Rules for Writers with 2016 MLA Update
Eighth EditionDiana Hacker; Nancy Sommers
©2016THIS TITLE HAS BEEN UPDATED TO REFLECT THE 2016 MLA UPDATES! Our editorial team has updated this text based on content from The MLA Handbook, 8th Edition. Browse our catalog or contact your representative for a full listing of updated titles and packages, or to request a custom ISBN.
When students routinely use their handbook in the course, they see its value, find that it’s a faster way to get answers than search engines like Google, learn to rely on it as a reference, and are more likely to achieve the goals of the course. And when that handbook is Rules for Writers, you can be sure the advice they find is practical and reliable—with help for composing and revising, writing arguments, analyzing texts, using grammar and punctuation correctly, and working with sources. In revising the eighth edition, Nancy Sommers has woven a new emphasis on reading critically throughout the first section of the handbook, introduced advice for analyzing multimodal texts, and added help for public speaking. New practical Writing Guides support students working through college assignments in a variety of genres. And new peer review advice helps students effectively comment on drafts and apply feedback to revisions of their own work. All of these improvements help student writers—but they also save you time and effort. You can draw from Rules for Writers for planning class discussions, conducting in-class workshops, and providing feedback on student work that they can easily apply. Rules for Writers even comes with a complete instructor’s manual, Teaching with Hacker Handbooks, with stepped-out lesson plans to customize and sample assignments, syllabi, and rubrics from your peers.Table of Contents
Preface for instructors The Writing Process 1 Exploring, planning, and drafting a Assess the writing situation. b Explore your subject. c Draft and revise a working thesis statement.d Draft a plan.e Draft an introduction. f Draft the body. g Draft a conclusion. h Manage your files. 2 Revising, editing, and reflecting a See revision as a social process. b Use peer review: Revise with comments. c Use peer review: Give constructive comments. d Highlights of one student’s peer review process e Approach global revision in cycles. f Revise and edit sentences. g Proofread the final manuscript. h Sample student revision i Prepare a portfolio; reflect on your writing. 3 Building effective paragraphsa Focus on a main point. b Develop the main point. c Choose a suitable pattern of organization. d Make paragraphs coherent. e If necessary, adjust paragraph length. Academic Reading, Writing, and Speaking 4 Reading and writing critically a Read actively. Sample annotated article b Outline a text to identify main ideas. c Summarize to deepen your understanding.d Analyze to demonstrate your critical reading.Writing guide: Analytical essaye Sample student writing: Analysis of an articleSample analysis paper 5 Reading and writing about multimodal texts a Read actively. Sample annotated advertisementb Outline to identify main ideas. c Summarize to deepen your understanding. d Analyze to demonstrate your critical reading. e Sample student writing: Analysis of an advertisementSample analysis of an advertisement 6 Reading and writing arguments a Distinguish between reasonable and fallacious argumentative tactics. b Distinguish between legitimate and unfair emotional appeals. c Judge how fairly a writer handles opposing views. d When writing arguments, consider purpose and context. e View your audience as a panel of jurors. f In your introduction, establish credibility and state your position. g Back up your thesis with persuasive lines of argument. h Support your claims with specific evidence. i Anticipate objections; counter opposing arguments. j Build common ground. k Sample student writing: Argument Sample argument paperWriting guide: Argument essay 7 Speaking confidently a Identify your purpose, audience, and context. b Prepare a presentation. c Focus on delivery. d Remix an essay for a presentation. Clarity 8 Prefer active verbs. a Active versus passive verbs 1b Active versus be verbs c Subject that names the actor 9 Balance parallel ideas. a Parallel ideas in a series b Parallel ideas presented as pairs c Repetition of function words 10 Add needed words. a In compound structures b that c In comparisons d a, an, and the 11 Untangle mixed constructions. a Mixed grammarb Illogical connections c is when, is where, and reason . . . is because 12 Repair misplaced and dangling modifiers. a Limiting modifiers b Misplaced phrases and clausesc Awkwardly placed modifiersd Split infinitives e Dangling modifiers 13 Eliminate distracting shifts. a Point of view (person, number) b Verb tense c Verb mood, voice d Indirect to direct questions or quotations 14 Emphasize key ideas. a Coordination and subordinationb Choppy sentences c Ineffective or excessive coordination d Ineffective subordination e Excessive subordination f Other techniques 15 Provide some variety. a Sentence openings b Sentence structuresc Inverted order 16 Tighten wordy sentences. a Redundancies b Unnecessary repetition c Empty or inflated phrasesd Simplifying the structuree Reducing clauses to phrases, phrases to single words17 Choose appropriate language. a Jargon b Pretentious language, euphemisms, "doublespeak" c Slang, regional expressions, nonstandard English d Levels of formality e Sexist language f Offensive language 18 Find the exact words. a Connotations b Specific, concrete nouns c Misused words d Standard idiomse Clichés f Figures of speech Grammar 19 Repair sentence fragments. a Subordinate clauses b Phrases c Other fragmented word groups d Acceptable fragments 20 Revise run-on sentences. a Revision with coordinating conjunction b Revision with semicolon, colon, or dash c Revision by separating sentences d Revision by restructuring21 Make subjects and verbs agree. a Standard subject-verb combinations b Words between subject and verb c Subjects joined with and d Subjects joined with or, nor, either . . . or, or neither . . . nor e Indefinite pronouns f Collective nouns g Subject following verb h Subject, not subject complement i who, which, and that j Words with plural form, singular meaning k Titles of works, company names, words mentioned as words, gerund phrases 22 Make pronouns and antecedents agree. a Singular with singular, plural with plural (indefinite pronouns, generic nouns) b Collective nouns c Antecedents joined with and d Antecedents joined with or, nor, either . . . or, or neither . . . nor 23 Make pronoun references clear. a Ambiguous or remote reference b Broad reference of this, that, which, and it c Implied antecedents d Indefinite use of they, it, and you e who for persons, which or that for animals or things 24 Distinguish between pronouns such as I and me. a Subjective case for subjects and subject complements b Objective case for objects c Appositives d Pronoun following than or as e we or us before a noun f Subjects and objects of infinitives g Pronoun modifying a gerund 25 Distinguish between who and whom. a In subordinate clauses b In questions c As subjects or objects of infinitives 26 Choose adjectives and adverbs with care. a Adjectives to modify nouns b Adverbs to modify verbs, adjectives, and other adverbs c good and well, bad and badly d Comparatives and superlatives e Double negatives 27 Choose appropriate verb forms, tenses, and moods in Standard English. a Irregular verbs b lie and lay c -s (or -es) endings d -ed endings e Omitted verbs f Verb tense g Subjunctive mood Multilingual Writers and ESL Challenges 28 Verbs a Appropriate form and tense b Passive voice c Base form after a modal d Negative verb forms e Verbs in conditional sentences f Verbs followed by gerunds or infinitives 29 Articles a Articles and other noun markers b When to use the c When to use a or an d When not to use a or an e No articles with general nouns f Articles with proper nouns 30 Sentence structure a Linking verb between a subject and its complement b A subject in every sentence c Repeated nouns or pronouns with the same grammatical function d Repeated subjects, objects, and adverbs in adjective clauses e Mixed constructions with although or because f Placement of adverbs g Present participles and past participles as adjectives h Order of cumulative adjectives 31 Prepositions and idiomatic expressions a Prepositions showing time and place b Noun (including -ing form) after a preposition c Common adjective + preposition combinations d Common verb + preposition combinations Punctuation 32 The comma a Independent clauses joined with and, but, etc. b Introductory elements c Items in a series d Coordinate adjectives e Nonrestrictive and restrictive elements f Transitions, parenthetical expressions, absolute phrases, contrasts g Direct address, yes and no, interrogative tags, interjections h he said, etc. i Dates, addresses, titles, numbers j To prevent confusion 33 Unnecessary commas a Between two words, phrases, or subordinate clauses b Between a verb and its subject or objectc Before the first or after the last item in a series d Between cumulative adjectives, an adjective and a noun, or an adverb and an adjectivee Before and after restrictive or parenthetical elements f Before essential concluding adverbial elements g After a phrase beginning an inverted sentence h Other misuses 34 The semicolon a Between independent clauses not joined with a coordinating conjunction b Between independent clauses linked with a transitional expression c In a series containing internal punctuation d Misuses 35 The colon a Before a list, an appositive, or a quotation b Conventional uses c Misuses 36 The apostrophe a Possessive nouns b Possessive indefinite pronouns c Contractions d Not for plural numbers, letters, abbreviations, words as words e Misuses 37 Quotation marks a Direct quotations b Quotation within a quotation c Titles of short works d Words as words e With other punctuation marks f Misuses 38 End punctuation a The period b The question mark c The exclamation point 39 Other punctuation marks a The dashb Parentheses c Brackets d The ellipsis mark e The slash Mechanics 40 Abbreviationsa Titles with proper names b Familiar abbreviations c Conventional abbreviations d Units of measurement e Latin abbreviations f Plural of abbreviations g Misuses 41 Numbers a Spelling out b Using numerals 42 Italics a Titles of works b Names of ships, spacecraft, and aircraft c Foreign words d Words as words, letters as letters, numbers as numbers 43 Spelling a Spelling rules b The dictionary c Words that sound alike d Commonly misspelled words 44 The hyphen a Compound words b Hyphenated adjectives c Fractions and compound numbers d With certain prefixes and suffixes e To avoid ambiguity or to separate awkward double or triple letters f Word division 45 Capitalization a Proper vs. common nouns b Titles with proper names c Titles and subtitles of works d First word of a sentence e First word of a quoted sentence f First word after a colon Grammar Basics 46 Parts of speech a Nouns b Pronouns c Verbs d Adjectives e Adverbs f Prepositions g Conjunctions h Interjections 47 Sentence patterns a Subjects b Verbs, objects, and complements c Pattern variations 48 Subordinate word groups a Prepositional phrases b Verbal phrases c Appositive phrases d Absolute phrases e Subordinate clauses 49 Sentence types a Sentence structures b Sentence purposes Research 50 Thinking like a researcher; gathering sources a Manage the project. b Pose questions worth exploring. c Map out a search strategy. d Search efficiently; master a few shortcuts to finding good sources. e Conduct field research, if appropriate. f Write a research proposal. 51 Managing information; taking notes responsibly a Maintain a working bibliography. b Keep track of source materials. c Take notes carefully to avoid unintentional plagiarism. 52 Evaluating sources a Think about how sources might contribute to your writing. b Select sources worth your time and attention. c Select appropriate versions of online sources. d Read with an open mind and a critical eye. e Assess Web sources with care. f Construct an annotated bibliography. Writing guide: Annotated bibliography Writing Papers in MLA Style 53 Supporting a thesis a Form a working thesis. b Organize your ideas. c Use sources to inform and support your argument. d Draft an introduction for your thesis. e Draft the paper in an appropriate voice. 54 Citing sources; avoiding plagiarism a Understand how the MLA system works. b Avoid plagiarism when quoting, summarizing, and paraphrasing sources. 55 Integrating sources a Summarize and paraphrase effectively. b Use quotations effectively. c Use signal phrases to integrate sources. d Synthesize sources. 56 Documenting sources in MLA style a MLA in-text citations b MLA list of works cited c MLA information notes 57 MLA manuscript format; sample research paper a MLA manuscript format b Sample MLA research paper Writing Papers in APA Style 58 Supporting a thesis a Form a working thesis. b Organize your ideas. c Use sources to inform and support your argument. 59 Citing sources; avoiding plagiarism a Understand how the APA system works. b Avoid plagiarism when quoting, summarizing, and paraphrasing sources. 60 Integrating sources a Summarize and paraphrase effectively. b Use quotations effectively. c Use signal phrases to integrate sources. d Synthesize sources. 61 Documenting sources in APA style a APA in-text citations b APA list of works cited62 APA manuscript format; sample paper a APA manuscript format b Sample APA research paperAppendixes A document design galleryGlossary of usage Answers to lettered exercisesIndex