Using MLA rules, how do I cite quotations from one author that are included in another author's work?
Answer
Purdue OWL provides these instructions for citing indirect quotations:
Citing Indirect Sources
Sometimes you may have to use an indirect source. An indirect source is a source cited in another source. For such indirect quotations, use "qtd. in" to indicate the source you actually consulted. For example:
Ravitch argues that high schools are pressured to act as "social service centers, and they don't do that well" (qtd. in Weisman 259).
Note that, in most cases, a responsible researcher will attempt to find the original source, rather than citing an indirect source.
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These same rules are also stated in the MLA Handbook, in section 6.4.7. Here is an example it provides:
Samuel Johnson admitted that Edmund Burke was an "extraordinary man" (qtd. in Boswell 2: 450)
Then on the works cited page:
Boswell, James. The Life of Johnson. Ed. George Birkbeck Hill and L.F. Powell. 6 vols. Oxford: Clarendon, 1934-50. Print.
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