Eleventh Grade Composition
Parenthetical Citations
When you are writing a paper that includes research, you must give credit whenever you use
someone else’s words, ideas, or research. In MLA style papers, this is achieved through the
use of in-text citations, called parenthetical citations. You will use these citations to document any
external information used within a paper (unless the material cited is considered general knowledge).
The point of the parenthetical citations is to direct readers to the full bibliographic citations listed in the
Works Cited page, located at the end of the document. In most cases, the parenthetical citations include
the author's last name and the specific page number for the information cited. The citations are meant to
give intellectual credit to the original source in a brief and clear fashion.
In general, the best citations contain the author’s last name and the page number where you found the
information. However, there are many variations, since not all sources (e.g. websites) have authors,
some sources have more than one author, some don’t have pages, etc.
So my goal is to show you the basics, and to point you in the right direction to figure out the more
complicated ones. Let’s assume we have the author’s name and the page number. There are two
common ways to cite:
1.
By citing the author’s last name and the page number in parentheses after the direct or indirect quote.
Here’s an example:
“People will pay more for a June tomato than one in October” (Kingsolver 120).
2. By citing the author’s name within the sentence and placing just the page number in the
parentheses. Here’s an example:
According to Kingsolver, “People will pay more for a June tomato than one in
October” (120).
Either of these versions will allow your reader to find the book by Kingsolver that is listed on
your Works Cited page and be able to go in to the book to find the original quote.
So, WHEN SHOULD YOU CITE?
You should CITE BORROWED WORDS AND BORROWED IDEAS.
 DIRECT QUOTES. Be sure to put all borrowed words and expressions in quotation marks! Make
sure the words you put into your paper are exactly the same as the words from the original source.
EX: Surveys show that “four out of ten homes have defective smoke detectors” (Jones A2).
 PARAPHRASED INFORMATION (a source’s idea in your own words and sentence structure).
GOOD PARAPHRASE:
Shockingly, results from surveys reveal that 40% of homes contain smoke
detectors that do not work (Jones A2).
BAD PARAPHRASE:
Surveys demonstrate that out of ten homes, four have defective smoke
detectors (Jones A2).
(“Bad” because the writer plugged in a few synonyms, switched the order
and kept much of the original wording.)
 SUMMARIZED INFORMATION (reduction of source’s information to a few lines in either the
original words or your own words).
EX: According to Fire Chief Pat Jones, recent surveys show that 40% of homes contain
ineffective smoke detectors, and an even greater percentage of residences lack an emergency exit
plan. In the survey, 30% of children claimed to feel that closets, and the space under their beds were
safe places to go during a fire (Jones A2-A3).
If you do not cite your source in all three of these situations, you are plagiarizing.
Some general rules about parenthetical citations:
1. Within the parentheses, there will be an author’s last name and a page number or just a page
number. If the author’s last name has just been mentioned and readers already know who is
being cited, do not repeat it. You must use only the page number in this case.
2. There is never a comma or a "p" between the author’s name and the page number, just a single
blank space.
3. When citing a direct quotation, the parenthetical citation always comes after the end quotation
mark. The ending parenthesis is not included within the quotation marks.
4. At the end of a sentence, the period always comes after the ending parenthesis. Don’t put a
period and then add the parenthetical citation. Don’t use two periods either, only the one after
the parenthetical citation.
Special notes:

Long Quotations (more than 4 lines):
These are set off by indenting the entire passage five spaces. This indentation already
indicates that you are quoting, so do not use quotation marks, and the line spacing before,
within, and after the quotation remains the standard double space.
If the author were Stanley Friedman and the passage occurred on pages 26-27 of his book or
article, parenthetical documentation would look like this:
Acquiring a tattoo while attending college can express a wide range of possible
motivations, from self-expression to social conformity, from impulsive daring to selfdoubt. Motivation may even change over time for a single individual who acquires
more than one tattoo. But the common denominator appears to be identity formation,
whether as positive process or personal crisis. (Friedman 26-27)
[Note: The information provided is the same as for shorter quotations—in this case an author’s
But unlike shorter quotations, the
parenthesis comes after the final period—and is
followed by no punctuation mark.]
last name and a page number.
OR you can choose to use an ellipsis to shorten the quote if some of the material in the middle
seems unimportant….
Acquiring a tattoo while attending college can express a wide range of possible
motivations, from self-expression to social conformity, from impulsive daring to selfdoubt…But the common denominator appears to be identity formation, whether as
positive process or personal crisis. (Friedman 26-27)
 Citing the Same Page Several Times in One Paragraph:
If you write a paragraph that quotes more than once from the same page of the same source—
and no other source is quoted—you may use a single parenthesis after the last quotation. You
should introduce the author at the beginning of the quoted information and then put the page
number at the end in parentheses.
As we try to figure out how to use parenthetical citations in other situations, it is important to understand
the specific types that you have among your ten cards.

Source with page number and one author, including articles from online databases
I HAVE _________ OF THESE
They get cited like this: Author’s last name followed by page number(s). (Stark 120).
Or this: According to Stark, “…..” (120).

Sources with page numbers and with two to three authors
I HAVE _________ OF THESE.
They get cited like this: Both or all authors’ last names followed by page number.
(Burt and Ernie 73)
Or this: According to Burt and Ernie, “…” (73).

Source with page numbers but no author given
I HAVE _________ OF THESE.
They get cited like this: Title or shortened form of it followed by the page number. (“Dangerous Drivers”
152).
Or this: According to the article, “Dangerous Drivers,” “…” (152).
 Source with an author but no page numbers (on-line source, including un-paginated articles from
online databases)
I HAVE _________ OF THESE.
They get cited like this: Author’s name only. If no author is given, title only. (Wineman) or (“Road Rage”)
Or this: According to Wineman, “….”
 Sources by two different authors with the same last name
I HAVE _________ OF THESE.
They get cited like this: First and last name of author followed by page number. (Joe Dirt 99) versus (Zack
Dirt 485)
Or this: According to Zack Dirt,”….”

An indirect source; when a writer’s or speaker’s quoted words appear in a source written by
someone else: [For example, if in the newspaper article you are reading about capital punishment, the
writer interviews a death row inmate, the inmate’s words would be an indirect source.
I HAVE ________OF THESE.
They get cited like this: Introduce the name of the person you are quoting in front of the quote. Then, begin the
citation with the abbreviation “qtd. in” e.g. Death Row inmate Hank Drake states, “I was not thinking
about the electric chair when I murdered him” (qtd. in Robinson 298).

A film or video-recording, including those from Youtube
I HAVE ________OF THESE.
They get cited like this: the title of the film. (Troy)
***I have __________________sources that do not fit into any of these categories. I need to talk to Ms.
Lobitz about these.
YOUR TASK IS TO WRITE TWO SAMPLES - using quotes from your note cards- FOR EACH TYPE OF
SOURCE YOU HAVE. (For indirect sources, films, and audios, just write one.)
Exercise Two
Each of the following sentences makes at least one error (often more than one) in MLA citation format
or usage. Correct those errors.
1. A major reason families succeeded in the 1950s was that "federal assistance programs were
much more generous and widespread than they are today." (Coontz, p. 62).
2. According to Stephanie Coontz, in the 1950s "federal assistance programs were much more
generous and widespread than they are today" (Coontz, 62).
3. Stephanie Coontz argues that it was the generosity and availability of federal aid programs
that made families seem so successful and reliable in the 1950s.
4. Even politically conservative scholars admit that we "should not hide from students that
Colombus and other European explorers were often brutal" (Cheney, 267.)
5. Lynne Cheney is forced to admit that students should learn that even European explorers were
"often brutal (Cheney 267)."
6. Lynne Cheney concedes that students must be told the errors of our European past (p. 267).