MLA Format

MLA Format Resources:

OWL Purdue Writing Lab: the online version of the MLA Book

DON'T USE EASY BIB!!

If you are completely lost on the category of a particular document, email Diaz through the contact page please!
​Works Cited: 
How to site evidence in my Works Cited Page:
  • Yes, you can use Easybib.com, but, no, not every document and piece of evidence you select might be an option within their interface.  If you cannot find your particular option (for instance, the inflation chart) you will have to use Ms. Diaz's MLA Format book OR check out the OWL Purdue site.
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  • When you use Easybib, follow the instructions for finding the specific details of your type of document.

  • Even though most of your evidence will come from the websites I provided for you, you will not cite the website, but rather, the document itself.  The documents could be Paintings/Art Work, like the sculptures, or Photographs, like the kids with the stacks of money, or other types.  If you're unsure, ask Diaz!  You must make an honest attempt to find information that is not provided for you, like what museum a sculpture is in or what edition of a novel you are using.

Formatting my citations within my Works Cited page:
  • The first line of your last page should be a "Center Justified" title that says: Works Cited.  This title should not be bolded, underlined, italicized, or within quotations, and it should be in plural form (nobody will be using just one "Work" to cite).

  • The very next line (remember that Word will automatically double-space for you now) should be your first citation.

  • Once you've dropped in all of your citations, select them (not including your Works Cited title) and within HOME find the PARAGRAPH section and click on the pop-out box so that you are looking at the options INDENTS AND SPACING.  Under the SPECIAL drop-down menu, select the "Hanging" indent option.  This will cause the second line of each citation to automatically tab for you.

  • Your citations should show up in alphabetical order.  Do not use the A to Z tool because it can create errors.  Citations that begin with numbers go first.

​​Citing my sources within my essay:
  • ​When citing sources within your text, we know we're going to play around with concrete textual evidence, paraphrasing, and summarizing.  All of three types of evidence require internal documentation.  This will show up in one of two flavors:
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  1. ​A piece of evidence that has a specific author, artist, or editor.: ​Internal documentation will include the author/artist/editor's last name and page number (if relevant) For example:  In 1930 alone the unemployment rate rose from "3 million" in March to "4.38 million" people by December of the same year (Spielvogel 755).
  2. A piece of evidence with simply a title.  ​​Internal documentation will include a key word from the title and the page number (if relevant) For example:  From 1919 to 1923, the German Mark hyper-inflated from "4.2 Marks to the dollar" to "4.2 trillion Marks to the dollar" ("Inflated").
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Citing one piece of evidence at a time: 

The Weimar Republic was plagued with complex economic challenges.  From the year 1919 to 1923, German currency devalued from “4.2” marks to the dollar to “4.2 trillion” marks to the dollar (“Inflated”).

Citing multiple pieces of evidence within one sentence:

The Weimar Republic was plagued with complex economic challenges.  From the year 1919 to 1923, German currency devalued from “4.2” marks to the dollar to “4.2 trillion” marks to the dollar (“Currency”) making currency so worthless that parents willingly gave it to their children as toys (Children).

Citing one piece of evidence for an entire paragraph:

The Weimar Republic was plagued with complex economic challenges.  From the year 1919 to 1923, German currency devalued from “4.2” marks to the dollar to “4.2 trillion” marks to the dollar.  This hyperinflation was detrimental to families because it made the process of moving currency inefficient.  These wild fluctuations induced feelings of desperation, as citizens felt little security in what the value of their money would be day-to-day.  These insecure feelings become present in several art movements. (“Inflated”).

Resources from HISD

Houston ISD Databases:
  • Go to the HUB
  • Go to "Digital Sources"
  • Scroll down to "Library Services"

Some databases may ask you to select our high school, which is under:
​
 Perfor & Vis Arts High School
Username: houstonisd
Password: astros

Houston Public Library

Link to the databases of the Houston Public Library.

1. Literary Criticism database
Format of the Paper:
  • Margins: go to PAGE LAYOUT and in MARGINS select the "Normal" setting of 1" margins all around

  • Heading:
    • on the first line of your document, make sure you are "Left Justified" (in HOME under PARAGRAPH) write:

First and Last Name
Teacher's Name (Ms. Diaz)
Class (English II or English II Pre-AP) "II" are Roman Numerals 
Day Month Year (9 December 2015)

  • Title: ​
    • Press enter once, write your title (or simply the word, Title, for now), and "Center Justify" (in HOME under PARAGRAPH)
    • Titles should not be bolded, underlined, italicized, or within quotations unless you are incorporating a piece of art or literature within your title.
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  • Body:
    • Press enter once, make sure you are "Left Justified" (in HOME under PARAGRAPH), and TAB (on your keyboard above Caps Lock) over once.  Drop in your first sentence.  Do this again for each paragraph , as they should all have a tab space before the first word.
    • Once you've thrown in some meat, select all by hitting CTRL + "A" on your keyboard. 
    • In HOME within FONT select "Times New Roman" and "12 pts" 
    • In HOME within PARAGRAPH click the pull down button "Line and Paragraph Spacing" and select 2.0 spacing.
    • In HOME within PARAGRAPH click the pull down button "Line and Paragraph Spacing" and select "Remove Space After Paragraph" in order to turn-off that tricky little Default. (This means there should be no extra spaces between your paragraphs, but only a smooth double-spaced draft from top-to-bottom
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  • Header: 
    • Go to INSERT and find PAGE NUMBER drop-down menu.  Select "Top of Page" and then "Plain Number 3"
    • Click your cursor to the left of the number 1 and type your Last Name, leaving a space between your surname, so it looks like: Anderson 1
    • Select the text and number and change the font to "Times New Roman" and "12 pts"

Free Citations for All!

Happy birthday: I worked out these citations for you!!
  • Treaty of Versailles:
Allied Powers. Paris Peace Conference. Treaty of Versailles. 11 Nov. 1918. 9 Dec. 2015. <https://www.facinghistory.org/weimar-republic-fragility-democracy/politics/treaty-versailles-summaries-specific-articles-politics-treaty>.
  • All Quiet on the Western Front: 
​Remarque, Erich Maria, and A. W. Wheen. All Quiet on the Western Front. First ed. Boston: Little, Brown, 1929. Print.​
  • Inflation Chart
​"Inflated Weimar Currency." Chart.  The Weimar Republic: The Fragility of Democracy​. Facing History and Ourselves. 9 Dec 2015 <https://www.facinghistory.org/weimar-republic-fragility-democracy/economics/inflated-weimar-currency-1923-economics-1919-1924-inflation>.
  • Casualties of World War I
Germany. Department of Defense. Casualties of World War I. N.p.: n.p., 1914-1919. Print.
  • World History Glencoe Textbook
Spielvogel, Jackson J., Ph.D. Glencoe World History: Modern times. Teacher's Edition ed. Columbus, Ohio: Glencoe/McGraw-Hill, 2003. Print.
  • Children with Stacks of Inflated German Currency
​Children with Stacks of Inflated German Currency. Digital image. Getty Images. Facing History and Ourselves, n.d. Web. 10 Dec. 2015.
  • Homeless Men's Shelter
​Homeless Men's Shelter. Digital image. The Weimar Republic: The Fragility of Democracy. Facing History and Ourselves, n.d. Web. 15 Dec. 2015.
  • Ballot: 1932 German Election Ballot
​1932 German Election Ballot. Digital image. The Weimar Republic: The Fragility of Democracy. Facing History and Ourselves, n.d. Web. 15 Dec. 2015.
  • Communist Political Platform
​"Communist Party Platform." The Weimar Republic: The Fragility of Democracy. Facing History and Ourselves, n.d. Web. 15 Dec. 2015.
  • Social Democratic Party Platform
"Social Democratic Party Platform." The Weimar Republic: The Fragility of Democracy. Facing History and Ourselves, n.d. Web. 15 Dec. 2015.
  • Nazi Party Platform
​"Nazi Party Platform." The Weimar Republic: The Fragility of Democracy. Facing History and Ourselves, n.d. Web. 15 Dec. 2015.
  • WWI PowerPoint:
Pojer, Susan M. 1914-1918: The World at War. Chappaqua, NY: Pptpalooza, n.d. PPT.
  • Heil Hitler: Confessions of a Hitler Youth
​Heil Hitler: Confessions of a Hitler Youth. By Alfons Heck. YouTube. HBO, 6 Dec. 2017. Web.
  • Citing a Musical Score or Libretto