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ENG 112: College Composition II (Eldridge-LO)

This guide has been created by librarians at NOVA to help you find books, articles, videos, and other types of resources related to this program of study. Direct comments to jcombs@nvcc.edu

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Two Types of Citations in MLA

In-Text or Parenthetical Citations

In-text citations tell your professor which source you used at a specific point in the paper.
These citations also correspond to the full citation found in the "Works Cited" section at the end of your paper.
Here are four examples of in-text citations:
 
  1. Name the author(s) and provide a direct quotation:
    • Michael Pollan explains that "the apple, like the settlers themselves, had to forsake its former domestic life and return to the wild before it could be reborn as an American" (13).
  2. Provide a direct quotation without naming the author(s) directly:
    • "In effect, the apple like the settlers themselves, had to forsake its former domestic life and return to the wild before it could be reborn as an American" (Pollan 13).
  3. Name the author(s) and paraphrase:
    • Michael Pollan compares the apple to the settler, because both required an experience in the wild in order to fully express the American experience (13).
  4. Paraphrase without naming the author(s) directly:
    • One writer compares the apple to the settler, because both required an experience in the wild in order to fully express the American experience (Pollan 13).

 

 

Works Cited Citations

The "Works Cited" section includes full citations for all sources used in your paper.

Hauter, Wenonah. Foodopoly: The Battle Over the Future of Food and Farming America. New York: New Press, 20120. Print.

Pollan, Michael. The Botany of Desire. New York: Random House, 2001. Print.