Transcript
Page 1: MLA Writing Center - Yakima Valley Community College

MLA

Writing Center - Yakima Valley Community College

Page 2: MLA Writing Center - Yakima Valley Community College

This tutorial covers:

Writing Center - Yakima Valley Community College

- What MLA is and why we use it

- General document formatting

- Avoiding plagiarism

Presenter: When you see this click your mouse for motion graphics.

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What is MLA?

Writing Center - Yakima Valley Community College

MLA is commonly used in the Humanities disciplines.

MLA is a set of standards for academic papers.

MLA provides standards for:

- General document formatting- Avoiding plagiarism

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General Document Formatting

Writing Center - Yakima Valley Community College

Smith 1

Pete Smith

Dr. Boilermaker

English 106

12 October 2008

Expanding Ross Stadium

During the 2000 football season, the Purdue Boilermakers

won the Big Ten Conference Title, earned their first trip to the

Rose Bowl in thirty-four years, and played every game in front

of a sold-out crowd. Looking ahead, we can expect growth in

our top-line numbers of season-ticket holders, all of whom have

expressed an interest in box-seating and better concessions.

Type on white 8.5” x

11” paper

Set all margins to 1 inch on

all sidesDouble-space everything

Use 12 pt. Times New Roman fontIndent the first line of paragraphs one half-inch (or one tab)

Formatting standards make papers look similar; not all crazy-different (no funky fonts or goofy margins - stuff like that).It’s like the suit you wear to the office, like professional attire: in this business, we wear this suit.

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Writing Center - Yakima Valley Community College

MLA’s standards for citing and documenting sources

help you to avoid plagiarism.

Avoiding Plagiarism

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Writing Center - Yakima Valley Community College

Avoiding Plagiarism in MLA

What is Plagiarism?

Citing Sources

Documenting Sources

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What is Plagiarism?

Writing Center - Yakima Valley Community College

Plagiarism can happen whenever you use words, information, or ideas from a source.

Sources can include books, articles, web pages, interviews, films, advertisements, etc.

Oh yeah!This is good stuff for my

paper.

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What is Plagiarism?

Writing Center - Yakima Valley Community College

Wyatt Earp Frontier Justice

Tighter gun control in the United States erodes Second Amendment rights.

25

Source: a book by Wyatt Earp Your paper:

Me 5

Tighter gun control in the United States erodes Second Amendment rights.

Plagiarism happens when you use words, information, or ideas from a source without identifying the source.

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Avoiding Plagiarism in MLA

Writing Center - Yakima Valley Community College

Avoid plagiarism by identifying your sources.

Identify your sources by citing and documenting them.

Do this in two places:

- Cite your sources in the text of your paper

- Document your sources on a Works Cited page

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Citing Sources

Writing Center - Yakima Valley Community College

Identify sources in the text of your paper by:

- using quotes and paraphrases- adding author name(s) and page

number

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Using quotes & paraphrases: a quick review

Writing Center - Yakima Valley Community College

Quotesuse theexact words

found ina source.

Me 4

“Tighter gun control in the

United States erodes

Second Amendment rights”

Quotations marks show where the exact words begin and end.

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Using quotes & paraphrases: a quick review

Writing Center - Yakima Valley Community College

Paraphrasestell your readerswhat the source said,but in your own words.

Me 4

stricter gun control laws would

affect our constitutional rights

Quotations marks are not needed.

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Are quotes and paraphrases alone enough to avoid plagiarism?

Writing Center - Yakima Valley Community College

“Tighter gun control in the

United States erodes Second

Amendment rights.”

Gun control laws weaken

our constitutional rights

guaranteed in the Second

Amendment.

No. Quotes and paraphrases alone are not enough.

The quote is plagiarism because the source

is not identified.

The paraphrase is also plagiarism because the

source is not identified. (The words were changed, but the idea came from a source)

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Citing Sources

Writing Center - Yakima Valley Community College

Identify sources in the text of your paper by:

Using quotes and paraphrases- Adding author name(s) and page number

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Me 4

“Tighter gun control in the United States erodes Second Amendment rights”

Adding author name(s) & page number

Writing Center - Yakima Valley Community College

Here’s our quote again. The author is Wyatt Earp. The words are on page 25 of his book.

Add the author name and page number to the quote.

Earp says,

(25).

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Me 4

stricter gun control laws would affect our

constitutional rights

Adding author name(s) & page number

Writing Center - Yakima Valley Community College

Treat paraphrases the same as you would treat quotes.

Add the author name and page number to the paraphrase.

Earp believes that

(25).

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You have two options for adding author name and page number:

Writing Center - Yakima Valley Community College

“Tighter gun control in the

United States erodes Second Amendment rights”

, “gun control in the United States erodes Second Amendment rights”

Option 1 Option 2Author name in front of the quote; page number in back.

Author name and page number in back.

Earp says, Opponents agree that

(25). (Earp 25).

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The same two options apply to paraphrases:

Writing Center - Yakima Valley Community College

stricter gun control

laws would weaken our constitutional rights

stricter gun control laws would weaken our constitutional rights

Option 1 Option 2

Earp argues that Opponents argue that

(25). (Earp 25).

Have you noticed that page numbers always go at the end of the sentence? It’s true. So, the only real decision you need to make is where to put the author’s name: in front, or in back.

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REVIEW: Citing Sources

Writing Center - Yakima Valley Community College

So, to every quote and paraphrase, add the following:

1. The last name of the author of the source.

2. The page number in the source where you found the words,

information, or idea.

Use Option 1 (author name in front, page number in back)

or Option 2 (author name and page number in back).

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Questions about options:

Writing Center - Yakima Valley Community College

Why two options?So you can mix it up.

Which option is the best?Option 1.

Why is Option 1 the best?Because you integrate sources more smoothly into the text of your paper.

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Author’s last name + verb of attribution + quote or paraphrase + (page). This is called a “signal phrase”

Earp

arguesbelievesclaimssaysthinkswrites

“Tighter gun control in the United States erodes Second Amendment rights.“

Gun control weakens our rights guaranteed in the Second Amendment.

(25).

(25).

Earp writes, “Tighter gun control in the United States erodes Second Amendment rights” (25).

Earp claims that gun control weakens our rights guaranteed in the Second Amendment (25).

Option 1: Using signal phrases to integrate sources more smoothly into your paper

Writing Center - Yakima Valley Community College

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Activity: Citing Sources

Writing Center - Yakima Valley Community College

You’ve seen how to avoid plagiarism in the text of your paper by identifying your sources:

using quotes and paraphrases adding author name(s) and page number

Now, you try it.

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Activity: Citing Sources

Writing Center - Yakima Valley Community College

Select one of the sources on the next slide and cite the source:

1. Quote or paraphrase the words.2. Identify the source by adding author name(s) and page number. Use Option 1 (name in front, page in back).3. Write down your result.

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Activity: Citing Sources

Writing Center - Yakima Valley Community College

My window is a grave, and all that lies within it’s dead.William Gass Page 213

The secret of getting ahead is getting started.Mark Twain Page 141

I’m not a very good writer, but I’m an excellent rewriter.James Michener Page 25

Tattoos and piercings can be seen as bodily aids in the inner struggle toward identity.Andres Martin Page 79

We have an oversimplified perspective of why children develop as they do.Elissa Allen Page 8The lack of success of recent initiatives suggests that medication might not be the answer for the escalating problem.Luisa Mirano Page 3

See next slide for another look at the signal phrases table.

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Author’s last name + verb of attribution + quote or paraphrase + (page). This is called a “signal phrase”

Earp

arguesbelievesclaimssaysthinkswrites

“tighter gun control in the United States erodes Second Amendment rights.“

Gun control weakens our rights guaranteed in the Second Amendment.

(25).

(25).

Earp writes, “Tighter gun control in the United States erodes Second Amendment rights” (25).

Earp claims that gun control weakens our rights guaranteed in the Second Amendment (25).

Option 1: Using signal phrases to integrate sources more smoothly into your paper

Writing Center - Yakima Valley Community College

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Avoiding Plagiarism in MLA

Writing Center - Yakima Valley Community College

Avoid plagiarism by identifying your sources.

Identify your sources by citing and documenting them.

Do this in two places: A) Cite your sources in the text of your

paper

B) Document your sources on a Works Cited pageYou’ve seen how to do A), so now, let’s do B).

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Documenting sources on a Works Cited page

Writing Center - Yakima Valley Community College

Me 7Works Cited

Earp, Wyatt. “Frontier Justice: Your Rights, Your Gun.” Tombstone Law Journal. Aug. 2005: 10 – 52. Print.

Smith, Bubba, and Bo Wesson. Take Our Jobs, But Not Our Guns. Sioux Falls, SD: Rifleman Press, 2006. Print.

“Wild West in Our Nation’s Capital.” Editorial. The Washington Post. 12 Feb 2007: A4. Print.

What is a Works Cited page?

It’s a bibliography of all the sources you used in your paper.

It includes author names, titles, book titles, names of journals or magazines, names of publishers, dates, page numbers, etc.

It’s the last page of your paper, and it stands alone as its own page.

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Documenting sources on a Works Cited page

Writing Center - Yakima Valley Community College

Earp, Wyatt. “Frontier Justice: Your Rights, Your Gun.” Tombstone Law Journal. Aug. 2005: 10 – 52.

Smith, Bubba, and Bo Wesson. Take Our Jobs, But Not Our Guns. Sioux Falls, SD: Rifleman Press, 2006.

“Wild West in Our Nation’s Capital.” Editorial. The Washington Post. 12 Feb 2007: A4.

Format: Each entry on a Works Cited page has to be formatted in very specific ways, depending on the type of source. But there are some general similarities.

Author “title of article” title of publication Publisher Dates Pages Medium

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Basic format for a book with one author.

Tan, Amy. Saving Fish From Drowning. New York: Putnam, 2005. Print.

authortitle of

publication

place of publication

publisher

date of publication

medium (print or web)

The differences depend on the type of source:

Writing Center - Yakima Valley Community College

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Short work from a website (with one author).

Jenkins, Henry. “Bearings.” MIT Communications Forum. MIT, 19 Feb. 2002. Web. 16 Jan. 2005.

author“title of article”

title of publication

sponsor of website

date the site was last updated

medium (print or web)

date you accessed the site

Writing Center - Yakima Valley Community College

The differences depend on the type of source:

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How do I know which format to use for a particular source?

Writing Center - Yakima Valley Community College

Consult a style guide. Style guides have comprehensive lists with explanations and examples.

The Writing Center has style guides for use in the Center.

Style guides on the web: Try the Purdue Online Writing Lab:

http://owl.english.purdue.edu/

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Avoiding Plagiarism in MLA

Writing Center - Yakima Valley Community College

Now you’ve seen it all, right? You’ve seen how to avoid plagiarism by identifying your sources in two places:

A) Cite your sources in the text of your paper B) Document your sources on a Works Cited

page

You’ve tried A).Now, try B).

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Activity: Documenting sources with a style guide

Writing Center - Yakima Valley Community College

Source type: BookWilliam GassIn the Heart of the Heart of the Country and Other StoriesNew YorkPocket Books1977Print

Tan, Amy. Saving Fish From Drowning. New York: Putnam, 2005. Print.

Model #6: Basic format for a book with one author.

Let’s say you’re using this book in your paper.

Here’s all the info you need to create a Works Cited page entry.

Your task is to make this info match the model below.

Write down your result.

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Activity: Documenting sources with a style guide

Writing Center - Yakima Valley Community College

Source type: short work from a websiteAndres MartinTeenager and TattoosOnline Journal of the AACAPAACAP19 Feb 2004Web15 Sep 2011

Model #48: Short work from a website (with one author).

Let’s say you’re also using this short work from a website in your paper.

Here’s all the info you need to create a Works Cited page entry.

Your task, again, is to make this info match the model below.

Write down your result.

Jenkins, Henry. “Bearings.” MIT Communications Forum. MIT, 19 Feb. 2002. Web. 16 Jan. 2005.

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REVIEW: MLA -- how it all works

Writing Center - Yakima Valley Community College

Me 4

Earp says, “Tighter gun control in the United States erodes Second Amendment rights” (25).

Me 7

Works Cited

Earp, Wyatt. Frontier

Justice. Tombstone Law

Journal. Aug. 2005: 10 – 52.

Print.

Wyatt Earp Frontier Justice

Tighter gun control in the United States erodes Second Amendment rights.

25

Earp’s book My paper My Works Cited page

1. Use a source 2. Cite the source

3. Document the source

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Writing Center - Yakima Valley Community College

Me 4

Earp says,

“Tighter gun control in the

United States erodes Second

Amendment rights” (25).

Me 7

Works Cited

Earp, Wyatt. Frontier

Justice. Tombstone Law

Journal. Aug. 2005: 10 – 52.

My paper My Works Cited page

In-text citations refer readers to your Works Cited page

via the author’s last name.

REVIEW: MLA -- how it all works

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Writing Center - Yakima Valley Community College

FAQ: What do I put here?!

Me 3

Characters like Batman, Superman, and Spider-Man are the

most familiar, the most popular, and the biggest money-makers

( 22). Some similarity in mainstream titles was for many

years unavoidable due to the creation in 1954 of the Comics

Code Authority (CCA), an organization formed by leading comic

publishers to regulate the content of comics ( ).

In 1968, Robert Crumb’s Zap initiated the “underground

comix revolution” ( 101). Zap satirized mainstream,

conservative beliefs and did not shy away from sexual or

political content, yet beneath the crude humor of Zap lay

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Writing Center - Yakima Valley Community College

Answer: The first thing listed for that source on your Works Cited page, along with the page number (if the

source has page numbers).

FAQ: What do I put here?

Me 3

Characters like Batman, Superman, and Spider-

Man are the most familiar, the most popular

(Heller 22). Similarities in mainstream titles was

for many years unavoidable due to the creation

in 1954 of the Comics Code Authority (CCA), an

organization formed to regulate the content of

comics (“Good Shall Triumph”).

Me 3

Works Cited

Heller, David. Comic Book Nation: Transformation

of Youth Culture in America. Baltimore: Johns

Hopkins UP, 2001. Print.

“Good Shall Triumph Over Evil: The Comic Book

Code of 1954.” History Matters: The U.S. History

Survey Course. George Mason University, 2006.

Web. 22 Mar. 2009.

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Writing Center - Yakima Valley Community College

Whenever you use words, information, or ideas from a source….

…you must identify the source.

Oh yeah!This is good stuff for my

paper.

Identify your sources by citing and documenting them:

A) Cite your sources in the text of your paper

B) Document your sources on a Works Cited page

REVIEW: Avoiding Plagiarism

Page 41: MLA Writing Center - Yakima Valley Community College

Writing Center - Yakima Valley Community College

Cite your sources in the text of your paper by:Using quotes and paraphrasesAdding author names and page numbers

Document your sources on a Works Cited page by: Consulting a style guide for the right format

for each type of source.

Mr. Mackey says: “Plagiarism’s bad. Mmmkay? Don’t do it. That would be bad. That would be like…mmreally, really bad. Mmmkay?”

REVIEW: Avoiding Plagiarism

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For more info…

Writing Center - Yakima Valley Community College

Use, or buy a style guide.

Buy it once; you’ll use it through your entire college career, if not beyond. We use them; we can’t remember all this stuff!

Come to the Writing Center at YVCC.

We have style guides, handouts, and helpful staff.

Located in G-125 (Glenn-Anthon).

Make an appointment for an individual, 30-minute consultation.

Purdue Online Writing Lab:

http://owl.english.purdue.edu/

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Disclaimer

Writing Center - Yakima Valley Community College

Individual results may vary.*

You may discover discrepancies between style guides, on-line MLA resources, suggestions from Writing Center consultants, and instructions about using MLA from your instructor.

When in doubt, always check with your instructor.

* This is not, in fact, fine print. It’s just supposed to look like fine print, you know, as a joke– mocking fine print. I mean, yeah, sure, the font is very tiny, so in one sense I suppose it is fine print, but you certainly can’t say that it is “fine print” in the pejorative sense of that term.


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