Do you need assistance with creating a citation for a resource that is not listed on this page?
Please suggest the type of resource to us and we will add it to this guide!
Below are PDF versions of the citation handouts we keep at the Information Desk:
The following are different ways you can format your in-text citations:
Author’s name in text (page number):
According to Cuno, “for years, archaeologists have lobbied for national and international laws, treaties, and conventions to prohibit the international movement of antiquities” (1).
Author’s name in reference (page number):
The argument runs that, “the term 'Czechoslovak' had become a rich source of contention almost immediately after the state's formation” (Innes 16).
Two authors in reference:
A study conducted on a college campus concluded that therapy dogs help to reduce stress in students during final examinations (Smith and Jones 348).
Three or more authors in reference:
Dehydration resulting from caffeine can cause severe complications from the body (Adams et al. 67).
No known author:
A similar study was done of students learning to format a research paper ("MLA In-Text Citations").
Note: Use an abbreviated version of the title of the page in quotation marks to substitute for the name of the author
Citing authors with same last names, provide the first initial:
Although some medical ethicists claim that cloning will lead to designer children (R. Miller 12), others note that the advantages for medical research outweigh this consideration (A. Miller 46).
Author’s name in text (no page number):
Cassell and Jenkins compared reaction times. . . .
Author’s name in reference (no page number):
In a recent study of reaction times (Cassell & Jenkins). . .
Note: If the source does not have page numbers, but explicitly labels its paragraphs or sections, you can give that number instead with the appropriate abbreviation. For example, (Lee, par. 2). When a source has no page number or not other kind of numbering, do not give a page number in the parathesis. Do not count paragraphs if they are not numbered.
The following are different ways you can format your in-text citations for poetry:
Poem includes line numbers:
(Author of Poem's Last Name, line(s) Line Number(s))
Example: (Blake, lines 6-9)
Poem does not include line numbers:
(Author of Poem's Last Name)
Example: (Blake)
Poem includes divisions (acts, scenes, cantos, books, parts) and line numbers:
(Author of Poem's Last Name Division Number.Line Number(s))
Example: (Shakespeare 2.2.34-40) — Note: 2.2.34-40 refers to Act 2, Scene 2, lines 34-40
What is Considered to be a Long Quotation?
If the quotation you use in your paper is longer than 3 lines, then it is considered to be a long quotation (also known as a "block quote").
Rules for Long Quotations
There are 4 basic rules that apply to long quotations:
Example of a Long Quotation
In order for libraries to grow and adapt to new generations, it is vital to experiment with programming and services:
The idea of experimentation is to try something new. On occasion, ideas do not always work out the way we hope, and that's okay. Assessment helps determine if an experiment is worth supporting permanently. We consider that iPad experiment at the Art & Architecture Library a failure. The few students who tried the apps, like the app Procreate, but there was not enough evidence for us to continue offering it. Even though we call it a failure, it was not a waste of time. We learned that students are interested in digital art platforms but prefer to use apps on their personal devices. (Copper 77)
| Print Book |
Format: (One Author): Last Name, First Name Middle Name or Initial. Title of Book. Publisher, Publication Year.
(Two authors): Last Name, First Name Middle Name or Initial, and First Name Last Name. Title of Book. Publisher, Publication Year.
(Three or More Authors): Last Name, First Name Middle Name or Initial, et al. Title of Book. Publisher, Publication Year.
Example: Hockney, David, and Martin Gayford. A History of Pictures: From the Cave to the Computer Screen. Abrams, 2016.
In-Text Citation: (Hockney and Gayford 295) |
| Book Review |
Format: Last Name, First Name. "Title of Review (if there is one)." Review of Book/Performance Title, by Author/Director/Artist. Title of Periodical, Publication date (Day Month Year), page.
Example: Seitz, Matt Zoller. "Life in the Sprawling Suburbs, If You Can Really Call It Living." Review of Radiant City, directed by Gary Burns and Jim Brown, New York Times, 30 May 2007, p. E1.
In-Text Citation: (Seitz E1) |
| Edited Book (Anthology or Collection) |
Format: Editor Last Name, First Name Middle Name or Initial, editor(s). Title of Book. Publisher, Publication Year.
Example: Alessio, Enzo, editor. Bioinorganic Medicinal Chemistry. Wiley-VCH, 2012.
In-Text Citation: (Alessio 302) |
| Comic Book or Graphic Novel |
Format: Author Last Name, Author First Name. Title of Work. Publisher, Publication Year. OR Title of Work. By Author First Name Last Name, illustrated by Illustrator First Name Last Name, inked by First Name Last Name, colored by First Name Last Name, Publisher, Publication Year.
Examples: Barker, Meg-John, and Julia Scheele. Queer: A Graphic History. Icon Books, 2016. OR Woman World. By Aminder Dhaliwal, color by Nikolas Ilic, Drawn & Quarterly, 2018.
In-Text Citation: (Barker and Scheele 117) (Woman World 46) |
| Book with Illustrations |
Format: Author Last Name, Author First Name. Title of Work. Illustrated by Illustrator First Name Last Name, Publisher, Publication Year.
Example: Peters, Jonas, and Nicolai Meinshausen. The Raven's Hat: Fallen Pictures, Rising Sequences, and Other Mathematical Games. Illustrated by Malte Meinshausen, MIT Press, 2021.
In-Text Citation: (Peters and Nicolai 83) |
| Chapter in an Edited Book or Work in an Anthology |
Format: Author Last Name, First Name Middle Name or Initial. “Title of Chapter/Essay.” Title of Book, edited by Editor First Name Last Name, Publisher, Publication Year, Pages (pp.).
Example: Corak, Miles. “Age at Immigration and the Education Outcomes of Children.” Realizing the Potential of Immigrant Youth, edited by Ann S. Masten, et al., Cambridge University Press, 2012, pp. 90-114.
In-Text Citation: (Corak 96) |
| Poetry from an Edited Collection |
Format: Author Last Name, Author First Name. "Title of Poem." Title of Book: Subtitle, edited by Editor's First Name Last Name, edition (if given & is not first edition), Publisher Name, Year of Publication, pages numbers of poem.
Example: Donne, John. "A Valediction: Forbidding Mourning." The Broadview Introduction to Literature: Poetry, edited by Lisa Chalykoff, Neta Gordon, and Paul Lumsden, Broadview Press, 2013, pp. 48-49.
In-Text Citation: (Donne, lines 26-28) Note: If your quotation contains more than one line from the poem, use forward slashes (/) between each line of the poem. For line breaks that occur between stanzas, use a double forward slash (//). If citing more than 3 lines, follow the rules for a long citation. |
| Corporate or Government Publication/Report |
Format: Last name, First name or (if no author is listed) Government Issuing the Document, Agency or Department. Title of Document. Publisher, Publication Date (month year).
Example: United States, Government Accountability Office. Climate Change: EPA and DOE Should Do More to Encourage Progress Under Two Voluntary Programs. Government Printing Office, 2006.
In-Text Citation: (United States, Government Accountability Office 24) |
| eBook |
Format: Author Last Name, Author First Name Middle Name or Initial. Title of Book: Subtitle. E-book ed., Publisher, Publication Year.
Example: Perkins, Anne Gardiner. Yale Needs Women: How the First Group of Girls Rewrote the Rules of an Ivy League Giant. E-book ed., Sourcebooks, 2019.
In-Text Citation: (Perkins 42) |