The Modern Languages Association (MLA) citation style is used in journals and research papers in the humanities field. When making a citation, you must include the full reference on the works cited page, as well as a shorter reference within the text in which you cite the information on the website. The eighth edition of the MLA Handbook focuses on you providing as much information as you can based on a set of eight fundamental elements: the author, the source title, the repository title, other contributors, the version, the number, the publisher, the date of publication and the place; less emphasis is placed on format than consistency. However, when you cite a web page, you won't be able to find all of this information, so enter only what you can find.
Steps
Part 1 of 3: Cite an entire website
Step 1. Start with the name of the author
When it comes to a website, it can be difficult to find who the author of the entire site is. However, you may be able to find one on the "About me" page. Also, you can use an editor or a compiler. If you can't find one, you can skip this step and start with the next one, the name of the website.
- When adding the first name, put the last name first, followed by a comma and the first and middle names (if any).
- It would look like this: Roberts, Rebecca.
- Put a period after the name.
- For authors, you can't use the username (like the username on Twitter), like @felinesforthewin, instead of the author's name, if you can't find the latter.
Step 2. Next, add the website title
The title of the website is the main name that has been given to it. You'll often find it in the header of the site, at the top of every page. Typically, you will put what the MLA calls the "source title" below, which refers to the smallest section in which you found the information, such as the name of the page or an article within a larger journal. However, if you use a full website, leave this part out and just put the name of the site.
- The name of the website must be in italics.
- It should look like the following quote: Roberts, Rebecca. The sleeping cats
- Use a comma after the website title.
Step 3. Include the other contributors
If you find that other people contributed to the website besides the main editor, you can include them after the website name. Typically, you'll add the way the person (s) contributed, such as "edited by," for editors.
- Use the following method to add contributors: Roberts, Rebeca. Sleeping cats, edited by Juan Jacobo and José Jorge,
- Put a comma after the name of the contributors.
- If the website has no other contributors, skip this part.
Step 4. Go to the publisher
Normally, the version and issue should come next, just like in a magazine, but most websites don't have versions or issues, so go to the publisher. In this case, the publisher is the organization or sponsor of the website. You can skip the publisher's name if it's the same as the website's.
- The name of the publisher will follow the comma after the names of the other contributors: Roberts, Rebeca. Sleeping cats, edited by Juan Jacobo and José Jorge, Instituto Gatuno,
- If there are no other contributors, place the publisher's name after the website title: Roberts, Rebecca. The sleeping cats, Instituto Gatuno,
- Put a comma below.
Step 5. Add the location
The location does not refer to the site where it was posted. Although the older editions of the MLA Manual required the place of publication, most of the eighth edition does not include it. Instead, the location refers to the site where you found the information. In this case, it is the URL of the website. The URL is what you find in your browser's address bar at the top of your computer screen.
- Before the website, do not use "http:" or https://. Instead, start with "www."
- Add website after publisher: Roberts, Rebecca. Sleeping cats, edited by Juan Jacobo and José Jorge, Instituto Gatuno, www.elsitioparalosgatosdurmientes.com.
Step 6. Skip any information you can't find
In the past, when you couldn't find some of the information, you had to add things like "n.d." for "no date" or "s.e." by "no publisher". However, the MLA now recommends that you just omit the information. You don't have to put anything in its place.
You can add the date you visited the page, but it is not required. The date follows the location
Part 2 of 3: Cite a page on a website
Step 1. Start with the name of the author
Again, start with the author's name. In this case, you are looking for the name of the author of the page you are citing, not the name of the entire website. Often times, the author's name will be at the top of the page or near the bottom, before comments. If a single person put together the whole site, you can use their name. Otherwise, or if you can't find the author name, skip it and start with the page title.
- Start with the last name first, followed by the first and middle names, if applicable: Fitzgerald, Rosa.
- Use a period after the name.
- If you can't find the author's name, you can use the username instead of the name.
Step 2. Add the page title
Then find the title of the page you cite. You must have a page title. Otherwise, you could also use a quote from the entire website. The title is usually at the top of the page, under the full website header.
- Put the title of the page in quotation marks: Fitzgerald, Rosa. "The sleeping habits of elderly felines".
- Use a period after the closing quotation mark.
Step 3. Add the name of the website
After the page title, you will need the name of the website, just as you did when citing the entire website. Usually the website name is at the top of any of the pages, in the main header. If you can't find it there, check out the "About me" page.
- Put the website name in italics: Fitzgerald, Rosa. "The sleeping habits of elderly felines". The sleeping cats
- Use a comma after the website name.
Step 4. Next, place the other collaborators
If you find someone else who contributed to or edited the page, you can add that name below. Also, you'd be better off including a description of how they contributed, such as "edited by," if that person did.
- Contributors come after the website name: Fitzgerald, Rosa. "The sleeping habits of elderly felines". Sleeping cats, edited by Juan Jacobo,
- Put a comma after the contributor's name.
- If there are no other contributors, skip this part.
Step 5. Next, use the publisher
The publisher is the sponsor or main organization of the website. You can find it on the "About me" page, or sometimes at the bottom of any page on the site. If the publisher's name is the same as the website, you don't need to include it.
- Add the publisher after the contributors. If there are no other contributors, add it after the website name: Fitzgerald, Rosa. "The sleeping habits of elderly felines". Sleeping cats. edited by Juan Jacobo, Instituto Felino,
- Then use a comma.
Step 6. Include the location. In this case, as in the case of a full website citation, the location is the URL of the website. To find the URL, look in the address bar at the top of the browser. It should start with "https://," "https:" or "www." Copy and paste it into your citation, except you must omit the "http:" or the "https:" and start with "www."
Place the website URL after the publisher: Fitzgerald, Rosa. "The sleeping habits of older cats". Sleeping cats, edited by Juan Jacobo, Instituto Felino, www.elsitiodelosdurmientesgatos.com/habitos-de-sueño-de-los-felinos-ancianos
Part 3 of 3: Create an In-Text Citation
Step 1. Create a sentence that refers to the website
In an essay, the in-text citation goes where you refer to the information on the website. It does not matter if you quote the source directly (with quotation marks) or if you paraphrase it (in your own words and without quotation marks). Either way, you have to add a quote to indicate where you found the information.
- If you use information from other sources without citing them, that is considered plagiarism, except for common and factual knowledge.
- Also, citing the source is a courtesy to readers. This lets them know where they can find more information on the subject.
Step 2. Add parentheses
Once you get to the end of the sentence you quote, use an opening parenthesis. The parenthesis indicates to the reader that a quote will begin. The quote comes before the period at the end of the sentence, although if you use quotation marks, they could come before the parentheses.
Also, you can add the reference immediately after the quote, preferably before the comma or another punctuation mark, if you quote more than one source in the same sentence
Step 3. Use the first part of the full quote
Typically, when the source is a book, the author's name and page number are used. Since websites don't have authors, use whatever comes first in the citation: the author's name, the page title, or the website title. You don't have to use a page or paragraph number for websites.
- Therefore, a quote within a sentence should look like this: Cats enjoy sleeping many hours a day (Fitzgerald).
- When using the author's first name, use only his last name.
- Use a shortened form of the title. Try to match three or four words that lead the reader directly to the quote at the end. If you use the title of the page (because the author is not available), the sentence would look like this: Cats enjoy sleeping for several hours a day ("Sleeping habits of felines").