The Modern Language Association (MLA) style is one of the major formatting styles used to write papers, format citations, and create bibliographies in academic and scholarly writing. Students are commonly taught to use the MLA style for papers and assignments in liberal arts and humanities courses and subjects such as English, foreign languages, literature, cultural studies, and art history. The MLA format is very common and required for many undergraduate and graduate level papers in these fields.
Setting Up the Basic Essay Format in MLA Style
When setting up the basic formatting for a typed MLA format essay, there are a few key points to keep in mind:
Use white printer paper of standard size (8.5″ x 11″).
Set all margins to 1 inch on all sides (top, bottom, left, and right).
Use a standard font like Times New Roman or Cambria that is legible at 12 point size.
Double space the entire essay, including quotations, notes, and the Works Cited page.
Indent the first line of each paragraph of the body of the essay one half inch from the left margin.
Create a header in the upper right-hand corner that includes your last name followed by a space with a page number. Page numbers should be justified to the right.
Do not include a title page unless specifically requested by your instructor. Instead, begin with the essay or paper title centered on the first page of the essay text one third of the way down from the top.
Following these basic formatting guidelines sets up the essay meeting key expectations in MLA format. Failure to follow some of these guidelines could result in points deducted by instructors who expect papers to conform to the correct MLA formatting style.
Formatting the First Page of an MLA Essay
Beyond just setting up basic font, margins, and header information, the first page of an MLA style essay requires some additional specific formatting elements:
Center the title of the essay an inch below the top of the page (leaving a blank line above the title).
Do not underline, bold, italicize or place quotation marks around the essay title.
-Below the essay title, enter your name, the name of the instructor, the course name and number, and the date centered on separate lines with double spacing between.
Do not include additional information like a title page unless requested. The centered heading takes the place of a title page in MLA format.
Begin the body of the essay on the line below the date heading with the first indented paragraph.
Following these guidelines structures the important essay identification and title on the first page in the appropriate MLA style. Pay close attention to spacing, centering and order of elements like the name, course data and date to adhere to correct formatting.
Formatting Internal Pages of an MLA Essay
Beyond just the first page, any subsequent pages of a typed MLA format essay also require specific formatting elements:
Continue with a running header aligned to the right margin with the last name and page number on each page.
Do not restart page numbering on subsequent pages. Continue numbering sequentially.
Maintain uniform and consistent 1 inch margins all around the page.
Continue double spacing all text including the body paragraphs and any block quotes of 4 lines or longer.
Indent the first line of each paragraph a half inch as a marker for new paragraphs.
Do not include any extra spacing between paragraphs of text.
Use the same 12 point font consistently throughout the entire essay.
Following these guidelines keeps the look and formatting style uniform for internal pages beyond just the first essay page in MLA format. Pay attention to consistent spacing, margins, indents and pagination for any multi-page essay.
Formatting MLA Headings and Subheadings
For typed MLA format essays that include headings or subheadings to organize sections or chapters, follow these guidelines:
Center level one headings or chapter titles within the essay text.
Capitalize level one headings, but do not include header text or pagination.
Indent level two subheadings and type them on the same line as the beginning of the paragraph, separated by a period. Capitalize only the first letter of important words.
Indent third level subheadings and italicize text while capitalizing only the first letter of important words.
For additional fourth or fifth level headings, use a combination of italics and numbers or letters to identify and maintain a consistent hierarchy of heading levels.
Always follow headings or subheadings with a period and the beginning of the paragraph indented on the next line.
Using MLA formatting for headings helps organize longer essays with clear sections and hierarchy of information for readers. Maintain consistent capitalization, indentation and separation for headings at each level.
Formatting Paragraphs and Block Quotes in an MLA Essay
Beyond the overall essay formatting and headings, MLA also has some rules for formatting of paragraphs of text and block quotes:
Use standard indentation (typically a half inch) for the first line of each new paragraph of the body text.
Do not include extra spacing or blank lines between paragraphs. Indentation signifies a new paragraph in MLA style.
For block quotes of 4 lines or longer from an outside source, indent the entire quote a half inch from the left margin.
Maintain double spacing for the entire quote and indent the citation flush right on the last line.
Use a free-standing block format for longer quotes instead of integrating them within the flow of your paragraph of text.
Introduce the block quote and source clearly for readers and place citation at the end of the quote, not mid-quote.
For smaller quotes under 4 lines, integrate within the flow of your paragraph and enclose with quotation marks with the citation following.
Following these guidelines properly formats paragraphs and quotes drawn from outside sources in MLA style for typed essays. Maintain clear indentation and presentation of quotes.
Citing Sources in the Text of an MLA Format Essay
In addition to formatting paragraphs and block quotes, MLA has guidelines for how to cite sources that are referenced or quoted within the body of an essay:
Introduce embedded quotes with a signal phrase that includes the author’s last name followed by a comma.
Place the page number citation in parentheses after a quote, but before any punctuation mark.
For longer block quotes, place the citation in parentheses after the period closing the quote.
If the author’s name is included in the signal phrase, only include the page number in parentheses.
List multiple sources in one in-text citation separated by semi-colons where the first has no punctuation.
If quoting indirectly, use “qtd. in” before the page number for quoted sources and include the secondary source.
Provide enough information to lead readers to the Works Cited page for each source cited.
Following these guidelines properly cites references to sources directly quoted or referred to within the body of an MLA format essay. Styling citations correctly attributes sources used.
Creating an MLA Format Works Cited Page
The final element in MLA formatting is inclusion of the Works Cited or References page at the end:
Center the title “Works Cited” without formatting like italics or bold at the top of the page.
Alphabetize entries by author’s last name or by title for sources without an author name.
Use a hanging indent format for each citation entry, meaning the first line of an entry is flush left while any additional lines are indented a half inch.
Provide full bibliographic information for each source cited, formatted per specific MLA source guidelines for different media types.
Double space between all entries with a extra blank line to separate longer citations that wrap to additional lines.
List page numbers for all container sources like books and periodicals and URLs or DOIs for digital sources.
Following consistent Works Cited formatting attributes and cites outside sources properly and uniformly in MLA style for academic and scholarly writing.
Adhering to Modern Language Association formatting guidelines structures typed essays in an organized manner that readers expect through standard presentation of essay text, citations and references. Mastering MLA formatting allows students to communicate ideas and knowledge effectively in many humanities courses that require MLA style. Properly researching and following these guidelines takes student writing a step further than just content alone.
Andrew Stroud