Parenthetical Documentation
The Modern Language Association (MLA) guidelines require that you cite the quotations, summaries,
paraphrases, and other materials used from sources within parentheses typically placed at the end of the
sentence in which the quoted or paraphrased material appears. However, there are many ways to document
the source you are citing. Let us assume that you are citing a source that has this works cited entry:
DeMerritt, Randall. The Age of Edison. Hearst Corporation: New York, 1995.
AND
you want to use the following quote: "It has been said by many that the invention of the light bulb was
this nation's first true technological downfall." There are several ways of including and documenting
correctly
1. "It has been said be many that the invention of the light bulb was this nation's first true technological
downfall" (DeMerritt 133).
* The author's last name and page number are needed in the parentheses to make a
parenthetical documentation correct. Also, the period comes after the citation.
2. As stated by Randall DeMerritt, "It has been said be many that the invention of the light bulb was this
nation's first true technological downfall" (DeMerritt 133).
*Because the author's name was already mentioned, the parenthetical documentation was only
missing one crucial element the page number.
3. On page 133 of the book The Age of Edison, Randall DeMerritt thought of the idea "that the invention of
the light bulb was the nation's first true technological downfall."
* No parenthetical documentation is needed because both the author's last name and the page
number are both used in the sentence. Because of the wordiness of this sentence, however, do not
use this style of documentation most of the time.
paraphrases, and other materials used from sources within parentheses typically placed at the end of the
sentence in which the quoted or paraphrased material appears. However, there are many ways to document
the source you are citing. Let us assume that you are citing a source that has this works cited entry:
DeMerritt, Randall. The Age of Edison. Hearst Corporation: New York, 1995.
AND
you want to use the following quote: "It has been said by many that the invention of the light bulb was
this nation's first true technological downfall." There are several ways of including and documenting
correctly
1. "It has been said be many that the invention of the light bulb was this nation's first true technological
downfall" (DeMerritt 133).
* The author's last name and page number are needed in the parentheses to make a
parenthetical documentation correct. Also, the period comes after the citation.
2. As stated by Randall DeMerritt, "It has been said be many that the invention of the light bulb was this
nation's first true technological downfall" (DeMerritt 133).
*Because the author's name was already mentioned, the parenthetical documentation was only
missing one crucial element the page number.
3. On page 133 of the book The Age of Edison, Randall DeMerritt thought of the idea "that the invention of
the light bulb was the nation's first true technological downfall."
* No parenthetical documentation is needed because both the author's last name and the page
number are both used in the sentence. Because of the wordiness of this sentence, however, do not
use this style of documentation most of the time.