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Grand Canyon University

Modern Language Association (MLA)

Style Guide for Writing

Introduction

Students of certain courses at Grand Canyon University (GCU) are required to use the

Modern Language Association Style (MLA) for preparing written assignments. All

students should have a personal copy of the Modern Handbook for Writers of Research

Papers available through the GCU Bookstore or your local bookstore.

In the interest of providing resource material for student use, this guide to MLA style

and format has been developed and made available. It is based on the current 6th

edition

of the MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers. However, the guide only

highlights aspects of MLA style and format, and so it is recommended that students use

the MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers as a resource when writing MLA-

style papers.

An MLA Template and an MLA PowerPoint Presentation have been provided in the

Student Writing Center for student download and/or use.

PLEASE NOTE: The curriculum materials (Syllabus, Lectures/Readings, Resources,

etc.) created and provided by GCU in the online or web-enhanced modalities are prepared

using an editorial format that relies on APA as a framework but which modifies some

formatting criteria to better suit the nature and purpose of instructional materials.

Students and faculty are advised that GCU course materials do not adhere strictly to APA

format and should not be used as examples of correct APA or MLA format.

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MLA Format and Style

General 1) Academic writing, which is independent thought supported by reliable and relevant

research, depends on the ability to integrate and cite the sources that have been

consulted.

2) Use MLA style for all references, in-text citations, formatting, etc.

3) Write in first and second person sparingly, if ever. This means, avoid using I, we, and

you; instead, use he, she, and they.

4) Use only the last names of authors in the text.

5) Do not use contractions.

Paper Format 1) Standard-sized paper (8.5 X 11 inches)

2) Margins: 1” top, bottom, left, right

3) Font: Times New Roman, 12 pt font

4) For emphasis, use italics only (no quotation marks, bold, etc.). However, the MLA

Handbook states that emphasis quickly becomes ineffective and is rarely appropriate

in research writing (MLA Handbook, p. 95). This might be a good thing to mention in

this item (and perhaps in the corresponding item in the APA Style Guide). Also,

words and letters that are referred to as words and letters (“Shaw spelled Shakespeare

without the final e”) should be underlined, and quotation marks should be placed

around “a word or phrase given in a special sense or purposefully misused” (p. 91).

5) Double space only

6) Align the text flush left (not justified); there will be a ragged right edge.

7) No title page; instead, flush with the left margin, type your name, your instructor’s

name, the course number, and the date on separate lines. Double space

8) Double space and center the title of the essay

9) Double space between the title and first line

10) Header

a) All pages should have a header: the author’s last name and the page number

should appear in the upper right hand corner of each page

b) In Microsoft Word, click View, Header and Footer, then click Align Right on the

Menu bar. On the Header/Footer dialog box that pops up, click Insert Page

Number (last button on the left). Put the cursor in front of the number that appears

and type the first two words or so of your title. When you finish typing, hit the

space bar 5x to move the text over a bit.

11) Footer: unnecessary

Organization The basic organization of an MLA-style paper includes the body of the paper and the list

of works cited, though students are encouraged to follow any specific directions given in

the Overview assignment.

1) Body

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a) The body will contain all of the author’s main points as well as detailed and

documented support for those ideas.

b) Introduction follows the title; it is not labeled.

2) List of Works Cited

a) This should start its own page.

c) Works Cited, without the italics, is centered at the top of the page.

d) Include all, any, and only sources that were actually cited in the paper.

e) Arrange the sources in alphabetical order using the authors’ last names.

Punctuation and Mechanics: 1) Numbers

a) Spell out numbers written in one or two words and represent other numbers by

numerals: thirty-six, one hundred, two thousand but 2 1/2, 101, 1,345.

b) Use words for numbers beginning a sentence, title, or heading (Forty-eight

percent responded; Ten subjects improved, and four subjects did not.).

2) Abbreviations

a) Acronyms and abbreviations must be spelled out completely on initial appearance

in text. Ex: The No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act had a profound impact on

public education in the United States. The NCLB was an initiative of President

George W. Bush in 2002.

b) Use only if abbreviation is conventional, is apt to be familiar, will save

considerable space, and will prevent cumbersome repetition.

c) Avoid beginning a sentence with an acronym or an abbreviation.

3) In-text punctuation

a) Punctuation around source citations differs depending on where the quotation,

summary, or paraphrased material falls in the sentence or text. Check MLA

Handbook for specifics.

b) Use only 1 space after all punctuation.

c) Comma: in a series of items, a comma is placed before and. [e.g., The book, ball,

and bat are under your bed.]

d) Quotation marks: except for direct quotes, quotations marks are only used when a

phrase is used in an unconventional way: The printer “ate” the paper.

e) Hyphens:

i) For compound words not in the dictionary, use hyphens for clarity rather than

omit them.

ii) Hyphenate compound adjectives that precede the noun they modify:

(1) role-playing technique

(2) two-way analysis

(3) middle-class families

iii) Do not hyphenate a compound adjective if its meaning is established or it

cannot be misread:

(1) grade point average

(2) sex role difference

4) Capitalization

a) Capitalize the first word, last word, and all principle words of titles, including the

second part of any hyphenated words. Articles, prepositions (such as “against”

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and “between”), coordinating conjunctions, or the “to” in infinitives should not be

capitalized when they fall in the middle of a title (p. 103).

b) Do not capitalize names of laws, theories, and hypotheses except for proper

nouns.

Source Citations 1) All quotations, paraphrases, and summaries must be referenced. Only common

knowledge does not need to be cited. When in doubt, cite the material. This is an

issue of plagiarism; please reference GCU’s policy on Plagiarism in the Student

Handbook.

2) Provide information necessary to identify the source and do not add unnecessary

parenthetical references. For example, if you are citing the entire work, it is not

necessary to provide page numbers.

3) MLA accepts alternate ways of identifying authors.

a) When author’s name is in the text, e.g.

Tannen has argued this point (178-85).

b) Author’s name in reference, e.g.

The point has already been argued (Tannen 178-85). Note: there is no comma

separating the author from the page number of the text.

4) A reference directly after a quotation follows the closing quotation mark, e.g.

In the late Renaissance, Machiavelli contended that human beings were by nature

“ungrateful” and “mutable” (1240), and Montaigne thought them “miserable and

puny” (1343).

5) If the quotation is set off from the text, as in a long quotation, type a space after the

concluding punctuation mark and the quotation and insert the parenthetical reference.

6) In-text citations should note the author(s) and the page number for a direct quotation.

a) Ex: “Ethics examines moral values and the standards of ethical behavior”

(Ornstein and Levine 162).

b) Ex: Ornstein and Levine expressed their concern with NCLB and its affect on

public education (162).

c) See the sample paragraph below.

7) Quotations over four lines must be in block format, indented.

a) Omit the encompassing quotation marks.

b) Start a block quote on a new line.

c) Indent the entire block 1 inch from the left margin (in the same position as a new

paragraph)

d) Additional paragraphs within a block quote should have the first line indented an

additional .25 inches.

e) Double space.

8) Omitting material within a quote: use ellipsis points. When omitting an entire

sentence, end the previous sentence with a period and then add the ellipsis points.

9) Errors within the original material: insert the word sic, italicized and bracketed,

immediately after the error in a quote.

10) Citations within quotations: Do not omit citations embedded in original material from

which you are quoting. This secondary source does not need to appear in the list of

references unless it is used elsewhere in the paper on its own.

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Works Cited: See Chapter 5 in the MLA Handbook The works cited page should appear at the end of a paper. It provides the information

necessary for a reader to locate and retrieve any source you cite in the body of the paper.

Each source you cite in the paper must appear in your reference list; likewise, each entry

in the reference list must be cited in your text.

Your references should begin on a new page separate from the text of the essay; label

this page Work Cited (with no quotation marks, underlining, etc.), centered at the top of

the page. The works cited page should be double-spaced just like the rest of your essay.

1) All lines after the first line of each entry in your works cited list should be indented

one-half inch from the left margin. This is called hanging indentation.

2) In a work of multiple authors, the first author’s name is inverted (last name first) and

the remaining authors are not. EX: Doe, Jane, and John Doe.

3) Work cited list entries should be alphabetized by the last name of the first author of

each work.

4) If you have more than one article by the same author, single-author references or

multiple-author references with the exact same authors in the exact same order, the

sources are listed alphabetically.

5) Capitalize titles as they are capitalized in the work.

6) Italicize or underline titles of longer works such as books, journals, plays,

newspapers, and epic poems. Underlining or italicizing must be consistent throughout

the essay.

7) Put quotation marks around shorter works such as articles, essays, short stories, and

lyric poems.

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Examples

In-Text Citations Here is an example of a book citing:

Kurlansky, Mark. Salt: A World History. New York: Walker, 2002.

Here is a related in-text citation example for an exact quote:

Medieval Europe was a place of both “raids, pillages, slavery, and extortion”

(Townsend 10).

Here is a related in-text citation example without a direct quote:

Robert Townsend writes of the violence of Medieval Europe, calling attention to

practices of raiding neighboring villages and enslaving villagers (10).

Works Cited Examples: Books

Book by a Single Author Author, First Name. Book Title. Location: Publisher, Date of Publication.

Fukuyana, Francis. Our Posthuman Future: Consequences of the Biotechnology

Revolution. New York: Farrar, 2002.

Book by More than One Author Author’s Last Name, First Name, and First Name Author’s Last Name. Book Title:

Subtitle after Colon. Location: Publisher, Date of Publication.

Hutcheon, Linda, and Michael Hutcheon. Bodily Charm: Living Opera. Lincoln: U of

Nebraska, 2000.

Entries for Works in Anthologies with Multiple Editions Author’s Last Name, First Name. “Short Story.” The Anthology. Ed. Editor’s First and

Last Name. Edition Number. Location: Publisher, Date of Publication. Page number-

page number.

London, Jack. “To Build a Fire.” The Story and Its Writer: An Introduction to Short

Fiction. Ed. Ann Charters. 7th

ed. Boston: Bedford/St.Martin’s, 2007. 798-809.

Book by a Corporate Author Organization Name. Book title: Subtitle After Colon. Location: Publisher, Publication

Date.

American Medical Association. The American Medical Association Encyclopedia of

Medicine. Ed. Charles B. Clayman. New York: Random, 1989.

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Works Cited Examples: Periodicals

Article in a Journal Author’s Last Name, First Name. “Title of Article.” Journal Title Volume number (or

volume #.issue #, if issues are separately paginated) (Month Year): Page Numbers.

Amelar, Sarah. “Restoration on 42nd

Street.” Architecture 3 (Mar. 1998): 146-50.

Article in a Newspaper Author’s Last Name, First Name. “Title of Article.” Newspaper Day Month Year,

Section Page Number+ (to indicate that the article is continued on later pages).

Harris, Nicole. “Airports in the Throes of Change.” Wall Street Journal 27 Mar. 2002:

B1+.

Citing Electronic Publications Author’s name. “Title of the Document.” Information about Print Publication.

Information about Electronic Publication. Access Information.

Zeki, Semir. “Artistic Creativity and the Brain.” Science 6 July 2001: 51-52. Science

Magazine. 2002. Amer. Assn. for the Advancement of Science.

Access Information—a citation of an electronic work normally requires

two and sometimes more dates for identification: the date assigned to the source, as well as the date of access. If the work had a prior or

simultaneous print existence, it may be necessary to cite it as well.

Zeki, Semi. “Artistic Creativity and the Brian.” Science 6 July 2001: 51-52. Science

Magazine. 2002. Amer. Assn. for the Advancement of Science. 24 Sept. 2002.

<http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/293/5527/51>.

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