General MLA Formatting and Essay Structure Guidelines

Paper Format (MLA)

I. Paper Construction:

A. Double-Spaced from your name through to the last line of the paper

B. 1 inch margins

C. Times New Roman, 12 font

D. Formatted first page (see diagram) à

E. A header, ½ inch from the top of the page with your last name and the page number in upper right-hand corner (beginning on page 2)

II. Use examples in the paper.

A. When using quotes, you do not have to use an entire sentence or passage; use the parts that are essential to your point.

B. Always explain how your quote proves your point.

III. Always cite the page numbers from which you have taken the quote.

A. You can cite the page numbers within the sentence, “On page 48, Hawthorne writes…”

B. You can use parenthetical documentation, “Wordsworth stated that Romantic poetry was marked by a “spontaneous overflow of powerful feelings” (263). –OR—Poetry is marked by a “spontaneous overflow of powerful feelings” (Wordsworth 263).

i. Put the quotation in quotes

ii. The page number goes inside parenthesis

iii. The parenthetical citation is OUTSIDE the quotes

iv. Generally, there is no punctuation inside the end quote (see below for exceptions), but your period at end the sentence should be after the page number citation

C. A good paper will vary these two means of citing sources.

IV. Avoid using first and second person pronouns. You are the writer of the paper, so it is assumed that what you are writing is your opinion, therefore, it is unnecessary for you to say, “I think…” Rather than using pronouns such as “you” that directly address your reader, use generic terms such as “the reader,” “one,” or “students.”

V. The conventions of introduction and conclusion apply: You must gain the attention of your reader immediately, you must provide significant background, and you must close your introduction with a thesis statement.. Your thesis must include the following:

n The author’s name

n The title of the novel (either italicized or underlined)

n Your chosen topic

n What it is you want to express about that topic

Ex: “In Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter, the concept of forgiveness is forwarded as a double-edged sword, one in which forgiveness of self is as critical as forgiveness of others.”

A. You must always strive to provide an ambitious thesis; remember that the thesis by itself alerts your reader of your essay’s content. Also keep in mind that the thesis you start with is a working thesis until you get to your final draft. We often start with what we think is a thesis statement, but once we begin working on the paper, we find that what we started with no longer properly reflects what the paper is about. Once you are satisfied with your body paragraphs, review your thesis to be sure it is accurate.

B. You conclusion should reflect the essence of the thesis, what is learned through the process of reading and writing, a look to the future, and larger applications of the subject matter.

Some guidelines for how to properly format quotes in your paper:

Short Quotations

To indicate short quotations (fewer than four typed lines of prose or three lines of verse) in your text, enclose the quotation within double quotation marks and incorporate it into your text. Provide the author and specific page citation (in the case of verse, provide line numbers) in the text, and include a complete reference in the works-cited list. Punctuation marks such as periods, commas, and semicolons should appear after the parenthetical citation. Question marks and exclamation points should appear within the quotation marks if they are a part of the quoted passage but after the parenthetical citation if they are a part of your text.

Examples:

 According to some, dreams express "profound aspects of personality" (Foulkes 184), though others disagree.
 According to Foulkes's study, dreams may express "profound aspects of personality" (184).
 Is it possible that dreams may express "profound aspects of personality" (Foulkes 184)?
 Cullen concludes, "Of all the things that happened there/ That's all I remember" (11-12).

Long Quotations

Place quotations longer than four typed lines in a free-standing block of typewritten lines, and omit quotation marks. Start the quotation on a new line, indented one inch from the left margin, and maintain double-spacing. Your parenthetical citation should come after the closing punctuation mark. When quoting verse, maintain original line breaks. (You should maintain double-spacing throughout your essay.)

Examples:

 
  
  
   
    
    
    {
    
    
   
  
   
 


Nelly Dean treats Heathcliff poorly and dehumanizes him throughout her narration:
 
 They entirely refused to have it in bed with them, or even in their room, 



 
  
  
   
    
    
    DoubleSpace
    
    
   
  
   
 


 and I had no more sense, so, I put it on the landing of the stairs, hoping 
 it would be gone on the morrow. By chance, or else attracted by hearing his 
   voice, it crept to Mr. Earnshaw's door, and there he found it on quitting 
 his chamber. Inquiries were made as to how it got there; I was obliged to
 confess, and in recompense for my cowardice and inhumanity was sent out 
 of the house. (Bronte­ 78)

Adding or Omitting Words In Quotations

If you add a word or words in a quotation, you should put brackets around the words to indicate that they are not part of the original text.

For example:

 Jan Harold Brunvand, in an essay on urban legends, states: "some individuals [who retell urban legends] make a point of learning every rumor or tale" (78). 
 

If you omit a word or words from a quotation, you should indicate the deleted word or word by using ellipsis marks surrounded by brackets.

For example:

 In an essay on urban legends, Jan Harold Brunvand notes that "some individuals make a point of learning every recent rumor or tale[...] and in a short time a lively exchange of details occurs" (78). 

Note: If there are ellipsis marks in the quoted author's work, do not put brackets around them; only use brackets around ellipsis marks to distinguish them from ellipsis marks in the quoted author's work.

The above information was gathered from:

Owl Online Writing Lab. Using Modern Language Association (MLA) Format.

Purdue University. 9 Dec. 2002. http://owl.english.purdue.edu.

See next page for how to format a works cited page--

MLA FORMAT: WORKS CITED

General Formatting Rules

q Last name page number in the upper right corner

q The words Works Cited centered---not in bold, not underlined, not in quotation marks, must be 12 point font Times New Roman

q Times New Roman

q 12 point font

q 1” margins

q Double spaced

q Place in alphabetical Order

q Do NOT number your entries

q Hanging indent: The second line (and all lines there after) are indented

q Important words in the title must be capitalized

q Punctuation DOES matter. Be sure to use the right type

o Quotation marks around the title of the article

o Book titles are underlined

o All commas, periods, and colons are in the correct place

o Etc.

A BOOK WITH ONE AUTHOR:

Author’s name (last name, first name). Title and subtitle (underlined or italicized). Place of publication: the publisher, date.

A BOOK WITH MULTIPLE AUTHORS:

Same as above, but the first author’s name is written last name, first; subsequent author names are written first name, last name. If a book has more than three authors, simply list the first author, followed by a comma, then et. al.

Gillespie, Paula, and Neal Lerner. The Allyn and Bacon Guide to Peer Tutoring. Boston: Allyn, 2000.

Wysocki, Anne Frances, et. al. Writing New Media: Theory and Applications for Expanding the Teaching of Composition. Logan, UT: Utah State UP, 2004.

TWO OR MORE BOOKS BY THE SAME AUTHOR:

After the first listing of the author’s name, use three hypens and a period instead of the author’s name. List books by this author one after the other, alphabetically by title.

AN ARTICLE IN A REFERENCE BOOK:

Author of article (if there is one). Title of the article (in quotes). The title of the reference work (underlined or italicized). Editor. Volume #. Publisher: Location published, year published.

THE BIBLE:

Provide the name of the specific edition, any editor(s) associated with it, followed by the publication information:

The New Jerusalem Bible. Susan Jones, gen. Ed. New York: Doubleday, 1985.

AN ARTICLE FROM A MAGAZINE:

Author, title of the article (in quotes). Title of the magazine (underlined or italiczed), date (day month year): page numbers.

INTERNET MATERIAL:

Author (if available), title of article (in quotes). Title of website provider (italicized).

Date article was published (if available). Name of institution/organization affiliated with the site. Date you accessed the site <web address>.

Stolley, Karl. “MLA Formatting and Style Guide.” The OWL at Purdue. 10 May 2006. Purdue University. 21 June 2007 <http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/557/01/>.

DATABASE:

Author (if available). Title of article (in quotes). Title of source in which it was originally published (underlined or italicized if it as a book, in “quotes” if it was a magazine or newspaper), volume #, date of publication (in parenthesis): page number of original publication. Name of database. Library providing access, City, State. Date accessed <web address>.

Miller, Donald L. “The white city.” American Heritage, 44, (1993): 70. History Resource Center: US. Plainfield South Media Center. Plainfield, IL. 21 June 2007 <http://galenet.galegroup.com>.

Sample Works Cited page on next page…

Works Cited

Adeline, Mark. Love in Black and White. New York: HarperCollins Publishers, 1992.

Cartwright, David. “Memories of a Native Son.” People Weekly. 7 July 1986: 8-9.

Miller, Donald L. “The white city.” American Heritage, 44, (1993): 70. History Resource Center: US. Plainfield South Media Center. Plainfield, IL. 21 June 2007 <http://galenet.galegroup.com>.

Stolley, Karl. “MLA Formatting and Style Guide.” The OWL at Purdue. 10 May 2006. Purdue University. 21 June 2007 <http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/557/01/>.

But wait, there’s more!!

MLA Formatting:

A “How To” Guide

Most of this is easiest to do if you just set up your document BEFORE you begin typing. Here’s how:

IF YOU ARE USING OFFICE 2007:

**When you open a new document, BEFORE YOU BEGIN TYPING, be sure you’re on the “Home” tab. In the “Styles” section of the toolbar at the top, select the button that says Normal.**

1) Double spacing:

A) BEFORE you begin typing, press the Ctrl key and the 2 key at the same time.

---OR---

B) Make sure you’re on the “Home” tab. Find the word “Paragraph.” In the bottom right corner is an arrow. Click on this to open the “Paragraph” dialog box. Find the spot where it says “Spacing.” At the “Line Spacing,” pull-down menu, select “Double.” Click “OK.”

2) 1-inch margins:

Choosing “Normal” will automatically set your margins at 1-inch

3) Times New Roman font:

With toolbar displaying the “Home” tab, change your margin to Times New Roman from the pull-down menu on the left.

4) 12-pt font:

With toolbar displaying the “Home” tab, change your font size to 12 pt.

5) Headers with last name and page number:

Click the “Insert” tab on the toolbar. Click on the “Page Number” button. From the options, select “Top of Page,” then “Plain Number 3.” Before you click out of the header, type your last name. You can highlight then change the font to Times New Roman, 12 pt. Now click the tab all the way to the right that says “Design.” Underneath that is a box that says “Different first page.” Check this box. Your header will seem to disappear from the document if you’re still on the first page. Don’t worry, it’ll be there starting with page 2. Double click outside of the header. Your name and page number will automatically appear on every page.

6) Hanging indent (for works cited page):

Make sure you’re on the “Home” tab. Find the word “Paragraph.” In the bottom right corner is an arrow. Click on this to open the “Paragraph” dialog box. Under “Indentation,” open up the pull-down menu for “Special,” and select “hanging.” Now click “OK.”

IF YOU ARE USING AN OLDER VERSION OF MICROSOFT WORD…

1) Double spacing:

A) The easy way—before you start to type, on your keyboard, just hold down “Ctrl” and 2 at the same time

B) A little more complex, but just as effective, before you start typing, click Format (on the toolbar above), then Paragraphs. Scan down to “Spacing.” Under “Line Spacing” is a box with a pull-down arrow. Click on that arrow, then select “double”

C) If you already started typing your paper, highlight what you’ve already typed by hitting “Ctrl” and “A” at the same time. While your text is highlighted, hit “Ctrl” and 2 at the same time, --OR—while your text is highlighted, follow the steps in option B above.

Keep going…

2) 1-inch margins:

Go to File on the toolbar. Then Page Setup. Margins immediately comes up. Leave Top and Bottom alone. Change Left and Right to 1” by arrowing down.

3) Times New Roman font:

The toolbar up at the top of the page has a box for the type of font you want to use. Be sure “Times New Roman” is selected

4) 12-pt font:

Select 12 in the font size box of the toolbar at the top of the page

5) Headers starting on page 2:

1) Select View from the toolbar on the top of the page. Then click on “Header and Footer.” A box will appear at the top of the page. Make sure the cursor is along the right margin by clicking on the Align Right option on the toolbar at the top of the page (it’s the box that shows all lines of text lined up along the right, but not the left). Type in your last name. Then click close.

2) Once you’ve done that, select Insert from the toolbar on top of the page. Then Page Number. Position is “Top of the Page (Header).” Alignment is right. Then UNCHECK the box that says to show the number of the first page. Click “OK.”

6) Hanging Indent (for your Works Cited page):

Before you begin typing your Works Cited page, go to Format on the toolbar. Then Paragraph. In the middle section of the box it says “Indentation.” Toward the right side of the box it says “Special” then there’s a pull-down box. Click on the arrow. Select “Hanging.” Click “OK.”

One more page…

Miscellaneous FAQs

Formatting an outline:

Microsoft Word likes to try to do everything for you. When doing an outline, this can drive you nuts. To save your sanity, BEFORE you start typing your outline, do one of the following:

If you are using Word 2007:

A) Click on the Windows icon in the upper left corner of your screen.

B) At the bottom of that dialog box, select “Word Options”

C) Select “Proofing” from your options on the left.

D) Click the button that says “AutoCorrect Options”

E) In the tab that says “Autoformat” UNCHECK “automatic bulleted lists.” In the tab that says “Autoformat as you type” UNCHECK “automatic bulleted lists” and “automatic numbered lists.” Then click OK. This should turn off the autoformat as you try to type your outline.

If you are using an older version of Microsoft Word:

Go to Format on the toolbar at the top of the page. Select “Auto Format.” Then “Options.” In the tab that says “Autoformat” UNCHECK “automatic bulleted lists.” In the tab that says “Autoformat as you type” UNCHECK “automatic bulleted lists” and “automatic numbered lists.” Then click OK. This should turn off the autoformat as you try to type your outline.

To save a paper as an older version of Word so that you can open it at home:

***Newer versions of word, such as 2007 can open older versions of word, but an older version of Word can NOT open a newer one. If you have an older version of word at home, and you want to work on an assignment at home that you started or worked on here at school, you HAVE to save what you’ve worked on here as an older version of Word.*** Click on the Windows icon at the top of the page. Move your cursor to “Save As.” From the options that pop up to the right, select “Word 97-2003 Document.” This document will still open here at school if you work on it at home.

To save a paper as a Word Document:

If you do not use Microsoft Word at home, but you want to bring and open it here at school, it is essential that you save your paper as a Word Document, or you won’t be able to open it here at school. When it’s time to save your paper, select File, then Save As. Just below the space where you title your paper, there is a pull-down menu. Click on that arrow. From that list, select “Rich Text.” Then save it. That is the version of the assignment that you want to send or save to a disk so that it will open here at school.

To save a paper to a disk or flash/thumb drive:

Simply clicking on the disk on the toolbar will not save a document to a floppy disk. With the document open, go to the Windows icon in the upper left hand corner (File on the toolbar on older versions of Word). Then Save As. From there you will have to select the destination to which you’d like to save your file. If it’s a floppy disk, it’s likely the A: drive. The drive name for a flash/thumb drive varies. You will have to look through your options to determine which one is the flash/thumb drive. Once you’ve selected where you’d like the document saved to, click “Save.” I suggest then checking the disk or thumb/flash drive to be sure you’ve actually saved the document there.

I hope these instructions are helpful. If you need more clarification, please ask! :o)