Modern Language Association, 7th edition
Books
One author:
Russell, Ruth Woodman. Pine Manor Junior College: The First Fifty Years, 1911-
1961. Chestnut Hill, MA: Pine Manor Press, 1967. Print.
Two or three authors:
Nemerowicz, Gloria Morris, and Eugene Rosi. Education for Leadership and
Social Responsibility. London: Falmer, 1997. Print.
Part of a book (such as an essay or article in a collection):
Potter, Lois. "Shakespeare's Life and Career." Shakespeare: An Oxford Guide. Ed. Stanley
Wells and Lena Cowen Orlin. Oxford: Oxford UP, 2003. 9-19. Print.
An editor:
Turner, Jane, ed. The Grove Dictionary of Art. New York: St. Martin's, 2000. Print.
Journals and Magazines
Journal Print Article:
One Author:
Milburn, Michael. "Robert Lowell's Poems and Other People's Prose." New England Review
17.4 (1995): 77-97. Print.
Wald, Gayle. "From Spirituals to Swing." American Quarterly 55 (2003): 387-406. Print.
Two or three authors:
Farmer, Alan B., and Zachary Lesser. "The Popularity of Playbooks Revisited." Shakespeare
Quarterly 56 (2005): 1-32. Print.
Note: For journals in which each issue begins on page one, include both the volume and the issue number; for journals using continuous pagination, the issue number is not necessary.
Magazine Print Article:
Unsigned article (author not provided):
"Campus Diversity." U.S. News and World Report 7 July 2003: 45-49. Print.
Signed Article (author provided):
Kantrowitz, Barbara, and Anne Underwood. "The Teen Drinking Dilemma." Newsweek 25 June
2007: 36-37. Print.
Online Database Article:
Snider, Michael. "Wired to Another World." Macleans's 3 Mar. 2003: 23-24. Academic Search
Premier. Web. 9 Feb. 2009.
Sahagun, Louis. "A High-Water Mark for Mono Lake." Los Angeles Times 28 July 2008: B1.
Proquest Newspapers. Web. 23 Jan. 2009.
Web Sites
Authored or edited:
Sirius, B. "Discussion of the Popularity of Harry Potter." LinguaMOO. U of Texas at Dallas, 12
Dec. 2000. Web. 24 Nov. 2004.
No author or editor identified:
"Snowboard." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 2009. Web. 30 Jan. 2009.
In-Text Citations
Signal phrases and in-text citations refer your reader to the citation list and provide credit for your sources.
Here is an MLA citation for a book with one author:
Berger, John. About Looking. Pantheon Books: New York, 1980. Print.
Use a signal phrase or an in-text citation also known as a parenthetical reference.
Example of a signal phrase:
Berger argues that “the treatment of animals in 19th century romantic paintings was already an acknowledgement of their impending disappearance” (15).
Example of a parenthetical reference or in-text citations:
“The treatment of animals in 19th century romantic paintings was already an acknowledgment of their impending disappearance” (Berger 15).
What about sources that don’t have page numbers like this article found in an online library database?
Tutton, Sarah. "The Idea of the Animal." Art and Australia 44.3 (2007): 330+. Academic OneFile. Web. 27 Oct. 2010.
If a PDF copy is available then the article should have page numbers. If no PDF copy is available then use a signal phrase or just include an author in the in-text citation.
Examples:
Tutton points out that the exhibit provided an opportunity to engage with some familiar and unfamiliar artists.
“While the breadth of the exhibition was not its strength, it did provide an opportunity to engage with some familiar and unfamiliar” (Tutton).
See Also...