The author's last name and page number(s) are placed in parentheses in the text to give credit to sources.

For example, in your paper you write:

The authors conclude that the possible uses for blood substitutes are endless. (Nucci and Abuchowski 77)

In your Bibliography you list:

Nucci, Mary L. and Abraham Abuchowski. "The Search for Blood Substitutes."
Scientific American Feb. 1998: 72-77.

Where no page reference is available such as in some Internet citations, author's last name only is sufficient, e.g. (Stratten) would be all you need for a parenthetical reference provided that a full entry has been made in your Bibliography.

If you are citing two or more articles by the same author, distinguish the articles by adding a date after the author's last name, e.g., (Roche 1997 45), (Roche 1998 62-64); or add the short title after the last name, e.g., (Mayberry Business Leaders 21), (Mayberry Leaders Who Changed 35-40).

If you are citing two authors with the same last name, add first names to distinguish between the two, e.g., (John Smith 52), (Jane Smith 90).

At the high school or undergraduate level, for a work with more than three authors, you may use et al. (Latin meaning "and others") e.g., (Carmichael et al. 25). If writing a Masters or Doctoral thesis, you may need to list all of the authors.

If you are quoting from a Webpage, your citation for the parenthetical reference follows the same format as any regular citations for author, editor, title, etc.

For example, if your citation is from the Webpage supplied and compiled by Charlie Harris, Laurence A. Moore, Steven Blacher, Yvonne Hewett and others entitled "URLs for a Rainy Day" found at http://www.purefiction.co.uk/pages/res2.htm, in your essay you may refer to "a really useful Webpage which compiles various suggested URLs for researchers" (Harris et al).

In your Bibliography or Works Cited page, you must list the following in alphabetical order by first word along with your other citations:

Harris, Charlie, et al. "URLs for a Rainy Day." 2 Oct. 1999.
24 Oct. 1999 <http://www.purefiction.co.uk/pages/res2.htm>.

Meaning of dates: Webpage was last updated on 2 October 1999. You accessed it on 24 October 1999. For further details on Internet citations, see Item #23. Internet in Chapter 12. Bibliography - Examples in MLA Style.

Some writers prefer to indicate the page or paragraph number of the Webpage cited which is not only difficult to do but inaccurate as, unlike a published book, page numbers on a Webpage vary depending on the size of your monitor, your selection of font size and the browser you use; and it would drive you and your readers insane to count the number of paragraphs if the Webpage cited is very long with numerous headings, subheadings, directories, subdirectories, or bullets.

Instead of indicating the page or paragraph number of the Webpage, it may be wise to add the section or heading after "Harris et al" in your parenthetical reference, e.g. (Harris et al Art/Humanities). This will help your readers to easily locate the source of your citation regardless what browser or font size they have chosen to use.

Remember that common sense, logic, and consistency are the main ingredients for writing a good citation.

Last modified: 24 October 1999

NEXT - Chapter 10. Works Cited, References, and Bibliography
What's the Difference?
PREVIOUS - Chapter 8. First Footnotes and Endnotes -
Examples in MLA Style
To HOMEPAGE

Feedback: [email protected]