Hamlet MLA Citation: Works Cited & In-Text Format
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0 sourcesHamlet MLA Citation in MLA 9 lists Shakespeare as author, the play title in italics, the editor, publisher, and year: Shakespeare, William. Hamlet. Edited by Barbara A. Mowat and Paul Werstine, Simon & Schuster, 2012. In-text, cite act, scene, and line, not page.
How do you cite Hamlet in MLA Works Cited?
List the play once in your Works Cited using the MLA core elements: Author. Title of the play. Editor, Publisher, Year. Shakespeare is always the author, the title is italicized, and the specific edition you read supplies the editor, publisher, and date.
Standalone bookShakespeare, William. Hamlet. Edited by Barbara A. Mowat and Paul Werstine, Simon & Schuster, 2012.
Because the play title stands alone as its own book here, it goes in italics and no page range is needed. Give the editor exactly as printed on the title page, and use the copyright year of the edition in your hands, not Shakespeare’s original date.
- Author — Last name first, then first name, ending with a period.
- Title — the play name in italics, capitalized headline-style.
- Contributor — the editor(s) of this edition, introduced by “Edited by.”
- Publisher — the company that issued this edition.
- Year — the publication year of the edition you actually used.
How do you write an in-text citation for Hamlet in MLA?
For a verse play, MLA replaces page numbers with act, scene, and line numbers separated by periods. Use Arabic numerals and the author’s last name: (Shakespeare 1.5.35-37). This lets readers locate the passage in any edition, since line numbers are stable while pages are not.
Quote + citation“Haste me to know’t, that I, with wings as swift / As meditation … / May sweep to my revenge” (Shakespeare 1.5.35-37).
If you name Shakespeare in your sentence, drop it from the parentheses and cite only the numbers: (1.5.35-37). When you quote more than one Shakespeare play, replace the author’s name with the italicized MLA abbreviation for the title so readers know which play you mean.
Multiple playsThe Ghost demands vengeance almost at once (Ham. 1.5.7-9).
| Situation | In-text form |
|---|---|
| Only Hamlet cited, author not named | (Shakespeare 3.1.64) |
| Author named in sentence | (3.1.64) |
| Several Shakespeare plays cited | (Ham. 3.1.64) |
| Range of lines across one scene | (Shakespeare 3.2.20-25) |
| Prose edition with no line numbers | (Shakespeare, p. 88) |
Separate the three numbers with periods and no spaces. Do not write “act 3, scene 1”; the numeral string 3.1.64 is the MLA convention. The standard abbreviation for the play is Ham., and MLA asks you to use its published abbreviation rather than invent your own.
How do you cite Hamlet from an anthology or a website?
When Hamlet appears inside a larger collected volume, the book becomes the “container.” Keep the play title in italics, then name the anthology, its editors, edition, publisher, year, and the page range the play occupies. Add a page number to your in-text citation only for a prose passage without line numbers.
Anthology / collected worksShakespeare, William. Hamlet. The Norton Shakespeare, edited by Stephen Greenblatt et al., 3rd ed., W. W. Norton, 2016, pp. 1751-1859.
For an online edition, treat the website as the container and include the URL. The Folger Shakespeare Library’s free digital texts are a common example, and MLA wants the site name plus the address so a reader can reach the same text.
Online editionShakespeare, William. Hamlet. Edited by Barbara A. Mowat et al., Folger Shakespeare Library, shakespeare.folger.edu/shakespeares-works/hamlet/. Accessed 18 July 2026.
What are correct MLA examples for common Hamlet editions?
The entry changes with the edition, because the editor, publisher, and year all shift. The table pairs popular scholarly editions with their MLA Works Cited form so you can copy the one you own and adjust only the year if your printing differs.
| Edition | MLA 9 Works Cited entry |
|---|---|
| Folger (Simon & Schuster) | Shakespeare, William. Hamlet. Edited by Barbara A. Mowat and Paul Werstine, Simon & Schuster, 2012. |
| Arden, Third Series | Shakespeare, William. Hamlet. Edited by Ann Thompson and Neil Taylor, Arden Shakespeare, 2006. |
| Norton (in anthology) | Shakespeare, William. Hamlet. The Norton Shakespeare, edited by Stephen Greenblatt et al., 3rd ed., W. W. Norton, 2016, pp. 1751-1859. |
| Pelican (Penguin) | Shakespeare, William. Hamlet. Edited by A. R. Braunmuller, Penguin Books, 2016. |
Notice that a standalone edition ends with the year, while an anthology entry ends with a page range. In both, Shakespeare is the author and the editor sits in the contributor slot after the title. Never list the editor as the author, and never abbreviate “William” to an initial.
How accurate is this guide, and what are the limits?
These formats match MLA 9th edition and match how the MLA Style Center and Folger Library present Shakespeare citations. Still, three variables need your judgment, and no generator can read your physical book for you.
- Edition details vary. Publisher names and years differ between printings; copy them from your own copy’s title and copyright pages, not from memory.
- Line numbering differs. Editors number lines differently, especially across the Q2 and Folio texts, so verify your act.scene.line against the edition you cite.
- Instructor rules override. Some courses want (Ham. 1.5.35) on first use even for a single play. Follow your assignment sheet when it conflicts with the default.
When a passage is prose rather than verse and your edition prints no line numbers, MLA allows page numbers instead; cite (Shakespeare, p. 88) and say so if numbering is unusual.
Frequently asked questions
Short, exam-ready answers to the questions students ask most when citing Hamlet in MLA.