MLA Style and Quotation Information Show
For all questions regarding style and documentation refer to your Longwood Style Manual or the MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers. SPACING The paper must be double-spaced in its entirety, including quotations, notes, and the list of works cited. In no case do you single-space anything. HEADING AND TITLE According to MLA style, a paper does not present a title page. Begin one inch from the top of the first page and flush with the left margin and include your name, the instructor's name, the course number, and the date on separate lines. Double-space and center your title. Double-space and begin your text. JUSTIFICATION Set only left justification. Be sure that the right margin is not justified. QUOTATIONS "While quotations are common and often effective in research papers, use them selectively. Quote only words, phrases, lines, and passages that are particularly interesting, vivid, unusual, or apt, and keep all quotations as brief as possible. Overquotation can bore your readers and might lead them to conclude that you are neither an orignal thinker nor a skillful writer" (MLA 56). 1. Quoting a passage which is shorter than four lines and is to be incorporated as part of your sentence: Hawthorne emphasizes the prying character of Roger Chilling worth early in the novel: "The eyes of the wrinkled scholar glowed so intensely upon her, that Hester Prynne clasped her hands over her heart, dreading lest he should read the secret there at once" (Hawthorne 76). Note the positions of the quotation marks, citation, and period at the end of the sentence. If the quotation ends with an exclamation point or question mark, that punctuation is included INSIDE the quotation mark. The period after the parenthetical reference is also retained. 2. Quoting a passage which spans two pages of the original text: "read the secret there at once" (Hawthorne 76-77). 3. Quoting a passage which is four lines or longer in your text (this passage should be indented ten spaces from the left margin): It was so artistically done, and with so much fertility and gorgeous luxuriance of fancy, that it had all the effect of a last and fitting decoration to the apparel which she wore; and which was of a splendor in accordance with the taste of the age, but greatly beyond what was allowed by the sumptuary regulations of the colony. (Hawthorne 54) In practice, the offset quotation should be double-spaced and you should double-space before and after the inserted quotation too. Note that there are no punctuation marks after the closing parenthesis and there are no quotations marks around the text itself. 4. Quoting a portion of dialogue: If you quote something a character says, use double quotation marks on the outside ends of the quotation to indicate that you are quoting a portion of the text. Use single quotation marks inside the double quotation marks to indicate that someone is speaking. "'Thou art not my child! Thou art no Pearl of mine!'" (Hawthorne 97). If you cite a passage of dialogue of four lines or more, follow the rule for offset quotation, but remember to use double quotation marks at the beginning and end of the spoken portion to indicate that a character is speaking. 5. When you quote a passage, you may occasionally want to alter the original text by either deleting some or by supplying your own material to make the sentence grammatically sound or to provide some explanation. A. original: The village lay under two feet of snow, with drifts at the windy corners. In a sky of iron the points of the Dipper hung like icicles and Orion flashed his cold fires. B. added: Edith Wharton describes the village of Starkfield as "lay[ing] under two feet of snow, with drifts at the windy corners. In a sky of iron the points of the Dipper hung like icicles and Orion flashed his cold fires." C. deleted: Wharton's depiction of the hardness of environment is especially apparent in her description of the "sky of iron [in which]. . .Orion flashes his cold fires." D. If you quote from one sentence, skip over some text, and then quote from a later one, you need four ellipsis points to indicate that you've quoted material from two separate sentences: "The village lay under two feet of snow. . . .[and] the Dipper hung like icicles. . . ." Published on May 23, 2018 by Courtney Gahan. Revised on June 16, 2022. When you include a long quote in an
MLA paper, you have to format it as a block quote. MLA style (8th edition) requires block quote formatting for: An MLA block quote is set on a new line, indented 0.5 inches, with
no quotation marks. The MLA in-text citation goes after the period at the end of the block quote. To create a block quote in MLA, follow these four simple steps. Always introduce block quotes in your own words. Start with a sentence or two that shows the reader why you are
including the quote and how it fits into your argument. After the introductory sentence, add a colon, and then start the quote on a new line. Like the rest of your MLA format paper, the block quote should be double spaced. Indent the entire quote half an inch
from the left margin. Include the same capitalization, punctuation, and line breaks as appear in the original text. Step 3: Cite the quoteAt the end of the quote, add an MLA in-text citation directly after the final punctuation mark. This contains the name of the author(s) and the page number(s) from which the quote is taken. Every in-text citation must correspond to an entry in the Works Cited list. You can create citations using our free MLA citation generator. Step 4: Comment on the quoteUnder the block quote, analyze or comment on the quoted text. Never end a paragraph with a block quote – you should always start and end in your own words. Block quote examplesUse the tabs to navigate between the examples for quoting prose and quoting poetry. Pay attention to the indentation, spacing, the colon after the leading sentence, and the parenthetical citation. The reader quickly becomes familiar with Nick Carraway’s relationship with Jay Gatsby, as the very first mention of the character illustrates both his admiration and disdain: Only Gatsby, the man who gives his name to this book, was exempt from my reaction—Gatsby who represented everything for which I have an unaffected scorn. If personality is an unbroken series of successful gestures, then there was something gorgeous about him, some heightened sensitivity to the promises of life, as if he were related to one of those intricate machines that register earthquakes ten thousand miles away. (Fitzgerald 4) The poem “My Country” is one of the most widely known in Australia, expressing the poet’s affection for the country’s unique landscape: I love a sunburnt country, If you block quote from a play, follow our guide to MLA play citation. Quotes within block quotesIf you want to block quote a passage that itself contains a quote, use quotation marks as you normally would around the inner quote. Example nested quotationLike his introduction of Gatsby, Fitzgerald’s opening description of Daisy immediately informs the reader of her charm and allure: she laughed, an absurd, charming little laugh, and I laughed too and came forward into the room. “I’m p-paralyzed with happiness.” She laughed again, as if she said something very witty, and held my hand for a moment, looking up into my face, promising that there was no one in the world she so much wanted to see. That was a way she had. (Fitzgerald 11) Omitting words or lines in block quotesYou can shorten block quotes by using ellipses ( … ) to indicate that you have removed some text. If you shorten a quote like this, make sure it doesn’t change the author’s original meaning or leave out important context. If you want to omit a line of poetry, you can indicate this with a line of periods approximately the same length as the line of the poem. I
love a sunburnt country, Frequently asked questions about block quoting in MLACite this Scribbr articleIf you want to cite this source, you can copy and paste the citation or click the “Cite this Scribbr article” button to automatically add the citation to our free Citation Generator.
Is this article helpful?You have already voted. Thanks :-) Your vote is saved :-) Processing your vote... How do you put a quote into an essay?The following general steps address how to properly integrate a quotation into an essay.. Step 1: Introduce the Author of the Quotation. ... . Step 2: State the Quotation. ... . Step 3: Summarize the Quotation. ... . Step 4: Analyze the Quotation. ... . Step 5: State the Quotation's Relevance to Your Argument.. How do you MLA quote?Start the quotation on a new line, with the entire quote indented 1/2 inch from the left margin while maintaining double-spacing. Your parenthetical citation should come after the closing punctuation mark. When quoting verse, maintain original line breaks. (You should maintain double-spacing throughout your essay.)
How do you cite a quote within a citation MLA?In your in-text citation identify the primary source, and include in parentheses "(as cited in Author, Date)". The reference list will only list the secondary source. In the examples below, Smith's study is the primary source and Queenan et al. is the secondary ("as cited in") source.
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How to use a quote in an essay mla
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