WHAT IS MLA STYLE?
MLA (Modern Language Association) style concerns itself with the mechanics of writing, such as punctuation, quotation, and documentation of sources. MLA style has been widely adopted by schools, academic departments, and instructors for nearly half a century.
MLA guidelines are also currently used by over 125 scholarly and literary journals, newsletters, and magazines with circulations over one thousand; by hundreds of smaller periodicals; and by many university and commercial presses. MLA style is commonly followed not only in the United States but in Canada and other countries as well; Japanese translations of the MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers appeared in 1980, 1984, and 1988, and a Chinese translation was published in 1990.
Although in this class we will not be writing a research paper that requires outside sources, all other English writing and literature classes you will be taking next, with the exception of creative writing, will require you to write a research essay.
Every time you use an outside source (journal, book, website, etc.) to support your thesis, you have to cite it in-text and on the Works Cited page, which will be the last page of your paper.
The St. Francis Library website offers examples and helpful tips on how to use MLA style (http://library.stfranciscollege.edu/mla.htm)
Basic MLA Style Format for Works Cited Page.
Arrange the citations in alphabetical order by the first element of the citation, usually the
author’s last name.
Hanging Indents are required for citations in the bibliography, as shown below. That is, the first line of the citation starts at the left margin. Subsequent lines are indented 5 spaces.
As with every other part of an MLA formatted essay, the bibliography is double spaced, both within the citation and between citations. Do not add an extra line between the citations.
The right margin is the normal right margin of your document
For a tutorial on IN-TEXT citation click here: http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/557/02/
For a tutorial on Works Cited page format click here: http://honolulu.hawaii.edu/legacylib/mlahcc.html
For a sample of a Works Cited page click here: http://www.iusb.edu/~sbeng/sh/mlawc.pdf
For a sample MLA paper click here. http://www.bedfordstmartins.com/hacker/pdf/mla.pdf
Note: If you’re not familiar with MLA style you should click on all of the links and study the material, or you will not be able to do the exercises.
EXERCISES — DOWNLOAD THE FILE OR PRINT IT OUT. exercises.doc
ASSIGNMENTS FOR MONDAY
1. Final Draft of the Narrative Essay. Hard Copy. STAPLED.
2. Exercises. Hard Copy. Stapled. I will not accept these exercises AFTER Monday, Nov. 12th.
Prof. K.
