MLA Documentation Style

Included in this handout are instructions on how to prepare a Works Cited page and how to use parenthetical notes using the MLA style of documentation. Note that the information cited includes both direct quotes and paraphrases. A direct quotation (which requires quotation marks) is used when you are taking the information word for word. An indirect quotation (which does not require quotation marks) is needed when you paraphrase information from a source that is not common knowledge.

The purpose of a parenthetical reference is to document a source briefly, clearly, and accurately. Listed below are some examples of how to work with in-text citations.

Author in sentence, page number in parenthesis
If you can name the author in the sentence, you can keep the information in parenthesis brief. Usually only a page number is required.

Flora Davis reports that a chimp at the Yerkes Primate Research Center “has combined words into new sentences that she never taught” (67).

Author and page number in parenthesis
If the sentence does not include the author’s name, the author’s name must appear in parenthesis with the page number.

Although the baby chimp lived only a few hours, Washoe signed to it before it died (Davis 42).

Multiple authors
When a source has two or three authors, either name all the authors in a sentence or include their last names in the parenthetical reference: (Polk, Jones, and Walker 25).

When a source has four or more authors, use the name of the first author followed by “et al.” in the parenthetical reference: (Hare et al. 36).

Unknown author
If an author is not given, either mention the full title in the sentence or use a short form of the title in the parentheses: (“Talking” 89). “Talking” is a short title of the unsigned newspaper article “Talking with Chimpanzees.”

Indirect source
When a writer or speaker’s quoted words appear in a work written by another author, use the abbreviation “qtd. in” before the author’s name in the parenthetical reference: (qtd. in Toner 24).

Long quotations
If a quotation runs to more than four lines in your paper, set it off from your text by beginning a new line, indenting one inch from the left margin, and typing it double-spaced, without adding quotation marks. At the end of the long quotation, put the citation after the final period. See the essay at the end of this handout for an example


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MLA Documentation Style Included in this handout are instructions on how to prepare a Works Cited page and how to use parenthetical notes using the MLA style of documentation. Note that the information cited includes both direct quotes and paraphrases. A direct quotation (which requires quotation marks) is used when you are taking the information word for word. An indirect quotation (which does not require quotation marks) is needed when you paraphrase information from a source that is not common knowledge. The purpose of a parenthetical reference is to document a source briefly, clearly, and accurately. Listed below are some examples of how to work with in-text citations. Author in sentence, page number in parenthesis If you can name the author in the sentence, you can keep the information in parenthesis brief. Usually only a page number is required. Flora Davis reports that a chimp at the Yerkes Primate Research Center “has combined words into new sentences that she never taught” (67). Author and page number in parenthesis If the sentence does not include the author’s name, the author’s name must appear in parenthesis with the page number. Although the baby chimp lived only a few hours, Washoe signed to it before it died (Davis 42). Multiple authors When a source has two or three authors, either name all the authors in a sentence or include their last names in the parenthetical reference: (Polk, Jones, and Walker 25). When a source has four or more authors, use the name of the first author followed by “et al.” in the parenthetical reference: (Hare et al. 36). Unknown author If an author is not given, either mention the full title in the sentence or use a short form of the title in the parentheses: (“Talking” 89). “Talking” is a short title of the unsigned newspaper article “Talking with Chimpanzees.” Indirect source When a writer or speaker’s quoted words appear in a work written by another author, use the abbreviation “qtd. in” before the author’s name in the parenthetical reference: (qtd. in Toner 24). Long quotations If a quotation runs to more than four lines in your paper, set it off from your text by beginning a new line, indenting one inch from the left margin, and typing it double-spaced, without adding quotation marks. At the end of the long quotation, put the citation after the final period. See the essay at the end of this handout for an example
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