MLA Quotations

1. MLA Quotations

2. Direct Quote • Quote that is 4 lines or less • Includes quotation marks “ • Include author’s last name and page number in a parenthetical reference • Also may refer to author’s last name as you introduce the quote • Examples • “This is where you would include the quote” (Kurt 23). • In Time Magazine, John Kurt explains, “This is where you would include the quote”(23).

3. Block Quote • Quote that is more than four typed lines • Do not use quotation marks but always use a colon to introduce the quote • Indent the entire quote 1” (2 tabs) • Place the before after the text of the quote • After the period, add parenthesis with name and page number • Example • The importance of insurance can be viewed as: This is when you would start quoting. Remember that it has to be more than four lines though. Indent your entire quote TWO tabs. Do not use quotation marks. Keep the text the same size font as the rest of the paper. And when you finish this quote it will end with a period. (Kurt 23)

4. Paraphrasing Quote • Must include parenthetical citation ( ) • If 3 + words used, you have to use quotation marks around the words • Example • For this quote you do not use quotation marks unless you use three consecutive words in a row. Otherwise you use some words and change most (Kurt 23).

5. No Author • If there is no author for a work you are citing, use an abbreviated version of the title of the work

6. Ellipsis… • Used in lengthy quotes […] • You would like to use only portions of quote • The purpose is to indicate that some words have been omitted or taken out • Can come at the beginning, middle, or end of a quote

7. Adding/Changing Info • Put brackets around the words you change and/or add • [He] said

8. Example August 12, 2008 Barack Obama, Legal Scholar ByEd Lasky Barack Obama promises to accomplish quite a lot if he becomes our next President. These promises are symbolized in his campaign themes: hope and change. But just how likely is he to fulfill his own promise and the promises he has made to the American people? Judging by his previous career, not very likely. We have seen this movie before in Barack Obama's life, and the end is not a happy one. In fact, when you examine his career in its various dimension, it seems to be marked disturbingly often by failure. Faced with his failures, he tries to obscure the record; or else he blames mistakes on staffers or other people. The "successes" he uses as campaign tropes often turn out to be due to the work of others for which he has claimed credit, or to be much less significant than meets the eye. Fortunately, the spell seems to be wearing off and the media has begun to scrutinize his career a bit more, and it has been found wanting. Far more serious scrutiny of Obama's professional track record is necessary, for there is a danger when an unexamined candidate meets an uninformed voter. In the case of Barack Obama, disheartening aspects emerge when one pulls off the rose-colored glasses. His career has three chapters: academia, community organizing, and politics. Today we begin where his national career first took off: Harvard Law School and examine his legal career. Future articles will cover Senator Obama's community organizing and his political career.

9. In-Class Assignment • Read the article “Creative Ways to Use a SMART Board” • With a partner, create a direct, block, and paraphrasing quote (Total of 6 – 2 of each) • Make sure to correctly quote the article • Author’s last name • Use page numbers 1, 2, 3 • Commas, quotes, and parenthesis when needed

10. Homework • Using your Reading Counts novel, select three quotes (1 direct, 1 block, and 1 paraphrase) and pretend as though you are using this novel for research • Correctly type these quotes including the header (last name and page #), heading (your name, my last name, class, date) • Title of novel • Then just begin your quotations • Also create a Works Cited Page for this novel