MLA: DOCUMENTING LITERARY PAPERS
MLA DOCUMENTATION FORMATS FOR THE CRITICAL ESSAY, THE MIDTERM ESSAY, AND (POSSIBLY) THE RESEARCH ESSAY)
QUICKCHECK FOR GENRE TYPES
DOCUMENTING PROSE DRAMA (UNLIKE SHAKESPEARE)
Source: Martin, Edward J. A Guide to Writing Papers. Third. ed. New York: McGraw-Hill, 1994. 217-228.
DOCUMENTING PROSE FICTION
REMEMBER: You are required to double-space throughout your essays.
1. Use MLA documentation form to reference quotations from a prose work. Any
end punctuation is placed outside the page reference in parentheses (4 or fewer
lines of text).
"Then she would me married--she. Eveline. People would treat her with respect then" (4).
"You see he does not believe I am sick! And what can one do" (88)?
"Jim certainly was a card" (77)!
2. At the end of a journal entry or literary paper, the work(s) you are discussing should be presented in bibliographic form. Double-space the entry; the first line is at the left margin, and subsequent lines in the entry are indented five spaces. Names of short stories are enclosed in quotation marks. Include all pages on which the story appears.
Joyce, James. "Eveline." Literature and the Writing Process. 2nd ed. Eds. Elizabeth McMahan, Susan Day, and
Robert Funk. New York: McMillan. 1989. 4-6.
3. A short quotation (4 lines or fewer as typed on your
typewriter) is incorporated, double-spaced, into your text. A long quotation (mor than 4
lines as typed on your typewriter) is indented 10 spaces from the left margin,
double-
spaced, and does not need to be enclosed in quotation marks. Documentation is outside
the end punctuation. If the cited passage also starts a paragraph, indent it five spaces.
-----It is a big airy room, the whole floor nearly, with
windows that look all ways, and air and sunshine
galore. It was nursery first and then playroom and
gymnasium, I [the narrator] should judge; for the
windows are barred for little children, and there are
rings and things in the wall . . .I am sitting by the
window. . .in this atrocious nursery. (89)
***Note that the above quotation uses brackets: [ ]. Any comments or clarification that you insert into a quotation should be set off in this way.
***Whenever you must omit any words from a quotation (to simplify or make the passage shorter) indicate the omitted words with an ellipsis: . . .
SAMPLES: USE OF
QUOTATION MARKS IN PROSE DOCUMENTATION
FEWER THAN 4 LINES
1. Narrative
Original:
In ten years of walking by night or day, for thousands of miles, he had never met another person walking, not one in all that time.How it will look in your paper:
"In ten years of walking by night or day, for thousands of miles, he
had never met another person walking, not one in all that time"
(105).
2. Dialogue (one speaker)
Original:
"I guess you'd call me a writer."
How it will look in your paper:
"'I guess you'd call me a writer'" (105).
3. Dialogue (more than one speaker, all dialogue occurring in the same paragraph)
Original:
"I've been looking all over this hotel for you," said Mrs. Mitty."Why do you have to hide in this old chair? How do you expect me to find you?" "Things close in," said Walter Mitty vaguely.
How it will look in your paper:
"'I've been looking all over this hotel for you,' said Mrs. Mitty.
'Why do you have to hide in this old chair? How do you expect me
to find you?'
'Things close in,' said Walter Mitty vaguely" (51).
MORE THAN 4 LINES
1. Narrative
Original:
-----Out of another I get a lovely view of the bay and a little private wharf belonging to the estate. There is a beautiful shaded lane that runs down there from the house. I always fancy I see people walking in these numerous paths and arbors, but John has cautioned me not to give way to fancy in the least.
How it will look in your paper:
-----Out of another [window] I get a lovely view of the
bay and a little private wharf belonging to the estate.
There is a beautiful shaded lanethat runs down there
from the house. I always fancy I see people walking in
these numerous paths and arbors, but John has
cautioned me not to give way to fancy in the least.
(90)
2. Dialogue (one speaker)
Original:
"And it is fitting," resumed the Reverend Mr. Clark, "that a man so given to prayer, of such a blameless example, holy in deed and thought, so far as mortal judgment may pronounce; is it fitting that a father in the church should leave a shadow on his memory, that may seem to blacken a life so pure?"
How it will look in your paper:
-----"And is it fitting," resumed the Reverend Mr.
Clark, "that a manso given to prayer, of such a
blameless example, holy in deed and thought, so far
as mortal judgment may pronounce; is it fitting that
afather in the church should leave a shadow on his
memory, that mayseem to blacken a life so pure?"
(117)
3. Dialogue (more than one speaker)
Original:
"Just walking, Mr. Mead?"
"Yes."
"But you haven't explained for what purpose."
"I explained: for air and to see, and just to walk."
"Have you done this often?"
"Every night for years."How it will look in your paper:
"Just walking, Mr. Mead?"
"Yes."
"But you haven't explained for what purpose."
"I explained: for air and to see, and just to walk."
"Have you done this often?"
"Every night for years." (106)
In examples 2
and 3 above, the long quotation is enclosed in quotation marks because it begins
and ends with dialogue. In the following example, quotations are used only for the
internal dialogue.
Original:
Mr. Graves took the hand of the little boy, who came willingly with him up to the box. "Take a paper out of the box, Davy," Mr. Summers said. Davy put his hand into the box and laughed. "Take just one paper," Mr. Summers said. "Harry, you hold it for him." Mr. Graves took the child's hand and removed the folded paper from the tight fist andheld it while little Dave stood next to him and looked up at him wonderingly.
How it will look in your paper:
Mr. Graves took the hand of the little boy, who came willingly with
him up to the box.
"Take a paper out of the box, Davy," Mr. Summers said.
Davy put his hand into the box and laughed.
"Take just one paper," Mr. Summers said. "Harry, you hold it for
him."
Mr. Graves took the child's hand and removed the folded paper
from the tightfist and held it while little Dave stood next to him
and looked up at him wonderingly. (61)
DOCUMENTATION FORMAT FOR DRAMA
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When documenting
drama, distinguish between plays that are
written in prose and those that are written in poetry. Also distinguish between plays
divided into acts and scenes and those which are not.
1. In your introduction, use the MLA style for the sentence that mentions the title of the play and the author.
Arthur Miller paints a grim picture of the American Dream in Death of a
Salesman (931-991).
2. Include a bibliography citation at the end of the journal entry or literary paper. Underline titles of plays.
Miller, Arthur. Death of a Salesman. Literature and the Writing Process. 2nd
ed. Eds. Elizabeth McMahan, Susan Day, and Robert Funk. New York:
Macmillan, 1989. 931-991.
3. For a play written in prose, such as Death of a Salesman, document citations by using the same style described for fiction.
Willy idolizes his son Biff: ". . .you got a greatness in you, Biff, remember that.
You got all kinds a greatness. . ." (958).
4. For more than 4 lines of quotation, indent 10 spaces from the left margin, double-space, and do not enclose the passage within quotation marks.
WILLY. I'm fat. I'm very---foolish to look at, Linda. I didn't tell
you, but Christmas time I happened to be calling on F. H.
Stewarts, and a salesman I know, as I was going in to see the
buyer, I heard him say something about---walrus. . . .I won't take
that. (944)
5. For plays whose lines are written as poetry, use line documentation. If the play is divided into parts such as prologue, acts, scenes, epilogue, you will lneed to indicate the sections in your documentation. Use Arabic numerals separated by periods for acts and/or scenes. Do not use "l" or "ll" for line or lines. Notice that in short citations the final punctuation comes after the parenthetical reference; in long citations it comes before the parenthetical reference.
1-3 LINES
Antigone is prepared to die: "Surely this is no hardship: can anyone/ Living, as
I live, with evil all about me, / Think Death less than a Friend" (2. 67-69)?
Antigone has no fear of Creon: "Creon is not strong enough to stand in my
way (Pro. 35).
MORE THAN 3 LINES
BRABANTIO.-----------------A maiden never bold;
Of spirit so still and quiet, that her motion
Blush'd at herself; and she, in spite of
nature,
Of years, of country, credit, every thing,
To fall in love with what she fear'd to look
on! (1.3.95-99)
DOCUMENTATION FORMAT FOR POETRY
1. In your introduction, use the MLA style to document the sentence that mentions
the title of the poem and the author.
Stephen Spender uses powerful imagery to create a picture of the
inner city in his poem "An Elementary School Classroom in a
Slum" (588-9).
Metaphor is the main figure of speech used in Randall Jarrell's
"The Death of the Ball Turret Gunner" (593).
2. At the end of the entry or literary paper, include a bibliography entry to identify the poem and source. Titles of poems are enclosed within quotation marks.
Spender, Stephen. "An Elementary School Classroom in a Slum." Literature and the
Writing Process. 2nd ed. Eds. Elizabeth McMahan, Susan Day, and Robert
Funk. New York:Macmillan, 1989. 588-9.
3. If you are quoting 3 or fewer lines of poetry, incorporate the lines into your text. However, you must indicate the end of each line with a slash [caesura]. Document by using line numbers:
Original:
Had we but wold enough, and time,
This coyness, lady, were no crime.Sample passage from journal entry or paper:
In "To His Coy Mistress" by Andrew Marvell, the carpe diem theme is
stressed: "Had we but world enough, and time, / This coyness, lady, were no
crime (ll. 1-2).
Notice that you must include the original punctuation of the poem.
4. You must use an ellipsis to indicate omitted words and brackets to indicate words you insert for clarification.
If you are quoting only one line of poetry, use "l." (l. 3).
5. For quotations longer than 3 lines of poetry, double-space and set off the quotation by indenting 10 spaces from the left margin. Use the same line arrangement you see in the original. If a line is too long, continue it on the next line but indent it as shown here.
I am the poet of the Body and I am the poet of
the Soul.
The pleasures of heaven are with me the pains
of hell are with me.
The first I graft and increase upon myself,
the latter I translate into a new tongue.
I am the poet of the woman the same as the
man,
And I say it is as great to be a woman as to
be a man.
And I say there is nothing greater than the
mother of men. (ll. 422-27)
MAKE SURE
TO READ AND MEET ALL
GENERAL ESSAY REQUIREMENTS!
DOCUMENTING POETIC (SHAKESPEAREAN) DRAMA