A bibliography is a list of sources that you have referred to in your research or used to support your arguments in an academic paper. In the Modern Language Association (MLA) style, a bibliography is usually called a "Works Cited" list and is placed at the end of your paper. Here is how you can write a bibliography in MLA format:
Begin the list on a new page and title it "Works Cited," centered at the top of the page. Do not use quotes or italics for the title.
Alphabetize the list by the first word in each entry (usually the author's last name). If there is no author, alphabetize by the title of the work.
Use a hanging indent for each entry, meaning that the first line of the entry is flush with the left margin, and all subsequent lines are indented half an inch. This makes the list easier to read and allows the reader to see at a glance which sources are being cited.
Use title case for the titles of books, articles, and other sources. This means that you should capitalize the first letter of most words in the title, except for articles (a, an, the), prepositions (of, in, with), and coordinating conjunctions (and, but, or).
For books, include the author's name, title of the book, place of publication, publisher, and date of publication. For example:
Smith, John. The History of Time. New York: Random House, 2010.
For articles, include the author's name, title of the article, title of the journal or website, volume and issue number (if applicable), and date of publication. For example:
Jones, Mary. "The Future of Technology." Scientific American, vol. 300, no. 5, 2010, pp. 50-56.
For websites, include the author's name (if available), title of the webpage, title of the website, URL, and date of access. For example:
Smith, John. "The Evolution of Communication." History of Technology, www.historyoftechnology.com/evolution-of-communication, accessed 15 June 2021.
- If you are citing a specific part of a source, such as a chapter in a book or a specific page in an article, include the page number(s) after the date of publication. For example:
Smith, John. The History of Time. New York: Random House, 2010, pp. 45-50.
- If you are citing a source that you accessed through an online database, include the database name and the accession number after the date of publication. For example:
Jones, Mary. "The Future of Technology." Scientific American, vol. 300, no. 5, 2010, pp. 50-56. JSTOR, http://www.jstor.org/stable/10.2307/123456.
If you are citing a source that does not have an author, begin the entry with the title of the work. If the title is long, you can abbreviate it as long as the abbreviation is clear and consistent throughout the list.
If you are citing a source that you accessed in a physical format (such as a print book), include the word "Print" after the publication information. For example:
Smith, John. The History of Time. New York: Random House, 2010. Print.
By following these guidelines, you can create a clear and organized bibliography in MLA format that will help your readers find and understand