A Basic MLA Principle:

The Relationship between Parenthetical Documentation and the Works Cited Page

Training dogs is usually accomplished through positive reinforcement, rather than punishment. Once a bond is established between the owner and dog, the dog will eagerly try to please; if she fails to learn, she is confused, not spiteful, and punishment will only worsen the situation. Experts argue that a dog should never be reprimanded for failure to perform an action unless the owner is sure the dog is being lazy, instead of confused (Smith 87).

Works Cited Applecroft, Susan. Better Dogs, Better      Training. New York: Random House,      1998. Gunter, Howard, and Mary Spritz. No      Punishment, All Obedience. London:      Oxford UP, 1995. Smith, Edward. Love Your Dog; He'll      Love You. San Francisco: Canine      Publishing, 1993.

Remember: the primary aim of all documentation is to show the reader where to find the sources you used.

How does the parenthetical documentation (Smith 87) do that? Click on the "ok!" box when you're ready for the answer. 

That's the key to the relationship between the parenthetical documentation and the Works Cited page--the reader looks in the first words of the Works Cited page entries for whatever word(s) are in your parenthetical documentation!

Let's try some practice exercises.