Professional Documents
Culture Documents
MLA Research PDF
MLA Research PDF
MLA FORMAT
What to Quote 3
Spacing 5
Fonts 5
Punctuation 5
Long Quotes 8
Quoting Poetry 9
Quoting Drama 9
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BOOKS
Bookssingle author 15
Anthologiesciting more than one poem, short story, or essay from the same
anthology 15
REFERENCE BOOKS
Reference Bookarticles 16
Periodicalsmagazine articles 17
Periodicalsnewspaper article 17
Periodicalsnewspaper editorial 17
INTERVIEW
Personal Interview 18
REMOVING HYPERLINKS 17
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Internet articles from professional or personal Web sites 21
INFOTRAC 23
Magazine article 24
Newspaper article 24
Journal article 24
LEXIS-NEXIS 24
Magazine article 25
Newspaper article 25
Journal article 25
CD-ROM 25
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THE RESEARCH PAPER
MLA FORMAT
Your instructor may tell you which documentation style is required. If not, you should
choose one and use it consistently throughout paper. MLA is most appropriate for
papers in English and the Humanities. APA is most appropriate for papers in the Social
Sciences.
Most of your research will be conducted in the library because the library contains
books, journals, and periodicals that often cannot be accessed on the Internet. The
greatest resource in the library is the librarian. Librarians are trained to aid you in your
research. If you do not know where to start or if your searches are unsuccessful, talk to
a librarian. Librarians know how information is organized, and they know the best ways
to locate information.
Research has a dual purpose: to discover new ideas and facts about your topic that you
were unaware of and to find facts and statements by authorities that you can use to
support your ideas.
A research paper is not simply a collection of quotes strung together. It is an essay that
you write which includes quotes and information from published writers. It is often best
to write the first draft of your paper without using research. Once you have clarified
your ideas on the topic, search for books and articles that discuss the issue you are
concerned with. You may find support that you can incorporate into your paper, or you
may find your ideas challenged. Research is a process through which your ideas will
grow and change.
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There are two basic paths to the research process. In one case, you may know little or
nothing about the topic you have been assigned. In a history class, for instance, you
might be assigned to reveal the events that led to Angolas independence from Portugal
in 1975. If you know nothing about this topic, the purpose of your research will be to
discover the significant eventspolitical and economic changes, social and military
movementsthat led to Angolas independence. You would also have to read and
analyze what historians and political commentators believe to be the most significant
factors. Your research paper would then present your analysis of the information your
research uncovered. You must not simply list the events or present the analysis of
others. You must evaluate the significance of the events and evaluate the validity of the
opinions of historians and other commentators.
For other research projects you may know a significant amount about your topic. In a
literature class, your instructor may ask you to read the play Hamlet and assign you to
explain why Hamlet is unable to swiftly revenge his fathers murder. Your own analysis
of the play will lead you to a conclusion as to why Hamlet delays. You may write a draft
of your essay in which you analyze the sections of the play supporting your ideas.
Once you have established your own argument, you will begin your research, looking
for critics whose discussions of the play support your interpretation. You will then write
another draft of your essay, in which you incorporate the statements of the authorities
you have found. You may discover that others interpret the play differently than you do
or that there are multiple interpretations. This may send you back to reanalyze the play
or send you looking for essays by other critics to assist you in refuting some
interpretations and supporting others.
In the body of your essay, you must make direct reference to the authors you have
read. There are two ways to do this. One is to directly quote the authors, reproducing
their exact words, placing those words in quotation marks, and providing a citation (a
reference to the work in which the quote is found). You may also paraphrase what
authors say. When you paraphrase, you put the authors idea into your own words. A
paraphrase should not include any phrases from the authors passage. (Note: at times
you may reproduce a keyword an author usesthere may not be an alternative word--
but you should try to avoid using the authors language.) If your paraphrase is too close
to the original wording or structure of the authors passage, it is considered plagiarism,
even if you attribute the idea to the author.
When you quote, you must always provide a citation. When you paraphrase, you do not
necessarily have to provide a citation, especially if you are providing well-known facts.
A citation should only follow a paraphrase if you are paraphrasing an authors original
idea or opinion. Below are a quote and two paraphrases in MLA format.
Direct Quote: One historian tells us, Johnsons forces entered the
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battle two hours after it had begun (Williams 695).
Paraphrase Williams notes that the conflict had started before Johnsons
(no citation) troops arrived.
Since the first example reproduces the exact words of the author, those words must be
enclosed in quotation marks. Quotation marks tell the reader that these are the exact
words the author wrote. Be sure to quote accurately.
The example of a paraphrase with no citation presents the essence of the quote from
Williams, yet none of Williams wording is used. Notice that Williams is referred to in the
sentence, acknowledging him as the source of this information. This paraphrase does
not present an original idea, merely a fact
Because the last example lacks quotation marks, it tells the reader that this is a
paraphrase, and not Hansons exact words. This paraphrase, however, is followed by a
citation because it is Hansons personal opinion as to why Johnsons troops arrived two
hours late. Since it is an original idea or opinion, it must be cited. The previous
paraphrase only presents a fact (Johnson arrived late).
What to Quote
To determine what to quote you should consider three things:
1) Is the information essential to establish your ideas? If part of the purpose of your
essay is to establish that the character Polonius in Shakespeares Hamlet meddles
in the lives of others, then you should quote all the passages that show he is a
meddler because it is essential to your argument.
2) Is it important that your reader see exactly what was said? In order for your reader to
see what kind of person Polonius is, you should quote exactly what he says or quote
exactly what critics say about him. It is particularly important to quote exactly what
an author says if you are writing an argumentative paper disagreeing with the
author. You must present the authors ideas clearly, fairly, and accurately before
you attack his or her ideas.
3) Is it information you will comment on or explain in order to make a point? You should
quote passages that need explanation. For instance, it never says in the play
Hamlet that Polonius is a meddler. To establish that, you would have to quote
passages and explain how the passages show he is a meddler. In general, if you
quote it, you should comment on the quote or explain it.
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You should paraphrase portions of a text that provide background information or
context. A quote may be hard to properly understand if you do not provide a context.
Consider this example:
Does this mean the girl is a Martian because she is green? Is she green with envy? Is
she green because she is seasick?
This quote may mean little or nothing to you because you may lack the background
information to understand it. It lacks a context. If this quote were essential to your
paper, you would need to provide a context for your reader: who is speaking, who is
being spoken to, what is the subject, what has led up to this conversation. Those are
some of the things your reader would need to know in order to understand the quote.
Provide the background information, the context your reader needs, by paraphrasing;
then, quote the passage you want your reader to see and explain its meaning or
significance.
When Polonius finds out that his daughter Ophelia has been seeing Hamlet, he is
quite worried because he believes that she is too immature when it comes to love.
He tells her, You speak like a green girl (1. 3. 102), indicating that she is too
young and navegreen like an unripe fruitto understand what love is.
The context that surrounds this quote gives the reader a much better understanding of
the passage. Polonius is talking about his daughters immaturity.
Do not underline, italicize, or place quotation marks around your own titles. If your title
contains the title of a published work, use underlining, italics, or quotation marks to indicate
that you are using the title of a published work.
The Loss of Meaning in The Sun Also Rises (Title of novel underlined)
The Loss of Meaning in The Sun Also Rises (Title of novel in italics)
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Portrait of a Murderess in A Rose for Emily (Short story in quotation marks)
Spacing
LINE SPACING: In accordance with the MLA and APA style guides, everything
in your essay should be double-spaced. Nothing in MLA format is single-
spaced. Do not put extra spaces between paragraphs. See the sample pages in
the section Page Layout for MLA.
Fonts
Use Arial, Times New Roman, or Courier in 11 or 12 point font. Everything in your
essay should be the same font sizedo not use a larger font for your title. Bold is
never used in MLA format.
Punctuation
Periods and commas should come after the citation (a reference to your source).
Question marks and exclamation marks may go inside or outside quotation marks
depending on whether they belong to your sentence or to the quote.
Example: Saussure, "the founder of modern linguistics" (Cullers 15), called for a
There is a comma before the quote above because the structure of the student's
sentence requires one.
In the original quote there is a comma after the word linguistics, but that comma is
not required by the structure of the student's sentence. A period is required, which
goes outside the citation.
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Example: Does Cullers believe that Saussure was "the founder of modern
linguistics" (15)?
To indicate that the question mark belongs to the student's sentence and not to the
quote, it is placed after the citation.
If your sentence continues after the quote, the citation should appear after the
quote and not at the end of the sentence. The only exception to this is when the
citation would disrupt the flow of the sentence. Then the citation should be placed
at the end of the sentence.
In the example above, the citation is placed at the end of the sentence because it
would disrupt the list: science, scientist, and empirical research.
I don't know what there was in this brevity of Mrs. Grose's that struck me as
ambiguous.
(Floating quote)
The governess found Mrs. Grose's statement odd. "I don't know what there
was in this brevity of Mrs. Grose's that struck me as mbiguous" (James 24).
Note that the writer's sentence ends with a period. As a result, the quote is not
attached to the writer's sentence and is considered a floating quote. The following
sentence has the same structure as the sentence above, but the quote doesn't float
because it is attached to the writer's sentence with a colon.
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(Correct)
The governess found Mrs. Grose's statement odd: "I don't know what there
was in this brevity of Mrs. Grose's that struck me as ambiguous" (James 24).
If you use a colon to attach a quote to your sentence, make sure that both your
sentence and the quotation are complete sentences. The following sentence is
more graceful because the quote flows with the writer's language.
(Correct)
The governess was alerted by the "brevity of Mrs. Grose's that struck [the
Notice here that the writer has only reproduced that portion of the quote that he/she
wanted you to see. There is no punctuation before the quote because no
punctuation is required by the structure of the writer's sentence. The quote might
not have read properly if the word me was left in the quote. Would the word me
refer to the governess or to the writer? To show that you have made a change in
the text for clarification, use square brackets (not parenthesis).
(Correct)
We first learn of the man Marlow will meet when "One day [the accountant]
remarked without lifting his head, 'In the interior you will no doubt meet Mr.
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Long Quotes (Block Quotes)
Quotes that run five lines and more should be broken from your text and indented
ten spaces or two tabs. No quotation marks are needed because breaking and
indenting indicates that you are quoting. Introduce long quotes with whatever
punctuation is required by the structure of your sentence (or no punctuation if the
structure of your sentence does not require it). When presenting block quotes, the
period is placed after the sentence and not after the citation.
(Correct)
Emily is associated with the Old South and is contrasted with the
post Civil War generations. We are told about one incident over an arrangement
When the next generation, with its more modern ideas, became
dissatisfaction. On the first of the year they mailed her tax notice.
February came and there was no reply. They wrote a formal letter,
later the mayor wrote her himself, offering to call or to send his car for
thin, flowing calligraphy in fading ink, to the effect that she no longer
went out at all. The tax notice was also enclosed, without comment.
(Faulkner 27)
This is one of several incidents where the new generation fails to get Emily to
conform to their ways. She doesnt bother to explain why she refuses to pay her
taxes. The tax notice is returned without a comment, suggesting that she owes no
one an explanation. She makes no written comment, but her message is silently
and strongly conveyed: she will not change regardless of the changes around her.
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Introduce the quote with whatever punctuation is appropriate for the structure of
your sentence. Also note that the quote is followed by an explanation. Always
comment on or explain quotes, and relate them to the point you are making.
Quoting Poetry
When quoting three lines of a poem or fewer, you may incorporate them into the
body of your text. Use quotation marks when the quote is embedded in your
writing. To indicate the end of a line, use a slash (/) with one space on each side of
it.
When quoting more than three lines, break and indent ten spaces. No quotation
marks are needed when you break and indent. The lines should appear exactly as
they do in the original poem.
capacity for love when he states, "Tender souls! / You play your love on a
fiddle, / and the crude club their love on a drum" (lines 5-7). Later the
If you wish,
If you are only quoting from one poem in your essay, then place the word line or
lines in the first citation. Thereafter you only insert the line numbers.
Quoting Drama
When quoting verse plays (plays with line numbers), provide act, scene, and line
numbers. Separate each with a period. Use Arabic numbers (1,2,3), unless your
instructor requires you to use Roman numerals (I, II, III). When plays have line
numbers, use slashes to indicate the end of lines, just as you would when
quoting poetry.
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In response to Rosencrantz and Guildensterns attempts to
discover Hamlets motives, Hamlet states, Why, look you now, how
unworthy a thing you make of me! You would / play upon me, you
would seem to know my stops, you would pluck out the / heart of
my mystery . . . (3.2.314-316).
When quoting five lines or more from a play with line numbers, reproduce the lines as
they appear in the play.
It seems at this point that Hamlet is once again ready to take action;
death.
When quoting prose plays (plays without line numbers) provide both the page number
and the act number. Place a semicolon between the page number(s) and act number.
When Happy tells his brother Biff that many people in the business
world think hes crazy, Biff flies into a rage: I dont care what they think!
Theyve laughed at Dad for years, and you know why? Because we dont
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plain, oror carpenters. A carpenter is allowed to whistle! (1664; act 1).
The citation should contain the name of the author and the page number(s) if the
authors name doesnt appear in your sentence.
If you place the authors name in your sentence, only use the page number in the
citation.
Editorials and sources found on the Internet often lack an authors name. To
identify your source, use the title of the article or an abbreviation of the title.
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The decrease in crime in the 1990s is the result of a stronger economy and
or
The article Why Crime is Down in Major Metropolitan Areas states that the
If you cite more than one work by the same author, you must include the title or an
abbreviation of the title in your citation to differentiate between the two sources.
Place a comma after the authors name if you place the authors name in the
citation rather than in your sentence.
calculations that It wasnt until the twentieth century that the orbit of the
earth around the sun was more accurately recorded (Tailor, The Maya and
calendar and calculator (Tailor, The Maya 154). The pyramid has 364
steps which all meet at the top platform, leading Tailor to conclude, The
Maya knew the year was 364 and days long. The top platform represents
When quoting electronic sources, do not cite page numbers. The only exception to
this is when the sources are clearly broken into numbered pages or when
paragraphs are numbered. If pages are clearly numbered in the electronic source,
use them. If paragraphs are numbered, use the paragraph numbers with the
abbreviation par. or pars. (example: Smith par.4). If you print out an electronic
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source, your printer may number the pages; however, those page numbers should
not be used.
The following example is from an Internet article; thus, no page numbers are used.
Sylvia Stewart notes, The dome topped observatory at Chichen Itza is the
or
structure for observing the sky: The dome topped observatory at Chichen
Itza is the model for most observatories built in the twentieth century
(Stewart).
If an authors name is not given, use the title of the article or an abbreviation.
Although the Mayan language still exists in Latin America, The Maya
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THE WORKS CITED PAGE, MLA FORMAT
The Modern Language Association (MLA) style, widely used for identifying research
sources, does not use footnotes to identify sources. Brief references are used within
the text (parenthetical citations) with a complete reference in the papers Works Cited
page.
(See pages 710-735 in The Little, Brown Handbook)
WORKS CITED BASICS
Provide complete bibliographic information in the correct MLA form for all
sources you use in your paper. If you consulted a source, but did not incorporate
it into your paper, do not cite it.
Start your Works Cited list on a new page, and number it as though it were a
page in your paper.
Entries in the Works Cited page should be arranged alphabetically by the
authors last names. If no author is provided for any source, use the title to
alphabetize, ignoring first words like the, a, an.
Double-space within and between entries.
Follow standard spacing after all punctuation (i.e. leave only one space after a
comma or colon, leave two after a period).
The first line of each entry should start even with the left hand margin. If the
entry runs more than one line, indent remaining lines one tab or five spaces.
The authors name (or first author listed) is presented last name, first name,
middle initial. All other names in the citation are presented first name, middle
initial, last name.
If more than one city of publication is listed, use the first one
If several dates of publication are given, use the most recent
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BOOKS
(see Little, Brown Handbook pages 712-718)
Single author
The first authors name appears last name, first name, and initial. All other
authors or editors names appear in regular order.
Author of Story. "Title of story or essay or poem." Title of Book. Ed. and
Baldwin, James. Sonnys Blues. The Story and Its Writer. Ed. Ann
When you have cited more than one poem, short story, or essay from the same
anthology, the works must be presented in the following form:
The editors are placed in one citation.
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Each author you quote appears in his or her own citation. These should appear
in alphabetical order in your Works Cited, even if they are separated by other
citations.
In the following example, the two works quoted are by Krauthammer and by Tribe.
Barnet and Bedau are the editors of the anthology.
Barnet, Sylvan, and Hugo Bedau, eds. Current Issues & Enduring
Bedau 469-470.
Publishing, 1997.
459-461.
REFERENCE BOOKS
Author of Article (if given). "Article Title." Title of Book. City of Publication:
Publisher, Year.
PERIODICALS
(see Little, Brown Handbook pages 718-721)
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numbers.
100.
Magazine articles
Schindler, Martha. " Pick the Perfect Pooch." Runner's World April
2000: 29-30.
Clinton Unveils Plan to Track Illegal Guns. Jet 29 July 1996: 30 31.
A1+
The A1+ on the end of the citation indicates the article started on section A, page
1 and continues on other pages.
Star Wars and the Future of Defense. Editorial. Los Angeles Times
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Bruner Life Medical, 1996.
INTERVIEW
Person Interviewed. Type of interview (personal or telephone). Date.
REMOVING HYPERLINKS
NOTE: When you type the URL (electronic address), your computer may identify it as a
Hyperlink and it will appear in blue on your screen. It should not be printed in blue in
your Works Cited page. When using Microsoft Word, you can correct the problem as
follows:
Or
Highlight the URL. Click Insert on the tool bar. Go to the bottom of the
dropdown menu and click Hyperlink.
A dialogue box will appear. Remove Hyperlink should appear in the bottom left-
hand corner of the box. You may be asked to save your file if you have not
already done so. Click Remove Hyperlink and the blue address will turn to black.
You may need to resize the font.
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Incorrect Thompson, Dale, R. Vygotsky and Velekovsky. Homepage. 2
<http://www.russiangenius/vygotskyvelekovsky/article.com>.
In the above example, the URL is too long to fit on one line. The word processor has
moved it to its own line, leaving a large gap after the access date. In the following
example, the URL has been broken at a backslash into two lines.
vygotskyvelekovsky/article.com>.
For articles from the Internet, provide the following information. There is a
great range of variation in the information provided by various Web sites. If the
posting you are using lacks a piece of information in the list below, simple go to
the next piece of information.
Examine the title page of Web sites carefully. You will need the name of the site,
and you will the date of its posting or updating. This information will be found on
the Homepage of the Web site
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Electronic address enclosed in < > and followed by a period
(<http://www.westcollege/business/articles.org>.)
com/cgibin/biomain.cgi>
In the citation above, the URL was too long to fit on one line. In such cases, break the
address at a backslash.
If the electronic address is too long to fit on one line, break it after a backslash. See
BREAKING HYPERLINKS.
The following order should be used when citing sources off the Internet. If an item in
the list isnt presented, such as an authors name or the name of the original print
source, go to the next item.
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Magazine article
Journal article
When using a personal or professional Web site, it is important that you look carefully at
the home page. On that page you will find the title of the Web site and the date of
posting (or update), which you will need for your Works Cited entry.
If the electronic address is too long to fit on one line, find a logical place to break it (see
first example below): see BREAKING HYPERLINKS.
The following order should be used when citing sources off the Internet. If an item in
the list isnt presented, such as an authors name or the name of the original print
source, go to the next item.
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Smith, John L. Ben Franklins Foreign Policy. American Idealism. Ed.
americanidealism.com>.
Following is an example of a personal Web site that lacks much of the information given
in the previous example such as an authors name
<http://www.tg/polictics.com>.
If the electronic address is too long to fit on one line. break the address at a backslash.
See BREAKING URLs.
Rutger, Helen R. Stress and Diagnosis. Ed. Candice Williams. Medicine and
<http://www.hudsoncollege/medicalschool/articles.edu>.
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Turner, Keith. The Federalist Package. American Presidents. 1997.
americanpresidents.com>.
InfoTrac
If the electronic address is too long to fit on one line, break the address at a backslash.
See BREAKING URLs.
Use the following order for your citations. This is essentially the same order for print sources:
NOTE: If you access InfoTrac from your home computer, do not use the URL that will
appear. Others will not be able to use that URL to access InfoTrac. Always use the
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following URL: <http://www.infortrac.galegroup.com>. For Lexis Nexis use
<http://www.lexis-nexis.com>.
Fedarko, Kevin. Please Dont Shoot the Prairie Dogs. Time 7 July
<http://www.infotrac.galegroup.com>.
Farmer, Joy A. Mary Hood and the Speed of Grace: Catching Up with
infotrac.galegroup.com>.
Lexis-Nexis
Use the following order in your citations for Lexis-Nexis:
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Publication informationvolume number, date of publication. A colon should
follow the volume number, when citing journals
Journals: Education 3: 2 July 2002.
Magazines: Newsweek 27 April 2001.
Newspaper: Ashville Courier 21 March 2002: A2+.
Page spread of article
The title of the service: LexisNexis Academic Universe
Date of access
Fedarko, Kevin. Please Dont Shoot the Prairie Dogs. Time July 7,
www.lexis-nexis.com>.
<http://www.lexis-nexis.com>.
Farmer, Joy A. Mary Hood and the Speed of Grace: Catching Up with
www.lexis-nexis.com>.
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articles or information from CD-ROMs. If a piece of information is missing, go to the
next item in the list
1999.
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Page Layout, MLA Format
Cover page: Provide a cover page if you are using an outline or if your instructor
requests it. See example Sample Essay MLA FormatWith a Cover Page (English
102).
No Cover Page: Do not include a cover page unless you are providing an outline or if
your instructor specifically asks you not to include one. See Sample Essay, MLA
Format (English 101) and Sample Essay, MLA FormatWithout a Cover Page
(English 102).
Spacing:
one space between words and after commas, semicolons, colons, etc.
two spaces after periods or final punctuation.
one space between quotation marks and citations. Example:
. . .in our society (Wise 4).
Do not put a space between a word and the quotation marks that preceded or
follow it (City of Hope). Place one space between
Line Spacing: Everything in MLA format is double-spaced. DO NOT put extra spaces
above or below your title. DO NOT put extra spaces between paragraphs.
Fonts: Use Arial in 11 point font, or Times New Roman in 11 or 12 point font, or
Courier in 11 or 12 point font. Use the same size font throughout your essay. DO NOT
use a larger font for your title.
Margins: Use half-inch margins on the top of the page (where your last name and page
number appear). The MLA Handbook suggests one-inch margins on each side and the
bottom of the page.
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