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MLA Style Guide, 8th Edition


Optional Elements (Works Cited)

Optional elements may be included if they are relevant to the source and/or your use of the source. Some optional elements are placed at the end of the Works Cited entry, while others are placed near a relevant core element. Please consult pages 50-53 of the MLA Handbook, Eighth Edition. 

Optional elements include:

  • Date of Original Publication
  • City of Publication
  • Total Number of Volumes:
    • 8 vols.
  • Series Name and Number:
    • Not italicized or in quotations.
    • Example: A Song of Ice and Fire 3.
  • Unexpected Type of Work:
    • Transcript. 
    • Address.
  • Information about a Prior Publication:
    • Originally published in Harper's Magazine, Jan. 2007, pp. 2-10.
  • Including the Number and Session of Congress for bills, reports, or resolutions from the United States Congress:
    • 107th Congress, 2nd Session, House Report 203.
  • Date of Access: 
    • Accessed 28 June 2016.