MLA Style Examples of Parenthetical References

Parenthetical documents or Parenthetical references are the best way to cite sources.

To give credit to sources, the author’s last name as well as page number(s), are enclosed in parentheses.

You might write, for example,:

The authors note in their Preface that learning Hypertext Markup Language and Extensible Hypertext Markup Language is similar to learning any language, computer, or human. (Musciano xi).

You should list the following in your Bibliography or on your Works Cited Page:

Chuck, Bill Kennedy, and Musciano. HTML, XHTML: The Definitive Guide. 4th ed. Sebastopol, CA: O’Reilly, 2000.

Common sense dictates that you do not need to include page numbers for citations if you are citing another paragraph in the same work or if author(s) are clearly identified in your text. Here are some examples:

Kennedy and Musciano suggest that we avoid breaking tags across lines within our source document whenever it is possible to increase readability and decrease potential errors in HTML documents (41).

You can distinguish two or more articles from the same author by adding a date to the end of the last name. (Roche 2004 45),(Roche 2005 62-64); you can also add the title to the article after the last name (e.g. (Mayberry Business leaders 21), or (Mayberry Leaderships Who Have Changed 35-40).

To distinguish two or more authors, you can add their first names or initials to cite them. (John Smith 52), [Jane Smith 90], (M. Smith 115].

Use et al to indicate a work that has more than three editors or authors. (Latin expression that means “and others”) (Carmichael et al. 25).

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When quoting from a Web site, the format of your parenthetical reference citation is the same as regular citations for author/editor, title, etc. One exception. If a Web page does not have a page reference, please indicate the author’s name or the title of the page if it isn’t stated. (Meyer) and (Patron Saints Index). Your Bibliography must contain a corresponding entry.

You can cite information from the Internet by writing in your text, e.g. :

The University of Waterloo Physics Department Sir Isaac Newton (SIN), Examination was taken on May 2, 2002 by approximately 4500 students. Amazingly, three papers were perfect! Waterloo’s SIN record was broken by two team members from Don Mills Collegiate Institute. However, they were not able to finish First Place. Instead, both of the students in the team scored perfect grades (“SIN 2002”)

Your Bibliography entry would include the following:

U of Waterloo. 3 Nov. 2002

http://www.science.uwaterloo.ca/physics/sin/ prizewin.html.

If your citation refers a Web site owned by more than four authors, such as e.g. 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 write:

Harris et al. have created a really useful website. A group of people in the United Kingdom created a website that compiles different URLs suggested by users.

You should list these in alphabetical order, beginning with the first word, on your Works Cited page (or Bibliography).

Harris, Charlie, et al. 3 June 2001.

12 Oct. 2002 http://www.purefiction.co.uk/pages/res2 .htm;.

Dates: The site was last updated June 3, 2001. It was accessed October 12, 2002. See Item #23. Internet in MLA Bibliography Example.
Paragraphs and screens should be clearly numbered on the Web pages by the Webmaster or author. Otherwise, they shouldn’t be assigned arbitrarily when citing sources.

It is not necessary to cite screen 12, for example, because it could be misleading to use such a screen number in a document printed from Internet. A screen of text displayed is not the same as a page printed from a book, magazine or other source. A Web page’s page number may not be clearly displayed on printed material. Instead, it may differ from a page in a book or magazine.

Even if everyone chooses the same variables, it is unrealistic to expect that a reader will count the number paragraphs, pages, or screens necessary to locate your citation. If the Web page being cited has a lot of text, it would be difficult to find a page, paragraph or screen number.

To accurately count the screens, everyone needs to agree on what constitutes a “screen” and where it ends or begins on a web page. If the Web page does not have electronic reference markers (i.e. It is best to not assign page, page, or screen numbers arbitrarily to citations that are based on printouts or screen views.

It may be easier to add a paragraph, page, or screen number than it is to add a section or heading to your parenthetical references, e.g. (Harris et al. Arts/Humanities). This will allow your readers to find the source of your citation easily, regardless of their browser or font size.

Many of the ways we are used to documenting sources have been drastically altered by the Web. We need to remember that consistency, logic, and common sense are all essential ingredients of a good citation. Do not lose sight of the true purpose of documenting sources. It is to communicate to readers, in a standard manner, the source(s) that you have used in sufficient detail.

Additional resources on how you can write bibliography are available here.