image of copyright info at bottom of questia document" />
“Explain the green light in the book The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald” prompt. ChatGPT, 13 Feb. version, OpenAI, 8 Mar. 2023, chat.openai.com/chat.
("Explain the green light")
Klee, Paul. Twittering Machine. 1922. Museum of Modern Art, New York. The Artchive, www.artchive.com/artchive/K/Klee/twittering_machine.jpg.html. Accessed May 2006.
Intext would be (Klee).
"Ideology." The American Heritage Dictionary. 3rd ed., 1997, pp 44-45.
To cite this source, page 44, for example: ("Ideology" 44)
The New Jerusalem Bible. Henry Wansbrough, general editor, Doubleday, 1985.
In one of the most vivid prophetic visions in the Bible, Ezekial saw "what seems to be four living creatures" (New Jerusalem Bible, Ezek. 1.5). John of Patmos echoes this passage when describing his vision (Rev. 4.6-8).
**If you are only using one Bible, then you don't have to refer to the Bible's name except in the first intext citation. The rest of the intext citations can be the (Book, verse).
***MLA Handbook, 2021, p. 247
Choi, Susan. Trust Exercise. Holt, 2019.
To cite entire book: (Choi)
To cite page 25, for example: (Choi 25)
Gillespie, Paula, and Neal Lerner. The Allyn and Bacon Guide to Peer Tutoring. Allyn and Bacon, 2000.
If citing the entire book (Gillespie and Lerner)
If citing pages 210-225 (Gillespie and Lerner 210-225)
Wysocki, Anne Frances, et al. Writing New Media: Theory and Applications for Expanding the Teaching of Composition . Utah State UP, 2004.
If citing page 167, for example: (Wysocki et al. 167)
Crowley, Sharon, and Debra Hawhee. Ancient Rhetorics for Contemporary Students . 3rd ed., Pearson, 2004.
If citing entire book: (Crowley and Hawhee)
If citing page 202, for example (Crowley and Hawkee 202)
Harris, Muriel. "Talk to Me: Engaging Reluctant Writers." A Tutor's Guide: Helping Writers One to One, edited by Ben Rafoth, Henemann, 2000, pp. 24-34.
If citing page 34 for example: (Harris 34)
If the original publication date is important for the reader to understand the context of the source, include it.
Franklin, Benjamin. "Emigration to America." 1782. The Faber Book of America, edited by Christopher Ricks and William L. Vance, Faber and Faber, 1992, pp. 24-26.
Intext would be (Franklin 24-26).
Dickinson, Emily. “Because I Could Not Stop for Death.” The Oxford Book of American Verse , edited by F. O. Matthiessen, Oxford UP, 1950, p. 439. Questia .
This reading is located in the Questia/Cengage compilation but was published in The Oxford Book of American Verse. The publishing information is all located in the copyright box at the bottom of the reading.
image of copyright info at bottom of questia document" />
The intext citation would still be
Plott, Cassie. English 111. Rowan-Cabarrus Community College, April 2020, https://rccc.blackboard.com/webapps/blackboard/content/listContent.jsp?course_id=_51000_1&content_id=_4450030_1.
Washington, Durthy. CliffsNotes on Jacobs’ Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl. Cliffs Notes, 2000. EBSCOhost, search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=nlebk&AN=67062&site=ehost-live.
In-text citation is (Washington)
or in-text citation for page 33 is
Author. Title of ebook. Publisher, date. Name of database where you found the book, URL.
Blade Runner. 1982. Directed by Ridley Scott, performance by Harrison Ford, director's cut, Warner Bros., 1992.
Scott, Ridley, director. Blade Runner. 1982. Performance by Harrison Ford, director's cut, Warner Bros., 1992.
For films, citations begin with the title unless you want to highlight some other aspect, such as the direction. In the first example, Ridley Scott and Harrison Ford are considered "Other contributors". The second example treats Ridley Scott as an "author" with Harrison Ford as another contributor. The Publisher is Warner Bros.
Highlights from the Competition Bureau’s Workshop on Emerging Competition Issues. Competition Bureau of Canada, 4 Mar. 2016, www.competitionbureau.gc.ca/eic/site/cb-bc.nsf/vwapj/cb-Workshop-Summary-Report-e.pdf/$FILE/cb-Workshop-Summary-Report-e.pdf. Accessed 6 July 2016
In-text citation is (name of document, can be shortened)
(HIghlights from the Competition Bureau's Workshop)
In-text citation if a direct quote from page 2, for example
(Highlights from the Competition Bureau's Workshop 2)
Doest, Jasper. "Japanese macaques take a hot bath during winter in Jigokudani." National Geographic, 15 Sept. 2016, nationalgeographic.com/photography/proof/2016/09/snow-macaque-nice-shot. Accessed 17 Mar 2020.
Smith, Jane. Personal interview. 22 April 2020.
Intext citation is (Smith)
Zumla, Alimuddin, et al. "Vaccine Against Middle East Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus." The Lancet Infectious Diseases, vol. 19, no. 10, 2019, pp. 1054-1055. ProQuest, https://proxy154.nclive.org/login?url=https://search.proquest.com/docview/2297096029? accountid=13601, doi:https://dx.doi.org/10.1016/S1473-3099(19)30477-3.
To cite this article, page 1054, for example: (Zumla et al. 1054)
Chevelle. Wonder What's Next. Epic, 2002.
Intext would be (Chevelle)
Nirvana. "Smells Like Teen Spirit." Nevermind, Geffen, 1991.
Intext is (Nirvana)
Note that the URL is linked. This is an option in MLA 8th Edition. Your teacher may choose to allow this or not.
This format should be used for pdfs that you receive electronically but not via accessing a website. Even though you may have received this independently, you still need to find the URL that will lead your reader to the source.
Social, Humanitarian, & Cultural Committee (SOCHUM) Background Guide, 31st Annual Carolinas Conference, 2020, https://static1.squarespace.com/static/58d5280103596edcfc032057/t/5f5937c0642457206e8c3057/1599682499567/SOCHUM+Background+Guide.pdf.
In-text citation is
(Social, Humanitarian, & Cultural Committee)
If a direct quote or statistic is used, from page 3 for example
(Social, Humanitarian, & Cultural Committee 3)
To cite a pdf from a website, you first cite the pdf with author, title, publisher and date and then cite the website with the URL.
For example, the following report doesn't have an author so you start with title, the publisher and date. Then you cite the website Duke Energy and that site's date.End with the URL.
Duke Energy 2019 Annual Report and Form 10-K, Duke Energy, 2019. Duke Energy, 2020, https://www.duke-energy.com/annual-report/_/media/pdfs/our-company/investors/de-annual-reports/2019/2019-duke-energy-annual-report.pdf?la=en.
In-text citation is
(Duke Energy 2019 Annual Report)
If direct quote or statistic used, for example from page 4
(Duke Energy 2019 Annual Report 4)
Adams, John. "John Adams to Thomas Jefferson, 3 February 1812." 1812. Founders Online, National Archives, https://founders.archives.gov/documents/Jefferson/03-04-02-036. Accessed 1 February 2023
*This website didn't have a publication date. Accessed dates are recommended for websites especially when there is no publication date.
Recommended formatting for primary sources on webpages.
Author's Last Name, First Name. "Title of Primary Source Document: Subtitle." Year of creation.Title of Website, Publisher of Website, Publication Date, URL. Accessed Day Month Year site was visited.
Jackson, Andrew. "First Inaugural Address." 1829. Out of Many: A History of the American People. John Faragher et al., Pearson, 2020, p. 56.
Intext is (author's last name page#)
The Bible. Authorized King James Version, Oxford UP, 1998.
Intext citation is (The Bible, John 3:16)
Kincaid, Jamaica. "Girl." The Vintage Book of Contemporary American Short Stories, edited by Tobias Wolff, Vintage, 1994, pp. 306-07.
If all poems or stories are by the same author, there is typically not an editor-
Carter, Angela. "The Tiger's Bride." Burning Your Boats: The Collected Stories, Penguin, 1995, pp. 154-69.
"Hush." 1999. Buffy the Vampire Slayer: The Complete Fourth Season, created by Joss Whedon, performance by Sarah Michelle Gellar, episode 10, Twentieth Century Fox, 2003, disc 3.
"Chapter Six: The Monster." Stranger Things, season 1, episode 6, Netflix, 15 July 2016. Netflix, netflix.com/watch/80077373?trackld=13752289@tctx=0%2C%2Ca7112b65-16b2-46a38b1c-310fcb259da1-8921805
Chappelow, James. "Conflict Theory." Investopedia, 19 May 2019, www.investopedia.com/terms/c/conflict-theory.asp
(Chappelow) is the intext citation
Webpage with Access date
Wise, DeWanda. "Why TV Shows Make me Feel less Alone." NAMI, 31 May 2019, https://www.nami.org/Blogs/NAMI-Blog/May-2019/How-TV-Shows-Make-Me-Feel-Less-Alone. Accessed 10 June 2020.
"Athlete's Foot - Topic Overview." WebMD, 25 Sept. 2014, www.webmd.com/skin-problems-and-treatments/tc/athletes-foot-topic-overview.
September 25, 2014 is the publication date. There are no page numbers. The access date is optional. It is ok to shorten the title of the website; keep it in quotation marks.
"The Impact of Global Warming in North America." Global Warming: Early Signs. 1999. www.climatehotmap.org/. Accessed 23 Mar. 2009.
Intext citation is ("Impact of Global Warming")
*The access date is optional. You can shorten the title of long sources. Keep the webpage title in quotation marks.
"Majors and Concentrations." UNC Greensboro, https://admissions.uncg.edu/academics/majors-concentrations/. Accessed 22 April 2020.
* Access date is recommended for sites with no publication date.
("Majors and Concentrations")
Lundman, Susan. "How to Make Vegetarian Chili." eHow, www.ehow.com/how_10727_make-vegetarian-chili.html.
To cite the webpage (Lundman)
There are no page numbers. Access date is optional but recommended if the webpage is one that updates regularly.
U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Statistics. "Librarians." Occupational Outlook Handbook, 20 Dec 2019, https://www.bls.gov/ooh/education-training-and-library/librarians.htm. Accessed 10 June 2020.
(U.S. Dept of Labor)
*Group authors can be abbreviated. The access date is recommended for webpages that update regularly.
If author is different from uploader
McGonigal, Jane. "Gaming and Productivity." YouTube, uploaded by Big Think, 3 July 2012, www.youtube.com/watch?v=mKdzy9bWW3E.
Intext is (McGonigal)
If uploader is same as author
"8 Hot Dog Gadgets put to the Test." YouTube, uploaded by Crazy Russian Hacker, 6 June 2016, www.youtube.com/watch?v=WBlpjSEtELs.
Intext is ("8 Hot Dog Gadgets")
These are the elements or pieces of information for MLA citations.
Think of the quote as a rare and precious jewel.
Quotes can be super-effective in getting your point across to the reader. Just be sure you’re not stringing a bunch of quotes together – you want your voice to be stronger than the voice of your sources. You always need to interpret, analyze, add to and explain more about the quote to your reader.
Here are some guidelines to help you decide when to use quotes:
You may choose to quote an entire passage from a source or just words or phrases. Make sure to use signal words (see below) to move between your ideas and the words of your source. Also, always cite your work.
Direct Quotes (MLA format):
As one of Obama's deputy assistants Yohannes Abraham explains, "It's really important to remember to just be a good person" (Scherer, Miller, and Elliott 36).
As William Kneale suggests, some humans have a "moral deafness" which is never punctured no matter what the moral treatment (93).
For Charles Dickens, the eighteenth century was both "the best of times" and "the worst of times" (35).
Direct Quotes (APA format)
As Ali Akbar Hamemi remarked, "There is no doubt that America is a super-power in the world and we cannot ignore them" (Vick, 2017, p. 13).
Sometimes it may be necessary to include long direct quotes (of over 40 words) in your work if you are unable to paraphrase or summarize. A long quote is treated differently as a block quotation with a .5 inch margin from the left but still double-spaced. Notice that there are no quotation marks around the block quotations even though these are direct quotes. Here are two examples:
Block quotation with parenthetical citation:
Researchers found when studying gray wolves that coloring around eyes may change over the lifespan:
Facial color patterns change with growth in many American canid species, although no studies have directly examined such developmental changes. For example, all newborn gray wolves observed in the present study had dark-colored bodies and C-type faces with dark-colored irises. (Ueda et al., 2014, p. 4)
Ueda, S., Kumagai, G., Otaki, Y., Yamaguchi, S., & Kohshima, S. (2014). A comparison of facial color pattern and gazing behavior in canid species suggests gaze communication in gray wolves (canis lupus). PLoS One, 9 (6) doi:https://dx.doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0098217
Block quotation with narrative citation:
Manning and Kaler (2011) describe the difficulties of using survey methods when observing owls:
Survey methods with observers outside the vehicle were 3 times more likely to displace an owl than a single vehicle stop where observers remained inside the vehicle. Owls were displaced farther distances by all survey methods compared to control trials, but distances and time displaced did not differ among survey methods.
Manning, J. A., & Kaler, R. S. A. (2011). Effects of survey methods on burrowing owl behaviors. Journal of Wildlife Management, 75 (3), 525-530. Retrieved from https://proxy154.nclive.org/login?url=https://search.proquest.com/docview/925615280?accountid=13601
For more information, see page 272 of the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association , 7 th ed.
If a quote runs more than four lines long, you must block the quote with a .5 margin on the left. Do not use quotation marks even though it's a direct quote.
At the conclusion of Lord of the Flies, Ralph, realizing the horror of his actions, is overcome by
great, shuddering spasms of grief that seemed to wrench his whole body. his voice rose under the black smoke before the burning wreckage of the island; and infected by that emotion, the other little boys began to shake and sob too. (Golding 186)
So, when using quotes:
As Thompson (2020) makes clear, Youtube's algorithms "can’t distinguish between true and false data, except in the most crude way" (para. 5).
Whenever you have a reference at the end of your paper, you need at least one intext citation to go with it. Every intext citation should point to a reference at the end of your paper.
References and Intext Citations Go Together Like Peas and Carrots.
Your intext citation contains the first word(s) of your reference so the reader can find it easily.
For optimal decomposition, experts believe you should aim for a carbon to nitrogen ratio of 30:1 ( Johnson 29).
Johnson , Lorraine. "Compost Happens: The Secret to Making Quick Gardener's Gold Instead of a Slow, Stinking Mess Requires, Like Everything Else, Balance." Canadian Gardening, vol. 12, no. 1, Feb, 2001, pp. 28-33. ProQuest, https://proxy154.nclive.org/login?
In the novel The Nightwatchman, Patrice hunts for her lost sister Vera.
Many high school students in Rowan County read The Great Gatsby.
There are lots of educational videos on Youtube.
Most teachers don't want students to use Wikipedia.
Here are some examples of when to use quotes.
| Type of Source | Example |
|---|---|
| Journal or magazine article | "When Michaelangelo Went to Constantinople" (from Smithsonian Magazine) |
| Encyclopedia article | "Dogs" (from World Book Encyclopedia) |
| Essay in a collection | "The Fiction of Langston Hughes" (from Norton's Anthology) |
| Short story | "A Good Man is Hard to Find" (from Collected Stories of Flannery O'Connor) |
| Poem | "Annabel Lee" |
| Chapter in a book | "The Gilded Age and the Baron Robbers" (from the book American History) |
| Page on a website | "NBA Schedule" (on the ESPN website) |
| Song or Video of a Song | "Single Ladies" |
| Lecture | "How to Get Started Writing Your Literary Analysis" |
Some sources get no special formatting.
| Source | Example |
| Scripture | Bible, Koran, Old Testament, Genesis, Talmud, etc. |
| Laws, acts, political documents | Bill of Rights, Magna Carta, Declaration of Independence, Patriot Act |
| Buildings, ancient artworks | Great Wall of China, Empire State Building, Venus de Milo |
| Band names, author names | Beatles, One Direction, Ernest Hemingway |
Examples from MLA Handbook, 9th Edition, 2021. pages 68-73.
I am reading about John Reith in the Humanities, Society and Technology textbook by Satterwhite and other authors.
I paraphrased what I read and I wrote this.
John Reith lead the BBC as its first General Manager and wanted to keep the BBC "free from political interference and commercial pleasure" (qtd. in Satterwhite et al. 145).
Here's what goes in the Works Cited because this is the source I read.
Satterwhite, Robin, et al. Humanities, Society and Technology. Kendall Hunt, 2015.
*The qtd. in the intext citation shows that the information in the Humanities book was originally somewhere else.
Maybe this will make it more clear for you.
You are reading about Smith in an article by Kirkey.
Examples of in-text citations:
According to a study by Smith (qtd. in Kirkey) 42% of doctors would refuse to perform legal euthanasia.
Smith (qtd. in Kirkey) states that “even if euthanasia was legal, 42% of doctors would be against this method of assisted dying” (A.10).
Example of Reference list citation:
Kirkey, Susan. "Euthanasia." The Montreal Gazette, 9 Feb. 2013, p. A.10. Canadian Newsstand Major Dailies.
MLA Papers have a uniform style. Here are some of the elements:
MLA uses Author-page Style for parenthetical intext citations (at the end of the sentence) or the page number goes in the parenthesis at the end of the sentence for narrative intext citations (where the author's name is in the sentence).
Other things to know:
If a quote runs more than four lines long, you must block the quote with a .5 margin on the left. Do not use quotation marks even though it's a direct quote.
At the conclusion of Lord of the Flies, Ralph, realizing the horror of his actions, is overcome by
great, shuddering spasms of grief that seemed to wrench his whole body. his voice rose under the black smoke before the burning wreckage of the island; and infected by that emotion, the other little boys began to shake and sob too. (186)
Think of Paraphrases and Summaries as your foundations
Paraphrase and summarize long passages where the main point is important to the point you are making, but the details are not. You should use paraphrasing and summarizing much more often than direct quotes. A good balance would be 75% paraphrasing and summarizing and 25% direct quotes.
Paraphrase: You are paraphrasing when you take someone else’s words and rewrite them in your own words without altering the meaning or providing interpretation. Paraphrases are about the same length as the original. Always cite your paraphrase.
Summarize: You are summarizing when you condense the author's words or ideas without altering the meaning or providing interpretation using your own words -- basically, you’re presenting the original information in a nutshell. Always cite it.
Introduce paraphrases clearly in your text, usually with a signal phrase that includes the author of the source. Here is original text and paraphrased text.
Volunteers feel more socially connected, they're less lonely, and suffer from depression less, studies show. Volunteering creates physical benefits too: Regular volunteers are less likely to develop high blood pressure and live longer, some studies show. (text is from "Dalai Lama: 5 Things to Keep in Mind for the Next Four Years" from CNN.com, written by Jen Christensen)
Paraphrased text in APA style:
Volunteering has psychological and physical benefits, according to studies. Along with being less depressed and lonely, volunteers also live longer and are less likely to have high blood pressure (Christensen, 2017).
Paraphrased text in MLA style:
Volunteering has psychological and physical benefits, according to studies. Along with being less depressed and lonely, volunteers also live longer and are less likely to have high blood pressure (Christensen).
Examples of Summaries
Summaries, too, need to be carefully integrated into your text. Make sure to signal the reader that you are summarizing and include the correct citation.
Here is an example of a summary in APA format:
In Christensen's article, she explores Dalai Lama's advice to people who want to find happiness in an uncertain world. His Holiness believes that people should focus on developing compassion, letting go of anger, self-reflecting, helping others, and being playful like children (Christensen, 2017).
Here's the summary in MLA format:
In Christensen's article, she explores Dalai Lama's advice to people who want to find happiness in an uncertain world. His Holiness believes that people should focus on developing compassion, letting go of anger, self-reflecting, helping others, and being playful like children (Christensen).
Whenever you include summaries, paraphrases, or quotations in your own writing, it is important that you identify the sources of the material; even unintentional failure to cite material is plagiarism. Be especially careful with paraphrases and summaries, where there are no quotation marks to remind you that the material is not your own.
Often, long paraphrases continue for multiple sentences. Usually you'll intext cite the source in the first sentence. It is not necessary to cite every single sentence IF you've made it clear in the narrative that the information discussed is from the before-mentioned source.
*Note that the bold words show where the information is coming from. Students should NOT bold the words.
Here's an example:
Tucker and Maddey (2020) found that predatory behavior in dogs is due to many different factors. One of the factors is the physical territory of the alleged threat. The research found that "dogs are more willing to attack or defend territory that is considered to be their own" (Tucker & Maddey, 2020, p. 81). Another factor they discovered is that dogs are more willing to prey on a threat if their human owners are nearby. In an experiment conducted over multiple days using cameras, Tucker and Maddey discovered that dogs were shown to be much more protective with predatory behavior when their owners were in the vicinity they when the owners were away. In conclusion, the research shows that dogs have innate predatory behavior traits which are enhanced by the dogs' desires to protect their human owners (Tucker & Maddey, 2020).
If you're using information from a source more than once in a row (with no other sources referred to in between), you can use a simplified in-text citation. The first time you use information from the source, use a full in-text citation. The second time, you only need to give the page number.
Cell biology is an area of science that focuses on the structure and function of cells (Smith 15). It revolves around the idea that the cell is a "fundamental unit of life" (17). Many important scientists have contributed to the evolution of cell biology. Mattias Jakob Schleiden and Theodor Schwann, for example, were scientists who formulated cell theory in 1838 (20).
*Thank you to the Library at Columbia College for this example.
Paraphrasing will allow you to maintain your voice and style while showing your understanding of the source material.
Reasons why you would want to paraphrase from a source:
Paraphrasing is a valuable skill because:
Tips on Summarizing:
A summary is a condensed version of someone else’s writing. Like paraphrasing, summarizing involves using your own words and writing style to express another author’s ideas. Unlike the paraphrase, which presents important details, the summary presents only the most important ideas of the passage. For example, you could summarize a book in a sentence, or in several paragraphs, depending on your writing situation and audience. You may use the summary often for the following reasons:
When you decide to summarize or paraphrase, avoid the following:
