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ENG 112 - Writing/Research in the Disc: MLA Citation Help

This course, the second in a series of two, introduces research techniques, documentation styles, and writing strategies. Emphasis is placed on analyzing information and ideas and incorporating research findings into documented writing and research projec

Citing Different Sources in MLA

Works Cited

“Explain 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.

 

In-text citation

("Explain the green light")

Klee, Paul. Twittering Machine. 1922. Museum of Modern Art, New York. The Artchive, www.artchive.com/artchive/K/Klee/twittering_machine.jpg.html. Accessed May 2006.

Intext would be (Klee).

"Ideology." The American Heritage Dictionary. 3rd ed., 1997, pp 44-45.

To cite this source, page 44, for example: ("Ideology" 44)

Works Cited

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

In-text citation

In one of the most vivid prophetic visions in the Bible, Ezekial saw "what seems to be four living creatures" (New Jerusalem Bible, Ezek. 1.5). John of Patmos echoes this passage when describing his vision (Rev. 4.6-8).

**If you are only using one Bible, then you don't have to refer to the Bible's name except in the first intext citation. The rest of the intext citations can be the (Book, verse). 

***MLA Handbook, 2021, p. 247

Choi, Susan. Trust Exercise. Holt, 2019.

To cite entire book: (Choi)

To cite page 25, for example: (Choi 25)

Gillespie, Paula, and Neal Lerner. The Allyn and Bacon Guide to Peer Tutoring. Allyn and Bacon, 2000. 

If citing the entire book (Gillespie and Lerner)

If citing pages 210-225 (Gillespie and Lerner 210-225)

Wysocki, Anne Frances, et al. Writing New Media: Theory and Applications for Expanding the Teaching of Composition. Utah State UP, 2004.

If citing page 167, for example: (Wysocki et al. 167)

Crowley, Sharon, and Debra Hawhee. Ancient Rhetorics for Contemporary Students. 3rd ed., Pearson, 2004.

If citing entire book: (Crowley and Hawhee)

If citing page 202, for example (Crowley and Hawkee 202)

Harris, Muriel. "Talk to Me: Engaging Reluctant Writers." A Tutor's Guide: Helping Writers One to One, edited by Ben Rafoth, Henemann, 2000, pp. 24-34.

If citing page 34 for example: (Harris 34)


If the original publication date is important for the reader to understand the context of the source, include it.

Franklin, Benjamin. "Emigration to America." 1782. The Faber Book of America, edited by Christopher Ricks and William L. Vance, Faber and Faber, 1992, pp. 24-26.

Intext would be (Franklin 24-26). 

Dickinson, Emily. “Because I Could Not Stop for Death.” The Oxford Book of American Verse, edited by F. O. Matthiessen, Oxford UP, 1950, p. 439. Questia.

This reading is located in the Questia/Cengage compilation but was published in The Oxford Book of American Verse. The publishing information  is all located in the copyright box at the bottom of the reading.

image of copyright info at bottom of questia document

The intext citation would still be 

(Dickinson 439)

Plott, Cassie. English 111. Rowan-Cabarrus Community College, April 2020, https://rccc.blackboard.com/webapps/blackboard/content/listContent.jsp?course_id=_51000_1&content_id=_4450030_1.

(Plott)

Washington, Durthy. CliffsNotes on Jacobs’ Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl. Cliffs Notes, 2000. EBSCOhost, search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=nlebk&AN=67062&site=ehost-live.

In-text citation is (Washington)

or in-text citation for page 33 is

(Washington 33)

 

Author. Title of ebook. Publisher, date. Name of database where you found the book, URL.

Blade Runner. 1982. Directed by Ridley Scott, performance by Harrison Ford, director's cut, Warner Bros., 1992.

Scott, Ridley, director. Blade Runner. 1982. Performance by Harrison Ford, director's cut, Warner Bros., 1992.

 

For films, citations begin with the title unless you want to highlight some other aspect, such as the direction. In the first example, Ridley Scott and Harrison Ford are considered "Other contributors". The second example treats Ridley Scott as an "author" with Harrison Ford as another contributor. The Publisher is Warner Bros.

 

Highlights from the Competition Bureau’s Workshop on Emerging Competition Issues. Competition Bureau of Canada, 4 Mar. 2016, www.competitionbureau.gc.ca/eic/site/cb-bc.nsf/vwapj/cb-Workshop-Summary-Report-e.pdf/$FILE/cb-Workshop-Summary-Report-e.pdf. Accessed 6 July 2016

 

 

In-text citation is (name of document, can be shortened)

(HIghlights from the Competition Bureau's Workshop)

In-text citation if a direct quote from page 2, for example

(Highlights from the Competition Bureau's Workshop 2)

Doest, Jasper. "Japanese macaques take a hot bath during winter in Jigokudani." National Geographic, 15 Sept. 2016, nationalgeographic.com/photography/proof/2016/09/snow-macaque-nice-shot. Accessed 17 Mar 2020.

Smith, Jane. Personal interview. 22 April 2020.

Intext citation is (Smith)

Zumla, Alimuddin, et al. "Vaccine Against Middle East Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus." The Lancet Infectious Diseases, vol. 19, no. 10, 2019, pp. 1054-1055. ProQuest, https://proxy154.nclive.org/login?url=https://search.proquest.com/docview/2297096029?accountid=13601, doi:https://dx.doi.org/10.1016/S1473-3099(19)30477-3.

 

To cite this article, page 1054, for example: (Zumla et al. 1054)

Chevelle. Wonder What's Next. Epic, 2002.

Intext would be (Chevelle)

 

Nirvana. "Smells Like Teen Spirit." Nevermind, Geffen, 1991.

Intext is (Nirvana)

Tavernise, Sabrina. "Disparity of Life Spans of the Rich and the Poor is Growing." The New York Times, 12 Feb. 2016, https://www.nytimes.com/2016/02/13/health/disparity-in-life-spans-of-the-rich-and-the-poor-is-growing.html

(Tavernise)

Note that the URL is linked. This is an option in MLA 8th Edition. Your teacher may choose to allow this or not.

This format should be used for pdfs that you receive electronically but not via accessing a website. Even though you may have received this independently, you still need to find the URL that will lead your reader to the source.

Social, Humanitarian, & Cultural Committee (SOCHUM) Background Guide, 31st Annual Carolinas Conference, 2020, https://static1.squarespace.com/static/58d5280103596edcfc032057/t/5f5937c0642457206e8c3057/1599682499567/SOCHUM+Background+Guide.pdf.

In-text citation is

(Social, Humanitarian, & Cultural Committee)

If a direct quote or statistic is used, from page 3 for example

(Social, Humanitarian, & Cultural Committee 3)

To cite a pdf from a website, you first cite the pdf with author, title, publisher and date and then cite the website with the URL.

For example, the following report doesn't have an author so you start with title, the publisher and date. Then you cite the website Duke Energy and that site's date.End with the URL.

Duke Energy 2019 Annual Report and Form 10-K, Duke Energy, 2019. Duke Energy, 2020, https://www.duke-energy.com/annual-report/_/media/pdfs/our-company/investors/de-annual-reports/2019/2019-duke-energy-annual-report.pdf?la=en.

In-text citation is

(Duke Energy 2019 Annual Report)

If direct quote or statistic used, for example from page 4

(Duke Energy 2019 Annual Report 4)

 

 

Adams, John. "John Adams to Thomas Jefferson, 3 February 1812." 1812. Founders Online, National Archives, https://founders.archives.gov/documents/Jefferson/03-04-02-036. Accessed 1 February 2023

___________

*This website didn't have a publication date. Accessed dates are recommended for websites especially when there is no publication date.

Recommended formatting for primary sources on webpages.

Author's Last Name, First Name. "Title of Primary Source Document: Subtitle." Year of creation.Title of Website, Publisher of Website, Publication Date, URL. Accessed Day Month Year site was visited.

Jackson, Andrew. "First Inaugural Address." 1829. Out of Many: A History of the American People. John Faragher et al., Pearson, 2020, p. 56. 

Intext is (author's last name page#)

(Jackson 56)

The Bible. Authorized King James Version, Oxford UP, 1998.

Intext citation is (The Bible, John 3:16)

Kincaid, Jamaica. "Girl." The Vintage Book of Contemporary American Short Stories, edited by Tobias Wolff, Vintage, 1994, pp. 306-07.

(Kincaid 306)

If all poems or stories are by the same author, there is typically not an editor-

Carter, Angela. "The Tiger's Bride." Burning Your Boats: The Collected Stories, Penguin, 1995, pp. 154-69.

(Carter 157)

"Hush." 1999. Buffy the Vampire Slayer: The Complete Fourth Season, created by Joss Whedon, performance by Sarah Michelle Gellar, episode 10, Twentieth Century Fox, 2003, disc 3. 

 

"Chapter Six: The Monster." Stranger Things, season 1, episode 6, Netflix, 15 July 2016. Netflix, netflix.com/watch/80077373?trackld=13752289@tctx=0%2C%2Ca7112b65-16b2-46a38b1c-310fcb259da1-8921805

Chappelow, James. "Conflict Theory." Investopedia, 19 May 2019, www.investopedia.com/terms/c/conflict-theory.asp

(Chappelow) is the intext citation


Webpage with Access date

Wise, DeWanda. "Why TV Shows Make me Feel less Alone." NAMI, 31 May 2019, https://www.nami.org/Blogs/NAMI-Blog/May-2019/How-TV-Shows-Make-Me-Feel-Less-Alone. Accessed 10 June 2020. 

"Athlete's Foot - Topic Overview." WebMD, 25 Sept. 2014, www.webmd.com/skin-problems-and-treatments/tc/athletes-foot-topic-overview.

("Athlete's")

September 25, 2014 is the publication date. There are no page numbers. The access date is optional. It is ok to shorten the title of the website; keep it in quotation marks.

"The Impact of Global Warming in North America." Global Warming: Early Signs. 1999. www.climatehotmap.org/. Accessed 23 Mar. 2009.

Intext citation is ("Impact of Global Warming")

*The access date is optional. You can shorten the title of long sources. Keep the webpage title in quotation marks.

"Majors and Concentrations." UNC Greensboro, https://admissions.uncg.edu/academics/majors-concentrations/. Accessed 22 April 2020.

* Access date is recommended for sites with no publication date.

("Majors and Concentrations")

Lundman, Susan. "How to Make Vegetarian Chili." eHow, www.ehow.com/how_10727_make-vegetarian-chili.html.

To cite the webpage (Lundman)

There are no page numbers. Access date is optional but recommended if the webpage is one that updates regularly.

U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Statistics. "Librarians." Occupational Outlook Handbook, 20 Dec 2019, https://www.bls.gov/ooh/education-training-and-library/librarians.htm. Accessed 10 June 2020. 

 

To intext cite

(U.S. Dept of Labor)

*Group authors can be abbreviated. The access date is recommended for webpages that update regularly.

If author is different from uploader

McGonigal, Jane. "Gaming and Productivity." YouTube, uploaded by Big Think, 3 July 2012, www.youtube.com/watch?v=mKdzy9bWW3E.

Intext is (McGonigal)

If uploader is same as author

"8 Hot Dog Gadgets put to the Test." YouTube, uploaded by Crazy Russian Hacker, 6 June 2016, www.youtube.com/watch?v=WBlpjSEtELs.

Intext is ("8 Hot Dog Gadgets")

 

MLA Tutorial

MLA Tutorial

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Order of Core Elements

These are the elements or pieces of information for MLA citations.

  1.  Author. 
  2. Title of source. (Books are italicized, Webpages are in quotes, Article names are in quotes, Songs are in quotes)
  3. Title of container, (Journal names are in italics, websites are in italics, album names are in italics)
  4. Other contributors, (sometimes used for movies, books with translators, books with introductions, etc.)
  5. Version, (usually for items that have been updated or in different versions)
  6. Number,  (usually for items in a numbered series, ie Journal articles, multi-volume book series, TV series, etc.)
  7. Publisher, (publisher produces the items so is commonly available on books, webpages unless title is same as publisher, production companies for movies, etc. Websites that make things available but don't publish aren't included here, ie Youtube, Wordpress, Proquest.)
  8. Publication date, (if more than one, go with date that is more relevant)
  9. Location. (page numbers, URL, doi is recommended if available, physical location of art)
  10. Date of access. (Recommended for online sources especially if they can change. Your instructor may ask you not to do this however.) I​​​f you include an access date it is in this format: Accessed 10 June 2020.

What elements do you see here?

Wise, DeWanda. "Why TV Shows Make Me Feel Less Alone." NAMI31 May 2019, http://www.nami.org/blogs/NAMI-Blog/May-2019/How-TV-Shows-Make-Me-Feel-Less-Alone. Accessed 10 June 2020. 


Author - DeWanda Wise

Title of source - "Why TV Shows Make Me Feel Less Alone"

Title of container - NAMI

Publication date - 31 May 2019

Location - http://www.nami.org/blogs/NAMI-Blog/May-2019/How-TV-Shows-Make-Me-Feel-Less-Alone.

Access Date - 10 June 2020

Direct Quotes

Guidelines for Direct Quotes

A Direct Quote uses the exact words of a source. 

Think of the quote as a rare and precious jewel. 

Quotes can be super-effective in getting your point across to the reader. Just be sure you’re not stringing a bunch of quotes together – you want your voice to be stronger than the voice of your sources. You always need to interpret, analyze, add to and explain more about the quote to your reader.  

Here are some guidelines to help you decide when to use quotes:

  • Wording that is so memorable, unforgettable or powerful, or expresses a point so perfectly, that you cannot change it without weakening the meaning.
  • An important passage is so dense or rich that it requires you to analyze it closely. This requires that the passage be quoted so the reader can follow your analysis.
  • A claim you are making is such that the doubting reader will want to hear exactly what the source said. This is mostly when you criticize or disagree with a source. You want your reader to know you aren't misrepresenting the source.
  • Your attempts to paraphrase or summarize are awkward or much longer than the source material.

You may choose to quote an entire passage from a source or just words or phrases. Make sure to use signal words (see below) to move between your ideas and the words of your source. Also, always cite your work. 

Direct Quotes (MLA format):

As one of Obama's deputy assistants Yohannes Abraham explains, "It's really important to remember to just be a good person" (Scherer, Miller, and Elliott 36). 

As William Kneale suggests, some humans have a "moral deafness" which is never punctured no matter what the moral treatment (93).

For Charles Dickens, the eighteenth century was both "the best of times" and "the worst of times" (35). 

Direct Quotes (APA format)

As Ali Akbar Hamemi remarked, "There is no doubt that America is a super-power in the world and we cannot ignore them" (Vick, 2017, p. 13). 

Sometimes it may be necessary to include long direct quotes (of over 40 words) in your work if you are unable to paraphrase or summarize. A long quote is treated differently as a block quotation with a .5 inch margin from the left but still double-spaced. Notice that there are no quotation marks around the block quotations even though these are direct quotes. Here are two examples:

Block quotation with parenthetical citation:

Researchers found when studying gray wolves that coloring around eyes may change over the lifespan:

Facial color patterns change with growth in many American canid species, although no studies have directly examined such developmental changes. For example, all newborn gray wolves observed in the present study had dark-colored bodies and C-type faces with dark-colored irises. (Ueda et al., 2014, p. 4)

Ueda, S., Kumagai, G., Otaki, Y., Yamaguchi, S., & Kohshima, S. (2014). A comparison of facial color pattern and gazing behavior in canid species suggests gaze communication in gray wolves (canis lupus). PLoS One, 9(6) doi:https://dx.doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0098217


Block quotation with narrative citation:

Manning and Kaler (2011) describe the difficulties of using survey methods when observing owls:

Survey methods with observers outside the vehicle were 3 times more likely to displace an owl than a single vehicle stop where observers remained inside the vehicle. Owls were displaced farther distances by all survey methods compared to control trials, but distances and time displaced did not differ among survey methods.

Manning, J. A., & Kaler, R. S. A. (2011). Effects of survey methods on burrowing owl behaviors. Journal of Wildlife Management, 75(3), 525-530. Retrieved from https://proxy154.nclive.org/login?url=https://search.proquest.com/docview/925615280?accountid=13601


For more information, see page 272 of the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association, 7th ed.

If a quote runs more than four lines long, you must block the quote with a .5 margin on the left. Do not use quotation marks even though it's a direct quote.

At the conclusion of Lord of the Flies, Ralph, realizing the horror of his actions, is overcome by

great, shuddering spasms of grief that seemed to wrench his whole body. his voice rose under the black smoke before the burning wreckage of the island; and infected by that emotion, the other little boys began to shake and sob too. (Golding 186)

So, when using quotes:

  • Always have a good reason for using a direct quote. Otherwise, paraphrase or summarize.
  • Do not allow quotes to speak for themselves. Your research paper is about communicating YOUR IDEAS.  Your research simply helps prove or support those ideas.
  • Always make sure you provide an analysis of the quote.  Show your readers that you understand how the quote relates to your ideas by analyzing its significance.
  • Do not use quotes as padding. If quotes do not have adequate analysis, readers will feel that you don’t have a grasp on what that quote means, and they also might feel that you are using quotes as “filler” to take up space.
  • Use no more than 2 direct quotes per paragraph.
  • Carefully integrate quotations into your text so that they flow smoothly and clearly into the surrounding sentences. Use a signal phrase or signal verb, such as those in the following example:

As Thompson (2020) makes clear, Youtube's algorithms "can’t distinguish between true and false data, except in the most crude way" (para. 5).  

Peas and Carrots

picture of peas and carrots

Whenever you have a reference at the end of your paper, you need at least one intext citation to go with it. Every intext citation should point to a reference at the end of your paper.

References and Intext Citations Go Together Like Peas and Carrots.

Your intext citation contains the first word(s) of your reference so the reader can find it easily.

For optimal decomposition, experts believe you should aim for a carbon to nitrogen ratio of 30:1 (Johnson 29).

Johnson, Lorraine. "Compost Happens: The Secret to Making Quick Gardener's Gold Instead of a Slow, Stinking Mess Requires, Like Everything Else, Balance." Canadian Gardening, vol. 12, no. 1, Feb, 2001, pp. 28-33. ProQuest, https://proxy154.nclive.org/login?

 

How to Use Titles of Your Sources in the Text (Prose) of Your Paper

If you use the title of a book, play, article, song, or other source in your paper, use the same formatting that you use in the Works Cited page (list of references).

Here are some examples of when to italicize.

Type of Source Example
Novels or Books

In the novel The Nightwatchman, Patrice hunts for her lost sister Vera.

Many high school students in Rowan County read The Great Gatsby.

Play Hamlet has a famous scene of the main character speaking to a skull.
Newspaper The Charlotte Observer is the largest newspaper in Charlotte, NC.
Magazine  An example of a weekly magazine is Time. 
Movie Avengers: Endgame was a huge success in 2019.
TV Show Homer is hilarious on The Simpsons. 
Website

There are lots of educational videos on Youtube. 

Most teachers don't want students to use Wikipedia.

Apps Debbie uses Instagram on her phone every day.
Video games I finally got high score on Super Mario World.
Radio Program or Podcast My dad loves Hidden Brain.
Visual art or performing art Going to The Nutcracker is a holiday tradition.
Court case Marbury v. Madison
Ships, aircraft, spacecraft USS Titanic, Enola Gay, Challenger
Album Name Harry's House is an album by Harry Styles.

​​​​​​Here are some examples of when to use quotes.

Type of Source Example
Journal or magazine article "When Michaelangelo Went to Constantinople" (from Smithsonian Magazine)
Encyclopedia article "Dogs" (from World Book Encyclopedia)
Essay in a collection "The Fiction of Langston Hughes" (from Norton's Anthology)
Short story "A Good Man is Hard to Find" (from Collected Stories of Flannery O'Connor)
Poem "Annabel Lee"
Chapter in a book "The Gilded Age and the Baron Robbers" (from the book American History)
Page on a website "NBA Schedule" (on the ESPN website)
Song or Video of a Song "Single Ladies"
Lecture "How to Get Started Writing Your Literary Analysis"

Some sources get no special formatting. 

Source Example
Scripture Bible, Koran, Old Testament, Genesis, Talmud, etc.
Laws, acts, political documents Bill of Rights, Magna Carta, Declaration of Independence, Patriot Act
Buildings, ancient artworks Great Wall of China, Empire State Building, Venus de Milo
Band names, author names Beatles, One Direction, Ernest Hemingway

Examples from MLA Handbook, 9th Edition, 2021. pages 68-73.

Source within a Source, Indirect Source, Secondary Source

I am reading about John Reith in the Humanities, Society and Technology textbook by Satterwhite and other authors.

I paraphrased what I read and I wrote this.

John Reith lead the BBC as its first General Manager and wanted to keep the BBC "free from political interference and commercial pleasure" (qtd. in Satterwhite et al. 145). 

Here's what goes in the Works Cited because this is the source I read.

Satterwhite, Robin, et al. Humanities, Society and Technology. Kendall Hunt, 2015.

*The qtd. in the intext citation shows that the information in the Humanities book was originally somewhere else. 


Maybe this will make it more clear for you.

You are reading about Smith in an article by Kirkey.


 

Examples of in-text citations:

According to a study by Smith (qtd. in Kirkey) 42% of doctors would refuse to perform legal euthanasia.

Smith (qtd. in Kirkey) states that “even if euthanasia was legal, 42% of doctors would be against this method of assisted dying” (A.10).

Example of Reference list citation:

Kirkey, Susan. "Euthanasia." The Montreal Gazette, 9 Feb. 2013, p. A.10. Canadian Newsstand Major Dailies.

 

 

MLA Sample Paper and Citation Guides (Updated June 2021, MLA 9)

MLA Papers have a uniform style. Here are some of the elements: cat on books

  • Running Header, right aligned, Student's Last Name and page number.
  • 1" margins for the paper - on all sides
  • Left aligned for paragraphs
  • Paragraph indentions are .5"
  • Most teachers require Times New Roman 12 pt
  • No title page
  • No bold print in text
  • First page requires
    • Student's Name
    • Instructor's Name
    • Class name and number
    • Date in format date Month year (ie 11 June 2020) 

Intext Citations

MLA uses Author-page Style for parenthetical intext citations (at the end of the sentence) or the page number goes in the parenthesis at the end of the sentence for narrative intext citations (where the author's name is in the sentence).

  • Here's an example of parenthetical citation:
    • Romantic poetry is characterized by the "spontaneous overflow of powerful feelings" (Wordsworth 263).
  • Here's an example of a narrative intext citation:
    • Wordsworth stated that Romantic poetry was marked by a "spontaneous overflow of powerful feelings" (263).
  • Page number goes in parenthesis EVEN IF IT'S NOT a direct quote.
    • Wordsworth extensively explored the role of emotion in the creative process (263).
  • Here is the entry in the Works Cited page for the source.
    • Wordsworth, William. Lyrical Ballads. Oxford UP, 1967.

Other things to know:

  • For sources like webpages with no page numbers, do NOT include page numbers or paragraph numbers, even for direct quotes (MLA Handbook, Ninth Edition, page 248)
  • It's recommended to abbreviate long names of corporate or group authors in the intext. For example, Centers for Disease Control can be CDC in the intext citation.
  • Page numbers are required for all citations; not just direct quotes.
  • Purdue Owl says not to number paragraphs on webpages for the intext citations. 

 

Personal Interview MLA Style

References for personal interview in MLA style follow this format:

     Last, first name of interviewed. Personal interview. Date of interview.

     Smith, Jane. Personal interview. 19 May 2014.

Intext citations follow this format:

     (Last name)

     (Smith)

Long Block Quotes (MLA)

If a quote runs more than four lines long, you must block the quote with a .5 margin on the left. Do not use quotation marks even though it's a direct quote.

At the conclusion of Lord of the Flies, Ralph, realizing the horror of his actions, is overcome by

great, shuddering spasms of grief that seemed to wrench his whole body. his voice rose under the black smoke before the burning wreckage of the island; and infected by that emotion, the other little boys began to shake and sob too. (186)

Paraphrasing/Summarizing

Guidelines for Paraphrasing and Summarizing

Think of Paraphrases and Summaries as your foundations

Paraphrase and summarize long passages where the main point is important to the point you are making, but the details are not. You should use paraphrasing and summarizing much more often than direct quotes. A good balance would be 75% paraphrasing and summarizing and 25% direct quotes.

Paraphrase: You are paraphrasing when you take someone else’s words and rewrite them in your own words without altering the meaning or providing interpretation. Paraphrases are about the same length as the original. Always cite your paraphrase.
Summarize: You are summarizing when you condense the author's words or ideas without altering the meaning or providing interpretation using your own words -- basically, you’re presenting the original information in a nutshell. Always cite it.

Examples of Paraphrases

Introduce paraphrases clearly in your text, usually with a signal phrase that includes the author of the source. Here is original text and paraphrased text.

Original:

Volunteers feel more socially connected, they're less lonely, and suffer from depression less, studies show. Volunteering creates physical benefits too: Regular volunteers are less likely to develop high blood pressure and live longer, some studies show. (text is from "Dalai Lama: 5 Things to Keep in Mind for the Next Four Years" from CNN.com, written by Jen Christensen)

Paraphrased text in APA style:

Volunteering has psychological and physical benefits, according to studies. Along with being less depressed and lonely, volunteers also live longer and are less likely to have high blood pressure (Christensen, 2017).

Paraphrased text in MLA style:

Volunteering has psychological and physical benefits, according to studies. Along with being less depressed and lonely, volunteers also live longer and are less likely to have high blood pressure (Christensen).


Examples of Summaries

Summaries, too, need to be carefully integrated into your text. Make sure to signal the reader that you are summarizing and include the correct citation.

Here is an example of a summary in APA format:

In Christensen's article, she explores Dalai Lama's advice to people who want to find happiness in an uncertain world. His Holiness believes that people should focus on developing compassion, letting go of anger, self-reflecting, helping others, and being playful like children (Christensen, 2017). 

Here's the summary in MLA format:

In Christensen's article, she explores Dalai Lama's advice to people who want to find happiness in an uncertain world. His Holiness believes that people should focus on developing compassion, letting go of anger, self-reflecting, helping others, and being playful like children (Christensen). 

Whenever you include summaries, paraphrases, or quotations in your own writing, it is important that you identify the sources of the material; even unintentional failure to cite material is plagiarism. Be especially careful with paraphrases and summaries, where there are no quotation marks to remind you that the material is not your own.

Often, long paraphrases continue for multiple sentences. Usually you'll intext cite the source in the first sentence. It is not necessary to cite every single sentence IF you've made it clear in the narrative that the information discussed is from the before-mentioned source.

*Note that the bold words show where the information is coming from. Students should NOT bold the words.

Here's an example:


Tucker and Maddey (2020) found that predatory behavior in dogs is due to many different factors. One of the factors is the physical territory of the alleged threat. The research found that "dogs are more willing to attack or defend territory that is considered to be their own" (Tucker & Maddey, 2020, p. 81). Another factor they discovered is that dogs are more willing to prey on a threat if their human owners are nearby. In an experiment conducted over multiple days using cameras, Tucker and Maddey discovered that dogs were shown to be much more protective with predatory behavior when their owners were in the vicinity they when the owners were away. In conclusion, the research shows that dogs have innate predatory behavior traits which are enhanced by the dogs' desires to protect their human owners (Tucker & Maddey, 2020).   

If you're using information from a source more than once in a row (with no other sources referred to in between), you can use a simplified in-text citation. The first time you use information from the source, use a full in-text citation. The second time, you only need to give the page number.

Example:

Cell biology is an area of science that focuses on the structure and function of cells (Smith 15). It revolves around the idea that the cell is a "fundamental unit of life" (17). Many important scientists have contributed to the evolution of cell biology. Mattias Jakob Schleiden and Theodor Schwann, for example, were scientists who formulated cell theory in 1838 (20). 

*Thank you to the Library at Columbia College for this example.

Paraphrasing will allow you to maintain your voice and style while showing your understanding of the source material.

Reasons why you would want to paraphrase from a source:

  • To change the organization of ideas for emphasis. You may have to change the organization of ideas in the passages you pull from your sources so that you can emphasize the points  most related to your paper.  Be sure to restate in your own words, but don’t change the meaning.
  • To simplify the material. You may have to simplify complex arguments, sentences, or vocabulary.
  • To clarify the material. You may have rewrite to clarify technical passages or put specialized information into language your audience will be better able to understand.

Paraphrasing is a valuable skill because:

  • It is better than quoting information from a passage that doesn't have memorable or important words or phrases
  • It helps you control the temptation to quote too much
  • It allows the writer to put the idea of a source into their own voice (but always cite it to show it is someone else's idea).

Tips on Summarizing:

A summary is a condensed version of someone else’s writing. Like paraphrasing, summarizing involves using your own words and writing style to express another author’s ideas. Unlike the paraphrase, which presents important details, the summary presents only the most important ideas of the passage. For example, you could summarize a book in a sentence, or in several paragraphs, depending on your writing situation and audience. You may use the summary often for the following reasons:

  • To condense the material.You may have to condense or reduce the source material to pull out the  points that relate to your paper.
  • To omit extras from the material.You may have to leave out extra information from the source material so you can focus on the author’s main points.
  • To simplify the material. You may have to simply the most important complex arguments, sentences or vocabulary in the source material.

When you decide to summarize or paraphrase, avoid the following:

  • keeping the same structure of ideas and/or sentence structure
  • just changing some of the words
  • adding your ideas into the summary - be faithful to the meaning of the source material.
  • forgetting to cite your sources and use signal words.

Abbreviations for Months for Works Cited List

 

Jan.

Feb.

Mar.

Apr.

Aug.

Sept.

Oct.

Nov.

Dec.

bookcases

Citing More Than One Source By Same Author

If you have more than one work by the same author, use the title or beginning of the title in the intext citation and a page number if available. The sources are both by Maddey Tucker. 

For some dogs, food is a motivator but for other dogs, this isn't true ("Art of a Dog"). Having multiple dogs living together domestically is also a factor in feeding and food motivation ("Food and Your Dog" 45). 


Notice in the Works Cited page, you don't repeat the name of the author but instead use three hyphens (---) to indicate the same author on all the sources after the first one. Both of these sources are by Maddey Tucker.

Tucker, Maddey. "Art of a Dog." Dog's Life, 4 Aug 2019,  www.dogslife.com/tuck/art

---. "Food and Your Dog." Animals Monthly, 2 Mar 2018, pp. 44-47. 

Citing an Illustration, Figure, or Drawing

To be young: coming of age and contemporary

Fig. 1. Bill Bamberger. Deandry, 2001; printed 2005, North Carolina Museum of Art, Raleigh, NC.

Works Cited

Bamberger, Bill. Deandry, 2001; printed 2005, North Carolina Museum of Art, Raleigh, NC.

Other Resources

Dealing with Numbers in MLA

When there are few numbers in your text, spell out numbers that can be written in a word or two.

one two thousand
thirty-six two-thirds
three million eight hundred

Use numerals when the number requires more than two words

2 1/2 601
1,275 12.56

Use numerals when using numbers in text with units behind the numbers. For example, 60 inches or 8 kilograms would be in numerals. 

 

Abbreviations for Bible Verses

Bible abbreviations for mla