MLA Format Guide for Synthesis Essays
Reminders for formatting paper :
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Document should be double spaced, size 10-12 in a clear, readable font
On the left side of your first page - you should have a heading that includes (in this order) :
o Your name
o Teacher's full name
o Class name
o Date in this format - 06 December 2013
In the header portion of your document should be your last name and the page number. To do this :
o In Google Drive - go to Insert/ Page Number/ Top of page.
o Move your cursor to before the page number and type your last name and one space (i.e. Holliday 1)
You should have a title for your piece that is centered above where your essay begins. Your title should NOT be bolded,
italicized, or underlined unless you are indicating the title of a source. Your title should not be the name of the assignment but
something that indicates what your essay is about.
Parenthetical Citations – What goes in parentheses after your evidence
The purpose of parenthetical citation in the body of your essay is to point your reader to the full citation of your source on your
Works Cited page in case they should want to look up/ see the full source. Whatever goes in parentheses after your evidence (quote
or paraphrase) is what should be listed all the way to the left as the first part of your citation.
What information is included in a parenthetical citation?
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Source with known author and page numbers: If you quote, paraphrase, or otherwise use a specific passage in a book, an
article, or another work, give the relevant page or section number or numbers. When the author’s name is in your writing,
give only the number reference in parentheses, but if the context does not clearly identify the author, add the author’s last
name before the reference. Leave a space between them, but do not insert punctuation or, for a page reference, the
word page or pages or the abbreviation p.or pp. Ex. (Shelley 4)
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Source with known author but without page numbers: If your source has no page or paragraph numbers, give the relevant
author’s name only. Ex. (McMurphy).
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Source with unknown author : If a source does not include an author's name, substitute for the author's name the title or
an abbreviated title in the text or parenthetical citation. If the source is a short piece (article, video, etc), use quotation
marks:
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The use of Customer Relationship Management (CRM) systems has grown substantially over the past five years as
companies attempt to adapt to customer needs and to improve their profitability ("Making CRM Work").
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If the title of the article is long, you may abbreviate the title when you reference it in your essay.
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"Heroic Man Dies Saving Child from Powerful Riptide" ------> ("Man Dies Saving Child")
Works Cited & Works Consulted
Your Works Cited page lists the works that you actually cite in your essay. Your Works Consulted page lists the works that you
consult or read but do not cite in your essay. The Works Cited page comes BEFORE the Works Consulted page. Each is formatted
in the EXACT same way.5506
Arrangement of Entries in the Works Cited/Works Consulted page:
Entries in a works-cited list are arranged in alphabetical order, which helps the reader to find the entry corresponding to a citation
in the text. Alphabetize by author’s last name and/or title of article if no author is known.
Sample Entries
Video in You Tube
Author’s Name or Poster’s Username. “Title of Image or Video.” Media Type Text. Name of Website. Name of
Website’s Publisher, date of posting. Medium. date retrieved
Article from an online newspaper
Author. “Article Title.” Newspaper Title. Day Month Year, ed.: pages. Vol.Issue (Year): page. Date retrieved information
Poem from the web
Poet’s Name. “Title of Work.” Title of Site. Name of Institution Associated with the site, date of publication. Web. Date of Access.
Article from website
Last, First M. “Website article.” Website. Publisher, Date published. Web. Date accessed.
Book with one author
Lastname, Firstname. Title of Book. City of Publication: Publisher, Year of Publication. Medium of Publication.
Need an example that you don’t see here? Check out: http://www.easybib.com/ebook/mla_website