Embedded Files
Your Works Cited list identifies the sources you borrow from--and therefore cite--in the body of your research project. Works that you consult but do not borrow from are not included (unless otherwise indicated by your instructor, in which you would title your list "Works Consulted").
Each entry in the list is made up of core elements given in a specific order. There are optional elements that may be included when needed.
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Core Elements
Core Elements
The core elements of any entry in the Works Cited list include:
Author.
Title of Source.
Title of Container,
Other Contributors,
Version,
Number,
Publisher,
Publication Date,
Location.
What are Containers?
What are Containers?
The new edition of MLA has shifted to using containers instead of citing based on the type of resource you used (i.e. citing an article was different than citing a book).
A container is made up of the nine core elements. To cite a resource, you go through and fill out the container with the information available.
It is possible to have more than one container. Sometimes a container can be nested inside a larger container. The complete back issues of a journal may be stored on a digital platform such as JSTOR, for instance. Or a television series may be watched on a network like Netflix.
Sometimes a source is part of two separate containers, both of which are relevant to your documentation. For example, an excerpt from a novel may be collected in a textbook of readings.
Use containers by adding core elements 3-9 to the end of the entry to account for each additional container.
Author
Author
Author Basics
Author Basics
The author of a work can be a writer, artist, or any other type of creator. The author can be an individual, a group of persons, an organization, or a government.
Always begin the entry with the author's last name, followed by a comma and the rest of the name, as presented in the work. End this element with a period (unless a period that is part of the author's name already appears at the end). (pp. 107-111)
Title of Source
Title of Source
Title Basics
Title Basics
The title is usually prominently displayed in the work, often near the author. If the title has a subtitle, include it after the main title.
Titles and subtitles are given in the entry in full exactly as they are found in the source, except that capitalization and punctuation are standardized.
A title is placed in quotation marks if the source is part of a larger work. A title is italicized (or underlined if italics are unavailable) if the source is self-contained independent.
Title Capitalization and Punctuation
Title Capitalization and Punctuation
For titles and subtitles, capitalize the first word, the last word, and all principal words, including those that follow hyphens in compound terms.
When an untitled poem is known by its first line or when a short untitled message is identified in the works cited list by its full text, reproduce the line exactly as it appears in the source.
Use a colon and a space to separate title and subtitle, unless the title ends in a question mark or exclamation point. Include other punctuation only if it is part of the title or subtitle.
Title of Container
Title of Container
Container Basics
Container Basics
A container is a work that contains another work. (pp. 134-135).
The title of the container is normally italicized and followed by a comma, since the information that comes next describes the container.
Remember that you can have more than one container!
Works that are Self-Contained
Works that are Self-Contained
Some works are self-contained, such as a print version of a novel and the original theatrical release of a film. (p. 135)
In these cases, the title of the work is listed in the Title of Source element. The Title of Container element is left blank.
Contributors
Contributors
Contributor Basics
Contributor Basics
Aside from an author whose name appears at the start of the entry, other people may be credited in the source as contributors. If their participation is important to your research or to the identification of the work, name the other contributors in the entry.
Precede each name (or group of names) with a description of the role. See below a list of common descriptors. (p. 145)
Common Descriptions for Contributors
Common Descriptions for Contributors
Below are common descriptors:
adapted by
directed by
edited by
illustrated by
introduction by
narrated by
performance by
translated by
created by
choreographed by
conducted by
See p. 151 in the MLA Handbook 9th ed. for more information.
In some cases, you may need to develop a more specific label or specify a role with a noun or noun phrase surrounded by commas after the name, as can be seen in the examples. (p. 151)
Version
Version
Version Basics
Version Basics
If the source carries a notation indicating that it is a version of a work released in more than one form, identify the version in your entry.
Books are commonly issued in versions called editions.
A revised version of a book may be labeled revised edition or be numbered (second edition, third edition, etc.).
Versions of books are sometimes given other descriptions as well. (p. 154)
Formatting of Versions
Formatting of Versions
When citing versions in the works cited list, write ordinal numbers with arabic numerals (2nd, 34th) and abbreviate revised (rev.) and edition (ed.).
Descriptive terms for versions, such as expanded ed. and 2nd ed., are written all lowercase, except that an initial letter directly following a period is capitalized.
By contrast, names like Authorized King James Version and Norton Critical Edition are proper nouns and are therefore capitalized like titles. Words in them are not abbreviated. (pp. 157-158)
Publisher
Publisher
Publisher Basics
Publisher Basics
The publisher is the organization primarily responsible for producing the source or making it available to the public. (p. 164)
If two or more organizations are named in the source and they seem equally responsible for the work, cite each of them, separating the names with a forward slash (/). But if one of the organizations had primary responsibility for the work, cite it alone. (p. 170)
Publishers' Names
Publishers' Names
Omit business words when you give publishers' names in the list of works cited, including Company (Co.), Corporation (Corp.), Incorporated (Inc.), Limited (Ltd.), etc.
In the names of academic presses, replace University Press with UP (or, if the words are separated by other words or appear alone, replace them with U and P: "U of Chicago P").
In all other cases, write publishers' names in full. (p. 172)
Omitting Publisher
Omitting Publisher
A publisher's name may be omitted in the following kinds of publications:
A periodical (journal, magazine, newspaper)
A work published by its author or editor
A web site whose title is essentially the same as the name of its publisher
A web site not involved in producing the works it makes available (i.e. YouTube, WordPress.com, JSTOR, etc.). These sites may be named as containers if the contexts are organized into a whole, but the site still does not qualify as a publisher of the source.
See p. 165 in the MLA Handbook Ninth ed. for more information.
Publication Date
Publication Date
Publication Date Basics
Publication Date Basics
The Publication Date element tells your reader when the version of the work you are citing was published. (p. 173)
The Publication Date element may include one or more of the following components:
a year
a day and month
a season
a time stamp
a range of dates or years
Sources--especially those published online--may be associated with more than one publication date. When a source carries more than one date, cite the date that is most meaningful or most relevant to your use of the source. (p. 174)
Location
Location
Location Basics
Location Basics
The Location element specifies a work's location and depends on the format of the work. For paginated print or similar fixed-format works (like PDFs) that are contained in another work, the location is the page range. (p. 187)
In rare cases, additional information may need to be included with the page numbers so that the work can be found. For example, for a print newspaper the section title is included with the page number. Include a section name only if it is needed to locate the work. (p. 187)
Optional Elements
Optional Elements
The core elements of the entry--which should generally be included, if they exist--may be accompanied by optional elements, at the writer's discretion. Your decision whether to include optional elements depends on their importance to your use of the source.
THIS LIST IS NOT EXHAUSTIVE. You should carefully judge whether other kinds of information might help your reader.
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