The Works Cited page (aka. bibliography) is the page at the end of your paper or project listing every source you quoted or paraphrased. Every time you use someone else's ideas within your own work, you must acknowledge them in the format your instructor prescribes (in this case, MLA citation style).
These are not words/ideas you simply throw into your paper. The purpose of including sources in your paper is to infuse your own thoughts and ideas with theirs, and to participate in the scholarly conversation around the topic of your paper/project. The References page is the acknowledgement of that infusion and conversation.
(image by flickr user @rondmac)
Click on the link for examples of citations of various types of sources: CCC Library MLA Style Cheat Sheet. |
Contra Costa College Library: MLA Format for Works Cited (MLA Handbook, 8th ed. 2016)
Useful Formatting Directions
Works Cited Page
Individual Citations
In-Text Citations: When quoting a text, give the author’s last name and the page number for the quote in parenthesis after the quote. Ex. Romantic poetry is characterized by the "spontaneous overflow of powerful feelings" (Wordsworth 263). Use only the page number in parenthesis if the author’s name is included in a signal phrase. Ex. Wordsworth stated that Romantic poetry was marked by a “spontaneous overflow of powerful feelings” (263). When paraphrasing, in-text citations must also be used.