MLA Citation Guide

This guide is based on the MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers, 7th edition (2009).  Works Cited items are listed alphabetically at the end of the research paper.  Please note: citations on the Works Cited page should be double-spaced.  After the first line, citations should be indented 1/2 inch.

Parenthetical references are items referred to in the body of the paper.

For additional examples, please refer to the MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers, available in the reference collections of the Thompson LIbrary, Science and Engineering Library, and other Ohio State University locations.

For other Websites that include citation examples, see the Purdue Online Writing Lab (OWL) 

Book (One Author)
Book (Two to Three Authors)
Book (Corporate Author)
Book (Anthology)
Scholarly Journal Article (One Author)
Scholarly Journal Article (Two Authors)
Magazine Article (One Author)
Newspaper Article
Encyclopedia Article
Electronic Resources
Electronic Scholarly Journal Article (From a database)
Electronic Scholarly Journal Article (From a Web Site)
Thesis or Dissertation (Print and Electronic)
Electronic Book

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Book (One Author)

Works Cited:
Hockney, David. Secret Knowledge: Recovering the Lost Techniques of the

     Old Masters. New York: Viking Studio, 2001. Print.

Parenthetical:
(Hockney p.)

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Book (Two to Three Authors)

Works Cited:
Anthony, William, Walter E. Wheatley, and P.E. Smyth. Envisionary

     Management: A Guide for Human Resource Professionals in
    
     Management Training and Development. New York: Quorum, 1988. Print.

Parenthetical:
(William et. al. p.)

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Book (Corporate Author)

Works Cited:
American Medical Association. Genetic Engineering: A Case for Caution.

     New York: Random, 1996. Print.

Parenthetical:
(American Medical Association p.)

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Book (Anthology)

Works Cited:
Marshall, Denise. "Slaying the Angel and the Patriarch: The Grinning Wolf."

     Last Laughs: Perspectives on Women and Comedy. Ed. Regina Barreca.

     New York: Gordon and Breach, 1988. 149-77. Print.

Parenthetical:
(Marshall 150)

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Scholarly Journal Article (One Author)

Works Cited:
Myerson, Joel. "A Calendar of Transcendental Club Meetings."

     American Literature 44 (1972): 197-207. Print.

Parenthetical:
(Myerson 199)

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Scholarly Journal Article (Two Authors)

Works Cited:
Brown, Cecelia M., and Lina Ortega. "Information-Seeking

     Behavior of Physical Science Librarians: Research and Practice."

     College & Research Libraries 66 (2005): 231-247. Print.

Parenthetical:
(Brown and Ortega 237)

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Magazine Article (One Author)

Works Cited:
Cook, Mariana. "Cousin Kay." Victoria Nov. 2001: 27-28. Print.

Parenthetical:
(Cook 28)

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Newspaper Article

Works Cited:
Smith, James P. "Build it and They Will Come." New York Times 2 May 1987,

     late ed.: C2+. Print.

Parenthetical:
(Smith C2)

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Encyclopedia Article

Works Cited:
"Magna Carta." The New Encyclopedia Britannica. 15th ed. 1998. Print.

Parenthetical:
("Magna Carta" 521)

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Electronic Resources

MLA no longer requires the use of URLs in MLA citations. Because Web addresses are not static (i.e. they change often) and because documents sometimes appear in multiple places on the Web (e.g. on multiple databases), MLA explains that most readers can find electronic sources via title or author searches in Internet search engines.

Electronic Scholarly Journal Article (From a Database)

Works Cited:
Herold, Niels. "Pedagogy, Hamlet, and the Manufacture of Wonder."

     Shakespeare Quarterly 46.2 (1995):125-134. JSTOR. Web. 31 Dec. 2009.

Parenthetical:
(Niels)

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Electronic Scholarly Journal Article (From a Web Site)

Works Cited:
Sohmer, Steve. "12 June 1599: Opening Day at Shakespeare's Globe." Early

     Modern Literary Studies 3.1 (1997): n. pag. Web. 22 June 1999.

Parenthetical:
(Sohmer)

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Thesis or Dissertation (Print and Electronic)

Works Cited:
Bishop, Karen Lynn. Documenting Institutional Identity: Strategic Writing

     in the IUPUI Comprehensive Campaign. Diss. Purdue University, 2002. Ann

     Arbor: UMI, 2004. Print.

Parenthetical:
(Bishop n. pag.)

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Works Cited:
Ryals, Douglas Wesley. "Renaissance Speculation: Shakespeare and the

     Prehistory of Liberalis." Diss. University of California, Irvine, 2006.

     Proquest Digital Dissertations. Proquest.

Parenthetical:
(Ryals n.pag.)

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Electronic Book

Works Cited:
Horowitz, Daniel. "Growing Up Absurd." Vance Packard & American

     Social Criticism. Chapel Hill: U of North Carolina Press, 1994.

     NetLibrary. Web. 16 October 2008.

Parenthetical:
(Horowitz 2008)