General Guidelines for Mechanics in Written Work
I’m offering here a few formal guidelines for your written work, addressing especially those mistakes that students tend to make most often. These guidelines are, by no means, exhaustive; you should consult a recent edition of the MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers (Joseph Gibaldi, ed.) for any issues not covered in this handout. Following these general guidelines in all of your English classes—unless you are instructed otherwise—will help you to turn in professional and, therefore, more persuasive written work.
General
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All typed papers should be double-spaced throughout. There are no exceptions to this rule. This rule applies to headings, block quotes, bibliographies, etc. Do not type more than one return at any time. Simply set the double spacing command before you even type your name, and don’t change it for any reason.
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Use a 12 size, Times New Roman font.
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Each page should be paginated in the upper right hand corner. Pagination usually consists of the writer’s name and the page numbers: (Smith 1).
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Do not print on two sides of the paper.
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Staple all of your work.
Headings
Your heading should consist of four lines in the upper left-hand corner of your paper. The four lines begin, from top to bottom, with your name, your instructor’s name, the class name and number, and the date.
Titles
Papers should have a title that indicates what the paper is about. Do not underline titles or use the boldface function when typing them.
Paragraphs
Each paragraph should begin one tab over from the left margin. This tab is usually equal to 5 spaces.
Quotations
The primary purpose of a quotation is to provide evidence for your claims. A reader may be skeptical about the validity of a particular assertion, and so you must be able to offer proof that what you are saying has precedent, support, or a basis in fact.
Another purpose of the quotation is to provide specific details that help the reader to follow your argument. For instance, if one were simply to say, “When Hamlet discusses suicide,” it would not be clear to the reader which passage in the play you were describing since he discusses suicide more than once. A quotation makes this clear and keeps you and the reader on the same page.
All quotations should be followed by parenthetical documentation that tells the readers where they can find what you’ve just quoted. Usually, if you are quoting from a novel, say, or a newspaper, parenthetical documentation would consist of the author’s last name and a page number (no comma in between). When quoting poetry, songs, etc., parenthetical documentation consists of line numbers. When quoting drama, it consists of act number, scene number, and line numbers (ex., 1.3.35-46 [note that there are no spaces between the periods and the next number]).
The parentheses should be preceded by the end quotation marks and followed by a period.
- For example:
- In Hamlet, the title character ponders the value of his existence: “To be or not to be, that is the question” (3.1.55).
Notice that the quotation is connected to the writer’s sentence. This is most important. Never allow a quotation to stand by itself. It should always be connected to your own prose somehow, either by a comma (if the quote follows the grammatical structure of the sentence) or a colon (if the sentence “sets up” the quote as above). The reason for connecting quotation and sentence is that the writer must avoid allowing the quoted voice to compete with his/her own voice. Remember that a quotation is used to back up what you say, not vice versa. Never subordinate your voice to someone else’s. This means that quotes should never take up more space than your own words. Nor should they be offered without authorial commentary. A reader can interpret quoted material in an infinite variety of ways; make sure that you make it clear how you want the reader to interpret the quotes you provide.
Block quotes (quotes over four lines) should be indented 10 spaces from the left margin.
Typing Ellipses
When you use an ellipsis, a series of marks intended to indicate an omission, follow these general rules:
- If the omitted material comes from the middle of a sentence or line, use three periods with one space before and after each one:
- For example:
- “The man loved . . . to run” (Semenza 32).
- If the omission consists of an entire sentence, punctuate the sentence preceding the ellipsis:
- For example:
- “Presidential control reached its zenith under Jackson. . . . He offered little access to curious journalists” (Gibaldi 88).
- For other cases, see MLA.
Typing Dashes
A dash marks a sharper break in the continuity of a sentence than a comma. Dashes are useful forms of punctuation but should be used sparingly or they will lose their effectiveness. A dash is indicated by typing two hyphens with no space before, between, or after:
i.e., “Shakespeare’s four great tragedies--Hamlet, Lear, Othello, and Macbeth--have received the most attention from critics” (Dough 3). Do not use dashes to set off two independent clauses.
Titles of Plays, Songs, Films, etc.
MLA guidelines are thorough on this issue, and should be consulted, but a good general rule to remember is that the “whole” is to be underlined or italicized (underline and italics are the same thing), and the “part” is to be placed in quotes.
- For example, whereas an album or CD gets underlined or italicized, the songs on the album get put in quotes:
- My favorite song on Born to Run is “The Jungle.”
- Whereas books of poetry get underlined or italicized, each poem is put in quotes:
- My favorite poem in Transformations is “Briar Rose.”
- Whereas titles of novels get underlined or italicized, chapter titles get put into quotes, etc.
- Note: the titles of dramatic works are to be underlined or italicized.
Brief Primer on Comma Usage
Though the rules governing comma usage are highly complex and require a complete study, I’ve provided here three rules that cover the basics. MEMORIZE them.
- 1. Place a comma before a conjunction in a series of three or more items.
- The flag is red, white, and blue.
- Do not place a comma before a conjunction in a series of fewer than three items.
- The flag is red and white.
- 2. Place a comma before a conjunction that separates two independent clauses (two complete sentences).
- The cat caught the mouse in its teeth, and it began to chew.
- Do not place a comma before a conjunction that separates one independent and one dependent clause.
- The cat caught the mouse in its teeth and began to chew.
- 3. Enclose parenthetic expressions (expressions that are not vital to meaning of sentence) between commas.
- The best way to see a country, unless you are pressed for time, is to travel on foot.
