How do I cite the Homeric hymns?

The Homeric hymns refer to poems that were once attributed, mistakenly, to the ancient Greek poet Homer. They are Homeric only in the sense that… Read More

If I cite a poem posted to a blog by someone who is not the poem’s author, do I need to write “posted by” and the blogger’s name in the “Other contributors” slot?

It depends on whether the person posting the poem is responsible for the blog as a whole.  If the blogger is responsible for the entire… Read More

How do I cite more than one sonnet from a sequence of sonnets?

As always, when you are citing a work contained in a larger work, you must identify the particular work you are citing. Thus, if you… Read More

Can I create a works-cited-list entry for an essay, poem, or story in a collection by one author?

If you are citing more than one essay, poem, or story by the same author and using a single collection of that author’s works—edited or… Read More

How do I cite two versions of a poem from the same anthology?

As explained in a previous post, to distinguish between works with the same author and title, you need to include additional information in your parenthetical… Read More

If I am citing a song whose lyrics are derived from a poem, do I need to credit the poem in my citation?

No, but you could indicate in a note that the song was originally a poem. … Read More

How do I cite a poem by line numbers if the numbering of the lines begins again at each section?

Provide the section number as well as the line number:  As Wordsworth writes in his series of sonnets The River Duddon, “Child of the clouds!… Read More

If an untitled poem is known by its first line, how do I style that line in my works-cited-list entry?

The MLA Handbook explains that when you refer to an untitled poem known by its first line, you should style the line the way it is shown in… Read More

How do I cite from a play that has both verse and prose sections?

Citing from a play that has both verse and prose sections—whether the play is William Shakespeare’s Macbeth or August Wilson’s Fences—is no different from citing… Read More

If I am quoting the first few words of one line of poetry and the last few words of the next line of poetry, should I use two sets of ellipses with a slash between them?

Yes. Clarity is worth the trouble of more punctuation. Let’s say you quote the following two lines of poetry: He had forty-two boxes, all carefully packed,… Read More