Quick Capitalisation Guide to Write My Dissertation in MLA Style!
A dissertation is an essential component of your academic career. It is a lengthy paper that should not contain any errors. Petty mistakes in capitalization can impact your grades significantly. A word with a capital letter replaced with a small letter indicates that you are not aware of the standard rules of MLA style. There need to be some basic regulations to write my dissertation in proper order and manner.
You should take care of some title elements before submitting the final paper to the professor. Read further to gain in-depth knowledge of MLA style in the title case.
What is MLA Style?
Modern language association is a popular style used in UK universities for formatting, citation, and even capitalization. Whether it's cultural studies, humanities, or language arts, it is widely applicable in every field. It aims at building confidence to present information and opinions better than before. It provides thorough information on grammar, punctuation, and abbreviations. Additionally, it considers how to set paper with updated headings and lists. It also contains guidelines for formatting references and citations in the dissertation. Proper usage of it demonstrates credibility and trustworthiness and raises your image in front of the professor.
Capitalisation in MLA Titles
Here are some principles and guidelines you need to follow to do my dissertation flawlessly. Nouns, pronouns, verbs, adjectives, adverbs, and subordinating conjunctions will be capitalized. Here is an example to clarify your doubts.
What to Capitalize?
Part of Speech |
Example |
Noun |
A Wrinkle in Time |
As wrinkle is a noun, it gets capitalized.
Part of Speech |
Example |
Pronoun |
You are a wonderful person. |
Y in you will get capitalized because it is a pronoun.
Part of Speech |
Example |
Verbs |
Play in the garden |
P will get capitalized because play is a verb
Part of Speech |
Example |
Adjective |
The Story of a Beautiful Girl |
Capitalise the letter b because it is an adjective
Part of Speech |
Example |
Subordinating Conjunctions |
Whether You Are Coming or Not |
Whether will be capitalised because it is a subordinating conjunction
What Not to Capitalise
Part of Speech |
Example |
Article( a, an, the) |
She Is a Housewife |
A is not capitalized because it is an article.
Part of Speech |
Example |
Prepositions( against, as, between, of, to) |
The ball is on the table |
Because it is a preposition, on is not capitalized.
Part of Speech |
Example |
Coordinating Conjuctions( and, but, for, nor, yet) |
Born to Win
|
As to is a conjuction it will not get capitalised.
So these are some examples of what should and should not be capitalized in dissertation titles. Let us move to the next part to know what the scenario of titles within titles will be.
Title Under Title
There are instances when a title comes under another title, and there are a set of rules to apply.
Example |
Format |
The Great Gatsby "The Great Gatsby of the American Dream" |
Italicize the inner title
|
Example |
Format |
"The Royal Wedding took place at 5: Know the Reason Why |
The Royal Wedding Use a single quotation mark for the inner title |
Example |
Format |
"The Garden Party" "The Garden Party" and Other Exciting Events |
Mark the inner title in quotation marks and italicize the other part. |
Exceptions to MLA Formatting
Titles and names that come in this category are not italicized and are put in quotation marks.
- Scripture( the Bible and the Koran)
- Laws and acts (the Agreement, the Independence Declaration, and the Constitution)
- Musical compositions(e.g., Beethoven’s Symphony)
- Conferences, seminars, and workshops
Sections of a Work
Words used for a particular section do not get italicized, nor are they used in quotation marks. But the thing to note here is that the capitalization rule does not work when used in normal text or content.
Examples of such sections are
- Title Page
- Copyright Page
- Abstract
- Dedication
- Acknowledgement
- Preface
- Table of Content
- List of Tables
- List of Abbreviations
- List of Symbols
Terms such as introduction, preface, and afterwards get capitalized when mentioned in MLA in-text citations; on the other hand, the same rule does not apply in-text.
Sources with No Title
For sources with no title, a brief description means the title part. Regimes applicable to it are to capitalize the first word and proper noun and ignore other MLA rules. Some exceptions to it are movie reviews, untitled poems, e-mails, and messages.
Punctuation in MLA Title
The punctuation used is the same in MLA titles except for subtitles where you separate the main title with a colon and a space.
For example
Dissertation Writing is an Art: A Skill You Can Learn With Time
The exception to it is when the title ends with a question mark, exclamation or a dash. In that case, there is no scope of changing the original punctuation.
For example
How Much Time Does It Take to Complete the Academic Paper? An Answer to the Unresolved Query
Abbreviation Title
You should mention the name of the work in your dissertation. It is imperative to state the full title, but subtitles are not a requirement. For example, if you have to embed or provide a reference to your work, you cannot state the full title multiple times. Therefore, according to MLA style, you can shorten it, but it may sound familiar and relevant.
An example is "In the Journey of Adam Ghosh," which you can make precise by writing Adam Ghosh.
You can use letters as an abbreviation too. For example, Merchant of Venice can be written as MV, but the condition is to italicize it or use quotation marks for the same.
So these are some pointers you should consider before delivering the final paper to your professor. Capitalization is not an arduous task, but when it comes to complying with MLA rules and regulations, it becomes challenging. Therefore, the next question that arises in your mind is, "Who will write my dissertation?" In such a case, you do not have to think twice about seeking an expert. The professionals ensure that they adhere not only to MLA but also to university guidelines. They deliver quality content and assist you in each step of dissertation writing. You will discover that your academic assignment is no longer a problematic job, but a stepping stone.
Duration is never an issue because masters are available 24 hours a day, seven days a week, so whenever a problem occurs, you do not have to think twice. Fast and open communication with them will resolve your doubts in due time. Do not overthink it and grab the opportunity when all the factors, ranging from price to quality, are in your favour.
Avail the open chance and see your academic graph rise!
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