South Alabama University MLA Documentation Exercise

Assignment: Create a works cited page (with title) using the following information. The list should be formatted and alphabetized correctly. Be sure to follow directions on the accompanying sheet to get spacing, indentation, etc. correct.

If it is not stated, you will need to determine what type of source the material is and create a citation following that format. Pay attention to the examples for each type of material offered on the accompanying sheet–often source information will provide more details than are required for MLA; you will then need to weed out the extraneous information.

• The Handbook for Academic Cheaters, a book by Toby Fulwiler and Alan Hyakawa. This book was published by Blair-Prentice Publishers, Boston, Massachusetts, in 1998.
• An interview that you conducted with John Laflin on March 17, 2001.
• This journal article found via the Ebsco Host database on today’s date. The article’s title is The Lethal Femme Fatale in the Noir Tradition. The author is Jack Boozer, and the article appeared in the Journal of Film and Video, Volume 51 (Fall 1999), on pages 20-35.
• An article entitled C is for Character, by John Leo, from the weekly magazine called U.S. News & World Report. The date of the issue was 11/29/99, and it appeared on pages 34-35.
• A journal article found on The Chronicle of Higher Education web site. The article is called Toward a Culture of Academic Integrity; it was written by Donald L. McCabe and Patrick Drinan. It originally appeared in volume 46 of The Chronicle of Higher Education on Oct 15, 1999, on page i8. But you got it online, yesterday, at the following URL: www.chronicle.com/mccabe393821.html

Worksheet on MLA parenthetical citations

Below is a fact that I decide I am going to use in my paper. All of the original bibliographic information is listed after the quote. Below this on the page there are four examples of either quotes or paraphrases of this source material. Each example is formatted differently. Which of them are correctly formatted, and which are not? For the examples that are improperly done, explain why and fix them.After you complete this, at the bottom of the sheet, write out the works cited entry, in correct MLA form, for this source.

The material I want to use, in my essay about steroids, is the following point:

“Reported cases of steroid use by athletes skyrocketed last year by an incredible sixty percent.”

This quote comes from page 33 of an article entitled Steroids in Sports. The article was written by Frank DeFord, and it appeared in the August 17, 2004 issue of Sports Illustrated magazine, on pages 32-35.

Four attempts to use the material and cite it properly. Which are incorrect? Why?

• Steroids continue to be a major problem. In fact, reported cases of steroid use by athletes skyrocketed last year by an amazing sixty percent (DeFord 33).
• Steroids continue to be a major problem. As sports journalist Frank DeFord has pointed out, “Reported cases of steroid use by athletes skyrocketed last year by an incredible sixty percent” (33).
• Steroids continue to be a major problem. In fact, “Reported cases of steroid use by athletes skyrocketed last year by an incredible sixty percent.” (33).
• Steroids continue to be a major problem, with reported cases of use by athletes rising sixty percent in the past year (DeFord 33).

Works Cited

MLA Documentation Exercise 2:

Instructions: Listed below are five sources for an imaginary essay on youth gang members, and a quote or fact from each source that will be used in the essay. You don’t need to write the essay at all; instead, you have two tasks. First, write the works cited list for this essay, correctly formatted in MLA style and in correct order, in the space provided on the second sheet. Then, look at the excerpt on page two, which quotes or refers to each of these five sources, and insert the correct parenthetical citation in the correct format for each. Here are your sources:

1) A book by Carlos Reyes called The Gang Life. It was published in New York by Basic Books in 1998.

You are going to use the following quote from Reyes:

The disturbing thing about gang culture is that it has moved beyond professional criminals and into the everyday lives of too many young people. There is an urgent need to educate youngsters about the dangers of associating with gangs.” The quote comes from page 266.

2) A book by William Bratton called Bad Boys: Gangs in the Modern American City. It was published in New York by Regan Books in 2005.

You are going to use the following item from Bratton:

“I would estimate that at least 30% of urban teenagers, and maybe as many as 50%, are themselves involved or know someone who is involved in some way with a gang.” The quote comes from page 147.

3) Robert Smith’s article entitled “The Sad Truth About Gangs” which originally appeared in the magazine Newsweek. The date of the magazine was August 24, 2004, and the article appeared on pages 24-29. You retrieved the article at the BCC library using the EBSCO database on April 10, 2006.

You are going to use the following quote from Smith:

“Increasing numbers of teenagers are associating with gangs, and this fact poses a grave threat to the young generation in the U.S. today.”

4) An article, with no author listed, called “The Growth of Gangs,” from the March 4, 2005 issue of Time magazine. The article was on pages 16-23. You didn’t need to use a database for this since you own the magazine.

You are going to use the following quote from the article:

“Gangs have already caused serious damage in the inner city, and now their influence has spread to suburban areas across the United States.” The quote comes from page 16.

5) A page entitled “Facts About Gang Members,” with no specific author listed, that you found on the American Criminology Association website. This page had a publication date of October 22, 2004. The address for the website is www.aca.org. You accessed this page on April 11, 2006.

You are going to use the following fact from this website:

“Gang membership has been linked to serious problems, including highly inflated imprisonment rates and life spans for gang members shortened to as little as half of the normal life expectancy.”

Essay excerpt

The recent congressional hearings over the spread of gang culture in the U.S. drew a great deal of attention, nationwide. While some felt the hearings painted an exaggerated picture of the influence of gangs on our young people, they did raise awareness of the fact that gangs are a serious concern in our society today. Former New York City Police Commissioner William Bratton recently suggested in his best-selling book, Bad Boys, that as many as 50% of today’s urban teenagers have some connection to gang culture, either directly, or indirectly through acquaintance with a gang member. () Although some might question Bratton’s estimate as too high, he is by no means the only one raising alarms about the spread of gangs. Even Time magazine has claimed, “Gangs have already caused serious damage in the inner city, and now their influence has spread to suburban areas across the United States” (). Even those not especially concerned about the suburbs should care about the larger social effects of the gang phenomenon. Researcher and leading expert on gangs Carlos Reyes has succinctly summarized the truly frightening side of the rise of gang culture: “The disturbing thing about gang culture is that it has moved beyond professional criminals and into the everyday lives of too many young people. There is an urgent need to educate youngsters about the dangers of associating with gangs” (). Now, more than ever, such education is vital, since the popularity of gang membership among young people “poses a grave threat to the young generation in the U.S. today” (). Aside from the behavioral problems such as violence, drug dealing, and intimidation that most people associate with gang activity, there are also potentially severe negative effects to the young gang member that many are unaware of; these potential negative effects, according to the American Criminology Association, include far higher rates of imprisonment and a dramatically shorter life span for gang members. ( ) Clearly, it is time to take notice, as a society, of the dangers of gangs, before they become even more integrated into our culture.

Works Cited

MLA Documentation Exercise 2:Instructions: Listed below are five sources for an imaginary essay on youth gang members, and a
quote or fact from each source that will be used in the essay. You don’t need to write the essay at
all; instead, you have two tasks. First, write the works cited list for this essay, correctly formatted
in MLA style and in correct order, in the space provided on the second sheet. Then, look at the
excerpt on page two, which quotes or refers to each of these five sources, and insert the correct
parenthetical citation in the correct format for each. Here are your sources:
1) A book by Carlos Reyes called The Gang Life. It was published in New York by Basic
Books in 1998.
You are going to use the following quote from Reyes:
The disturbing thing about gang culture is that it has moved beyond professional criminals and
into the everyday lives of too many young people. There is an urgent need to educate youngsters
about the dangers of associating with gangs.” The quote comes from page 266.
2) A book by William Bratton called Bad Boys: Gangs in the Modern American City. It
was published in New York by Regan Books in 2005.
You are going to use the following item from Bratton:
“I would estimate that at least 30% of urban teenagers, and maybe as many as 50%, are
themselves involved or know someone who is involved in some way with a gang.” The quote
comes from page 147.
3) Robert Smith’s article entitled “The Sad Truth About Gangs” which originally
appeared in the magazine Newsweek. The date of the magazine was August 24, 2004, and
the article appeared on pages 24-29. You retrieved the article at the BCC library using
the EBSCO database on April 10, 2006.
You are going to use the following quote from Smith:
“Increasing numbers of teenagers are associating with gangs, and this fact poses a grave threat to
the young generation in the U.S. today.”
4) An article, with no author listed, called “The Growth of Gangs,” from the March 4,
2005 issue of Time magazine. The article was on pages 16-23. You didn’t need to use a
database for this since you own the magazine.
You are going to use the following quote from the article:
“Gangs have already caused serious damage in the inner city, and now their influence has spread
to suburban areas across the United States.” The quote comes from page 16.
5) A page entitled “Facts About Gang Members,” with no specific author listed, that you found
on the American Criminology Association website. This page had a publication date of October
22, 2004. The address for the website is www.aca.org. You accessed this page on April 11, 2006.
You are going to use the following fact from this website:
“Gang membership has been linked to serious problems, including highly inflated imprisonment
rates and life spans for gang members shortened to as little as half of the normal life expectancy.”