Modern Language Association
(MLA) Research Style
Why Use MLA Style?
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Consistent format across institutions
Gives reader a roadmap to follow
Makes clear connections between your
thoughts and the research that is
already out there
Gives you credibility as a writer
Protects you from plagiarism
Elements of MLA Style
Paper Format
 Works Cited Page
 In-text Citations
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MLA Paper Format
MLA Paper Format
 12
point font, Times New Roman
 1” margins all around – double check!
 Everything is double-spaced
 Header has your last name and page
number against right margin
 First line of each new paragraph is
indented
MLA Paper Format
 First
page has title, centered, same font
and size as the rest of the paper
 First page also has heading in top left
(not in header) with
 Your
name
 Instructor’s name
 Course
 Date
Sample First Page
MLA Works Cited Page
Works Cited Page
 Last
page of your paper
 Provides publication information for all
the works you have cited in your paper
 Alphabetical by the first word in the
entry
 Works Cited centered at top
 Is numbered like the rest of the paper
 Uses the hanging indent – first line
flush with left margin; subsequent lines
indented
Sample Works Cited Page
Works Cited Entries
 Book
with single author
Tan, Amy. The Bonesetter’s Daughter. New
York: Putnam, 2001. Print.
Works Cited Entries
 Entire
Web site
Peterson, Susan Lynn. The Life of Martin
Luther. Susan Lynn Peterson, 2005.
Web. 24 Jan. 2009.
Works Cited Entries
 Work
from a database service (such as
NC Live)
Barrera, Rebeca María. "A Case for
Bilingual Education." Scholastic
Parent and Child Nov.-Dec. 2004:
72-73. ProQuest Central. Web. 1
Feb. 2009.
MLA In-text Citations
In-Text Citations
 Anytime
you make a connection to
someone else’s idea, you MUST include
a parenthetical citation to indicate
where that idea can be found.
 Includes at least the page number. If
you don’t mention the author’s name in
your sentence, the parentheses also
have the author’s last name, then page
number.
Sample In-Text Citations
In-Text Citations
 ANY
borrowed material MUST have a
citation. This includes
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Direct quotations
Paraphrases
Summaries
 This is where you protect
yourself from plagiarism! 
Special Quotations
 Quotations
longer than four lines
Indented 10 spaces, keep doublespacing, no quotation marks needed,
period goes BEFORE citation.
 Leaving words out of a quotation
Use points of ellipsis to show where
the words were
 Changing a word in a quotation
Use brackets to indicate change
Resources
A
Writer’s Reference (your handbook!)
 LAC
 Your instructor
 Purdue OWL http://owl.english.purdue.edu/