Question

I am writing an essay and I have to cite my sources but I don't know how. Can anyone help?

Answer 1

You need to have the each source <b>cited in TWO places</b>:

1. the <b>Works Cited page</b> that is placed after the last page of your paper, and
2. <b>in parentheses in the text</b> of your paper, immediately after the quotation or paraphrase.

For example, if you need to cite a website, this will go on the Works Cited page with proper indentation for the second and following lines:

Du Bois, W.E.B. <i>The Souls of Black Folk</i>. Chicago, 1903. <i>Project Bartleby</i>. Ed. Steven van Leeuwen. Dec. 1995. Columbia U. 2 Dec. 2003
<www.cc.columbia.edu/acis/bartleby/dubois/>.

... and this will go immediately after the quotation or whatever:
(Du Bois)

The information in parentheses in the text needs to be as brief as possible. That's why there's a Works Cited page – for all the details of the listing.

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Here's a good place for information on citing in MLA format:
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Hold your cursor over the words <b>CITING SOURCES</b> in the left column and then click on <b>Electronic Sources/Internet</b>. Many examples will show up. You will get two examples for each type of reference – one for the Works Cited page and one for the parenthetical (in-text) citation.

You can also see what a Works Cited page looks like – click on <b>Sample Works Cited</b> in the left column.

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If you need to cite in APA or another format, go here:

http://nutsandbolts.washcoll.edu/
In the column at the left, scroll down until you see the different topics on evidence and the different styles (MLA, APA, Chicago, etc.).

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This will help you with APA bibliographies.

http://wwwold.ccc.commnet.edu/apa/
Also for APA.

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And here’s an excellent site to give you guidance on how to use quotations well in your papers, long or short: http://www.unc.edu/depts/wcweb/handouts/quotations.html

Answer 2

These are also helpful:

http://www.lib.ncsu.edu/lobo2/citationbuilder/citationbuilder.php

http://citationmachine.net/