How to Quote Movie Lines in an Essay

Download Article

Download Article

MLA (Modern Language Association) format is a popular citation style for papers and essays. You may be unsure how to quote and cite play using MLA format in your essay for a class. Start by following the correct formatting for a quote from one speaker or from multiple speakers in the play. Then, use the correct citation style for a prose play or a verse play.

1. 1

   Include the author and title of the play. Before you launch into the dialogue from a character, name the author and the title of the play first. Include the author and title before the character's dialogue as a way of introducing the play to your reader.

   • For example, if you were quoting a character from the play Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?, you would write, In Edward Albee's Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?, the character Honey says...

2. 2

   Name the speaker of the quote. Whenever you quote from the play, make sure you note who said it in the play. Write the name of the speaker, followed by a present tense verb like "says," "states," "argues," "notes," or "claims." Use a comma between the verb and the quote.

   • For example, if you are quoting the character George from the play Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? by Edward Albee, you would write, "George says,…" or "George states,…".

   Advertisement

3. 3

   Put the quote in quotation marks. Put quotation marks around the dialogue. This will let your reader know it is a quote from a text.^[1]

   • For example, if you are quoting from Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?, you would write: Martha notes, "Truth or illusion, George; you don't know the difference."

4. 4

   Put slashes between verse lines. If you are quoting a play that is written in verse, use slashes to distinguish each line break. Put a space after each slash.^[2]

   • For example, if you were quoting from Shakespeare's Measure for Measure, you would write: Claudio states "the miserable have no other medicine / But only hope."

   Advertisement

1. 1

   Put a blank space between the body of your paper and the first line. Separate the body of your paper and the quote with one blank line. This will let the reader know you are quoting from the play.^[3]

   • You do not need to use quotation marks when you are quoting dialogue by multiple speakers from a play. The blank space will act as a marker, rather than quotation marks.

2. 2

   Indent the speaker names 1 inch (2.54 cm) from the left margin. Write the name of the speakers in all capitals, followed by a period. For example:^[4]

   • MARTHA. Truth or illusion, George; you don't know the difference.
   • GEORGE. No, but we must carry on as though we did.
   • MARTHA. Amen.

3. 3

   Indent the dialogue ¼ inch (0.63cm) from the left margin. If the character's dialogue runs past one line, make sure you indent each line ¼ inch from the left margin.

   • Verse dialogue is indented 1 ¼ inch (3.17cm) from the left margin.

4. 4

   Include the stage directions. If there are stage directions in the dialogue, put them in as part of the quote. Use parentheses to notate the stage directions. Copy the punctuation as noted in the play. For example:

   • RUTH. Eat your eggs, Walter.
   • WALTER. (Slams the table and jumps up) --DAMN MY EGGS--DAMN ALL THE EGGS THAT EVER WAS!
   • RUTH. Then go to work.
   • WALTER. (Looking up at her) See--I'm trying to talk to you 'bout myself--(Shaking his head with the repetition)--and all you can say is eat them eggs and go to work.

   Advertisement

1. 1

   Put the citation in the text using parentheses. MLA formatting requires you to use in-text citations for prose plays. Place the citation at the end of the quoted text in parentheses.^[5]

   • If you are quoting dialogue from one speaker, place the citation at the end of the quoted dialogue, in the text.
   • If you are quoting dialogue from multiple speakers, place the citation at the end of the block quote.

2. 2

   Cite the author's name. Note the author's full last name first in the citation.^[6]

   • For example, you may write: "(Albee…)" or "(Hansberry…)"

3. 3

   Note the title of the play. After the author's last name, put in a comma. Then, write the title of the play you are quoting in italics.

   • For example, you may write, "(Albee, Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?...)."
   • If you have mentioned the title of the play once already in an earlier citation in your essay, you do not need to mention it again in the citations for the play moving forward.

4. 4

   Include the page number and the act number. Note where you found the quotation in the play. Write the page number after the author's name, followed by a semicolon. Then, write the act number.

   • For example, you may write, "(Albee 10; act 1).
   • If you are including the title of the play, you may write: "(Albee, Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? 10; act 1)."

   Advertisement

1. 1

   Place the citation in-text. MLA format requires you to put citations for a verse play in the text of your essay. Use parentheses around the citation and place it at the end of the quotation.^[7]

2. 2

   Note the act number and the scene number. All verse plays will have acts and scenes that are ordered numerically. Write the act number, followed by a period. Then, write the scene number.^[8]

   • For example, if the quote appears in act 4, scene 4 of the play, you will write, "(4.4…)".

3. 3

   Include the line number or numbers. Verse plays are broken into lines. The lines are ordered numerically, starting at 1. Look for the line number or numbers for the quotation and include them in your citation.^[9]

   • For example, if the quote appears on lines 33 to 35, you will write, "(33-35)."
   • The completed citation would look like: "(4.4.33-35)".

   Advertisement

Add New Question

• Question

  How do you cite Shakespeare quotes in MLA?

  

  Christopher Taylor is an Adjunct Assistant Professor of English at Austin Community College in Texas. He received his PhD in English Literature and Medieval Studies from the University of Texas at Austin in 2014.

  

  English Professor

  Expert Answer

  

  Support wikiHow by unlocking this expert answer.

  To cite a specific quotation from a play in MLA style, place the quotation in quotation marks (using slashes to indicate line breaks) and end with a parenthetical citation of author, name of play, and then page/act (for prose plays) or act/scene/line(s) (for verse).

• Question

  How do you cite a play title in an essay?

  

  Christopher Taylor is an Adjunct Assistant Professor of English at Austin Community College in Texas. He received his PhD in English Literature and Medieval Studies from the University of Texas at Austin in 2014.

  

  English Professor

  Expert Answer

• Question

  How do you cite Shakespeare in text?

  

  Christopher Taylor is an Adjunct Assistant Professor of English at Austin Community College in Texas. He received his PhD in English Literature and Medieval Studies from the University of Texas at Austin in 2014.

  

  English Professor

  Expert Answer

• Question

  Would I put a character in the stage directions in all caps?

  

  Yes. Characters names in plays are always capitalized, assuming that they are not spoken by the characters.

• Question

  When you cite a quote normally, you may use ellipses. How do I do this in a play?

  

  If you cite something in a play, it depends on the direction given to the actor or actors, to give the necessary pauses and credit.

• Question

  How should I quote from a film? Should I use the script or the time specifications of the film itself?

  

  I would quote from the script, then when citing your source, use the title of the play/film and the writer/director's name.

• Question

  How do I quote a one act play?

  

  Use the format suggested in the article above.

• Question

  When using parenthetical citation in plays (act.scene.lines), do you put a period at the end?

  

  Ellie Johnson

  Community Answer

  You would put a period, question mark, or exclamation point at the end if you cited it like this, "Whatever your citation text quote is," (1.1.1). Or, a question mark or exclamation point instead of a period.

• Question

  When a new act starts, do you start over counting the line numbers?

  

  You do but add act 2 or act 3 in front of it, to help make it clear which part you're writing about.

• Question

  Could I use an ellipsis when quoting scripts?

  

  It is usually not safe to use an ellipsis before or after a quotation. An ellipsis can indicate the omission of words in the middle of a quoted sentence or the omission of sentences within a quoted paragraph.

See more answers

Ask a Question

200 characters left

Include your email address to get a message when this question is answered.

Submit

Advertisement

About This Article

Article SummaryX

To quote and cite a play in your essay using MLA format, start by referencing the author and title of the play in the main body of your essay. Then, name the speaker of the quote so it's clear who's talking. For example, write, "In Edward Albee's Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? the character Honey says…" After introducing the quote, frame the dialogue with quotation marks to make it clear that it's a direct quote from a text. If your dialogue is written in verse, use forward slashes to indicate each line break. For more tips from our English co-author, including how to quote dialogue between multiple speakers in your essay, read on!

Did this summary help you?

Thanks to all authors for creating a page that has been read 308,276 times.

Did this article help you?

How to Quote Movie Lines in an Essay

Source: https://www.wikihow.com/Quote-and-Cite-a-Play-in-an-Essay-Using-MLA-Format

Share this post