Example of an MLA Footnote.

In your text, when you are using the ideas of someone other than yourself it is necessary to cite the author of the idea. When you are writing about the prospects of your future career, and discover that there one hundred seventy six employers in the central New Brunswick area who hire registered nurses[1] you need to source the information. The easiest way to do this is with a footnote. Depending upon your version of word processor the commands will be a little different, but should be similar. Usually you only need to select the insert tab, then references, then insert footnote. Be sure your cursor is located in the correct spot, where the reference belongs, before selecting the command. When you select the command a number appears next to and slightly above the word you choose to footnote and your curser will drop to the bottom of your page for you to type your citation. The footnote citation is very similar to what will appear in your bibliography. I have attached a further note below:

“Footnotes and Endnotes are used to give credit to sources of any material borrowed, summarized or paraphrased. They are intended to refer readers to the exact pages of the works listed in the Works Cited, References, or Bibliography section.

The main difference between Footnotes and Endnotes is that Footnotes are placed numerically at the foot of the very same page where direct references are made, while Endnotes are placed numerically at the end of the essay on a separate page entitled Endnotes or Notes.

When mentioning a work for the first time, a full and complete Footnote or Endnote entry must be made.

NOTE: Only one sentence is used in a Footnote or Endnote citation, i.e., only one period or full stop is used at the end of any Footnote or Endnote citation. In a Bibliography, each citation consists of a minimum of three statements or sentences, hence each entry requires a minimum of three periods, e.g., a period after the author statement, a period after the title statement, and a period after the publication statement (publication/publisher/publication date).

First Footnote or Endnote example:

2 G. Wayne Miller, King of Hearts: The True Story

of the Maverick Who Pioneered Open Heart Surgery

(New York: Times, 2000) 245.

Bibliography example:

Miller, G. Wayne. King of Hearts: The True Story of the

Maverick Who Pioneered Open Heart Surgery. New York:

Times, 2000.[2]

… For second or later mention of the same work with intervening entries, where previously op. cit. was used, now only the author and page number or numbers are used:

5 Miller 198.
Example of an MLA Works Cited Page: (http://www.studyguide.org/MLAdocumentation.htm)

When creating your Works Cited Page, remember to:

·  Begin the Works Cited on a new page, but number consecutively (i.e., if the last page of your essay is page 3, the Works Cited is page 4)

·  Alphabetize each entry by first letter

·  Use italics for all titles of books, magazines, films, etc.

·  You do NOT need to include the URL on internet sources unless specifically required.

·  Put quotation marks around the titles of poems, short stories, and articles

·  Indent the 2nd line, the 3rd line, and all subsequent lines of each citation

·  Double-space all entries...the examples which follow are single-spaced only to save space on this handout

Correct citation / Type of citation
Gorman, Elizabeth. Prairie Women. New Haven: Yale University Press, 1986. / Book (One author)
Caper, Charles and Lawrence T. Teamos. How to Camp. Philadelphia: Doubleday, 1986. / Book (Two authors)
Ellis, Doris et.al. History of Japan. New York: Harcourt, Brace and World, Inc., 1989. / Book (Three or more authors)
Vanderkirk, Pamela, ed. Ten Short Plays. Los Angeles: Nowell Book Co., 1982. / Book (One editor)
Allende, Isabel. "Toad's Mouth." Trans. Margaret Sayers Peden. A Hammock beneath the Mangoes: Stories from Latin America. Ed. Thomas Colchie. New York: Plume, 1992. 83-88. / Book (Single work from an anthology)
American Medical Association. The American Medical Association Encyclopedia of Medicine. Ed. Charles B. Clayman. New York: Random, 1989. / Book by Corporate Author
Hawthorne, Nathaniel. Twice-Told Tales. Ed. George Parsons Lathrop. Boston: Houghton, 1883. 1 Mar. 2002. <http://eldred.ne.mediaone.net/nh/ttt.html>. / Book Online
"Egypt." Encyclopedia Britannica Online. Vers. 97.1.1. Mar. 1997. Encyclopedia Britannica. 29 Feb. 2000 <http://www.search.eb.com/>. / Encyclopedia (Internet) *
The Empire Strikes Back. Dir. George Lucas. Perf. Mark Hamill, Harrison Ford, Carrie Fisher. Twentieth Century Fox, 1980. / Film
United States Office of Management and Budget. Budget of the United States Government, Fiscal Year 1999. Washington: GPO, 1999. / Government Publication
Whitehurst, Daniel, former mayor of Fresno. Personal interview. 5 Mar. 2003. / Interview (Personal)
Smith, John. "Beowulf: Archetypal Hero." English 102 Class. Vestavia Hills High School, Vestavia Hills, AL. 28 March
2003. / Lecture
"Castles in Medieval Times." yourchildlearns.com. 2000. Owl and Mouse Educational
Software. 9 March 2003. <http://www.yourchildlearns.com/castle_history.htm>. / Web Page that is part of a larger web site
Schrock, Kathleen. "Digital Gadgets." Kathy Schrock's Guide for Educators. 20 February 2002. Discovery Channel. 11 March 2003. <http://school.discovery.com/schrockguide/gadgets.html>.
"Great Gatsby Study Guide." studyguide.org. 5 January 2002. 11 March 2003.
http://www.studyguide.org/gatsby_study_guide.htm>.
Note: If no title for the page is provided, write Home page (do not underline and do not use quotation marks). / Web page (Personal or Professional)
The Cinderella Project. Ed. Michael N. Salda. Vers. 1.1.Dec. 1997. De Grummond Children's Lit. Research Collection, University of Southern Mississippi. 9 March 2003.
http://www-dept.usm.edu/~engdept/cinderella/cinderella.html>. / Web page from a university (scholarly online project)
"Langston Hughes Poetry Circles." February 2003. National Council of Teachers of English. 10 March 2003. <http://www.ncte.org/special/LangstonHughes/>. / Web page (Professional Organization)

[1] Government of Canada Labour Market Information Website: http://www.labourmarketinformation.ca/standard.aspx?ppid=83&lcode=eng&prov=13&gaid=25636&occ=3152&job=&search_key=1&search_ppid=59&search_type=&employer_potential=&search_criteria=province_id;13;geo_area_id;25636;search_key;1;noc_title;nurse;

[2] http://www.aresearchguide.com/7footnot.html, viewed on March 3, 2011.