Footnotes
Footnotes are internal citations like a parenthetical citation, but a footnote is found at the bottom of the page with a small number at the end of sentences in the text. That tiny number is placed outside of the punctuation. Most word processing software has a footnote feature, watch this video tutorial on Inserting Footnotes in both Googledocs and MS WORD.
Ibid means “in the same place.” If the citation is the same (source and page number) as the last citation cited, then merely type “Ibid.” The only exception would be if the citation is the first on a new page. Use the original citation, do not make the reader hunt for the source.
Sample body paragraph with footnotes:
Che Guevara was not coldhearted and his experiences with the sick greatly affected him and his beliefs. (Topic Sentence) His travels with Alberto Granado brought Che to many leprosaria mainly because Alberto was a medical researcher. Ernesto’s compassion is visible in an incident in a leprosaria in Argentina where Alberto was conducting research. A young girl was delivering an impassioned argument on the injustice of her internment. Alberto proved the severity of her condition by shoving a long needle into her back. The girl did not flinch, but Che did. He asked the girl to excuse them and then chastised Alberto for his unprofessional and cruel behavior for treating a patient so poorly.1(evidence) While in Golfito, Costa Rica he visited the Company hospital of United Fruit Company. He observed that while the medicine they practiced was correct, the quality of the medical treatment depended on the person’s position in the company. He laments, “as always the class spirit of the gringos can be seen.” 2 (evidence) In Valparaiso, Chile, Che was emotional after visiting an elderly servant women who was dying of a lung and heart condition. He had given her what medicine he had, but it would not save her life. His frustration was obvious when he wrote in his diary, “How long this order of things based on an absurd sense of caste will continue is not within my means to answer, but it is time the that those who govern dedicate less to propagandizing the compassion of their regimes and more money, much more money, sponsoring works of social utility.”3 (evidence) These anecdotes reveal his growing frustration with the governments who ignore basic needs such as health care and his increasing bond with the poor and oppressed. It was not merely the condition of the sick that disturbed him during his travels, but the deplorable treatment of workers as well. (transition sentence)
1 Anderson 67
2 Anderson 119
3 Guevara 29