 2017.

 

 

(Hopper)


Work of Art

MLA Manual pp. 331-332

Works Cited Format: In-text Citation:

Artist's Last Name, Artist's First Name. Title of Source. Date, Location [name of the place and city but omit the name of the city if it is part of the place's name]. Optional element [medium of publication and/or materials of composition].

Hopper, Edward. Railroad Sunset. 1929, Whitney Museum of American Art, New York. Oil on canvas.

 

 

(Hopper)

 


Advertisement

MLA Manual p. 333

Works Cited Format: In-text Citation:

Author's Last Name, Author's First Name [product, company, or institution name]. Title of Source [Advertisement if untitled, in quotation marks if titled]. Title of Container, Publication Date, Location.

Banana Republic. Advertisement. InStyle, Oct. 2006, p. 51.

 

(Banana Republic 51)

Cartoon or Illustration

MLA Manual pp. 333

Works Cited Format: In-text Citation:

Artist's Last Name, Artist's First Name. Title of Source. Title of Container, Date, Location [Page or URL]. 

Tomine, Adrian. Love Life. The New Yorker, 20 Dec. 2020, cover.

 

(Tomine)

 

Photograph

MLA Manual pp. 332

Works Cited Format: In-text Citation:

Last Name, First Name. Title of Source. Publisher, Date, Location.

In person:

Lynch, Anne. Aerial view of Bellarmine Hall. 1988.

Viewed online: 

Lynch, Anne. Aerial view of Bellarmine Hall. Fairfield University History Online, 1988. https://digital.fairfield.edu/cdm/singleitem/collection/fuhp/id/223/rec/1

 

 

(Lynch)

 

Indirect Sources

Works Cited Format: In-text Citation:

If what you quote or paraphrase is itself a quotation, put the abbreviation qtd. in ("quoted in") before the indirect source you cite in your parenthetical reference.

In the Reference List cite the indirect source as you normally would:

Author's Last Name, Author's First Name. Title of Source. Other Contributors, Version, Number, Publisher, Publication Date.

Boswell, James. The Life of Johnson. Edited by George Birkbeck Hill and Lawrence Fitzroy Powell, 6 vols, Clarendon, 1934-50.

Notes:

  • Whenever you can, take material from the original source, not a secondhand one.
  • You may document the original source in a Note explaining why you worked from the secondary material.

Samuel Johnson admitted that Edmund Burke was an "extraordinary man" (qtd. in Boswell 2: 450).

In-Text Citation Examples

Choose a source type

 

One Author

(Author's Last Name Page Number(s))

(Zelizer 3-4)


Two Authors

(First Author's Last Name and Second Author's Last Name Page Number(s))

(Mock and Parker 73)


Three Authors

(First Author's Last Name et al. Page Number(s))

(Garner et al. 102)


Unknown Author

(Title of Work Page Number(s))

(Merriam-Webster's Thesaurus 206)

Note: A title that is long can be given in a shortened form.


Authors with the Same Last Name

(Author's First Initial. Author's Last Name Page Number(s))

(B. Zelizer 3-4)

Note: If two authors have the same first initials, use the authors' full first names in the parenthetical references.


Multiple Works by the Same Author

(Author's Last Name, Shortened Title [or "Shortened Title"] Page Number(s))

(Zelizer, Remembering to Forget 3-4)

(Zelizer, Visual Culture 115-21)


Multiple Works in the Same Parenthesis

(Author's Last Name Page Number; Author's Last Name Page Number; Author's Last Name Page Number)

(Zelizer 11; Alberro xvii; Ellis 338)


Indirect Sources

 

Note: An indirect source is a source that quotes or paraphrases another source. An example would be Sontag's On Photography cited in Zelizer's book Remembering to Forget, and you have not read Sontag. In the text of the paper, name the original source of information, and in the parenthetical reference use qtd. in (quoted in) before the indirect source.

(qtd. in Author of Indirect Source Page Number(s))

Sontag writes...(qtd. in Zelizer 11)


The Bible and Other Classical Works

 

Note: The first time you cite the Bible, italicize the version of the Bible you are using, then include book, chapter and verse. For all subsequent citations using the same version, leave out the version name. The book name may be abbreviated if they have a longer title (ex. Gen instead of Genesis).

(New Jerusalem Bible, Ezek. 1.5-10)

Or (for subsequent in-text citations)

(Ezek. 1.5-10)

Works cited:  New Jerusalem Bible.  General editor, Henry Wainsborough, Doubleday, 1985.

Note: Verse plays and poems:  omit page no.; cite by division (act, scene, canto, book, part).

(Iliad 9.19) [would mean Iliad, book 9, line 19]

 

Other Resources

For more examples and information on how to format your paper:

Online Resource

Print Resource

For additional help, contact a Research Librarian

  • In-person at the Library Services & Information Desk 
  • By phone at (203) 254-4000 ext. 2188 
  • By e-mail: research@fairfield.edu
  • Via Web chat (available 24/7)