MLA In-text Citations from The Purdue OWL
MLA format follows the author-page method of in-text citation. This means that the author's last name and the page number(s) from which the quotation or paraphrase is taken must appear in the text, and a complete reference should appear on your Works Cited page. The author's name may appear either in the sentence itself or in parentheses following the quotation or paraphrase, but the page number(s) should always appear in the parentheses, not in the text of your sentence. All three examples below are correct:
Wordsworth stated that Romantic poetry was marked by a "spontaneous overflow of powerful feelings" (263). [page number only in parenthesis because the author’s name is in the sentence along with a direct quote]
Romantic poetry is characterized by the "spontaneous overflow of powerful feelings"
(Wordsworth 263). [page number and author’s name in parenthesis because author is quoted without being named in the sentence]
Wordsworth extensively explored the role of emotion in the creative process (263). [page number only in parenthesis because the author’s name is in the sentence along with a paraphrase]
Adapted from the Purdue OWL
The basic format for citing a shorter piece from an anthology is below:
Last name, First name. "Title of Piece." Title of Collection . Ed. Editor's Name(s). City of
Publication: Publisher, Year. Page range of entry. Medium of Publication.
Example from our textbook:
Satrapi, Marjane. “The Shabbat.” The Norton Introduction to Literature. Ed. Kelly J. Mays. New
York: Norton, 2013. 20-28. Print.
If you cite more than one piece from the same anthology, MLA indicates you may cross-reference within your works cited list in order to avoid writing out the publishing information for each separate piece.
You should consider this option if you have several references from a single text. To do so, include a separate entry for the entire collection listed by the editor's name as below:
Mays, Kelly J., ed. The Norton Introduction to Literature . New York: Norton, 2013. Print.
Then, for each individual piece from the anthology/collection, list the author's name in last name, first name format, the title of the essay, the editor's last name, and the page range:

Satrapi, Marjane. “The Shabbat.” Mays 20-28.
Vapnyar, Lara. “Puffed Rice and Meatballs.” Mays 72-80.
Please note: When cross-referencing items in the works cited list, alphabetical order should be maintained for the entire list.
Citations for sources not from the Norton:
Black, Michael Ian. "What I Would Be Thinking About If I Were Billy Joel Driving Toward a
Holiday Party Where I Knew There Was Going to Be a Piano." McSweeney's Internet
Tendency . McSweeney's Publishing, 27 Apr. 2005. Web. 20 Feb. 2015.
Skloot, Rebecca. Excerpt: Prologue “The Woman in the Photograph” from The Immortal Life of
Henrietta Lacks. Rebecca Skloot, 2010. Web. 24 February 2015.
Brooks, Max. World War Z.
2006. PDF.
Sedaris, David. “Chicken in the Henhouse.” 2004. PDF.
See Writer’s Reference for in-text citation information (pg. 423)