Parenthetical references are supposed to be simple and brief.  Usually you only need to note one identifying word within parenthesis.  If anyone reading your paper wants more information about the source, he or she can use this simple notation to locate the much more detailed information which appears on the Works Cited page at the end of your paper.

If you have taken good notes, your parenthetical references should be easy to do.  It can also be helpful to draft your Works Cited page and keep it handy to look at when preparing your parenthetical references.  The general rule of thumb is tol use the first word (or words) listed on your Works Cited page within each parenthetical reference to identify the source to which you want to give credit.

For most books and magazine articles as well as some encyclopedia articles and web sites, the first word will be the author’s last name.  This is what you put inside the parenthesis.  For example:

(Smith)

If you have a source with many pages (such as a book), be sure to identify the specific page number(s) on which the referenced points can be found .  Simply note the page number(s) after the author or title in the parenthesis.  Do not put a comma before the page number in your reference.  For example:

(Smith 42)

(Cars 100-104)

For sources without an author (for instance some encyclopedia articles and web sites) the first word will be the title.  Format the first word within the parenthesis just as you have done on your Works Cited Page.  If it is an article title, this means it should appear in quotations.  If it is a book or web page title, it should be underlined.  For example:

(Cars)

For sources with two authors, include the last names of both authors, and the page number a book source. 

(Smith & Whitley 33-35)

If two different sources on your Works Cited page start with the same word, be sure to include as many words as are needed to clearly distinguish between the two sources in your parenthetical references.  For example: 

("Cars for the Future")

("Cars" Compton's)

Web sites can be an exception to the general rule of using the first word(s) on the Works Cited page.  For web sources, it is also acceptable to use the URL, or web address, as your parenthetical reference.  For example:

(www.carsofthefuture.org)

Include as much information as necessary so the reader can find your source and verify your facts. Yet be as brief as possible so as not to unnecessarily distract the reader.   Remember that more details related to a particular source can be found on the Works Cited page.