Is it ever appropriate to use see or see also in a parenthetical citation?

The purpose of every parenthetical citation is to tell the reader to see a work, so the word see would almost always be redundant. See… Read More

The rules for positioning a parenthetical citation next to a final period seem different with run-in quotations and block quotations. What is the logic here?

Run-in quotations and block quotations follow the same logic, although the differences in their formats call for differences in punctuation. First, let’s look at a… Read More

Why does the MLA require the use of Times New Roman? It’s a boring font.

We don’t require the use of Times New Roman or any other font. Our guidelines on formatting papers give this recommendation: “choose an easily readable… Read More

If my paper has only one source or only one endnote, should the heading still be plural—Works Cited or Notes?

No. The heading should be changed to the singular so that it matches the relevant material: Work Cited or Note. Read More

The eighth edition of the MLA Handbook doesn’t explain how to format the research paper itself. Is this topic covered anywhere?

The topic is covered here at The MLA Style Center. The guidelines are the same as they were in the seventh edition. Read More