MLA Resources
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MLA Handbook
by
Call Number: LB2369 .G53 2021ISBN: 9781603293518Publication Date: 2021"The ninth edition of the MLA Handbook is a textbook and reference guide that offers student writers and writing instructors guidance on creating works-cited-list entries in MLA style using the template of core elements. It features advice on punctuation, grammar, inclusive language, formatting research papers, and in-text citations. Includes an appendix of sample works-cited-list entries, illustrations, and an index"
In-Text citation guide
An MLA in-text citation to a print source should include the author's last name and the page number. If the source is electronic and formatted such that page numbers are not available, the source title can substituted in place of the page number. Put the source title in quotation marks if using it.
Journal Article
Gold notes that Edmonia Lewis created her Cleopatra sculpture for Centennial celebrations (318).
Edmonia Lewis carved the Cleopatra sculpture for the Centennial (Gold 318).
Book
Morris argues that the great abolitionist schism of 1840 was less extreme in the west (6).
Even as eastern abolitionist groups split in 1840, western abolitionists tended to remain affiliated with multiple organizations (Morris 6).
Works Cited list - entries by format
An MLA Works Cited citation should include the following elements if they are relevant to the work. Use the punctuation shown below:
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Author.
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Last Name, First Name
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Title of source.
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If the source has a container, you will typically put the title of the source in quotation marks.
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If the source does not have a container, or if it would most commonly be published without a container, put the title of the source in italics.
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Title of container,
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Use italics
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Other contributors,
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Specify their role, for example, translated by.
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Version,
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Abbreviate revised and edition as rev. and ed. respectively
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Use Arabic numerals for ordinal numbers
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Number,
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Abbreviate volume and number as vol. and no. respectively and separate them with a comma
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Publisher,
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Publication date,
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Day Month Year
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Months may be abbreviated
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Location.
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Print source
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Include the pages, abbreviate pages as pp.
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Digital source
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Use a DOI (if available, precede it with "https://doi.org/" so your reader will be able to call up the source in a browser window), otherwise a permalink or URL (without the https://).
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Article from a print journal: a work in one container
-- Explore the template through the MLA Style Center Quick Guide.
Article from a print journal accessed online
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Yao, Sijia. “Pessimistic Chinese Cosmopolitanism and Jia Zhangke’s The World.” The Comparatist, vol. 43, no. 1, 2019, pp. 147–58. JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/26824952.
List films by title. Include the name of the director, the film studio or distributor, and the release year. If relevant, list performer names after the director's name.
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Film Viewed in Person
Yi Yi. Directed by Edward Yang, WinStar TV & Video, 2001.
Note: the distributor WinStar TV & Video and the release year 2001 are specific to DVD-197 used for this course.
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A Film Viewed Online
Yang, Edward, director. A One and A Two, Films Sans Frontieres, 2000. Films On Demand, 27 November 2025, https://fod-infobase-com.ezproxy.oberlin.edu/p_ViewVideo.aspx?xtid=160484.
Note: the distributor Films Sans Frontieres and the release year 2000 are specific to online streaming of this film available via Oberlin College Libraries.
Check out How to Cite a Book: rules and examples.
Check the Handbook or MLA Style Center Citation by Format guide.
Let's take a close look at these citations together
A. Foucault, Michel. "Of Other Spaces: Utopias and Heterotopias." Architecture / Mouvement / Continuité, translated by Jay Miskowiec, 1984.
B. Foucault, Michel. “Of Other Spaces.” Diacritics, translated by Jay Miskowiec, vol. 16, no. 1, 1986, pp. 22–27. JSTOR, https://doi.org/10.2307/464648. Accessed 29 Nov. 2025.
C. Foucault, Michel. “Of Other Spaces (1967), Heterotopias.” Foucault.info, https://foucault.info/documents/heterotopia/foucault.heteroTopia.en/. Accessed 1 October 2025.
Compare the following two citations of the same article accessed via JSTOR.
A. Noh, Minjung. “Parasite as Parable on JSTOR.” JSTOR, 2020, www.jstor.org/stable/26975087.
B. Noh, Minjung. “Parasite As Parable: Bong Joon-Ho’s Cinematic Capitalism.” CrossCurrents, vol. 70, no. 3, 2020, pp. 248–62. JSTOR, https://www.jstor.org/stable/26975087.
Compare the following two citations for the same interview:
A. Berry, Michael. “Jia Zhangke: Capturing a Transforming Reality.” Speaking in Images: Interviews with Contemporary Chinese Filmmakers, Columbia University Press, 2005, pp.182-207.
B. Berry, Michael. “Jia Zhangke: Capturing a transforming reality.” Speaking in Images: Interviews with Contemporary Chinese Filmmakers (2005): 182-207.
Citation Management
Citation management (or reference management) software can help you keep track of your sources, generate autoformatted reference lists, and more. Citation management software can be a powerful tool when you're working on an annotated bibliography.
Zotero
Zotero is free and open-source software, featuring desktop and iOS applications, word-processor plugins, and a browser add-on or extension.
Learn more about Zotero in our guide to Citation.
RefWorks
RefWorks is a proprietary software application offered by ProQuest, featuring a cloud-based application, and a Save to RefWorks browser bookmark function.
As an Oberlin student, you have free access to RefWorks citation management software. As long as you create an account while you are enrolled, you can keep the account after you graduate—for free and in perpetuity.