How to Create a Bibliography
If your teacher asks you to include a bibliography with your report, that means you need to show where you found the information for your report. It might be from a book, an encyclopedia, magazine or an electronic source. You will need to list the sources in proper form.
The bibliography of a paper is single-spaced with one blank line between each source or entry. The first line is flush to the left of your page with any run-over lines indented 5 spaces. Be sure that you use the exact spacing, punctuation, and order.
Forms for Source Cards and Works Cited Entries from Language Network. McDougal Littell, 2001.
Whole Books
Parts of Books
Magazines, Journals, Newspapers, and Encyclopedias
Miscellaneous Print and Nonprint Sources
Electronic Publications
Online Sources
The following models can also be used for citing reports and pamphlets.
A. One author.
Blackwood, Gary. The Shakespeare Stealer. New York: Dutton, 1998.
B. Two authors.
Cummings, Pat, and Linda Cummings. Talking with Adventurers.
Washington: Natl. Geographic Soc., 1998.
C. Three authors.
Silverstein, Alvin, Virginia Silverstein, and Laura Silverstein Nunn. The
California Condor. Brookfield: Millbrook, 1998.
D. Four or more authors.
The abbreviation et al. means "and others." Use et al. instead of listing all the authors.
Brown, Richard G., et al. Algebra 1: Explorations and Applications. Evanston:
McDougal, 1998.
E. No author given.
Webster's Word Histories. Springfield: Merriam, 1989.
F. An editor but no single author.
Silverberg, Robert, ed. The Science Fiction Hall of Fame. Garden City:
Doubleday, 1970.
G. Two or three editors.
Colbert, Jan, and Ann McMillan Harms, eds. Dear Dr. King: Letters from
Today's Children to Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. New York: Hyperion.
1998.
H. An author and a translator.
Pressler, Mirjam. Halinka. Trans. Elizabeth D. Crawford. New York:
Holt, 1998.
I. An author, a translator, and an editor.
Hugo, Victor. The Hunchback of Notre Dame. Trans. Walter J. Cobb,
Ed. Robin Waterfield. London: Penguin, 1996.
J. An edition other than the first.
Gibaldi, Joseph. MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers. 5th ed.
New York: MLA, 1999.
K. A book or a monograph that is part of a series.
Latta, Sara L. Allergies. Diseases and People. Springfield: Enslow, 1998.
L. A multivolume work.
If you have used only one volume of a multivolume work, cite only that volume.
Gonen, Amiram, ed. Peoples of the World: Customs and Cultures. Vol. 3.
Danbury: Grolier, 1998. 10 vols.
If you have used more than one volume of a multivolume work, cite the entire work.
Gonen, Amiram, ed. Peoples of the World: Customs and Cultures.
10 vols. Danbury: Grolier, 1998.
M. A volume with its own title that is part of a mutivolume work with
a different title.
Due, Andrea, ed. The Modern World. Danbury: Grolier, 1999. vol. 6 of
People and the Earth: An Environmental Atlas. 6 vols.
N. A republished book or a literary work available in several editions.
Give the date of the original publication after the title. Then give complete publication information, including the date, for the edition that you have used.
Lewis, C. S. The Voyage of the Dawn Treader. 1952. New York: Harper,
1994.
O. A government publication.
Give the name of the government (country of state). Then give the department if applicable, followed by the agency if applicable. Next give the title,
followed by the author if known. Then give the publication information.
The publisher of U.S. government documents is usually the Government
Printing Office, or GPO.
United States. Dept. of Health and Human Services. Natl. Center for
Health Statistics. Health. United States. 1996-1997. and Injury
Chartbook. Washington: GPO, 1997.
A. A poem, a short story, an essay, or a chapter in a collection of
works by one author.
Wilder, Laura Ingalls. "Whom Will You Marry?" A Little House Reader:
A Collection of Writings by Laura Ingalls Wilder. Ed. William Anderson.
New York: Harper, 1998. 130-43.
B. A poem, a short story, an essay, or a chapter in a collection of
works by several authors.
Angelou, Maya. "Still I Rise." I, Too, Sing America: Three Centuries of
African Poetry. Ed. Catherine Clinton. Boston: Houghton, 1998.
107-08.
C. A novel or a play in an anthology
Stone, Peter. Titanic. The Best Plays of 1996-1997. Ed. Otis L.
Guernsey, Jr. New York: Limelight-Proscenium, 1997. 157-89.
D. An introduction, a preface, a foreword, or an afterword written
by the author(s) of a work.
Bradbury, Ray. Afterword. Fahrenheit 451. By Bradbury. New York:
Ballantine. 1982. 167-73.
E. An introduction, a preface, a foreword, or an afterword written
by someone other than the author(s) of a work.
Alterde, Isabel. Foreword. Where Angels Glide at Dawn: New Stories
from Latin America. Ed. Lori M. Carlson and Cynthia L. Venture.
New York: Lippincott, 1990. ix-xil.
Magazines, Journals, Newspapers, and Encyclopedias
A. An article in a magazine, a journal, or a newspaper
Allen, Jodie. "Working Out Welfare." Time 29 July 1996. 53-54.
Abelson, Philip H. "Preparing Children for the Future." Science
13 Dec. 1996: 1819.
Voedisch, Lynn. "Have You Done Your Homework Yet?" Chicago Tribune
9 Oct. 1997. sec. 5: 5.
Fintor, Lou. "Cancer Control Efforts Reach Out to 'Culturally Isolated.'"
Journal of the National Cancer Institute 90 (1998): 1424-27.
B. An article in an encyclopedia or other alphabetically organized
reference work.
Give the title of the article, the name of the reference work, and the year
of the edition.
"Sioux Indians." The World Book Encyclopedia. 1999 ed.
C. A review.
Crain, Caleb. "There but for Fortune." Rev. of Hearts in Atlanta by
Stephen King. New York Times Book Review 12 Sept. 1999: 10
Miscellaneous Print and Nonprint Sources
A. An interview you have conducted or a letter you have received.
Sosa, Sammy. Letter to the author [or Personal interview]. 20 Oct. 1998.
B. A film.
Ever After. Screenplay by Susannah Grant and Andy Tennant. Dir. Tennant.
Perf. Drew Barrymore, Anjelica Huston, and Dougray Scott. 2oth Century
Fox, 1998.
C. A work of art (painting, photograph, sculpture).
Escher, M. C. Sky and Water 1. National Gallery of Art, Washington.
D. A television or a radio program.
Give the episode name (if applicable) and the series or program name, include any information that you have about the program's writer and director. Then give the network, the local station, the city, and the date of the airing of the program.
"The Idol Maker." Narr. Vicki Mabrey. 60 Minutes II. Prod. Aaron Wertheim,
CBS. WBBM, Chicago. 29 Sept. 1999.
E. A musical composition.
Mendelssohn, Felix. Symphony no. 4 in A major, op. 90.
F. A recording (compact disc, LP, or audiocassette).
If the recording is not a compact disc, include LP or Audiocassette before the manufacturer's name.
Johnson, James P. "Fascination." Perf. Marcus Roberts. If I Could Be with You.
RCA, 1993.
Prado, Perez. "Mambo #8." Que Rico Mambo. Audiocassette. Rhino, 1989.
G. A lecture, a speech, or an address.
Give the name of the speaker, followed by the name of the speech or the kind
of speech (Lecture, Introduction, Address). Then give the event, the place, and the date.
Lowry, Lois. Speech. Newbery-Caldecott Awards Banquet. ALA Annual
Conference. Convention Center, Miami Beach. 26 June 1994.
The number of electronic information sources is great and increasing rapidly. You may refer to the page "MLA Style: at the MOdern Language Association Web site http://www.mla.org/.
Portable databases (CD-ROMs, DVDs, laser discs, diskettes, and videocassettes)
These products contain fixed information (information that cannot be changed unless a new version is produced and released). Citing them in a research paper is similar to citing printed sources. You should include the following information:
- Name of the author (if applicable)
- Title of the part of the work used (underlined or in quotation marks)
- Title of the product or the database (underlined)
- Publication medium (CD-ROM, DVD, laser disc, diskette, or videocassette)
- Edition, release, or version if applicable
- City of publication
- Name of publisher
- Year of publication
If you cannot find some of this information, cite what is available.
Burke, James. "Yesterday, Tomorrow and You." Connections. Video, Prod.
BBC. Amrose, 1978.
Antarctica. Dir. John Weiley. 1991. DVD. Slingshot, 1999.
"Boston Tea Party." Encarte 98 Encyclopedia. CD-ROM. 1998 ed. Redmond:
Microsoft, 1998.
Nerds 2.0.1: A Brief History of the Internet. Prod. Oregon. 3 videocassettes.
PBS, 1998.
Sources on the World Wide Web are numerous and include scholarly projects, reference databases, articles in periodicals, and professional and personal sites. Not all sites are equally reliable, and therefore material cited from the World Wide Web should be evaluated carefully. Entries for online sources in the Works Cited list should contain as much of the information listed below as is available.
- Name of the author, editor, compiler, or translator, followed by an abbreviation such as ed., comp., or trans. if appropriate
- Title of the material accessed. Use quotation marks for titles of poems, short stories, articles, and similar short works. Underline the title of a book.
- Publication information for any print version of the source.
- Title (underlined) of the scholarly project, dataase, periodical, or professional or personal site. For a professional or personal site with no title, add a description such as Home page (neither underlined nor in quotation marks).
- Name of the editor of the scholarly project or database
- For a journal, the volume number, issue number, or other identifying number
- Date of electronic publication, of the latest update, or of posting
- For a work from a subscription service, list the name of the service and - if a library is the subscriber - the name of the library and the town or state where it is located.
- Range or total number of pages, paragraphs, or other sections if they are numbered
- Name of an institution or organization that sponsors or is associated with the Web site
- Electronic address, or URL, of the source. For a subscription service, use the URL of the service's main page (if known) or the keyword assigned by the service.
Scholarly Project
Donian, Leni, and Kathleen Forenz "student page." America Dreams Through
the Decades. 21 Feb. 1999. Lib. of Congress American Memory Fellows
Program. 6 Oct. 1999.
Professional site
UNICEF. United Nations Children's Fund. 10 Oct. 1999.
Personal site
Tomarkin, Craig. "World Series History." 6 Feb. 1998.
BaseballGuru.com 10 Oct. 1999
Books
Twain, Mark. The Adventures of Tom Sawyer. New York: Harper, 1903. The
Electronic Text Center. Ed. David Seamanm Aug. 1993. U or Virginia Lib.
10 Oct. 1999
Article in references database
"Aztec." Encyclopedia.com. 1999. Infonautics Corp. 10 Oct. 1999