However, there are three rules in MLA citation:. Then, include the title of the poem in quotation marks with a period at the end. In, Example: Robert Frost, "The Road Not Taken," in, Example with editors: Robert Frost, "The Road Not Taken," in. Women's Studies Database Reading Room at the University of Maryland, n.d. http://www.mith2.umd.edu/WomensStudies/ReadingRoom/Poetry/Dickinson/i-heard-a-fly-buzz (accessed April 21, 2011). ", Edited anthology example: Elliot, T. S. "The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock.". We use cookies to make wikiHow great. Web. New York: Vintage Classics, 1990. If you need to cite specific lines of a poem, talk to your instructor about their preferred format. Cite a long poem as you would a novel. n.d. M. L. Rosenthal. Some longer poems are published as a single volume. Include the publisher, year and location of publication if you are citing a print poem and the URL and date of retrieval if you are citing a website. Copyright 2020 Leaf Group Ltd. / Leaf Group Education, How to Cite the Line Numbers of a Poem in an Essay, Daily Writing Tips: Rules for Capitalization in Titles, Purdue Online Writing Lab: MLA Works Cited Page: Books, Purdue Online Writing Lab: MLA Works Cited Page: Electronic Sources. Whether you are writing an essay about a poet or simply quoting a poem or referring to its themes, you may find yourself needing to reference the poem's title. Rosenthal (Ed. In Women's Studies Database Reading Room at the University of Maryland (ed. When quoting a poem, the poet’s last name must be clearly stated so that the reader can locate the source in the Works Cited list. Cite the poem in your bibliography according to the format you are using in the rest of the essay. This article was co-authored by our trained team of editors and researchers who validated it for accuracy and comprehensiveness. Print example: Elliot, T. S. "The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock.". For MLA format, include the author's last and first name, the title of the poem in quotation marks, the italicized title of the poem's anthology, the page number of the poem and the anthology's editor, date and place of publication and publisher. Cite an online poem like this: Dickinson, Emily. The Aeneid. wikiHow's Content Management Team carefully monitors the work from our editorial staff to ensure that each article is backed by trusted research and meets our high quality standards. Women's Studies Database Reading Room at the University of Maryland. Examples: “A Book”, “Fire and Ice”, or “Nothing Gold can’t Stay” Long poem titles should be … Her educational research was featured at the Maryland State Department of Education Professional Schools Development Conference in 2008. "The Road Not Taken." To the state of love, or the senses festival. Other poems tend to be published in anthologies or collections of works. 21 April 2011. Ed. Selected Poems: Fourth Edition. If you are citing specific lines, include those after the page number: (Frost 16, lines 23-26). If there is no date of publication (such as with poems published online), use the abbreviation "n.d." For example: Herrick, R. (n.d.). Retrieved April 21, 2011 from http://www.mith2.umd.edu/WomensStudies/ReadingRoom/Poetry/Dickinson/i-heard-a-fly-buzz. If there was no publication date, use the abbreviation "n.d." as you did in the reference list entry. "Poem Title." Dickinson, Emily, "I Heard A Fly Buzz," Women's Studies Database Reading Room at the University of Maryland, n.d., http://www.mith2.umd.edu/WomensStudies/ReadingRoom/Poetry/Dickinson/i-heard-a-fly-buzz (accessed April 21, 2011). References. The format you'll use varies depending on where the poem was published and what citation style you're using. For MLA format, write the poet's last name and the page number from which you drew the specific portion of the poem you are citing. Dante, "The Divine Comedy: Purgatorio," trans. Put quotation marks around the poem's title unless it is a novel-length epic poem, such as "Paradise Lost" or "The Divine Comedy."