Quoting a Book in an Essay

[Alex]

I'm required to use a quote from the book I'm writing an essay about. Unfortunately, the piece I need to quote has dialogue in it, meaning quotation marks are already used. To quote this passage, would it look like this?

""Hello their neighbor. It's a wonderful day in the neighborhood."" (Yourmom, 111)

A detailed explanation would be appreciated.

[Imelda]

When using quotes inside quotes, you use a different kind of quote. Which is clear as mud, so:

" 'Hello their neighbor. It's a wonderful day in the neighborhood.' " (Yourmom, 111)

I'm not sure about the spaces between the two marks ... some people do them, some don't.

The alternative (if the quote isn't part of a sentence in the essay) is to separate it out like this:

blah blah essay junk blah:


"Hello their neighbor. It's a wonderful day in the neighborhood." (Yourmom, 111)

Blah blah essay junk.

[Arthur-Dent]

I'm pretty sure the period goes behind the parenthesis. In other words:

"Hello their neighbor. It's a wonderful day in the neighborhood" (Yourmom, 111).

Actually, this link confirms that:
http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/557/04/

[Imelda]

I thought that was only if you're British. :confused:

[Arthur-Dent]

The period behind the parenthesis? That's what I've always done and what my teachers have told me to do. I just googled "MLA format quotations" and the link seemed to confirmed it.

[Carraka]

Here's how I would do it, assuming this is a literary essay. I'm United Statesian.

During the banquet, Mr. Faux says, "Hello their neighbor. It's a wonderful day in the neighborhood" (MyMom 333).

Mr. Faux is described as a "tall, wiry youth with a neatly trimmed moustache" (MyMom 666).

The fact that the quote is already dialogue is not factored into the equation.