Poetry, 1-3 Lines Long

Easy MLA Citation

STEPS:

Introduce the quotation in your paragraph.
When you are going to start the quotation, insert a double quotation mark (").
Copy the quotation exactly as it appears in the text. Insert a SLASH (/) at any line break that occurs in the original text.
When you get to the end of the quotation, insert a double quotation mark (").
At the end of the sentence, include the information about where the quotation occurred in the text. Here's the formula for that:

Open parentheses + author's last name + line number(s) + Close parentheses

Example: (Eliot 22-23) = Eliot's poem, lines 22-23

6. Place a period at the END of the sentence AND/OR after the close parentheses.

See below for a few examples!

Before World War I, war was often glorified. Modernist poets question whether any true glory can come from warfare. For example, in his poem “Grass” Carl Sandburg depicts the destruction of war from the perspective of grass. “Pile the bodies high at Austerlitz and Waterloo/Shovel them under and let me work/I am the grass; I cover all” (Sandburg 1-3). By analyzing war from this gross and diminished point of view, Sandburg removes any glory given to the act of war or battle.

Edgar Allen Poe’s poem “To Helen” idealizes of perfect beauty, alluding to the face that launched a thousand ships. “How statuelike I see thee stand/ The agate lamp within thy hand!” (17-18). Within these short lines, Poe remarks on Helen’s apparent “statuelike” appearance, ultimately idolizing beauty over intellect.

Don't forget to complete the WORKS CITED at the end of your paper!