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MLA Style -- Bibliographic Guide for Research Papers

The following is a basic guide to the MLA bibliographic style. For further information and additional instruction consult the MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers, call number 808.02 G53 (most recent edition at the Reserve Desk) or the MLA web page www.mla.org. The numbers next to each example refer to the applicable MLA rule.

 

BOOKS

General format 
Author’s last name, first name. Title of Book.
               City of publication: Publisher, date of publication.

One author 5.6.1
Innes, Jocasta. Painting Furniture: A How-to Guide to an Ancient Craft.
  New York: Pantheon Books, 1991.

Two or three authors 5.6.4
Stern, Nancy and Robert A. Stern. Computing in the Information Age.
  New York: John Wiley & Sons, 1993.

More than three authors 5.6.4
Callahan, Michael T. et al. Discovery in Construction Litigation.
  Charlottesville: Michie Company, 1994.

Editor 5.6.2
Gesner, George, ed. Anthology of American Poetry. New York:
  Avenel Books, 1983.

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ARTICLES FROM REFERENCE WORKS

General Format
Author’s last name, first name. "Title of Article." Title of Book.
   City of publication: Publisher, date of publication.

Encyclopedia 5.6.8
Posner, Ernst. "Archives." Encyclopedia Americana. Danbury:
  Grolier,1999.

Contemporary Literary Criticism (also Nineteenth Century Literary Criticism and Twentieth Century Literary Criticism)
Full article 5.6.7
"T. Coraghessan Boyle." Contemporary Literary Criticism.
   Volume 90. Ed. Jeff Chapman, et al. Detroit: Gale, 1996.

Direct quotes from CLC, NCLC, TCLC
Cite the original book or article and then the source used.

If the original work is a book:
Winters, Yvor. The Post-Symbolist Methods (Allan Swallow, 1967);
  excerpted and reprinted in Contemporary Literary Criticism, Vol. 85. Ed. Christopher Giroux. Detroit: Gale, 1995.

If the original work is an article:
Dyer, Geoff. "A Collision with History." New Statesman & Society 26
  Aug. 1988: 36; excerpted and reprinted in
  Contemporary Literary Criticism, Vol. 90. Ed.
  Jeff Chapman, et al. Detroit: Gale, 1996.

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JOURNAL OR MAGAZINE ARTICLES

General format 5.7.1
Author’s last name, first name. "Title of Article." Journal Title date: pages.

One author 5.7.2
Bylinsky, Gene. "Using Hot Rocks to Generate Energy." Fortune 28 Dec.
   1992: 89.

Two authors 5.7.2
Chisholm, Patricia and Barbara Wickens. "Sick of Work: Finding Out why
  Some Offices Make People Ill." Maclean’s 19 April
  1993: 42-8.

Newspaper 5.7.5
Holmes, Steven A. "Clinton tells Hispanic Group it Must Combat Urban
  Crime." New York Times 22 Nov. 1993, late ed.: A5.
   

Review or criticism 5.7.7
Smith, John. "Has Harry Potter Petered Out?" Rev. of Harry Potter and
  the Order of the Phoenix, by R.K. Rowlings. Library
  Journal 15 May 2003: 18-20.

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NON-PRINT RESOURCES


CD-ROM Publications
General format 5.9.5
Author’s last name, first name. "Title of Article." Database. CD-ROM.
  City of Publication: Publisher, Date.

 "Adobe Wall Construction." Architectural Graphic Standards. CD-ROM.
                 New York: John Wiley, 1996.
 
Interview
General format 5.8.7
Name. Type of interview. Date of interview.

Gorham, Thomas. Telephone interview. 1 June 1999.

Videotape
General format 5.8.3
Title. Director. Major performers. Distributor, copyright date.

Driving Miss Daisy. Dir. Bruce Beresford. Perf. Morgan Freeman, Jessica
  Tandy, Dan Aykroyd. Warner Brothers, 1989.

Painting, Sculpture
General format 5.8.6
Artist's Last Name, First Name. Title of Work. Name of Institution that
  Houses the Work, City.

Monet, Claude. Water Lillies. Museum of Fine Arts, Boston.


Photograph of painting or sculpture 5.8.6
*Follow general format above, but also include publication information for source: Page number, slide, figure or plate number.

Monet, Claude. Water Lillies. Museum of Fine Arts, Boston. Book About
  Monet. By John Smith. New York: McGraw, 1992. pl. 18.

 

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WORLD WIDE WEB

To cite an electronic source, you should include as many of the following as you have:
  • Author, editor, etc
  • Article title
  • Page title
  • Database or project title
  • Publication media
  • Version number
  • Date of last update
  • Name of the service
  • Subscribing library
  • Date of your visit
  • URL

Web Pages
General format 5.9.2
Author’s last name, first name. "Title of page you are using." Title of
                 Main Page. Date of last update. Date you viewed the page.
                 <URL>.
 
Opler, Paul A., Harry Pavulaan, and Ray E. Stanford, Coordinators.
  "Butterflies of North America." NorthernPrairie
  Wildlife Research Center Home Page. Version 23
  Feb. 2001. 5 April 2001. <http://www.npwrc.usgs.gov/
  resource/distr/lepid/bflyusa/bflyusa.htm>.

Personal Homepage 5.9.2c
Smith, John. Home page. 28 April 1999. <http://www.public.wit.edu/student/smith>.

 

Online Book 5.9.3
Author's Last Name, First Name. Title of the Work. Editor's Name.
  Original Print Version Publication Information. Electronic
  Publication Information. Date of Access. <URL>.

Ogletree, Terry William. Practical Firewalls. Que, 2000. Safari Tech
  Books Online. 20 May 2003.< http://proquest.
  safaribooksonline.com/0789724162>.

Part of an Online Book
Ogletree, Terry William. "Firewall Basics." Practical Firewalls. Que, 2000.
  Safari Tech Books Online. 20 May 2003. <http://proquest.
  safaribooksonline.com/0789724162/ch01lev1sec5>.

ARTICLES FROM ONLINE DATABASES

General format 5.9.4
Author’s last name, first name. "Title of Article." Source. Date of
                 Publication: page. Database. Library information. Date.
                 <URL>.
 
"Asthma." Encyclopaedia Britannica Online. Wentworth Institute of
  Technology Alumni Lib., Boston, MA. 28 Nov. 2000.
  <http://search.eb.com>.

 
Johnson, Stephen S. "Round Up the Usual Suspects." Forbes 22 Jan.
  1996: 96(1). Expanded Academic Index ASAP.
  Wentworth Institute of Technology Alumni Lib. Boston 29
  July 1996. <http://www.wit.edu/academics/library/Databases
  /Searchbank.html>.


Flint, Anthony. "Many Colleges Wary of Consolidation but 5 Fenway
  Institutions Hope Joint Venture will Expand Opportunities."
  Boston Globe 30 March 1996: 20. Boston Globe. Dialog.
  Wentworth Institute of Technology Alumni Lib., Boston.
  15 March 1999. http://www.wit.edu/academics/
  library/Databases/BostonGlobe.html>.


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PARENTHETICAL DOCUMENTATION
Notes in the text have replaced footnotes. Notes are either part of the sentence or set off by parentheses. Clearly identify the source and give complete information in your bibliography. For example:

Stern has found that computers are simplifying tasks in offices (174).
  In this example, Stern is the author and 174 is the page numberwhere this information is found.

        
 
"Research involving drilling towards the earth’s core has begun" (Bylinsky 89).
    In this example, Bylinsky is the author and 89 is the page number where this quote is found.

Please consult the MLA Handbook for additional information.

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Grammar and Writing Web Sites

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