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Published April 14, 2016. Updated July 13, 2022.

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How to Format Containers in MLA 8

Sometimes a source is part of a larger whole. For example, a magazine article is part of a larger whole, the magazine itself.  For citation purposes, we call the larger whole, in this case the magazine, a container.  When citing sources, the container is generally italicized and is followed by a comma.

How to Cite Sources with One Container

When citing sources with only one container, the title of the direct source is placed in quotes, and the title of the container is italicized.   

The partial format for citing a title within a container is as follows:

Last Name, First Name. “Title of the Source.” Italicized Container Title, Performer or Editor etc. Name,

The full citation might look like this:

“Hush.” Buffy the Vampire Slayer, created by Joss Whedon, performance by Sarah Michelle Gellar, season 4, episode 10, Mutant Enemy, 1999.

Or like this:

Bazin, Patrick. “Toward Metareading.” The Future of the Book, edited by Geoffrey Nunberg, U of California P, 1996, pp. 153-68.

How to Cite Sources with Two Containers

Sometimes the source you’re citing might have two containers.  For example, if an article is found on a database, the first container is the name of the larger whole, such as a journal.  The second container is the database where you found the article.

Another example might be a television series you watched on Netflix.  The first container is the name of the series, and the second container is Netflix. For sources with multiple containers, follow this template:

*Elements that are irrelevant are not included in the citation.

1. Author.

2. Title of source.

Container 1

3. Title of Container,

4. Other contributors,

5. Version,

6. Number,

7. Publisher,

8. Publication date,

9. Location.

Container 2

3. Title of container,

4. Other contributors,

5. Version,

6. Number,

7. Publisher,

8. Publication date,

9. Location.

The full citation for a source with multiple containers might look like this:

Ellingsen, Eric. “In the Listenings: The Gold Waxes.” World Literature

Today, vol. 89, no. 1, 2015, pp. 30-32. JSTOR, doi:10.7588/worllitetoda.89.1.0030.

In the example above, the two containers are World Literature Today (a magazine) and JSTOR (a database).