ELA Style Sheet

I. WORKS CITED OR BIBLIOGRAPHY

Most research papers include a Works Cited or Bibliography section at the end: a list of books and other published material used in writing the paper. The Works Cited or Bibliography section serves two purposes:

• It shows what research was done for the paper.

• It suggests to interested readers possible sources for further study.

Generally, Works Cited sections reflect works quoted in the text, while Bibliography, more broadly, includes all works read for the paper.

The citation suggestions made here are based on the format established by the Modern Language Association (MLA) with whose permission the following has been made available. Students should be aware that other formats exist and may be required by other schools or individual instructors.

MLA Style has three major features. First, all sources cited in a paper are listed in the Works Cited, which is located at the end of the paper (see detailed instructions below). Second, material borrowed from another source is documented within the text of the paper by the use of Parenthetical Documentation (See section on "Parenthetical Documentation".) Third, numbered footnotes or endnotes are only used to present supplementary information such as: (1) commentary or explanation that the text cannot accommodate and (2) bibliographical notes that contain several source citations.

RULES FOR WRITING WORKS CITED or BIBLIOGRAPHY

1. Alphabetize all entries according to the first word of each entry. Do not consider A, An, or The when alphabetizing.
2. If the first word is identical in two entries, alphabetize those entries by the first letter that differentiates the two.
3. Follow the style sheet carefully for order of names and punctuation.
4. Single space within an entry, and double space the entire list between entries.

(1) Print, Audio, Film and Video Media Citations
When citing information from print, audio, film, and video provide the following general categories of information. Start each entry at the margin. If the entry goes beyond one line, indent the next lines five spaces or use the Tab key or hanging indent if using a word processor.

1. Name of author, or editor (if author is unknown) followed by a period.
2. Portions of entire works are followed by a period and enclosed in quotation mark.
   
   

   chapter	poem	episode of a TV program
   article	essay	lecture
   song	short story

   
   
3. Title of a complete work (underlined) followed by a period.
   
   

   book	magazine	TV program
   long poem	newspaper	work of art
   play	journal	record/CD album
   pamphlet	film	musical composition
   legal case	ballet	name of ship or aircraft

   
   
4. City of publication followed by a colon.
5. Publisher followed by a comma.
6. Date of publication (day first, then month and year) followed by a period except if page numbers are to be listed. When pages are listed, separate date and pages by a colon.
7. Volume number, issue number , page number (s) followed by a period.