Are you a college student struggling to navigate the intricacies of MLA essay format?
Are you struggling to properly format your essays in MLA style?
Look no further! This comprehensive guide covers everything you need to know about the MLA essay format, including how to format your paper, cite sources, and create a work cited page. Even students who are masters of other formats, such as APA and Chicago, can face challenges adapting to the MLA essay format.
By the end of this article, you’ll be an expert on MLA style and ready to tackle any essay assignment with confidence.
What is MLA format?
MLA (Modern Language Association) format is a style guide widely used in the humanities and liberal arts. That means that you are most likely to encounter MLA essay format in English class, philosophy, and related disciplines. MLA specifies the conventions for formatting papers, citations, and works cited pages in a standardized way that allows researchers to identify and locate sources used in an essay. Adhering to MLA format helps you avoid plagiarism and gives your writing credibility and professional polish.
How to set up an MLA essay
MLA format specifies conventions for how essays are supposed to appear so that every MLA essay has a consistent look.
Page layout:
Use a standard 8.5″ x 11″ white paper.
Set the margins to 1″ on all sides.
Use a 12-point, easy-to-read standard font like Times New Roman or Arial.
Double-space the entire document, including the heading and works cited page.
Heading:
The first page of your essay should include a heading that will identify you and your essay so your instructor can tell your paper apart from those of others.
On the top left corner of the first page, type your name, instructor’s name, course number, and date, each on a separate line.
Add a page number in the top right corner.
On the next line, center the title of your essay.
Do not bold, italicize, or underline the title.
Page numbering:
MLA essay format specifies that essays should have numbered pages so readers can reference material in the essay by page.
Start the page numbering on the title page, with the page number in the top right corner.
On subsequent pages, include the page number in the top right corner.
Paragraphs:
Within an MLA format essay, each paragraph needs to follow a specific format to give your essay a unified and coherent look.
Indent the first line of each paragraph half an inch (or five spaces) from the left margin.
Do not add an extra space between paragraphs.
Headings:
In MLA format, short essays, such as the classic five-paragraph essay, contain no internal headings and are presented as one complete paper from start to finish. However, longer essays are often broken into sections with the use of numbers or headings to help orient and guide the reader through the paper.
If your essay has sections, you may want to use headings to organize the content.
In MLA format, headings are optional. If you choose to use them, follow these guidelines:
Use a clear, readable font like Times New Roman or Arial.
Bold or italicize the headings, but do not use all caps.
Use consistent formatting for all headings (e.g., all headings are bold and left-aligned).
Generally, boldface is used for top-level headings and italics for subordinate headings.
Citing sources in MLA format
One of the key components of MLA format is properly citing sources in your paper and on your works cited page. When you quote, paraphrase, or summarize someone else’s work, you must give credit to the original author. This helps you avoid plagiarism and shows your readers where you got your information.
To cite sources in MLA format, you’ll need to include the following information:
Author’s last name and page number(s) in parentheses at the end of the quoted or paraphrased passage (e.g., (Smith 123)). If the cited work has no author, cite by title. If there are no page numbers, omit that element.
A complete list of works cited at the end of your paper, organized alphabetically by author’s last name.
Here are some examples of how to cite different types of sources in MLA format:
Books:
Author’s last name, first name. Title of Book. City of publication: Publisher, year of publication.
Example: Smith, John. The Art of Essay Writing. New York: Random House, 2018.
Articles:
Author’s last name, First name, and Author’s first name last name. “Article Title.” Journal Name, vol. Volume, no. Issue, Month Year, Page range.
Example: Rodriguez, Maria and Hortense Tyrell. “Formatting Your Essay.” Journal of Essay Writing, vol. 5, no. 2, August 2020, 6–12.
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