The MLA provides for every aspect of the paper and includes in this chapter tips on exactly what a research paper is, how to take adequate notes and how to begin a first draft. It also provides sections on how to assess the accuracy and reliability of secondary sources, as well as an overview of how to use a library for research. Perhaps the most helpful section is the overview of thesis statements. The thesis statement should tell your reader exactly what you are arguing in your paper and is the most important part of any research paper.
Chapter 2 covers plagiarism and ethics. It defines plagiarism, as well as provides guidelines for areas such as when more than one person works on a research paper and how to avoid copyright infringement. Chapter 2 is very useful in understanding ethics in the humanities, as it explains plagiarism in ways that are often new. For example, although most students understand copying someone's else's work and presenting it as their own is plagiarism, most are unaware that reusing a paper they had written for another class is also plagiarism, unless the instructor has given his or her permission.
This chapter covers every mechanical aspect of writing, from spelling and punctuation to how to format titles within the paper. It explains minor aspects of mechanics, such as when to use a semicolon and when to use a comma, how to correctly pluralize words and how to refer to proper names within the paper, as well as how to format titles and the proper way to quote different types of writing -- poetry, prose, drama and so on. For example, although the MLA used to require that titles of works such as books and plays be underlined, it now recommends they be put in italics.
This section covers how to format the paper using the most common computer word processing programs. Many instructors have specific recommendations -- for example, using only 12-point Times New Roman font -- that follow the MLA writing style. It also tells you how to head the paper -- papers written in MLA style do not use title pages -- with your name, the name of the instructor, the name of the class and the date. It goes on to cover the formatting of page numbers and the inclusion of images, as well what type of paper to use.
This is the section with which most students are familiar; it covers how to format references to almost every imaginable type of source. Some changes to the formatting include providing only the name of the website used when using an electronic resource, instead of the entire URL, and including at the end of every entry on the works cited page what type of medium is being used; i.e., "Print" or "Web." This section includes examples of each type of possible entry.
This chapter is used in connection with the previous chapter. MLA writing style insists that any reference to an outside source be documented within the paper, as well as at the end of the paper on the works cited list. A reference to an outside source can include a direct quotation, a paraphrase or a summary. Any one of these requires in-text documentation. This is most often done by putting the last name of the author of the source and the page number to which you are referring in parentheses at the end of the sentence in which you make the reference. This is called a parenthetical reference and looks like this: (Jones 47). This chapter tells you how to integrate these references into your paper and when and where they should be placed. Like the preceding chapter, it provides examples of each possible type of reference.