Writing Style

MLA Style

MLA Style is an academic documentation system used heavily in literature, humanities, close reading, textual analysis, and classroom writing.

What to Watch

  • Introduce quoted evidence instead of dropping it into the paragraph alone.
  • Explain how the quotation supports the claim.
  • Use parenthetical citations and a Works Cited list.
  • Treat the text itself as primary evidence.
  • Keep the writer’s argument in control of the sources.

Practice

Choose a paragraph from a public-domain story and write a five-sentence close reading that uses one short quotation.

Use It Today

  1. Make a claim about the text.
  2. Introduce the evidence.
  3. Quote only what you need.
  4. Explain the quotation in your own words.
  5. List the work in Works Cited.

On the Page

A close reading should not end with a quotation; it should explain how the writer’s language supports the point you are making.