Internal Documentation
IMPORTANT NOTICE: The Modern Language Association updated their guidelines on April 1, 2016. We have not yet updated this section of Resources for Researchers to reflect these changes. We have ordered a copy of the new guidelines and will update as soon as possible.
There are two basic types of citations: parenthetical and in-text.
Parenthetical Citations
With an in-text citation, you include the author's name and page in parentheses. To avoid plagiarism, you need to be sure to cite direct quotes as well as when you paraphrase or summarize an author's thoughts or ideas. The parentheses come before — not after — the period. Following are two examples; one that includes a paraphrase and one that includes a direct quote.
Coal was an important component of the textile industry because it was used to heat bleach and dyes and to warm drying rooms (Standage 132).
Coal was important in the textile industry because it was used "to warm the liquids used in bleaching, dyeing, and printing" (Standage 132).
In-Text Citations
In-text citations use the author's name as part of the text. Following are two examples; the first is a paraphrase and the other includes a direct quote.
Standage argues that coal was an important component of the textile industry because it was used to heat liquids used during the production of fabric as well as to heat the drying room (132).
"Coal was heavily used in the textile industry," according to Standage, because it was needed to "to warm the liquids used in bleaching, dyeing, and printing" and to heat the drying room (132).
Additional Examples of Citations
I recommend "MLA In-Text Citations: The Basics" The Purdue Online Writing Lab at Purdue University as a good source to learn the rules of internal documentation.
Download an MLA Template
Download a template that has margins, heading, and other information formatted using MLA requirements.
