MLA Guidelines: A Brief Primer

The short and sweet version of MLA goes as follows: in-text parenthetical citations which indicate page number, and author/text (if necessary), with a "Works Cited" list at the end. No footnotes, no endnotes, no bibliography. Whenever you borrow ideas from another source, that source should be given credit by citing it. Failure to do so is plagiarism. We'll spend a few minutes discussing the basics of MLA today in class, but I wanted to give you a few resources for when you write your papers:

• Here's a link to the OWL (Online Writing Lab) at Purdue University, which offers an extensive explanation of MLA style guidelines.

• The MLA Style Manual page on Wikipedia offers general guidelines as well.

Please consult with these sites, and be sure that both your in-text citations and "Works Cited" list are properly formatted. Also please use the formal MLA header, and put your name and page number in the header on each page.