MLA Style
academic credibility/honesty
By: M. Hickey - Cawthra Park S.S.
Cawthra Park S. S. (sept 2008)
What is MLA Style
Specifications for essays
 Layout
 Citing resources
Cawthra Park S. S. (sept 2008)
Why Cite
Academic honesty
 Give credit to those who earned it
 Give credibility to your paper
 If you don’t cite, you are plagiarising
 Plagiarising is cheating
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Cawthra Park S. S. (sept 2008)
A Typical Paper
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1"/2.5cm margins
double spaced
12 point font
Times New Roman
every paragraph is
indented
Cawthra Park S. S. (sept 2008)
1st Step for Citing
• Entry for every
resource used in
the essay
• Double spaced
• Title is "Works
Cited"
• New page
• Hanging indent
used so second
and subsequent
lines are pushed in
• Very specific rules
for each resource
• Alphabetical order
by first item in the
list
Cawthra Park S. S. (sept 2008)
2nd Step for Citing
Place embedded
citations
throughout your
essay wherever
you use someone
else's work
Cawthra Park S. S. (sept 2008)
The Tricky Part
Formatting the Citations
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Citations are different for every type of
resource
Follow the formats and examples for the
types of materials you are using
Use the Source It print guide
Use Source It online (site at school only)
http://www.turnerfenton.com/Library/resear
ch/howto/
Cawthra Park S. S. (sept 2008)
Works Cited: Guiding Principles
Give as much information as possible
 Make sure your teacher can acquire
the resource
 If something is missing, leave it out
 Cite every resource you use
 DO NOT cite wikis
 Use reliable sources only
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Cawthra Park S. S. (sept 2008)
Works Cited Basic Rules
Steinbicker, Earl. Day Trips New York. Fern
Park: Hastings House, 2002. Google
Books. 12 Jan. 2007
<http://books.google.com>.
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Anderson, Chalon E., Amy T. Carrell, and
Jimmy L. Widdifield, Jr. APA and MLA
Writing Formats. Toronto: Pearson, 2004.
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“Police Credit YouTube in Finding Murder
Suspect.“ Medicine Hat News (AB) 22
Dec. 2006. Student Research Centre.
EBSCO. Cawthra S.S. 9 Jan. 2007
<http://www.ebscohost.com>.
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Author is first unless
there is no author
Titles are underlined
Component works
are in quotations
Indent the second
and subsequent
lines
Place in alphabetical
order
Scrooge. Dir. Ronald Neame. Perf. Albert
Finney. Paramount Pictures, 2003.
Cawthra Park S. S. (sept 2008)
Embedded Citation
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Check details in "Source It."
Include one for every resource.
Place it in brackets.
Provide the first piece of information from
the Works Cited page
Provide the page number if available.
(West 12) (14) (Shakespeare 3.3.81)
("Two Ships Collide…") (Agenda)
Cawthra Park S. S. (sept 2008)