Transcript What is a citation?

MLA Style
A Guide to Citing Sources
First things first: What is a citation?
MLA citation style
Why you need to cite your sources
How to cite your sources
Works Cited list
Parenthetical citations
First things first: What is a citation?
A citation is a reference to a source used in a
research project.
Baines, Dudley. Emigration from
Europe, 1815-1930. Cambridge:
University Press, 1995. Print.
Whenever you use another
person’s ideas or words in a
research paper, you must cite, or
give credit, to that person.
That’s called citing your source.
MLA citation style
Citations must be accurate and standard so
that anyone who reads your research can easily
find the information you used.
MLA style is a standard way of
citing sources. This means
each source you use should be
formatted in a specific way.
MLA style was developed by the
Modern Language Association.
Why you need to cite your sources
There are three important reasons to cite
your sources.
1. to find information
2. to show that you
understand your topic
3. to avoid plagiarism
Why you need to cite your sources
Citations help you remember
where you got your
information.
You can return to a source for
more information or to clarify
facts.
Citations help your readers locate
information when they want to do
more research.
Why you need to cite your sources
Citations show that your research was careful
and thorough.
They also show that other people support what
you’ve written about your topic.
Why you need to cite your sources
Citations give credit to people whose ideas you
use.
Plagiarism is using
someone else’s
ideas or knowledge
without giving that
person credit. Avoid
plagiarism by giving
people credit for
their ideas and their
words.
How to cite your sources
Use two ways to cite your sources.
1. At the end of your
paper, add a Works
Cited list.
2. Within the paper, use
parenthetical
citations.
How to cite your sources
A Works Cited list is a list of all the sources you used
in your research paper. Here are some entries for part of
a Works Cited list.
Baines, Dudley. Emigration from Europe, 1815-1930.
Cambridge: University Press, 1995. Print.
Brenner, Reuven. “Land of Opportunity” Forbes 12
Oct. 1998: 66-68. Print.
“Chinese and Westward Expansion.” The Chinese in
California, 1850-1925. Library of Congress. 28
March 2003. Web. 20 Nov 2008.
Works Cited list
Books
Here is the basic format for a book entry in a Works
Cited list.
Author’s last name, Author’s
first name. Book Title. City
of publication: Publisher’s
name, year of publication.
Medium of publication.
Baines, Dudley. Emigration from Europe, 1815-1930.
Cambridge: University Press, 1995. Print.
Works Cited list
Periodicals
Periodicals are publications that are published
regularly, or periodically, such as newspapers,
magazines, and journals.
Works Cited list
Periodicals
Here’s the basic format for a magazine article.
Author’s last name, Author’s first name. “Article Title.”
Magazine Name day Month year: page number(s).
Medium of publication.
Brenner, Reuven. “Land of Opportunity” Forbes 12
Oct. 1998: 66-68. Print.
If the article isn’t printed on consecutive pages, give
the first page and a plus sign.
Newman, Kathy M. “America: Through Immigrant
Eyes.” The Journal of American History Dec.
2006: 125+. Print.
Works Cited list
Citing nonprint sources
There are many other kinds of sources besides books
and magazines. You might use TV programs, DVDs,
CDs, or Web sites.
Web sites can be very useful as source material, but
you must cite them properly.
Works Cited list
Citing nonprint sources: Web site
Here’s the basic format for a Web site entry for the
Works Cited list.
Author’s last name, Author’s first name (if known).
“Document Title.” Title of Web Site. Name of
Sponsoring Institution. day Month year of
publication (or last update). Medium of Publication.
day Month year of access.
“Chinese and Westward Expansion.” The Chinese in
California, 1850-1925. Library of Congress. 28
March 2003. Web. 20 Nov 2008.
Works Cited list
Sources are put in
the Works Cited
list in alphabetical
order, doublespaced, and
indented one-half
inch.
Here is an excerpt
from a final Works
Cited list.
Works Cited
Baines, Dudley. Emigration from
Europe, 1815-1930. Cambridge:
University Press, 1995. Print.
Brenner, Reuven. “Land of
Opportunity” Forbes 12 Oct.
1998: 66-68. Print.
Parenthetical citations
Listing all your sources in the Works Cited list is an
important part of your research paper.
In the body of your paper,
you also need to tell
exactly where you found
any information that came
from other sources.
You do that using a
parenthetical citation.
Parenthetical citations
A parenthetical citation appears in the
body of your paper wherever you use
another person’s ideas, facts, or
words.
A parenthetical citation
always refers to a source
in your Works Cited list.
Parenthetical citations
To create a parenthetical citation, give the author’s
last name and the page number(s) from the source.
Put this information in parentheses at the end of the
sentence, before the final punctuation.
Many letters sent home to families were written
with the intent of encouraging further emigration
(Baines 32).
Readers can now find complete information about the
source in your Works Cited list.
Baines, Dudley. Emigration from Europe, 1815-1930.
Cambridge: University Press, 1994. Print.
Parenthetical citations
If the author’s name appears in the sentence, you
need to cite only the page number(s) in parentheses.
Dudley Baines notes that some letters sent home to
families were written with the intent of
encouraging further emigration (32).
For sources without page numbers, like most Web
sites, you should include the author’s name or the
title of the source within the text instead of using
parentheses.
According
“Chinese
According to
to the
the Web
Web page
page “Chinese
Expansion”
most Chinese
Chinese immigrants
immigrants
Expansion” most
allowed
allowed to
to own
own land
land or
or file
file mining
mining
and Westward
Westward
and
were not
not
were
claims.
claims.
Your Turn
All the examples in this presentation can be found in
the Works Cited List Model, which is part of the
Student Handouts for the MLA/APA Styles feature.
The handouts Your Turn: Create MLA Source
Citations and Your Turn: Create MLA
Parenthetical Citations also provide opportunities to
practice creating sources and parenthetical citations.
The End