WRW - What about the Works Cited? Lesson
What about the Works Cited?
Remember that the Works Cited lists all of the sources used in an essay. Just like setting up an essay in MLA format, the Works Cited also has a certain way for set-up.
The Works Cited is an alphabetized list of all sources in MLA format used in the essay, completed after the writer finds all sources. An Annotated Bibliography (slightly different from a Works Cited) will be your final project for this module. View the links in the sidebar to see examples of completed Works Cited.
The Works Cited page will include Works Cited entries of all the sources from the essay. The Works Cited entry is all of the publishing information of a certain source that is set up in a certain format. There are many ways to format sources in MLA format, and each source has a certain formula. For example, the entry for a novel looks different from the entry for an article in a magazine. Look through the resources in the sidebar to see the different formulas that correspond to the different sources.
Works Cited vs. Bibliography
Again, the Works Cited is different than a Bibliography. The Works Cited is a list of all of the sources used in an essay, and the Bibliography is all of the sources that have been read when preparing an essay. Both a Works Cited and Bibliography must be created using MLA format.
We know that a Bibliography is a list of sources that we have read, and the word "annotate" just means to explain or provide comments. So, an Annotated Bibliography is a list of sources (in the proper Works Cited entry form) that have been found that support the thesis statement. Then, beneath the Works Cited entry for that source, write a paragraph summarizing the source and how the information helps to support the thesis.
If an essay was about Romeo and Juliet as reckless teens, a writer might find an article that discusses how teenagers are irresponsible. Look at the example of one annotation below.
What are in-text citations?
In previous lessons, you saw information in parenthesis that followed the proof in the paragraph about Romeo and Juliet. The information in parentheses that follows the proof is called an in-text citation.
The in-text citations are a small amount of information that refer the reader to the Works Cited page where a reader can find all of the information about a particular source. The Works Cited entries can be lengthy because they include so much information about the source.
Therefore, in-text citations provide a short reference for the reader to then turn to the Works Cited page and find the more detailed information.
For example, if an essay uses proof from the novel The Great Gatsby to support the essay's thesis statement, the writer must cite the source. Citing a source means to reveal where the information comes from because writers must give credit to any author they borrow proof from.
The Works Cited entry for the novel looks like this:
However, putting all of this information into the body paragraph of an essay can distract the reader. So, in-text citations shorten the Works Cited entries by just using the author and the page number of the proof in the body paragraphs of an essay. Notice that the punctuation comes after the closed parenthesis. The in-text citation for The Great Gatsby would be:
The information comes from the author with the last name of Fitzgerald and appears on page 3 of the novel. Then, the reader can find "Fitzgerald" on the Works Cited page of the essay and see all publication information about that particular source.
The way the in-text citation looks depends on the type of source. Web source citations look different from magazine article citations or novel citations. View the links in the sidebar to see how various sources are cited within the text.
Works Cited Interactivity
Practice your knowledge of MLA format and the Works Cited page with the interactivity below.
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