Modern Language Association (MLA) Format
General guidelines:
Use 12 inch font (e.g. Times New Roman)
Margins = one inch all around.
Double space the entire essay (including heading).
Heading:
The heading should be placed flush with the left margin of the page and should include your name, your teacher’s
name, the course name, and the date.
Page Numbers:
Your last name and the page number should appear in the upper right hand corner, one half inch from the top and
flush with the right margin of EACH page of your paper, except for cover page.
Title/First Sentence:
The title appears underlined on the first page of the paper, one return (2 spaces) below the heading, centered, with no
quotation marks or bold face type.
The first sentence of your essay begins one return (two spaces) below the title (no more!) and indented five spaces
from the left margin.
SHORT Quotation Citation:
A short quotation is... fewer than 4 lines of prose OR fewer than 3 lines of poetry. To cite short quotations:
Enclose the quotation within quotation mark
In parentheses, indicate the author’s last name & the page number (called the "parenthetical citation")
The period appears after the parenthetical citation
Question marks and exclamation points appear within the quotation marks if they are a part of the quoted passage but
after the parenthetical citation if they are a part of your own text.
LONG Quotation Citation:
A long quotation is... 4 or more lines of prose OR 3 or more lines of poetry. To cite long quotations:
Start the quotation on a new line, indented one inch from the left margin
Do not enclose quotation in quotation marks
Maintain double-spacing
Parenthetical citation should come after the closing punctuation mark
EXAMPLE:
His primary focus is to continue further with the painted picture of the country side, to bring forth the opposing views of the hills
across the valley of Ebro:
The girl stood up and walked to the end of the station. Across, on the other side, were fields of grain and trees along the
banks of the Ebro. Far away, beyond the river, were mountains. The shadow of a cloud moved across the filed of grain
and she saw the river through the trees.
“And we could have all this,” she said. “And we could have everything and every day we make it more impossible.”
“What did you say?”
“We could have everything.”
“No, we can’t.” (Hemingway 2).
The female most certainly views the Ebro valley differently than the American man. She uses the valley as a direct link to the
natural reproduction of life, and compares it with her pregnancy, “They’re lovely hills,” she said.