HOW TO CITE POETRY IN AN ESSAY IN 2021

Citing Poetry Rules: Table of Content

There is no doubt that you have faced with the poem quotation while writing different academic and non-academic papers. It is an essential part of the qualitative piece as it proves the credibility of source and originality of paper. To some extend quoting poetry differs from the citing the prose. The verses are a special genre of literature that requires structural and stylistic specificity. Nevertheless, we want to show you the key steps and strategies that will help you realize crucial moments of this process. How to cite poetry in the essay? That question will be simple for you.

Hold breath as we intend to show you how to cite poem. We aimed to make this process easier for you.

How to quote long and short poetry in the essay?

Introduce the quote

Do not forget to make a brief epigraph for the quotation as it will introduce the reader its author and essence. It can be convoluted if you just post a quote without any additional information. Such thing can discourage target audience and make them annoying.

We highly recommend you to start with the phrase: “Shakespeare wrote….” This intro will clear up the reader whom that quotation belongs.

Add slashes for short quotes

When you use three lines verse, it is considered as short. You have to mark it that is why use slashes or semicolon. Do not forget to format it well; you have to add spaces around the slash. Learn more how to act with the more than three lines poem.

There are moments when you can write the quotation in line. It makes the structure clearer.

Intend long quotes

When you work with the wordage poem, you have to set off from the left the several quotes that are important for your analysis. After you present the intro, you have to make the logical bridge to the next portion of quotation. Do not forget to structure it well as this aspect influence the quality and scores. Another key thing to know is that you don’t need to use quotation marks with the block quotes. But still how to cite poetry in the essay?

Mention the spacing

Different formats are used for writing academic and non-academic papers. We highly recommend you to use MLA as it is suitable for most of the themes and types. When you use Modern Language Association style, you have to keep the double spacing through the whole paper. At the first glimpse, it looks not well as there is too much space between the line. Do not worry about it as the quality of the paper is far more important than the outlook.

Mark the blanks

It is a common case to remove some words when you are citing the poem. It helps you make the sentence shorter and convey its main idea. We intend to tell you how to show such things within the text. The rule is simple-use three dots in a row. Thanks to such trick the readers will realize that you haven’t use the completed quotation.

Add the quote to your argument

When you write the analysis, you have to present the quotation of the author and essence of the certain lines that are important in your writing. We invoke you not to complicate the structure and avoid the additional ellipses or quotation marks. It is better to convey the main idea and summarize the crucial aspects. It will make the structure logical and attract more readers, and you will not ask how to cite poetry in the essay.

How to make MLA citation

Use parentheses for citation

When you present the quotation or borrowed information your task is to make the in-text citation. Perhaps you will ask: “Why?” The reason and answer are simple; you have to show the reader the source and prove that your paper is unique. There are moments when students are confused about this aspect of quotation. Be ready to clarify everything. There is no difference whether you paste the direct quotation or rephrase it. In both cases, you need to make an in-text citation.

In connection with the fact that you may have a long and short quotation, the citation should close them; it means that it should go at the end of the sentence. If you present the quotation with several lines, we highly recommend you to put the citation at the end. Hope everything is clear and how to cite poetry in the essay as well.

The author’s name in citation

This is a high time to speak about the author’s name in the citation. On the one hand, you have to include it when you cite the poem and submit the lines without the introductory phrase “… tells”. It is a crucial thing as the name tells the reader who is the original creator of the poem. It helps avoid the convoluted situation.

On the other hand, there is no need to indicate the author name in the citation if you noted it in the introduction. You do not need to emphasis the name twice. In such case, you have to name the poem and page number.

Line numbers

It is a high time to speak about the second part of the citation and title the poem. According to the common formatting rules, you have to identify the line that you have used for the essay. Sometimes, students cheat audience and write the numbers randomly. Do not follow this bad example. While searching the sources and using them, you have to make a note and remember which of the part of wordage poem you have used. Some readers want to re-read the source and compare the plot with your interpretation.

How to make the end reference with the help of MLA

The final references are one of the most complicated procedure as you have to know the main rules and follow them. Nowadays, you can use different services that can do this work instead of you. Your task is just to submit the required data of the author and source. Of course, it sounds very sweet and positive, but we invoke you to learn how to do it without the side help. When you make a reference list, you have to put the author last name beforehand and then follow it by the first and middle. For instance, Byron, George Gordon, Lord. You have to know the year the poem was published.

If the author’s name is anonymous, start the reference with the poem title and date of publication.

Identify where you found the poem

After you write the name, title, and year, you have to show where you have found the poem and wrote the publisher. It could be a book or network.

Now you are armed with the integral knowledge about how to cite poetry in the essay. Do not hesitate and show your skills.

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