Issue For April 5, 2007
Writing Question of the Week
This is usually a question submitted by an OWL user to the OWL Tutors. If you have a question you need answered quickly, ask one of our OWL Tutors or call the Writing Lab's Grammar Hotline at 765-494-3723. And remember, both services are free for everyone!
Hi!
I have to cite this book that is part of a series, and I could not find anywhere how to cite a book that is part of a series. I found a book that is part of a volume, but this is different. The series of the book is Latin American Monographs, Second Series, and the title is Eduardo Santos and the Good Neighbor, 1938-1942.
The author is David Bushnell.
Where would I add in the series part?
Bushnell, David. Eduardo Santos and the Good Neighbor 1938-1942. Gainesville, FL, USA: University of Florida Press Publication, 1967.
That is what I know where to do (is that right?) but I don't know where to put the series.
-- Lara
Lara,
Thanks for your inquiry! Since you did not specify the format for your citation, MLA or APA, I will provide examples of both.
This is a direct quote from the 6th edition of "MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers" by Joseph Gibaldi on pages 170-171. "If the title page of the preceding page (the half-title page) indicates that the book you are citing is part of a series (see fig. 23), include the series name, neither underlined nor enclosed in quotation marks, and the series number, followed by a period, before the publication information. Use common abbreviations for words in the series name (see 7.4), including Ser. If Series is part of the name."
Here are two examples from the book on page 171:
Murk, Alfreda. Poetry and Painting in Song China: The Subtle Art of Dissent. Harvard-Yenching Inst. Monograph Ser. 50. Cambridge: Harvard UP,2000.
Neruda, Pablo. Canto General. Trans. Jack Schmitt. Latin Amer. Lit. and Culture 7. Berkeley: U of California P, 1991.
This is a direct quote on page 253 of the fifth edition of "Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association" published by the American Psychological Association. Under "Chapter in a volume in a series" is one example:
Maccoby, E. E., & Martin, J. (1983). Socialization in the context of the family: Parent-child interaction. In P. H. Mussen (Series Ed.) & E. M. Hetherington (Vol. Ed.), Handbook of child psychology: Vol. 4. Socialization, personality, and social development (4th ed., pp. 1-101). New York: Wiley.
Under the citation are instructions that state, "List the series editor first and the volume editor second so that they will be parallel with the titles of the works."
If you have any further questions, please feel free to send us another inquiry!
Best regards,
OWL
The OWL Help Nest
Each week we publish Purdue OWL News readers' requests for advice or information and the responses from other Purdue OWL News readers.
I can't find the word 'excelling' in the 7th Edition of Oxford Advanced Dictionary. I would like to know if this sentence is correct: 'Learning English opens a new way for excelling in academic studies.' Please help.
--JPS, Penang, Malaysia
Perhaps your dictionary does not conjugate the verb "excel" in detail. "Excelling" is what we used to call the "present progressive" form--expressing ongoing present action--and perhaps we still do. Your sentence is grammatically correct, but it's not nearly as graceful as "Learning English opens a new way to excel in academic studies." A graceful way to use the present progressive tense might be "My son is excelling in math and science at his new school."
--Robert Rosser, University of Maryland, Europe
The word 'excelling' is the present participle (the -ing form) of the verb 'excel'. It should be listed in the dictionary as one of the forms of that verb. However, to answer your more pressing question, yes, your use of the word in that sentence is correct. That said, however, I would likely use 'to excel' over 'for excelling' in that statement since you don't want to overwhelm the reader with too many -ing-ending words.
--Roy Greene
Dear OWL,
Your website exposes me to meaningful sentence structures and productive and effectiveness-oriented writing. In the latter case, I have some problems with word use since English is my second language and I have never been abroad. I always use simple words compared to the textbook or other materials writing. I would appreciate if you kindly give me some sound advice/suggestion on improving my English, especially my word usage. I look forward to your ideas. --Sitthear, Cambodia
I have many ESL students in my classes. I advise them to read a popular English-language magazine like Time or Newsweek--every week, cover to cover--to increase their vocabulary and learn (American) English idiom. It works.
--Robert Rosser, University of Maryland, Europe
Good question! Stick with simple words. Read old English classics and note the vocabulary/lexis used. Check your writing, eliminate unneeded words. Translate native language materials into English!
--George Steed, LÓDZ, Poland
I was covering the subject of homophones with my students and found it difficult to explain the usage of "being" and "been". Please help.
--Andrea Campbell, London
"Being" and "been" are not true homophones, though regional usage might render them so. The first has two syllables, the second only one. Admittedly, they're close in sound, particularly in British English, which uses the long "e" in "been." But the "ng" of "being" and the "n" of "been" are clearly distinct--even when rapid pronunciation collapses "being" into one syllable. A homophone for "been" in England would be "bean." In America it would be "bin."
--Robert Rosser,
Being and Been are both participles of the verb "to be": Being is the present participle and Been is the past participle. Because participles can function as both verbs and adjectives, we use them in two ways.
1. Being as part of progressive tenses: "She was being mean until you walked in; now she is being nice." Been as part of the past perfect tense: "He had been skipping class up until last week when he was caught."
2. Both as adjectives: "Being a shy girl, Mary was hesitant to meet the new guests." "Having been sick recently, John was not in top shape for the football game."
And finally, Being can also be used as a gerund (i.e. a noun): "Being early to an interview is always advisable."
Hope that helps!
--Sarah Hill, San Francisco, CA
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What's Happening on the OWL at Purdue
- OWL Eye On...Fair Use Policy Changes. Please note that our Fair Use Policy has gone through a major revision. See the changes here: http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/551/01/
What's Happening in the Writing Lab
- OWL Eye On...Literary Awards Competition. Melissa Grider's work, "Uploading Documents to Sharepoint" has won the Hugh McKee Memorial award for technical wiritng in the 76th Annual Literary Awards Competition..
- OWL Eye On...End of Semester Schedule. The last day of tutoring for the Spring Semester will be on April 27th, 2007. We suggest that you call in early and make an appointment--our last few weeks fill up quickly!
This week's OWL News was edited by Dana Lynn Driscoll, OWL Coordinator.
