17.2 MLA Citation and Documentation

MLA Citation Basics

MLA citation is the system you'll use to document your sources in most English and humanities courses. It serves two purposes: giving credit to the people whose ideas you're building on, and letting your reader track down those sources if they want to. The system has two connected parts: brief in-text citations within your paper and a detailed Works Cited page at the end.

Document Formatting

Before worrying about individual citations, get your document setup right:

• Margins: 1 inch on all sides
• Font: 12-point Times New Roman (or another readable serif font your instructor approves)
• Spacing: Double-spaced throughout, including the Works Cited page
• Header: Your last name and page number in the upper right corner of every page

In-Text Citations

In-text citations are the short references you place inside your paper whenever you use someone else's ideas, whether you're quoting directly or paraphrasing. The basic format is the author's last name and the page number in parentheses, with no comma between them.

The period goes after the closing parenthesis, not before it. This is one of the most common formatting errors students make.

If you mention the author's name in your sentence, you only need the page number in parentheses:

For sources with no author, use a shortened version of the title. For sources with no page numbers (like most websites), just use the author's last name.

Incorporating Sources Smoothly

Dropping citations into your paper isn't enough. You need to weave sources into your own argument. There are three main ways to do this:

1. Signal phrases introduce a source before the borrowed material. Vary your verbs so you're not writing "Smith says" over and over. Try argues, contends, illustrates, observes, notes, points out, suggests.
2. Paraphrasing means restating an idea in your own words and sentence structure. You still need a citation even though you aren't using direct quotes. Forgetting to cite paraphrases is one of the fastest ways to accidentally plagiarize.
3. Direct quotations use the source's exact words, enclosed in quotation marks. Save these for moments when the original language is especially powerful or precise. Always introduce the quote with context and follow it with your own explanation of why it matters.

Place your citation immediately after the quoted or paraphrased material. If the borrowed idea spans a full sentence, the citation goes at the end of that sentence, before the period.

Works Cited Page

The Works Cited page lists every source you cited in your paper. Format it with the title "Works Cited" centered at the top (not bolded or underlined). All entries are double-spaced with a hanging indent, meaning the first line of each entry is flush left and every line after it is indented half an inch. Alphabetize entries by the author's last name.

Here are the formats for the most common source types:

Book:

The pattern is: Last name, First name. Title. Publisher, Year.

Journal Article:

The pattern is: Last name, First name. "Article Title." Journal Name, vol. #, no. #, Year, pp. #–#.

Website:

The pattern is: Last name, First name. "Page Title." Website Name, Publisher/Sponsor, Date, URL.

If a website has no author, start with the title of the page. If there's no publisher or sponsor, skip that element and move to the date.

Why Citation Matters

Plagiarism means presenting someone else's ideas or words as your own, whether intentionally or by accident. The consequences in academic settings are serious: a failing grade on the assignment, a failing grade in the course, or even expulsion. Beyond penalties, plagiarism undermines your credibility as a writer.

Proper citation does the opposite. It shows your reader that you've done real research, it lets them verify your claims, and it positions your argument within a larger scholarly conversation.

The most common citation mistakes to watch for:

• Forgetting to cite paraphrases. If the idea came from a source, cite it, even if every word is yours.
• Incorrect formatting. Small details like comma placement, italics, and hanging indents matter. Double-check your entries against the formats above.
• Misrepresenting sources. Make sure your paraphrase or summary accurately reflects what the author actually said. Taking a quote out of context is a form of academic dishonesty too.