Skip to Main Content

Chicago Citation Style: Introduction

The Basics. When typing your paper in a Word document using Chicago citation style, there are several basic formatting rules to follow: Use standard 8.5" x 11" printer paper. Use 1" or 1.5" margins on all sides. Use a readable typeface such as Times New Roman at NO LESS THAN 10 point font. The preferable font size is 12 point.  Double-space all body text. Do not enter extra spaces between paragraphs.  Enter a space after punctuation between sentences.  Number pages beginning with the Arabic numeral "1" on the first page of text.
The title goes about 1/3 of the way down the first page. To get there, you'll need to hit the Enter button 7 times.  Be sure that it's centered, and in ALL-CAPS.  If there's a subtitle, it goes on the second line directly after the title. Note the use of a colon on the first line. There should be no space between the lines.  To ensure there's no extra spaces between the lines, you might need to adjust the Line Spacing options to say Remove Space After Paragraph.
Hit the Enter button about 10-12 more times and type your name, the course information, and the date.  This also will be single- spaced, but is not in all-caps.   NOTE: there are no page numbers on the title page.
The text of your essay is double-spaced, and when you move to the next paragraph, there are no extra spaces. The first line of each paragraph will be indented by hitting the "Tab" button one time. When numbering your pages: The title page is not numbered, but the first page of your text is, starting at 1. However, Word does not automatically do this. You'll need to adjust the options. Go to Insert at the top of the Word options. Then, go to Page Number. Select the Top of Page option, and then the upper right corner option.  NOTE: from this step, the order of options in the menu bar changes.  Look for the Different First Page option and check that box. Then, look for the Page Number drop-down menu again.  Select Format Page Numbers.  In the Page Numbering section, look for the Start At option. Enter 0. Look for the Close Header and Footer red X to close the menu options.
Here is a sample in-text citation:  Enlightenment thinkers, such as Kant, believed in the “universal, eternal, and . . . immutable qualities of all of humanity”  (Harvey 1990, 12). Chicago style in-text citations (aka parenthetical citations) are comprised of the author's last name, the publication date, and the page number of the source (when applicable). There should be no punctuation between the author's last name and the publication date. However, there is a comma between the publication date and the page number. Chicago's Author-Date References Style (the style you'll be using in your paper) requires you to include a parenthetical citation whenever you refer to or otherwise use source material in your paper. In the above example, there is an ellipses, or three spaced periods. This indicates that some words have been removed from the quoted passage. Use these mindfully as you don't want to be in danger of using a quote out of context or changing the meaning of an original source.
Now let's say you're using that same author and publication in several more in-text citations in the same paragraph. Enlightenment thinkers, such as Kant, believed in the “universal, eternal, and . . . immutable qualities of all of humanity” (Harvey 1990, 12); by extension, “equality, liberty, faith in human intelligence . . . and universal reason” were widely held beliefs and seen as unifying forces (13). This example is a continuation of the previous citation.  In this paragraph, though, the student cites a different page in the same publication, meaning it's the same source a second time.  In this type of citation, you can simply cite the new page  number, and leave off the author name and publication date.  For this to work, though, make sure there are no other authors or publications being cited in-between the two.   Additionally, you must be extra certain to clearly indicate when a new author/source is introduced.
Let's say you are citing multiple pieces of information from the same author and publication, specifically from the same page. In that case, you can put the full citation at the end, illustrated in the following sentences. Later modernists began to acknowledge the "fragmentation, ambiguity and larger chaos"  that characterized modern life. Enlightenment thinkers, such as Kant, believed in the “universal, eternal, and . . . immutable qualities of all of humanity” (Harvey 1990, 12). Note there is no citation for the first fragment of quoted material, but there is a full citation for the second fragment of quoted material.  Again, this is only acceptable when the same page(s) of the same source are cited more than once in a single paragraph.  You should place the citation after the last reference or at the end of the paragraph.
There are a few ways to structure a citation to make sure the flow of your paper does not get awkward, like in the following example.  Foucault (1984)  represents a powerful figure in postmodern thought because he asserts that "the individual and the knowledge that may be gained of him belong to this production" (205). The quoted passage in this example is introduced by the author's name, followed by the publication date in parenthesis.  The quote is provided, followed by the page number where that quote can be found in the original source.  This is an alternative to the 'author publication, page number' citation structure seen in previous examples.
The basic citation structure remains true for multiple authors, seen in the following line. The same networked logic that defines our general ontological sense of being in the world also defines the way in which texts (with implications for knowledge and power) are produced and circulate in the world: “the network itself is the site of both production and circulation”  (Hardt and Negri 2009, 298). When quoting a source with two authors, you should separate their last names with 'and' not '&.' This is also true for the References page.
Label the first page of your source list "References" or "Works Cited." Insert two blank lines after that.  Each entry is in alphabetical order by the first word (usually author's last name) Each entry is single-spaced, with one blank line between each entry.  Each entry also has a hanging indent. To insert a hanging indent:Put your cursor on the first line of the first entry (NOT the title of the page). Find the ruler near the top of the screen. (If there is no ruler, click on the View tab, and then check the box next to Ruler.) Locate the three icons on the ruler: the top, the middle, and the bottom Hover your mouse over the middle icon. A screentip should appear that says Hanging Indent. Move the icon to the 0.5 mark. (Both the middle and bottom icons will move.)  This keeps the first line static, while all other lines are indented. The reason for this indentation is to make it easier for you and your readers to skim the list for a specific entry.
Example 1: Foucault, Michel. 1984. “The Means of Correct Training.” In The Foucault Reader,  edited by Paul Rabinow,  188-205. New York: Pantheon.  Example 2: Hardt, Michael and Antonio Negri.  2000. “Postmodernization, or the Informatization of Production.” In Empire, 280-303. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press. Notes: For two to three authors, write out all names in the order they appear on the title page of the source.  For four to ten authors, write out all names on the references page but use just the first author's name and "et al." (not italicized) in the text itself. Edited or translated works must be identified as such on the References page, such as in the second example.
Example 1: Ede, Lisa and Andrea A. Lunsford. 2001. “Collaboration and                      Concepts of Authorship.” PMLA 116 (March): 354-69.                        http://www.jstor.org/stable/463522 Example 2: Raffnsøe, Sverre, and Alston, Richard. "Foucault and Roman Antiquity: Foucault's Rome [Special Section]." Foucault Studies 22 (2017): 1-133. Notes: Journal articles are usually cited by volume and issue number and date of publication. In the event that pagination is consecutive across a volume, the issue number and/or month or season can be omitted.  For electronic journal articles and other web sources, DOIs are preferred to URLs, but if you must use a URL, look for the "stable" version assigned by the journal (first green box).  For journal articles found in one of the library's databases, you do not need a DOI (second green box).
Sources: The Purdue Owl's Chicago Style manual, specifically their downloadable Author-Date  Sample Paper (PDF), is the source for all examples in this document.   You can access their helpful guide here: https://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/717/01/  And the downloadable Author-Date Sample Paper (PDF) here: https://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/717/10/  Another great resources comes from The Chicago Manual of Style Online Citation Quick Guide, which can be accessed here: http://www.chicagomanualofstyle.org/tools_citationguide/citation-guide-2.html

Source links:

Purdue Owl Chicago guide: https://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/717/01/

Purdue Owl Chicago Author-Date Sample Paper (PDF): https://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/717/10/

Chicago Manual of Style Online Citation Quick Guide:  http://www.chicagomanualofstyle.org/tools_citationguide/citation-guide-2.html