Old: In the previous editions of the MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers, a URL must be included in the Works Cited entry for an online resource.
New: The 7th edition (latest) of the handbook recommends including a URL as supplementary information only when the reader probably cannot locate the source without it OR when your instructor requires it – check with your instructor for his/her preference.
As not all online resources provide all of the desired bibliographic information (author, date, page numbers, etc.), you will need to be flexible and use whatever information you are given.
1. Website – One Page or Section:
In Text Citation: Most websites will not have page numbers; you may omit the page number in your citation, if none are given in the original document. In this instance, using the author’s name or website in the text is preferable to using a parenthetical citation.
Works Cited: Author Last name, First name. “Document title if available.” Title of the overall Website, Version or edition if available. Publisher or N.p. to designate no publisher, publication date or n.d. to indicate that no date was given. Web. Date of access.
Examples:
| In Text Citation: | (Wong) |
| Works Cited: | Wong, Jessica. “Celebrating the Kid Inside.” CBC News. Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. 30 July 2004. Web. 20 Aug. 2008. |
| In Text Citation: | (“Works of Joyce Wieland”) |
| Works Cited: | “Works of Joyce Wieland.” Celebrating Women’s Achievements: Women Artists in Canada. National Library of Canada, 2000. Web. 29 Mar. 2009. |
Note: If your instructor requires you to include the URL, here is how: Place the URL after the date of access in angle brackets <urlhere>, followed by a period, as in the following example.
2. Entire Website:
Title of the overall Website, Version or edition if available. Publisher or N.p. to designate no publisher, publication date or n.d. if no date was given. Web. Date of access.
Example:
| In Text Citation: | (Canadian Museum of Civilization) |
| Works Cited: | Canadian Museum of Civilization. Canadian Museum of Civilization Corporation, 2007. Web. 19 June 2008. |
By Durham College