Chapter 21: MLA Style for Quotes and Citations in Research Essays

Copyright © 2013

Snoopytyping his great, unfinished novel, It was a Dark and Stormy Night, Peanuts comic strip by Charles M. Schulz

There are three basic kinds of support for your Thesis:

  1. Quotes
  2. Data or Statistics
  3. Examples

When writers use support that comes from someone else, they must cite their work in an accepted way. This is true when using direct quotes from another author, using data or statistics, and even when rephrasing their ideas.

One of the most widely used methods for citation is called MLA, which is short for “Modern Library Association,” the organization who developed the system originally. Like other systems, MLA can be complicated.Unfortunately, publishers and English professors demand that MLA be used correctly by authors and students. It’s literally true that “all the i’s must by dotted and the t’s crossed.”

Here’s how the MLA system of citation works:

In-Text Citations

There are two ways to cite another author’s work within an essay:

  1. Refer to the author before quoting the author’s words. For example:

According to Dr. Jose Gallegos of the University of Wisconsin, “The sociological change in the poverty rate in the last five years has been a direct result of predatory lending practices.”

  1. When making a direct reference to the author’s name, include the author’s last name in parentheses after the quote. Include the page number that locates the quote after the author’s name. For example:

“The sociological change in the poverty rate in the last five years has been a direct result of predatory lending practices” (Gallegos 68).

Notice that the quote marks comeright at the end of the quoted words, and the period at the end of the sentence comes after the parentheses bordering the author’s last name.

You must also use MLA citation when paraphrasing an author’s ideas but do not use her actual words*.

For example:The primary support comes from sociological research, which shows that the main reason that the poverty rate has gone up in the last five years has been because of predatory lending practices (Gallegos 68).

*Dr. Charles Darling in his on-line “Guide to Grammar & Writing,” defines plagiarism as “Using someone else's ideas or phrasing and representing those ideas or phrasing as our own, either on purpose or through carelessness, is a serious offense known as plagiarism.”

Here’s a helpful site that even formats your citations for you! (Thanks to one of my students, Taryn Simons)

A helpful site from the University of Wisconsin Writing Lab Website with many examples of how to cite another author’s work:

A second comprehensive guide is the “Purdue Owl,” an on-line writing guide from Purdue University:

Internet Research

Today, students are using the Internet for a majority of their research for their college essays. Often times Internet sites do not have an author listed, but rather list the organization that sponsors the website. If this is the case, you can just cite the organization instead. For example:

One organization that helps us to understand health issues is the National Institute of Health (NIH). “The National Institutes of Health (NIH), a part of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, is the primary Federal agency for conducting and supporting medical research” (NIH).

Works Cited Page

Using the MLA format, create a “Works Cited” page at the end of the essay on its own page. Title this page: “Works Cited,” which should be in bold and centered at the top of the page.

Then list your references (the works you cited in the essay) on the page in alphabetical order, using the same first word used to cite the references in the essay. For example, if quoting Dr. Gallegos, “Gallegos, Carlos” would appear in the “G’s” on your Works Cited page. Similarly, “NIH” would appear in the “N’s” on the Works Cited page. The University of Wisconsin Writing Lab Website provides additional information on how to format the Works Cited page:

Here’s a brief review of how to format sources on the Works Cited page:

  • Citations from Books

Bordwell, David. Figures Traced in Light: On Cinematic Staging. Berkeley, U California, 2005. Print.

Here’s how to format the reference for a book:

  1. Set your margins so that all lines below the first lineindent five spaces.
  2. The author’s name is formatted last name first, followed by a comma, and then first name followed by a period.
  3. The title of the book is in Italics and ends with a period.
  4. The date of publication comes next followed by a period.
  5. Lastly, you signal that the book is in a printed medium by writing “Print” followed by a period.
  6. Notice that the second line is indented three spaces.

B. Article in a Magazine or Journal

Yergeau, Melanie, Kathryn Wozniak, and Peter Vandenberg. "Expanding the Space of f2f: Writing Centers and Audio-Visual-Textual Conferencing." Kairos: A Journal of Rhetoric, Technology, and Pedagogy 13.1 (2008). Web. 13 Sept. 2009.

Here’s how to format the reference:

  1. Set the margins so that all lines below the first lineindent fivespaces.
  2. Format the author’s name, last name first, followed by a comma, and then first name followed by a period. Notice that there are three authors. When quoting this article within the essay, only include the last name of the first author (Yergeau) in parentheses.
  3. The title of the article is in quotes and ends with a period.
  4. The name of the journal comes next in Italics followed by the volume number and page number (13.1), the date in parentheses (2008), and a period.
  5. Next identify that this a “Web” source by writing “Web.”

C. Internet Site

When using an Internet site where the author is not named, list the name of the organization first. For example:

WIN. “Weight Loss and Nutrition Myths: How Much Do You Really Know?” WIN (Weight Loss Information Network). 7 Nov. 2008. Web. 13 Sept. 2009.

Here’s how you format the reference:

  1. Set your margins so that all lines below the first lineindent five spaces.
  2. Since the article does not list an author, use the organization name (WIN) in the same form used to cite the article in the essay.
  3. The title of the article is in quotes and ends with a period.
  4. The full name of the organization comes next and ends with a period.
  5. Next, include the date of the article. (If there is no date listed, just skip the date listing.)
  6. Next, identify that this a “Web” source by writing “Web.”
  7. Include the date that you accessed the article. (This is important because websites change, so the reader knows when you accessed the site.)
  8. Last, include the URL or website address of the article.

Here’s an essay you can use as a model for how to cite in your own essay:

Cecelia Palmer
Eng 090
April 14, 2011
Compare/Contrast Essay
Informal Outline:
Thesis Statement: The differences between owning a home and renting are financial gain, control over decisions, and independence and privacy of ownership.
Support Point One: Financial Gain
Support Point Two: Control over decisions
Support Point Three: Independence and privacy of ownership
Owning Is Better Than Renting
Month after month, I write the check that does nothing to secure my financial future. My rent payment only keeps me out of the elements and provides a place to sleep. While not exactly throwing money away, there is zero financial gain in renting. Property owners believe owning a home is worthwhile because of tax benefits and the equity; otherwise, they likely would not do it. The differences between owning a home and renting are financial gain, control over decisions, and independence and privacy of ownership.
While there are experts that can debate the financial pros and cons, my reasons for ownership extend far beyond financial and are more important to me than money. Having both owned and rented homes, owning has more advantages than renting. “85% of people cited home-ownership as the tenure they hoped to be living in a decade from now, suggesting that the home-ownership aspiration remains firmly rooted in the British psyche. The CML has asked the same questions about home-ownership aspirations periodically since 1975. Last time the survey was undertaken, in 2007, the proportion who expected to be home-owners in ten years' time was 84” (cml.org). In 2009, only two weeks after signing a lease on a duplex believing this would be a long- term lease, the property management company sent notice that the duplex was going on the market to be sold. The details of this event support most of the reasons I have for owning one’s own home over renting.
Financial reasons for owning include equity and tax benefits as well a reason that might not be so obvious. If, for some reason, the landlord does not renew the lease or the rental property is not properly managed and maintained, then another move is required. There is significant expense involved in moving. Moving Calculators returns an average cost of $6,300 - $9,600 for moving a household equivalent to mine. Money is certainly a factor in comparing renting to owning, but is not the most compelling factor.
When owning, one has control over decisions about when to move. The last two leases in as many years have not been renewed, in spite of verbal agreements to the contrary. Both of the moves have drained my resources physically, financially, and emotionally. Had I owned my own home, I would not have been at the mercy of landlords who are less than scrupulous. Loss of independence over decisions like when to move can have detrimental effects on one’s life.
While speaking to the National Association of Realtors, Bill Clinton stated, "More Americans should own their own homes, for reasons that are economic and tangible, and reasons that are emotional and intangible, but go to the heart of what it means to harbor, to nourish, to expand the American Dream"( Hudser.org ). Independence and privacy are also lost when renting. Ownership means the independence to make decisions about what can be upgraded, replaced, refinished, and repainted and are not dictated by someone else. For many people, myself included, my home is a refuge, and therefore, very important. In my case, my home is my favorite medium for artistic expression. Having someone else dictate how I create is a definite disadvantage to renting. My privacy is one of the highest values I hold. When renting, the keys to the place I should feel safest and most secure in are in the hands of someone else, and typically that someone else is a stranger. Twenty- four hour notice is all landlords are required to give a tenant before they can have access to my space, my home, my refuge. While I have nothing to hide, I resent that I must tolerate this encroachment into my privacy. When owning, only those who are invited may enter.
When the rental duplex I was occupying in 2009 was put on the market, the privacy issues began. First, pictures were taken of the interior and the exterior of my duplex and put on the internet. My own possessions and furniture could be viewed by anyone. Prospective buyers paraded through, sometimes with only a few hours’ notice. A lockbox was put on the door. Appraisers and heating and air conditioning contractors were in and out because the antiquated furnace that had not been checked or serviced in over ten years was pumping deadly levels of carbon monoxide into my home. Fortunately, I sleep with the furnace off and windows open. The results of the landlord’s irresponsibility could have cost me my life.
The benefits of owning one’s own home far outweigh renting. Financial gain, control over decisions, and privacy and independence are critical factors to evaluate when considering whether to rent or own. Both options should be considered seriously, and the decision made carefully as the repercussions of a bad choice can have significant and long term effects.
Work Cited
AG. “Trulia Rent versus Buy Index reveals homeownership to be most advantageous.” April 28,
2011. Web. 30 April 2011

homeownership-to-be-most-advantageous/.
CML. “CML survey shows long-term desire for home-ownership stronger than ever” CML(Council of Mortgage Lenders. September14, 2010. Web. 30 April 2011.

HU. “Urban Policy Brief” August 1995. HU. (Hudser.Org). Web. 30 April 2011.

R. “Moving Calculators” R. (Relocation.com) April 29, 2011.
Web. 30 April 2011.
Stasney, Sharon. feng shui chic: stylish designs for harmonious living. Sterling Publishing
Company Inc P, New York. 2000. Print.