MLA style edition and punctuation
The examples on this page use the MLA 9th edition.
Punctuation is important. Use the same punctuation and formatting as the order instructions and examples (commas, full stops and brackets). Use 1 space after any punctuation mark.
In this edition, you don't need to state the publishing medium. For example, 'Print' for physical books and journals and 'Web' for online material.
Key points
Each source entry has 3 basic parts:
- Name of the author – if a source has 3 or more authors, give the first author's last name and first name, followed by 'et al.' for the other authors. The author or authors can be a person, people, an organisation or an institution.
- Title of the work – put a colon between the title and subtitle unless the title ends with a question mark or exclamation mark.
- Publication information – the publishing medium is not required in the 9th edition of MLA.
Journal article
Order: Authors. "Article title". Journal name, volume number, issue number, year of publication, page number range of the article.
Example
Salih, Sara. "Filling up the Space Between Mankind and Ape: Racism, Speciesism and the Androphilic Ape." Ariel, vol. 38, no. 1, 2007, pp. 95-111.
For multiple authors, the first author uses the last name-first name format and subsequent authors use the first-name last-name format.
Write the journal name in italics, but not the article name. Put the name of the article in quotation marks.
The page number range includes the first and last page of the full article, not just the pages you used.
Online journal articles
For most undergraduate assignments, you don't need to include the second container for online journal articles. However, if required, you can use the database name for journal articles retrieved through a database. The database is the second container in this instance.
Order: Authors. "Article title", Journal name, volume number, issue number, year of publication, page number range of the article. Second container, DOI or URL. Access date.
The access date is optional.
Example
Norcia, Megan A. "Out of the Ivory Tower Endlessly Rocking: Collaborating Across Disciplines and Professions to Promote Student Learning in the Digital Archive." Pedagogy: Critical Approaches to Teaching Literature, Language, Composition, and Culture, vol. 8, no. 1, 2008, pp. 91-114. Project Muse, muse.jhu.edu/article/229014. Accessed 7. Sept., 2017.
An image in a journal article
In-text and in the works cited list, cite the author or authors of the journal article where the image appears. You may refer to the artist of the work as part of your discussion.
Order: Authors of article. "Article name." Journal name, volume and issue number, date of publication, page number range of the article. Access date.
Include the access date if found online.
Example
Tresize, J.B. "Shifting the Balance: The Abstract Art of Roy Good." Art New Zealand, no. 126, Spring 2006, www.art-newzealand.com/Issue126/Good.html. Accessed 4 July, 2009.
An image caption should refer to the artist, location of work and the author of the article where the image was found.
Referencing audio and visual material in MLA: Image captions
Magazine or newspaper articles
Magazine and newspaper articles follow the same format as journal articles, with a few changes. To learn more about referencing magazine and newspaper articles, go to Referencing other material in MLA style
Referencing disclaimer
This page is a guide to proper referencing. Your course, department, school or institute may prescribe specific conventions. Their recommendations supersede these instructions. If your questions are not covered here, ask your course coordinator or ask on our Academic Q&A forum.
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