Modern Language Association (MLA) Citation
Printed book, one author
Shows author, title, publisher, date
Butler, Judith. Gender Trouble: Feminism and the Subversion of Identity. Routledge, 1990.
Printed book, one author, edition other than first
Shows author, title, edition number, publisher, date
Friedan, Betty. The Feminine Mystique. 50Th Anniversary Edition, Norton, 2013.
Printed book, two authors
Shows authors, title, publisher, date
Hill, Errol G. and James V. Hatch. A History of African American Theatre. Cambridge UP, 2003.
Chapter or article in a book
Shows chapter author(s), chapter title, book’s title, book’s editor(s), publisher, date, page numbers of chapter
Ellison, Ralph. “King of the Bingo Game.” The Norton Introduction to Literature. Shorter 10th ed, edited by
Alison Booth and Kelly J. Mays, Norton, 2010, pp. 497-503.
Short Story
Shows author, story title, book title, publisher, date, pages
Erdrich, Louise. “The Dress.” The Red Convertible, Harper Perennial, 2009, pp. 153-164.
Poem
Shows author, poem title, book title, publisher, date, pages
Driskill, Qwo-Li. “Going Home.” Walking With Ghosts, Salt, 2005, pp. 12-14.
Poem in an anthology
Shows author, poem title, book title, edition if other than the first, editor(s), place of publication, publisher, page(s), and medium
Dunbar, Paul Laurence. “We Wear the Mask.” The Norton Introduction to Literature, Portable 11th ed.,
edited by Kelly J. Mays, Norton, 2014, pp. 678.
Play
Shows author, title, publisher, date
Kaufman, Moises. The Laramie Project. Dramatists Play Service, 2001.
Article paginated by volume and accessed through an online database
Shows author(s), title, journal, volume and issue, date, pages, database, and DOI or URL (paginated by volume means each new issue starts with a page number where the previous issue left off; most academic journals follow this structure)
Kuppers, Petra. “The Wheelchair’s Rhetoric: The Performance of Disability.” TDR, vol. 51, no. 4,
2007, pp. 80-88. JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/25145469.
Article from an online journal
Shows author, title, journal, volume and issue, date published, pages (use n.pag for an online journal that is not paginated), and URL
Smit, Christopher. “Body Vandalism: Lady Gaga, Disability, and Popular Culture.” Review of Disability
Studies, vol. 10, no.1, 2014, pp. 28-50, www. rds.hawaii.edu/ojs/index.php/journal/article/ view/31.
Magazine article
Shows author, title, magazine, date, pages
Levine, Robert. “’Google Books’ Win may Threaten other Media.” Bloomberg Businessweek, Oct. 25-
Nov. 1 2015, pp. 29-30.
Online magazine article
Shows author(s), title of article, title of website, date updated, and URL
Lee, Paula Young. “’Your Manuscript is not a Good Fit’: How ‘we need Diverse Books’ can Move
Beyond Wishful Thinking.” Salon, 18 Feb. 2016, www.salon.com/2016/02/18/your_ manuscript_is_not_a_good_fit_how_we_need_diverse_books_can_move_beyond_wishful_thinking/.
Article or page from a website
Shows author(s) (if available), title of work, title of website, sponsor, date updated, medium, and date accessed
Kolbi-Molinas, Alexa. “The Rising Threat of Religious Hospitals Denying Women Medical Care.”
ACLU, 25 Feb. 2016, www.aclu.org/blog/speak-freely/rising threat-religious-hospitals-
denying-women-medical-care.
Article or page from a website with corporate owner with no author and no update date
Shows title of work, title of website, URL, and date accessed
“Rhetorical Analysis.” University Writing Center, writingcenter.tamu.edu/Students/Guides/Alphabetical/
Academic-Writing/Analysis/Rhetorical-Analysis. Accessed 7 July 2016.
Wikipedia page
Shows page title, Wikipedia, and date accessed
“Adrienne Rich.” Wikipedia, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adrienne_Rich. Accessed 31 Jan. 2016
Motion picture (film)
Shows title, director, performers, distributor, release date
Capote. Directed by Bennett Miller, Performances by Phillip Seymour Hoffman, Catherine Keener,
Clifton Collins Jr., Sony, 2005.
Newspaper article
Shows title, newspaper, date, section, page, medium
Young, Jeffrey R. “Boom in Online Tutoring Means Additional Cost for Many Students.” The Chronicle
of Higher Education, 19 Feb. 2016, pp. A17.
Personal communication (e-mail)
Shows author, title of message, recipient of email, date
Bishop, Peter. “Interview Questions.” Received by Jane Smith, 12 Oct. 2015.
For more examples and details, see https://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl
Jessica Saltzberg, English Faculty
