Quotation & Documentation

Dr. Steve Beatty

Choices when Using a Source Paraphrase Summarize Quote

Paraphrase The Original:

All that glitters is not gold.

Paraphrase: Put in your own

words. And is often longer than the original.

Jones points out that some things that appear valuable at first glance, aren’t.

Summary The original:

The new drug has a number of side effects, including headache, fever, nausea, and muscle ache.

Summary: Condensed

version. Must be shorter

than original.

The new drug has a few minor side effects.

Quotation Should be minimized, so that when

it is used it stands out.

Just as too much spice in a recipe overwhelms the food’s taste, too much quotation can overwhelm your voice as author.

When to use Quotation When it can’t be said any better

“A fanatic is one who can’t change his mind and won’t change the subject.”

Sir Winston Churchill

When to use Quotation For Authority

You might quote Sigmund Freud on dream interpretation because he literally wrote the book on the subject.

When to use Quotation For Evidence

Some (but not all) evidence must be quoted. For example, if you are writing about alliteration in the poems of Robert Frost, at some point you’re going to have to quote some alliteration from his poetry.

When to Use Quotation To argue against a key point in

someone’s position

Why quote? Because if you paraphrase or summarize the key point held by your opponent, your reader doesn’t know whether you have accurately portrayed your opponent’s position.

Quotation Criteria Can’t be said any better For Authority For Evidence To attack an Opponent’s Position

If it doesn’t meet one of these criteria, paraphrase or summarize.

Quotation Within a Quotation Original Text: The problem with teachers is that

“they’ve forgotten what it’s like to be students.”

Your quote: “The problem with teachers is that

‘they’ve forgotten what it’s like to be students.’”

MLA Documentation Which of the following do you need

to document: a) paraphrase

b) summary c) quotation

Answer: All of them. You must give credit where it is due or you are guilty of plagiarism.

MLA Parenthetical Documentation

The key to understanding MLA in-text documentation is that you must give enough information so that your reader can (1) go to the Works Cited page and find the source, and (2) then go to your source and find what you’ve cited.

MLA Parenthetical Documentation The basic form for MLA

documentation involves author and page number (Jones 7).

Thus, the above documentation tells you that there is a source in my Works Cited by Jones and the idea expressed above comes from page 7 of that source.

MLA Parenthetical Documentation If I acknowledge the source in my

text, then I usually only need the page number in my documentation.

Jones writes that a healthy breakfast should includes a serving of fruit (7).

MLA Parenthetical Documentation If there is more than one work by an

author in your Works Cited, then you’ll need to give additional information so your reader can identify the work.

Jones writes that a healthy breakfast should include a serving of fruit (“Breakfast” 7).

MLAParenthetical Documentation If I didn’t identify the author in my

text in the previous example, then I need more info in my parenthetical citation.

“A healthy breakfast should include a serving of fruit” (Jones, “Breakfast” 7).

MLA Parenthetical Documentation “A healthy breakfast should include a

serving of fruit” (Jones, “Breakfast” 7).

Note that quotation marks go before the citation, the sentence ending period goes after the citation.

I don’t need to include the entire title just enough to identify the source.

MLA Parenthetical Documenation “A healthy breakfast should include a

serving of fruit.” Assume Breakfast is a book and not an article. Now document.

“A healthy breakfast should include a serving of fruit,” (Jones, Breakfast 7).

Books are italicized. Articles are in “ “

MLA Parenthetical Documentation To minimize the info in the citation,

you can simply provide more info in your text.

In “Breakfast of Champions,” Jones writes that “a healthy breakfast should include a serving of fruit” (7).

MLAParenthetical Documentation 2 authors (Smith and Jones 7)

3 authors (Smith, Jones, and Ott 7)

> 3 authors (Smith et. al. 7)

MLA Parenthetical Documentation Signal Phrase

In research-based writing, writers often use signal phrases to identify their sources.

e.g., According to Jones, Jones writes,

Jones argues, etc.

MLA Parenthetical Documentation

The effective use of Signal Phrases can minimize documentation and clarify your writing.

MLA Parenthetical Documentation This is sentence one (Beatty 8).

The is sentence two (Beatty 8). This is sentence three (Beatty 8). This is sentence four (Beatty 8).

Clearly such constant documentation is distracting.

MLA Parenthetical Documentation The Solution: A cumulative note.

This is sentence one. The is sentence two. This is sentence three. This is sentence four (Beatty 8).

Now your audience assumes all four sentences are from Beatty page 8.

MLA Parenthetical Documentation What if you have a six sentence

paragraph. The first three sentences are from Smith. The next three from Jones.

This is sentence 1. This is sentence 2. This is sentence 3 (Smith 4). This is sentence 4. This is sentence 5. This is sentence 6 (Jones 22).

MLA Parenthetical Documentation

More complicated. Six sentences. 1 and 2 are from Smith. 3 and 4 are your brilliant insights. 5 and 6 are from Jones.

MLA Parenthetical Documentation This is sentence 1. This is sentence

2 (Smith 2). This is sentence 3. This is sentence 4. Jones writes, sentence 5. this is sentence 6 (22).

The documentation for Smith tells us where Smith ends. The signal phrase tells us where Jones begins. Ergo, the middle is all you.

Extended Quotation More than 4 lines in your text. Indent 10 spaces from left margin No quotation marks Documentation appears three

spaces after the terminal period

Extended Quotation This is a normal sentence in your

paper introducing the quotation: This is an extended quote. It

goes on and on. And then on some more. It keeps on going because it is an extended quote. (Jones 5)

MLA Works Cited

Organized alphabetically by author. If no author, by title.

Indent second and following lines of entry 5 spaces.

MLA Works Cited Works Cited

Happiness. Boston: Simon & Schuster,

2006.

Jones, Sue. “Breakfast of Champions.” Journal of Good Health 7 (2005): 77–88.