1.
What do I have to document?
Everything that comes from a source, whether it be a fact, quotation, opinion,
or line of thinking. It can come from a book, article, web page, interview, or
any other source. All inartistic and artistic proofs that are inspired or
drawn from sources need to be documented. All quotes, paraphrases, and
summaries must be documented.
2.
Where do I need to put documentation?
MLA style requires you to indicate you’re using a source in three
places: 1) where the use of the source begins (with a signal phrase and, if
appropriate, quotation marks); 2) where the use of the source ends (with a
parenthetical citation and, if appropriate, quotation marks); and 3) in the
Works Cited, a separate page at the end of your paper. If any of these three
elements is missing or incorrect, you have a serious documentation problem.
3.
Where do I find the documentation forms?
Most of what you need is in Harris’ Prentice Hall Reference Guide to
Grammar and Usage, 4th ed, ch. 52. If you can’t find what you
want there, go to the reference desk of the library and ask for The MLA
Handbook for Writers of Research Papers, 5th ed. (Hint: the
online forms are in chapter 4.9.) You can also go to www.mla.org
and follow the orange “MLA Style” links for help—there is a “frequently-asked
questions” page that has helpful tips, especially for getting the form for
an online citation to print out correctly. The Winthrop Writing Center (www.winthrop.edu/wcenter)
has an online handout that gives many examples of MLA style, too.
4.
What if I can’t find a form in any of
these places? Bring the source to class or to
my office and I’ll help you find or make up an analogous form. But do it before
the paper is due.
5.
What happens if I screw up the
documentation in my paper? If
you screw up the documentation, you may have committed plagiarism, which is
punishable under the Student Judicial Code (hyperlinked from “The Correct
Use of Borrowed Information” handout on our website and at www.winthrop.edu/english/plagiarism.htm).
See the syllabus for the penalties for plagiarism. If you want to avoid these
harsh penalties, always double-check your use of sources and ask me if
you have any questions—before you turn the paper in. I am
always happy to help you find an answer to these questions.
6.
Do I have to turn in copies of my sources
with my researched argument? Yes.
7.
How can I keep from losing track of the
sources I use? Be smart. When you paste
something from a source into your paper, highlight it (either change the font
color or use a highlighter). Keep a file open and paste in the URLs or Works
Cited info for every source you use as you’re working on your draft—you
can come back and edit it later, but this way you’ll remember what it is.
Use the “Save web page as” element in your browser or print out the web
pages you use so that you’ll have the URLs. Don’t rely on your memory or
on Google bringing the same pages up again. (Remember: things on the Web
disappear frequently.)
Some
of the most commonly needed forms
Personal,
company, or group’s web page:
Site owner’s name. Name of page (or “Home
page.”) Date of creation
(if available). Date of access <URL>.
Koster, Jo. “Argument
Resources.” 31 October 2001<http://faculty.winthrop.edu/kosterj/writ102/resources.htm>.
NASCAR. Home page. 29 October 2001 <www.nascar.com>.
Compassion International. “Compassion.” 29 October 2001
<www.compassion.com>.
Article
retrieved from InfoTrack or Article 1st:
Author’s
name. “Name of Article.” Name of the Journal or Periodical Where
It Appeared. Volume
no., issue, or identifying number. Date of publication. The number range, or
total number of pages, paragraphs, or other sections, if they are numbered.
Date of access <Name of access source or URL>.
Ackland, Bruce. “Upgrade delays gun database.” Computer Weekly. 11 Oct. 2001: 14.
Online. 30 October 2001 <Infotrack>.
Lorhmann-O’Rourke,
Sharon, and Perry A. Zirkel. “The
Case Law on Aversive Interventions for Students with Disabilities.” Exceptional
Children 65.1 (Fall 1998): 101-23. Online. 28
March 2002 <http://web4.infotrac.galegroup.com/ itw/infomark/936/703/56867718w3/purl=rc1_EAIM_0_A21172703&dyn=6!xrn_7_0_A21172703?sw_aep=winthropudl>.
Denning, Peter J. “Business Designs for
the New
University.”
Educom Review 31.6 (1996): 12 pp.
23
June 1998 <http://educom.edu/web/pubs/review/
reviewArticles/31620.html>.