Salahaddin University- Hawler

College of Basic Education

Book Review

MLA Handbook for Writers of ResearchPapers

(7th edition)

Prepared by

Asmaa Kh. A

(M. Ed Student in Linguistics first course)

Prepared for:

Assist. Prof. Dr. ALI MAHMOOD JUKIL

2015

Content

1. Abstract2. The content of the book3. The chapters4. Conclusion

Abstract

The book title is MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers; 7th edition, written by David G. Nicholls, published by the Modern Language Association of America, New York: 2009. It is about 292 pages and seven chapters. The MLA gives step-by-step advice on every aspect of writing research papers, from selecting a topic to submitting the completed paper.

It introduces student writers to a significant revision of MLA documentation style. It provides an authoritative update of MLA documentation style for use in student writing, including simplified guidelines for citing works published on the Web and new recommendations for citing several kinds of works, such as digital files and graphic narratives.

This book is simple, comprehensive, and it provides more than hundred examples with sample papers that illustrate the steps in researching and writing papers. It makes MLA style easier on the eyes and the brain. The MLA Handbook explains how to identify a topic and develop it through research. It shows how to work with sources in your writing, gives advice on the mechanics of academic prose, and authoritatively presents MLA documentation style.

The chapter 1 “Research and writing” explain how to choosinga topic, how to organize your bibliography and how to write drafts. Chapter 2 “Plagiarism and Academic Integrity” explains the different forms of plagiarism, and how to avoid them in yourwork. Chapter 3“The Mechanics of Writing” explains how and whereto use punctuation marks, and the technique of writing the titlepapers. Chapter 4 discuss “The format of the Research Paper” is

completely reorganized and revised. Chapter 5 discuss “Documentation: Preparing the list of Works Cited” in MLA style with various conditions. Chapter 6 “Documentation: Citing Sources in the Text” deals with steps of simple references and using notes with parenthetical documentation. Chapter 7 explains“Abbreviation” and symbols and used proofreading and correction.The supported elements are foreword, preface, list of contents, appendix A: Guides to Writing, appendix B: Specialized Style Manuals and index. What I conclude is that the book will not only teach you MLA style, it will also help you at all stages ofyour project. It will guide you through virtually any question you may have about writing a research paper.

The Content of The Book

Foreword by Rosemary G. Feal xiiiPreface by David G. Nicholls xviiNote on the Web Component xxiCHAPTER 1 : Researc h and Writing 11.1. The Research Paper as a Form of Exploration 31.2. The Research Paper as a Form of Communication 51.3. Selecting a Topic 61.3.1. Freedom of Choice 61.3.2. Finding an Appropriate Focus 61.3.3. Summing Up 71.4. Conducting Research 8

1.4.1. The Modern Academic Library 81.4.2. Library Research Sources 9 .1.4.3. The Central Information System 101.4.4. Reference Works 101.4.5. The Online Catalog of Library Holdings 181.4.6. Full-Text Databases 241.4.7. Other Library Resources and Services 261.4.8. Web Sources 281.4.9. Summing Up 301.5. Compiling a Working Bibliography 311.5.1. Keeping Track of Sources 311.5.2. Creating a Computer File for the Working Bibliography 311.5.3. Recording Essential Publication Information 321.5.4. Noting Other Useful Information 321.5.5. Verifying Publication Information 321.5.6. Converting the Working Bibliography to the Works-Cited List 331.5.7. Summing Up 331.6. Evaluating Sources 331.6.1. Authority 341.6.2. Accuracy and Verifiability 37

1.6.3. Currency 371.6.4. Summing Up 381.7. Taking Notes 381.7.1. Methods of Note-Taking 381.7.2. Types of Note-Taking 391.7.3. Recording Page or Reference Numbers 391.7.4. Using a Computer for Note-Taking 391.7.5. Amount and Accuracy of Note-Taking 401.7.6. Summing Up 401.8. Outlining 411.8.1. Working Outline 411.8.2. Thesis Statement 421.8.3. Final Outline 431.8.4. Summing Up 45

1.9. Writing Drafts 461.9.1. The First Draft 461.9.2. Subsequent Drafts 461.9.3. Writing with a Word Processor 471.9.4. The Final Draft and the Research Project Portfolio 491.9.5. Summing Up 491.10. Language and Style 49CHAPTER 2: Plagiarism and Academic Integrity 512.1. Definition of Plagiarism 522.2. Consequences of Plagiarism 522.3. Information Sharing Today 542.4. Unintentional Plagiarism 552.5. Forms of Plagiarism 562.6. When Documentation Is Not Needed 592.7. Related Issues 592.7.1. Reusing a Research Paper 592.7.2. Collaborative Work 592.7.3. Research on Human Subjects 602.7.4. Copyright Infringement 602.8. Summing Up 60CHAPTER 3: The Mechanics of Writing 633.1. Spelling 653.1.1. Consistency 653.1.2. Word Division 653.1.3. Plurals 653.1.4. Foreign Words 663.2. Punctuation 663.2.1. The Purpose of Punctuation 663.2.2. Commas 663.2.3. Semicolons 703.2.4. Colons 703.2.5. Dashes and Parentheses 713.2.6. Hyphens 723.2.7. Apostrophes 743.2.8. Quotation Marks 753.2.9. Square Brackets 76

3.2.10. Slashes 763.2.11. Periods, Question Marks, and Exclamation Points 773.2.12. Spacing after Concluding Punctuation Marks 773.3. Italics 783.3.1. Words and Letters Referred to as Words and Letters 783.3.2. Foreign Words in an English Text 793.3.3. Emphasis 793.4. Names of Persons 793.4.1. First and Subsequent Uses of Names 793.4.2. Titles of Persons 803.4.3. Names of Authors and Fictional Characters 813.5. Numbers 813.5.1. Arabic Numerals 813.5.2. Use of Words or Numerals 813.5.3. Commas in Numbers 833.5.4. Percentages and Amounts of Money 833.5.5. Dates and Times of the Day 833.5.6. Inclusive Numbers 843.5.7. Roman Numerals 853.6. Titles of Works in the Research Paper 863.6.1. Capitalization and Punctuation 863.6.2. Italicized Titles 883.6.3. Titles in Quotation Marks 893.6.4. Titles and Quotations within Titles 893.6.5. Exceptions 913.6.6. Shortened Titles 923.7. Quotations 923.7.1. Use and Accuracy of Quotations 923.7.2. Prose 933.7.3. Poetry 953.7.4. Drama 963.7.5. Ellipsis 973.7.6. Other Alterations of Sources 1013.7.7. Punctuation with Quotations 1023.7.8. Translations of Quotations 104

3.8. Capitalization and Personal Names in Languages Other Than English 1053.8.1. French 1053.8.2. German 1073.8.3. Italian 1093.8.4. Spanish 1103.8.5. Latin 112CHAPTER 4: The Format of the Research Paper 1154.1. Margins 1164.2. Text Formatting 1164.3. Heading and Title 1164.4. Page Numbers 1174.5. Tables and Illustrations 1184.6. Paper and Printing 1214.7. Corrections and Insertions 1214.8. Binding 1214.9. Electronic Submission 122CHAPTER 5: Documentation: Preparing the List of Works Cited 1235.1. Documenting Sources 1265.2. MLA Style 1265.3. The List of Works Cited 1295.3.1. Introduction 1295.3.2. Placement of the List of Works Cited 1305.3.3. Arrangement of Entries 1315.3.4. Two or More Works by the Same Author 1335.3.5. Two or More Works by the Same Authors 1345.3.6. Cross-References 135-5.4. Citing Periodical Print Publications 1365.4.1. Introduction 1365.4.2. An Article in a Scholarly Journal 1375.4.3. An Article in a Scholarly Journal That Uses Only Issue Numbers 1405.4.4. An Article in a Scholarly Journal with More Than One Series 1415.4.5. An Article in a Newspaper 1415.4.6. An Article in a Magazine 142

5.4.7. A Review 1445.4.8. An Abstract in an Abstracts Journal 1455.4.9. An Anonymous Article 1455.4.10. An Editorial 1465.4.11. A Letter to the Editor 1465.4.12. A Serialized Article 1465.4.13. A Special Issue 1475.5. Citing Nonperiodical Print Publications 1485.5.1. Introduction 1485.5.2. A Book by a Single Author 1485.5.3. An Anthology or a Compilation 1535.5.4. A Book by Two or More Authors 1545.5.5. A Book by a Corporate Author 1565.5.6. A Work in an Anthology 1575.5.7. An Article in a Reference Book 1605.5.8. An Introduction, a Preface, a Foreword, or an Afterword 1615.5.9. An Anonymous Book 1625.5.10. A Scholarly Edition 1625.5.11. A Translation 1645.5.12. An Illustrated Book or a Graphic Narrative 1655.5.13. A Book Published in a Second or Subsequent Edition 1675.5.14. A Multivolume Work 1685.5.15. A Book in a Series 1705.5.16. A Republished Book or Journal Issue 1715.5.17. A Publisher's Imprint 1735.5.18. A Book with Multiple Publishers 1735.5.19. A Brochure, Pamphlet, or Press Release 1745.5.20. A Government Publication 1745.5.21. The Published Proceedings of a Conference 1775.5.22. A Book in a Language Other Than English 1785.5.23. A Book Published before 1900 1785.5.24. A Book without Stated Publication Information or Pagination 1795.5.25. An Unpublished Dissertation 1805.5.26. A Published Dissertation 180

5.6. Citing Web Publications 1815.6.1. Introduction 1815.6.2. A Nonperiodical Publication 1845.6.3. A Scholarly Journal 1905.6.4. A Periodical Publication in an Online Database 1925.7. Citing Additional Common Sources 1935.7.1. A Television or Radio Broadcast 1935.7.2. A Sound Recording 1955.7.3. A Film or a Video Recording 1975.7.4. A Performance 1985.7.5. A Musical Score or Libretto 1995.7.6. A Work of Visual Art 2005.7.7. An Interview 2015.7.8. A Map or Chart 2025.7.9. A Cartoon or Comic Strip 2025.7.10. An Advertisement 2035.7.11. A Lecture, a Speech, an Address, or a Reading 2035.7.12. A Manuscript or Typescript 2035.7.13. A Letter, a Memo, or an E-Mail Message 2045.7.14. A Legal Source 2055.7.15. An Article in a Microform Collection of Articles 2065.7.16. An Article Reprinted in a Loose-Leaf Collection of Articles 2075.7.17. A Publication on CD-ROMor DVD-ROM 2075.7.18. A Digital File 2105.8. A Work in More Than One Publication Medium ·211CHAPTER 6: Documentation: Citing Sources in the Text 2136.1. Parenthetical Documentation and the List of Works Cited 2146.2. Information Required in Parenthetical Documentation 2146.3. Readability 2166.4. Sample References 2196.4.1. Citing an Entire Work, Including a Work with No Page Numbers 2196.4.2. Citing Part of a Work 2206.4.3. Citing Volume and Page Numbers of aMultivolume Work 222

6.4.4. Citing a Work Listed by Title 2236.4.5. Citing a Work by a Corporate Author 2246.4.6. Citing Two or More Works by the SameAuthor or Authors 2256.4.7. Citing Indirect Sources 2266.4.8. Citing Common Literature 2266.4.9. Citing More Than One Work in a SingleParenthetical Reference 2296.5. Using Notes with Parenthetical Documentation 2306.5.1. Content Notes 2306.5.2. Bibliographic Notes 231CHAPTER 7: Abbreviations 2337.1. Introduction 2347.2. Time Designations 2357.3. Geographic Names 2367.4. Common Scholarly Abbreviations and Reference Words "2407.5. Publishers' Names 2477.6. Symbols and Abbreviations Used in Proofreading and Correction 2497.6.1. Selected Proofreading Symbols 2497.6.2. Common Correction Symbols and Abbreviations 2507.7. Titles of Works 2507.7.1. Bible 2517.7.2. Works by Shakespeare 2537.7.3. Works by Chaucer 2547.7.4. Other Works 255APPENDIX A: Guides to \J\ Triting 257A.1. Introduction 258A.2. Dictionaries of Usage 258A.3. Guides to Nondiscriminatory Language 259A.4. Books on Style 260APPENDIX B: Specialized Style Manuals 261Index 265

Chapter one “Research and writing”, p: 1

This chapter deals with how start of working to research andwriting by giving advices which are: e Give yourself plenty oftime to think through and rethink your choice of a topic. Lookfor a subject or an issue that will continue to engage youthroughout research and writing. Consult library materials andother print and electronic information resources to refine thetopic and to see if sufficient work has been done on the subjectto make it a viable topic for the research paper. Beforesettling on a final topic, make sure you understand the amountand depth of research required and the type and length of paperexpected. If you encounter problems at any point in the project,do not hesitate to consult your instructor, whether to clarifythe assignment or to get help in choosing, developing, orresearching a topic or in preparing the paper. A campus writingcenter can be a useful resource.

Your school library is likely to be your most reliable guidewhen you conduct research. You should therefore become asfamiliar as possible with the library's electronic and printresources and its various services. Library resources include:electronic resources (e.g., online catalog of holdings,reference works, bibliographic and full-text databases) , booksand similar publications (e.g., pamphlets) , print periodicals(e.g., journals, newspapers, magazines) , additional sources(e.g., sound and video recordings) Library services may include,a media center, photocopying machines " access to computers useof software applications, printers, scanning devices, and otherhardware e interlibrary loans Useful Web sources are sitesrecommended by instructors and librarians gateway sites. Ifcompiled with care and attention, the working bibliography willbe invaluable to you throughout the preparation of your paper.It will, on the one hand, function as an efficient tool forfinding and acquiring information and ideas and, on the other,provide all the data you will need for your list of works cited.

Evaluate all sources you use for your research. Focus on theauthority, accuracy, and currency of the sources. Consider suchquestions as the following: Who is the author of the work, andwhat are the author's credentials for writing and publishingthis work? When judged against your previous reading and yourunderstanding of the subject, is the information furnished bythe author correct? Is the argument presented logically andwithout bias? Are the author's sources clearly and adequatelyindicated, so that they can be verified? Are the author'ssources current, or are they outdated? Who is the publisher, orwhat is the sponsoring organization, of the work? Is the workpeer-reviewed-that is, has it been read and recommended forpublication by experts?

Chapter two “plagiarism and academic integrity”, p: 51

It talks about plagiarism, You have plagiarized if you tooknotes that did not distinguish summary and paraphrase fromquotation and then you presented wording from the notes as if itwere all your own. While browsing the Web, you copied text andpasted it into your paper without quotation marks or withoutciting the source. You repeated or paraphrased someone's wordingwithout acknowledgment. You took someone's unique orparticularly apt phrase without acknowledgment. You paraphrasedsomeone's argument or presented someone's line of thoughtwithout acknowledgment. You bought or otherwise acquired aresearch paper and handed in part or all of it as your own.You can avoid plagiarism by making a list of the writers andviewpoints you discovered in your research and using this listto double-check the presentation of material in your paper.Keeping the following three categories distinct in your notes:your ideas, your summaries of others' material, and exactwording you copy. Identifying the sources of all material youborrow-exact wording, paraphrases, ideas, arguments, and facts,check with your instructor when you are uncertain about your useof sources.

Chapter three “the mechanics of writing”, p: 63

It includes information includes information on thefollowing topics: Spelling, Punctuation, Italics (Underlining),Names of Persons, Numbers, Titles, Quotations, Capitalizationand Personal Names in Languages Other than English. Spelling,including hyphenation, should be consistent throughout theresearch paper, Dividing words at the ends of lines areunnecessary in a research paper, and it has disadvantages. Theplurals of English words are generally formed by addition ofthen suffix -s or -es (laws, taxes), with several exceptions(e.g., children, halves, mice…). The primary purpose ofpunctuation is to ensure the clarity and readability of writing.Punctuation clarifies sentence structure, separating some wordsand grouping others. It adds meaning to written words and guidesthe understanding of readers as they move through sentences,such as Commas: joining independent clauses in a sentence,Semicolon: uses between independent clauses not linked by aconjunction and between items in a series when the items containcomma, Colon: used between two parts of a sentence when thefirst part creates a sense of anticipation about what follows inthe second…etc. Italics uses for emphasis are a device thatrapidly becomes ineffective. Names of persons are given in aninverted order. If you are writing about literature or anothersubject that involves infrequent use of numbers, you may spellout numbers written in one or two words and represent othernumbers by numerals (one, thirty six, ninety-nine, one hundred,fifteen hundred, two thousand, three million, but 2%, 101, 137,1,27{3). Whenever you cite the title of a published work in yourresearch paper, take the title from the title page, not from thecover or from a running head at the top of a page. Quotationsare effective in research papers when used selectively.Quote only words, phrases, lines, and passages that areparticularly interesting, vivid, unusual, or apt, and keep allquotations as brief as possible.

Chapter four “the format of the research paper”, p: 115

The preparation of papers and manuscripts in MLA style whichis covered in this chapter .General Guidelines: Type your paperon a computer and print it out on standard, white 8.5 x 11-inchpaper. Double-space the text of your paper, and use a legiblefont (e.g. Times New Roman). Whatever font you choose, MLArecommends that the regular and italics type styles contrastenough that they are recognizable one from another. The fontsize should be 12 pt. leave only one space after periods orother punctuation marks (unless otherwise instructed by yourinstructor). Set the margins of your document to 1 inch on allsides. Indent the first line of paragraphs one half-inch fromthe left margin. MLA recommends that you use the Tab key asopposed to pushing the Space Bar five times. Create a headerthat numbers all pages consecutively in the upper right-handcorner, one-half inch from the top and flush with the rightmargin. (Note: Your instructor may ask that you omit the numberon your first page. Always follow your instructor's guidelines.)Use italics throughout your essay for the titles of longer worksand, only when absolutely necessary, providing emphasis. If youhave any endnotes, include them on a separate page before yourWorks Cited page. Entitle the section Notes (centered,unformatted).

Formatting the First Page of Your Paper: Do not make a titlepage for your paper unless specifically requested. In the upperleft-hand corner of the first page, list your name, yourinstructor's name, the course, and the date. Again, be sure touse double-spaced text. Double space again and center the title.Do not underline, italicize, or place your title in quotationmarks; write the title in Title Case (standard capitalization),not in all capital letters. Use quotation marks and/or italicswhen referring to other works in your title, just as you would

in your text: Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas as Morality Play; HumanWeariness in "After Apple Picking" Double space between thetitle and the first line of the text. Create a header in theupper right-hand corner that includes your last name, followedby a space with a page number; number all pages consecutivelywith Arabic numerals (1, 2, 3, 4, etc.), one-half inch from thetop and flush with the right margin. (Note: Your instructor orother readers may ask that you omit last name/page number headeron your first page. Always follow instructor guidelines.)

Chapter Five “Documentation: Preparing the List of WorksCited”, P: 123

This chapter discusses how to prepare list of work cited,the Works Cited page at the end of your paper provides acomplete citation to every source mentioned in the text. Startwith a new page, continuing the page numbers of the text. Usedouble-spacing for the entire page. Center the title, Works Cited,one inch from the top. Begin your list of works cited on thenext line. Arrange the cited works in alphabetical order byauthor. For works that have no author, use the title. Start thefirst line of each citation flush with the left margin. Indentsubsequent lines of each citation one-half inch from the margin(hanging indent). For books: Book entries have 3 parts, and eachone ends with a period: Author’s name ,the title and subtitle ofthe books, which are italicized or underlined, Publishinginformation, which include place of publication, publisher, andyear. Use a short version of the publisher’s name. ForPERIODICALS: Entries for articles from periodical have 3 partsand each one ends with a period: Author’s name, Title of thearticle, which is enclosed in quotation marks, Title of theperiodical, which is italicized or underlined. The publicationinformation such as the volume number and the date ofpublication followed by a colon and a space, and the pagenumbers. Article in a monthly magazine: Abbreviate all monthsexcept may, June, and July. When a title ends with a quotation

mark or exclamation point it is not followed by a period. If anarticle is continued from its first page to a nonconsecutivepage, give only the first page followed, without a space, by a +sign. Articles in newspaper: The entry follows the format of anentry for a weekly magazine, with addition of the number orletter of the section in which the article is found. If anaddition is given on the news paper’s masthead, specify theedition, preceded by a comma, after the date. Review: List thereviewer’s name, followed by the abbreviation “Rev. of” = reviewof, and the title reviewed work. Separate the title from theauthor of the work with a comma and the word “by”. Work in anAnthology: Author, title, and (if relevant) translator of thepart of the book being cited. Begin the entry with the authorand title of the piece, normally enclosing the title inquotation marks.

Web site Provide the name of the person who created the website (if given and relevant). The title of the site (underlined)or a description such as “home page” if there is no title; thename of any organization or institution associated with thesite, the date of access Electronic address, or URL. Onlinereference database or scholarly project: The name of the editor(if given), Version number (if given), Data of electronicpublication or latest update, Name of sponsoring institution,Date of access, URL. Article in an online periodical: Give theauthor’s name, The title of the article (in quotation marks),The name of the periodical (underlined), The volume number,Issue number, or other identifying number (if avilabe), The dateof publication, The number range or total number of pages,paragraphs, or other sections, if they are numbered, The date ofaccess, URL.

CD-ROM or other portable database: Give the author’s name,Title of the work (underlined), Publication medium; place ofpublication, name of publisher, and date of publication.Interview published or broadcast. Begin with the name of the

person interviewed, followed by the title of the interview (ifit is untitled, use “Interview”) give the name of theinterviewer after the title of the interview.

Chapter Sex “Documentation: Citing Sources in the Text”,P: 213

This one is deals with the advices for citing the sourceswithin the texts because you must indicate to your readers notonly what works you used in writing the paper but also what youderived from each source and where in the work you found thematerial. The most practical way to supply this information isto insert a brief parenthetical acknowledgment in your paperwherever you incorporate another's words, facts, or ideas.Usually the author's last name and a page reference are enoughto identify the source and the specific location from which you

borrowed material. If the source has no more than 3 authors,name them all in the text or in parenthetical citation. If thesource has more than 3 authors, list them all or use the firstauthor’s name followed by “et al.”, which means “and theothers”. If the list of works cited includes more than one workby the name of the author, the source must be identified by boththe author’s name and a short version of the title. If youconsulted a Multivolume work in your research, the in-textcitation must include the volume number, followed by a colon, aswell as the page number. When you are quoting a literary workthat has been published in many editions, include informationthat will enable the reader to locate the passage in anyedition.

Chapter Seven “Abbreviations”, P: 233

This chapter explain the advantages of using ABBREVIATIONSwithin our research paper and how Abbreviations are usedregularly in the list of works cited and in tables but rarely inthe text of a research paper (except within parentheses). Ittells the steps in order keep the audience in mind. Whileeconomy of space is important, clarity is more so. Spell out aterm if the abbreviation may puzzle your readers. Whenabbreviating, always use accepted forms. In appropriatecontexts, you may abbreviate the names of days, months, andother measurements of time the names of states, provinces,countries, and continents, terms and reference words common inscholarship, publishers' names, and the titles of well-known andcommonly studied works. this chapter gives several list ofabbreviations which are lists of time designations, geographicnames, common scholarly abbreviations and reference words,publishers' names…etc. and also includes guidelines forabbreviating information in citation in a works cited pages.

Conclusion

My conclusion by reviewing this book is MLA Handbook forWriters of Research Papers; 7th edition is that: if you arereading a section in the MLA Handbook, you can go directly toany steps in the research project narratives that illustrate thetopic of that section. You might, for example, want to look athow several students approach the problem of defining a topic asyou read section 1.3, "Selecting a Topic." The sample papersdemonstrate how the various steps in researching and writingculminate in a complete document. Examine the sample papers toidentify strategies for organizing an argument and working withsources. The papers also serve as models for formatting the

margins, line spacing, and other physical attributes of aprinted paper.

The MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers will notonly teach you MLA style, it will also help you at all stages ofyour project. It will guide you through virtually any questionyou may have about writing a research paper, from formulating atopic to using abbreviations in the list of the works that youcite in the paper. If you are like most users of the MLAHandbook, you will return to it many times as you work on yourresearch papers. In the course of your research, you mayencounter unfamiliar sources that you want to cite, or you mayhave doubt about proper punctuation or abbreviations. Perhapsyou will want to learn how to cite texts in a language otherthan English, to document material you found on a Web site, orto quote from an e-mail message you received. The MLA Handbookis an easy-to-use reference tool for solving these problems.