how to include sources in a research paper

Quoting and integrating sources into your paper

In any study of a subject, people engage in a “conversation” of sorts, where they read or listen to others’ ideas, consider them with their own viewpoints, and then develop their own stance. It is important in this “conversation” to acknowledge when we use someone else’s words or ideas. If we didn’t come up with it ourselves, we need to tell our readers who did come up with it.

It is important to draw on the work of experts to formulate your own ideas. Quoting and paraphrasing the work of authors engaged in writing about your topic adds expert support to your argument and thesis statement. You are contributing to a scholarly conversation with scholars who are experts on your topic with your writing. This is the difference between a scholarly research paper and any other paper: you must include your own voice in your analysis and ideas alongside scholars or experts.

All your sources must relate to your thesis, or central argument, whether they are in agreement or not. It is a good idea to address all sides of the argument or thesis to make your stance stronger. There are two main ways to incorporate sources into your research paper.

Quoting is when you use the exact words from a source. You will need to put quotation marks around the words that are not your own and cite where they came from. For example:

“It wasn’t really a tune, but from the first note the beast’s eyes began to droop . . . Slowly the dog’s growls ceased – it tottered on its paws and fell to its knees, then it slumped to the ground, fast asleep” (Rowling 275).

Follow these guidelines when opting to cite a passage:

• Choose to quote passages that seem especially well phrased or are unique to the author or subject matter.
• Be selective in your quotations. Avoid over-quoting. You also don’t have to quote an entire passage. Use ellipses (. . .) to indicate omitted words. Check with your professor for their ideal length of quotations – some professors place word limits on how much of a sentence or paragraph you should quote.
• Before or after quoting a passage, include an explanation in which you interpret the significance of the quote for the reader. Avoid “hanging quotes” that have no context or introduction. It is better to err on the side of your reader not understanding your point until you spell it out for them, rather than assume readers will follow your thought process exactly.
• If you are having trouble paraphrasing (putting something into your own words), that may be a sign that you should quote it.
• Shorter quotes are generally incorporated into the flow of a sentence while longer quotes may be set off in “blocks.” Check your citation handbook for quoting guidelines.

Paraphrasing is when you state the ideas from another source in your own words . Even when you use your own words, if the ideas or facts came from another source, you need to cite where they came from. Quotation marks are not used. For example:

With the simple music of the flute, Harry lulled the dog to sleep (Rowling 275).

Follow these guidelines when opting to paraphrase a passage:

• Don’t take a passage and change a word here or there. You must write out the idea in your own words. Simply changing a few words from the original source or restating the information exactly using different words is considered plagiarism .
• Read the passage, reflect upon it, and restate it in a way that is meaningful to you within the context of your paper . You are using this to back up a point you are making, so your paraphrased content should be tailored to that point specifically.
• After reading the passage that you want to paraphrase, look away from it, and imagine explaining the main point to another person.
• After paraphrasing the passage, go back and compare it to the original. Are there any phrases that have come directly from the original source? If so, you should rephrase it or put the original in quotation marks. If you cannot state an idea in your own words, you should use the direct quotation.

A summary is similar to paraphrasing, but used in cases where you are trying to give an overview of many ideas. As in paraphrasing, quotation marks are not used, but a citation is still necessary. For example:

Through a combination of skill and their invisibility cloak, Harry, Ron, and Hermione slipped through Hogwarts to the dog’s room and down through the trapdoor within (Rowling 271-77).

Important guidelines

When integrating a source into your paper, remember to use these three important components:

• Introductory phrase to the source material : mention the author, date, or any other relevant information when introducing a quote or paraphrase.
• Source material : a direct quote, paraphrase, or summary with proper citation.
• Analysis of source material : your response, interpretations, or arguments regarding the source material should introduce or follow it. When incorporating source material into your paper, relate your source and analysis back to your original thesis.

Ideally, papers will contain a good balance of direct quotations, paraphrasing and your own thoughts. Too much reliance on quotations and paraphrasing can make it seem like you are only using the work of others and have no original thoughts on the topic.

Always properly cite an author’s original idea, whether you have directly quoted or paraphrased it. If you have questions about how to cite properly in your chosen citation style, browse these citation guides . You can also review our guide to understanding plagiarism .

University Writing Center

The University of Nevada, Reno Writing Center provides helpful guidance on quoting and paraphrasing and explains how to make sure your paraphrasing does not veer into plagiarism. If you have any questions about quoting or paraphrasing, or need help at any point in the writing process, schedule an appointment with the Writing Center.

Works Cited

Rowling, J.K. Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone.  A.A. Levine Books, 1998.

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In order to make a clear, effective argument, you need to make sure to distinguish between your ideas and the ideas that come from your sources. A reader should always know when you are speaking and when your source is speaking. Once you've decided whether to paraphrase, summarize, or quote from a source, you should make sure your source material is clearly integrated into your paper.

Topic Sentence

When you are using sources in a paper, it’s important to keep your readers focused on what you are saying about the sources rather than on the sources themselves. A useful way to keep your paper focused is to begin each paragraph of your paper with a topic sentence that sets up the point of that paragraph in your own words rather than beginning with a quotation or an idea from a source. Even when you are summarizing source material to provide background for your argument, you should make it clear what that summary is doing for your argument by introducing the paragraph with a sentence in your own voice.

If you were summarizing part of Michael Sandel’s article “The Case Against Perfection” for an essay about his argument, you could begin with a sentence like this to let your reader know why they need this summary:

In order to understand why genetic enhancement could actually have different effects than those Sandel suggests, it’s important to first understand his main claims.

If you were analyzing Michael Sandel’s argument and arguing that parts of it are not convincing, you might begin with a topic sentence like this:

Sandel’s claim that widespread genetic enhancement would lead to a decrease in social solidarity is flawed because he does not acknowledge that society already lacks solidarity.

Framing Source Material

Make sure that every time you use material from a source, you introduce it in your own words and follow it with your own analysis or discussion so that your readers understand what purpose the material is serving in your essay. You should always make it clear where your ideas end and the source's ideas begin. Your paper should never contain a paragraph that is solely based on a source without any commentary from you.

Every quotation you use in your paper should be introduced with a sentence of your own that alerts the reader to your reason for using the quotation. You should then follow the quotation with your own discussion so that your readers understand why you have quoted from the source and what you want them to take away from the quotation. Your paper should clearly focus on your argument, and your readers need to know how each source helps to develop that argument.

In her Exposé essay about the composer Glenn Gould, Lucy Caplan creates clear boundaries between her own voice and the voices of her sources. In the following paragraph, she introduces the theories of two music critics, summarizing their debate in her own words and then following it with her own idea. Caplan’s ideas are in bold; note that she begins and ends the paragraph with her own discussion of the sources rather than letting the source material take over the paragraph.

The question of how to interpret music of the past is a matter of perpetual controversy. 1 Should performers play in a way that recreates the music as the composer would have heard it, or should they adjust to modern conventions? One point of view, represented by longtime New Yorker music critic Andrew Porter, advocates what is known as performance practice, a style based on the premise that the most valuable performances aim to recreate, as exactly as possible, the sounds the composer would have heard (160). 2 According to this theory, musicians should follow a composer's textual directions about tempo, dynamics and other details of performance; in this sense, performance practice aims for what may be called "historical fidelity," in which an ideal musical performance attempts to recreate, as authentically as possible, the very sounds a composer intended. But other critics, such as musicologist Richard Taruskin, counter that "authentic" performances do not necessarily have any greater aesthetic value (74). 3 Since musical performance necessarily involves a degree of interpretation on the part of the musician, he argues, performers should be able to interpret music freely, without feeling bound to strict conventions. The debate between these two points of view remains unresolved; indeed, it has only intensified as the music at the center of the debate moves further into the past. The debate over historical fidelity, in other words, becomes more difficult to resolve as modern musical traditions become less similar to its historical predecessors. 4

Caplan does the following to frame her source material:

• Caplan's topic sentence sets up the debate that she is going to discuss.
• In the third sentence, Caplan summarizes Andrew Porter's point of view and cites her source.
• Caplan begins her summary of Richard Taruskin's point of view in the fifth sentence of the paragraph. She cites her source at the end of the sentence.
• In the final two sentences of the paragraph, Caplan makes it clear that she is moving beyond her sources to state her own idea.

Later in her essay, Caplan quotes both Porter and Taruskin. Each time she quotes from one of these sources, she integrates the quotation into a sentence of her own so that her readers will know who is speaking and also what the quotation adds to her argument. If Caplan had simply reproduced the quotations without constructing her own sentences, her readers wouldn't know why she was sharing the quotations with them.

In the example below, Caplan embeds the quotation from Porter in a sentence that clearly contrasts Porter's view with Taruskin's view. In the next sentences, she expands her discussion of Taruskin's views. She finishes the paragraph by explaining what these quotations illustrate about the performance practice debate. 

Whereas Porter claimed in his New Yorker review that “Beethoven’s music rang out…more beautifully…on the early instruments,” Taruskin suggests that performance practice may yield musicians who passively rather than actively read musical compositions. In a passive interpretation, he writes, “the notes and rests are presented with complete accuracy and an equally complete neutrality” (72). Early music, in this context, can become “a positivistic purgatory, literalistic and dehumanizing, a thing of taboos and shalt-nots” (Taruskin 76). These terms may be extreme, but they do give an idea of the intensity of the performance practice debate; Taruskin’s concerns were shared to some extent by many critics of performance practice.

Signal Phrases

A signal phrase is an introductory clause that signals to the reader a shift in point of view from you to your source. The appropriate use of signal phrases varies from discipline to discipline. Writers in the humanities often signal a quotation or paraphrase with the author's name (as in "Chen argues…" or "Cole notes…"). The choice of verb in a signal phrase can give your readers information about the disposition of the source. For example, the phrase "Sandel argues" signals that Sandel is making a claim, while the phrase "Sandel notes" signals a more neutral reporting of information.

Social scientists may use signal phrases more sparingly, introducing the names of authors or researchers when they want to place particular emphasis on the credibility of the source or to draw attention to the importance of the source author. Pay close attention to how the authors you read in your courses use signal phrases; these models will provide you with clues about the conventions of a particular discipline. When in doubt, ask your instructor whether you should name authors in the body of your paper rather than leaving that information for your citations.

Here are some examples of signal phrases you might use:

Allen argues

Sandel notes

Lewis confirms

Gates emphasizes

Wilson contends

Patterson acknowledges

Mukherjee observes

Carpio suggests

Banaji claims

In her essay about alienation among McDonald's workers , Joanna Li quotes from and paraphrases a book by Robin Leidner. In the selection below, Li uses signal phrases to indicate when she is paraphrasing from and quoting from Leidner's book.

Quick, standard exchanges, Leidner reveals , had the added benefit of protecting workers from intrusive or uncomfortable personal conversations (146). Given the long lines and customer expectation for speedy service, highly personalized conversations were often desired by neither party and workers preferred customers who were "ready to give their order" (Leidner 143). As Leidner notes , McDonald's management valued a friendly atmosphere but emphasized speed as their first priority; routines helped workers who "prided themselves on their speedy service" (143) to stay efficient and professional.

By saying "Leidner reveals," Li signals that the idea that follows is Leidner's idea. The second signal phrase, "Leidner notes," signals to the reader that the idea and the quotation in this sentence are Leidner's ideas.

Quoting and Grammatical Sentences

When you introduce a quotation with a signal phrase, that quotation becomes part of your own sentence. It's important, then, to make sure that the sentence is grammatically correct. If you are having trouble molding the grammar of the quotation to the grammar of your paper, you can use brackets to help you. In the following sentence from Peter Bozzo's Exposé essay about the documentary film Paradise Lost: The Child Murders at Robin Hood Hills , Bozzo adds brackets to make the quotation fit grammatically into his own sentence.

The filmmakers highlight Echols's vanity by suggesting that it consumed him even when issues of his guilt or innocence and life or death were at stake; in actuality, however, his actions may have represented a typical response to correct for what Echols refers to in the second film as a "haircut [that] was actually given to me about five minutes before the hearing by a woman in the back room with a pair of plastic scissors."

In the original quotation, Echols says "a haircut was actually given to me about five minutes before the hearing…" In order to make his sentence read smoothly, Bozzo has added the "that" in brackets to fit the grammar of his sentence.

If you're quoting from a long passage and you don't want to use the whole passage, you can omit parts of it by using the ellipsis mark. The ellipsis is three periods, with spaces between them, and indicates to your reader that words have been omitted. Remember that you are obligated to represent a quotation accurately and that you should only omit words if those words do not change the meaning of the quotation. You don't need to use the ellipsis at the beginning or the end of a quotation since it will be clear to your reader that you have not quoted the entire source.

Le Coney and Trodd explain that

the frontier loomed large as early as 1960, when John F. Kennedy's Democratic Party Nomination acceptance speech observed: "From the lands that stretch 3000 miles behind me, the pioneers of old gave up their safety, their comfort and sometimes their lives to build a new world here in the West . . . But the problems are not all solved and the battles are not all won, and we stand today on the edge of a new frontier." 

Block Quotations

Block quotations should be used when the quotation you have chosen to include is too long to go into the body of your paragraph. When you use a block quotation in MLA, APA, or Chicago style, you should introduce the quotation with a sentence of your own that sets up the context for the quotation. You should also follow a block quotation with a sentence or more of your own that explains what you want your reader to understand about the quotation. You do not need to put quotation marks around the block quotation because the indentation shows readers that this is a quotation.

MLA Block Quotations

If you are using the MLA citation style you should use block quotations for any quotation that is more than four typed lines of prose or three lines of poetry. In the MLA style, block quotations should either be introduced with a sentence that ends with a colon or with punctuation that allows you to connect the quotation with the rest of your sentence. The quotation should be indented one inch from the left margin. You do not need to use quotation marks around the quotation. The citation (name and/or page number if this information does not appear in the body of the paper) comes after the final punctuation in the quotation. No additional punctuation follows.

Block quotation introduced by a sentence ending with a colon

The author investigated the different tours that Harvard students offer visitors and described her experience with Crimson Key in an article for Harvard Magazine :

At no point in our official travels did anyone scream, which I suppose I should have expected. Crimson Key focuses, above all, on accuracy. The training handbook for the guides clarifies confusing details and corrects popular myths. For instance, one rule states, “The Polaroid Story is FALSE” (referring to the belief that the Science Center was designed to look like a Polaroid camera). “We have been explicitly asked not to tell this story. DO NOT MENTION IT.” (Lasky)

Block quotation introduced by sentence that continues into the quotation

The author pulls the curtain back on the official Harvard tour, explaining that

At no point in our official travels did anyone scream, which I suppose I should have expected. Crimson Key focuses, above all, on accuracy. The training handbook for the guides clarifies confusing details and corrects popular myths. For instance, one rule states, “The Polaroid Story is FALSE” (referring to the belief that the Science Center was designed to look like a Polaroid camera). “We have been explicitly asked not to tell this story. DO NOT MENTION IT.”  (Lasky)

APA Block Quotations

If you are using the APA citation style, you should use block quotations for any quotation that is 40 or more words, and you should indent the passage one-half inch from the left margin. Citations should come after the final punctuation of the quotation, and you should not include any punctuation after the citation.

Margaret Klein Salamon describes an alternative to panic as a response to the climate emergency:

But aside from panic, individuals and groups can also respond to emergencies with reason, focus, dedication, and shocking success. Emergency mode is the mode of human psychological functioning that occurs when individuals or groups respond optimally to existential or moral emergencies. This mode of human functioning — markedly different from “normal” functioning — is characterized by an extreme focus of attention and resources on working productively to solve the emergency. (2017)

Margaret Klein Salamon explains that

aside from panic, individuals and groups can also respond to emergencies with reason, focus, dedication, and shocking success. Emergency mode is the mode of human psychological functioning that occurs when individuals or groups respond optimally to existential or moral emergencies. This mode of human functioning — markedly different from “normal” functioning — is characterized by an extreme focus of attention and resources on working productively to solve the emergency. (2017)

Chicago Block Quotations

If you are using the  Chicago citation style , you can decide whether to set off your block quotations or to run them into the body of your essay. If you do use block quotations in Chicago style, indent the quoted passage one-half inch from the left margin.

Don’t float the quotation! Follow quotation with your analysis of the quotation.

When you quote from any source, you should always be showing your readers how you are using the quotation in your paper by introducing it with your own sentence and following it with your own discussion. Here’s an example:

In her Expos essay about composer Glenn Gould, Lucy Caplan uses a block quotation from an article by music critic Andrew Porter. Caplan introduces her block quotation with a sentence of her own that provides the context for the quotation. This sentence ends with a colon.

Andrew Porter, in a 1986 New Yorker concert review, compared two performances of a Beethoven cello sonata, one of which took place on period instruments and one on modern instruments:

Polite discussion followed [the performances], but it was apparent to anyone with ears that Beethoven’s music rang out more bravely, more beautifully, and in better balance on the early instruments. In that direct comparison, the modernized cello sounded chocolate-coated and the little Yamaha piano loud and coarse. (142)

Caplan follows the block quotation with an entire paragraph of analysis in which she makes it clear to her readers how Porter's words add to her argument.

According to Porter, “anyone with ears” could hear the values of performance practice. In this sense, the standards of performance practice were important not only for their historical significance, but for their aesthetic value as well. Whether such standards were achieved with the use of early instruments or through strict interpretation, Porter seems clear: historically faithful performance sounded superior to the “loud and coarse” version offered by modern instruments. Performances on early instruments had more aesthetic value – they simply sounded better. For advocates of performance practice, then, period instruments were themselves essential in producing authentic interpretations of music.

Single vs. Double Quotation Marks

For MLA, APA, and Chicago, you should use double quotation marks when you quote material from a source. If you are also quoting passages from that source that were quoted in the original source, use single quotation marks to indicate that the original source contained the quotation.

If you are using a block quote, then you should use double quotation marks around the quoted material and no quotation marks around the block quote.

In her review of Joan Didion’s book Let Me Tell You What I Mean , Maia Silber quotes several passages from Didion’s book. If you were quoting from Silber’s review and you included those passages, you would need to indicate that the quoted language comes from Didion’s book rather than from Silber. In that case, you would use single quotation marks to indicate the quoted material:

Silber writes that “Didion begins in her familiarly sardonic tone, observing that ‘the wives had pretty dresses, and everyone liked Las Vegas.’”

Punctuation Quotations

In the system of punctuation used in the United States, periods and commas go inside quotation marks except when you use in-text citations. In those cases, periods and commas go outside the quotation marks after the parenthetical citation.

Punctuation inside the quotation marks

In his review of the performance, Owen Torrey described the moment that the musician “leaned back as the noise towered above, the crowd moving behind him in a moment of pure sound.” 1

---------------------------------------

1.  Owen Torrey, “Alex G Kept the Mystery Alive in Toronto,” Exclaim! , November 6, 2022, https://exclaim.ca/music/article/alex_g_concert_review_toronto_history .

Because this sentence contains a footnote rather than an in-text citation, the period goes inside the quotation marks.

Punctuation o utside the quotation marks

Batkin argues that “what is needed to shore up essential protections for low-income people is a principle behind wealth-based equal process” (2021, p.1553).

Because this sentence includes an in-text citation, the period goes outside the quotation marks.

Exclamation points and question marks go inside the quotation marks when they are part of the quotation, and outside when they are part of your own sentence that contains the quotation. With in-text citations, the question mark or exclamation point goes inside the quotation if it is part of that quotation, and a period follows the parenthetical citation.

In an interview, Peter Singer expressed concern about whether he should have spent so much time writing about his family history, saying, “And I still have that feeling a little bit. Which of my works have done the most good?” (Gross).

But what are we to make of Harding's admonition to "write while you can no matter the sacrifice"? 1

Colons and semicolons go outside quotation marks unless they are part of the quotation

Sandel argues that “the problem is not the drift to mechanism but the drive to mastery”; in other words, he is more concerned about the implications of trying to control nature.

Use the Latin word sic to indicate that a grammatical or spelling error appears in the source that you are quoting and is not your error. Sic should be enclosed in brackets within the quotation. APA style and Chicago style require sic to be italicized; MLA style does not.

In his letter to the editor, Harding admonishes his audience to "rite [sic] while you can, no matter the sacrifice" (23).

• Locating Sources
• Evaluating Sources
• Sources and Your Assignment
• A Source's Role in Your Paper
• Choosing Relevant Parts of a Source
• Summarizing, Paraphrasing, and Quoting

PDFs for This Section

• Using sources
• Integrating Sources
• Online Library and Citation Tools

Integrating Sources

Once you have evaluated your source materials, you should select your sources and decide how to include them in your work. You can quote directly, paraphrase passages, or simply summarize the main points— and you can use all of these techniques in a single document. It’s important to learn how to quote, when to quote, and when not to quote so that you can utilize examples most effectively. Outside sources can be incredibly supportive in your writing if you know how to incorporate them effectively.

Choosing Sources to Establish Credibility

The main reason writers include sources in their work is to establish credibility with their audience. Credibility is the level of trustworthiness and authority that a reader perceives a writer has on a subject and is one of the key characteristics of effective writing, especially argumentative writing.

Without credibility, a writer's ideas are easily dismissed. Including sources in your writing indicates that your opinions are based on more than a personal or surface knowledge of the subject. It shows that others find your ideas worthy of consideration, that experts in the field corroborate your reasoning, and that there is hard evidence to support your opinion. “Peer Reviewed” sources are generally considered the most credible.

To Show Your Knowledge of the Subject

Writing that "shoots from the hip," without citing sources, is fine for many purposes. It works for an Op-Ed piece, for instance, but not for academic writing.

Without establishing that they have researched and studied their subject, writers can and do appear intelligent and witty, however, the question arises: how much do they really know about their topic?

Citing and documenting source material in your work shows your reader how knowledgeable you are regarding the facts and background of your subject. Your reader will know that you've put time and effort into making sure you "know whereof you speak."

Aligning Yourself with Experts

When establishing credibility with a jury, attorneys often call witnesses to the stand who have expertise in a given field. The "expert witness" provides opinions and presents facts regarding the technical aspects of a case. This is done because the attorney does not have the professional credentials of the witness. By borrowing the credentials of the "expert" the attorney is better able to argue his or her case.

For instance, a brain surgeon has the medical expertise to explain whether, why, or how a certain type of brain injury leads to memory loss. The attorney does not and banks on the jury trusting the "expert testimony" of the surgeon.

As a student, you are often put into this same position. You will be writing about unfamiliar subjects; topics in which you have little or no expertise. By including source material in your writing you, too, are calling upon "expert witnesses."

Researching outside sources helps you find statements from authorities on the subject that you then can quote or paraphrase within your paper. The ideas you express then become not just yours, but those of men and women who have studied and worked in your field of study for years. In effect, you make your case by "borrowing" the knowledge of experts and including it in your paper.

To Show Agreement

One person declaring something to be true can be easily ignored or dismissed. After all, it is only one person's opinion. It may or may not be true. When several people agree that something is true, however, it is not so easy to dismiss.

By including source material in your writing, you tell your reader, in effect, that there is a "chorus" of agreement on your ideas.

That said, be aware that a "chorus" of agreement does not necessarily mean that the "chorus" is right. Citing and documenting the "chorus" simply bolsters the credibility of your argument and gives others the opportunity to research your findings further and come to their own conclusions.

It also indicates that you have done your homework on the subject and that what you have to say can be trusted at least to the extent of your research efforts.

To Introduce Factual Evidence

Because factual information (such as the date a war started) and statistics can be independently verified by your readers through their own research or experimentation, this type of evidence is often the most credible form of support you can offer for your ideas.

As a student, you usually might not have the time to conduct first-hand surveys or experiments of your own to generate this kind of evidence. Instead, you might call on the research conducted by others to bring in factual evidence to back up your ideas (giving full credit to the source of the evidence, of course).

Methods for Synthesizing Sources

After choosing your sources and establishing what you want to do with them, you should synthesize those sources to relate them to your own writing purpose. There are a few different methods you can use to synthesize sources. To synthesize sources is to combine different scholarly works to produce a nuanced understanding or insight. Two of the most common strategies for synthesizing sources are ‘Explanatory Synthesis’ and ‘Argumentative Synthesis’-- they each do different work and should be employed in different writing situations.

Explanatory Synthesis

An explanatory synthesis is generally more factual and not inclusive of writer opinion. In informative or explanatory writing you are bringing related information together, explaining that relatedness, and relaying the implications. When synthesizing explanatory sources, you are using established knowledge from researchers to reach some sort of conclusion. Again, you should stay neutral in an explanatory synthesis and not take one position or another on the topic.

Argumentative Synthesis

An argumentative synthesis is oriented around an opinion or argument, which is explained by the writer. You are bringing together multiple sources and showing how they relate to your argument, either supporting it or disagreeing with it. By combining different sources related to your argument, you can form a new ‘take’ that directly references established research. The analytical comments you provide on those sources should make your stance on the issue clear to the audience.

Quoting Source Material

There are many reasons for quoting source material, a primary one being that captured in the expression: "getting it straight from the horse's mouth."

Quoting authoritative voices in your field lends credence to the arguments you present. By association, your words and those you quote are drawn closer together, creating powerful perceptions for you readers regarding the veracity and validity of your work.

It's especially important in academic writing that original sources be quoted accurately and correctly and that they be cited immediately following their appearance in the text.

Quoting Directly

Quoting Directly means taking a specific statement or passage made directly by an author and including it, word for word, in your work. The words you quote are original to the author you are quoting and are not taken from any other source.

You may not rephrase the statement or passage; simply copy it into your document exactly as you found it, punctuating it with an open quotation mark placed directly before the first word and a closing quotation mark placed directly after the last word.

Example of Quoting Directly

Original Passage:

This first juxtaposition sets up a tension between black reality and the white ideal. The question that arises is how this disparity came about. Readers--particularly white readers as we most closely match that ideal--must ask themselves: "Who or what is, after all, responsible for the soil that is bad for certain kinds of flowers, for seeds it will not nurture, for fruit it will not bear?" (Napieralski 61)

--from Brenda Edmands, "The Gaze That Condemns: White Readers, Othering And Division in Toni Morrison's The Bluest Eye" (Unpublished Essay)

Edmonds material quoted directly in the following passage:

It is clear that Toni Morrison is using the excerpt from the classic children's novels, Dick and Jane, for the purpose of establishing a conflict between "the norm"-in this case the white culture-and "the other"-black culture. By following the Dick and Jane excerpt so closely with the short prologue describing Pecola's pregnancy by her father and her subsequent shunning by the townspeople, Morrison "sets up a tension between black reality and the white ideal" (Edmands).

Note how the source citation is documented within the sentence in which the quote appears.

Quoting Previously Quoted Material

Quoting previously quoted material means taking a specific statement or passage that the author of your source material has already taken (directly quoted) from another source, and inserting it into your work.

The rules remain the same as when quoting directly; you may not rephrase the statement or passage, but copy it exactly as it was written, placing the quotation marks in exactly the same manner. You must document previously quoted material differently, however, than other types of quotations.

Example of Quoting Previously Quoted Material

The Original Source Material says:

The question that arises is how this disparity came about. Readers--particularly white readers as we most closely match that ideal--must ask themselves: "Who or what is, after all, responsible for the soil that is bad for certain kinds of flowers, for seeds it will not nurture, for fruit it will not bear?" (Napieralski 61)

Napieralski's statement, previously quoted by Edmonds, quoted in the following passage:

In Morrison's novel, The Bluest Eye, the overriding question is about responsibility according to Professor Edmund A. Napieralski: "Who or what is, after all, responsible for the soil that is bad for certain kinds of flowers, for seeds it will not nurture, for fruit it will not bear?" (qtd. in Edmands)

Note how the citation here tells the reader that this quotation was previously quoted in the source by Edmands and how it appears outside of the sentence in which the quote appears.

Using a Quotation within a Quotation

Using a quotation within a quotation means taking a passage from your source material that is a combination of the author's own words and a passage that he or she has quoted from yet another source, and inserting that into your own work.

While you document these types of quotations in the same manner as direct quotations, you use slightly different punctuation to indicate where the author's own words leave off, and the quoted passage begins.

Example of Using a Quotation within a Quotation

This first juxtaposition sets up a tension between black reality and the white ideal. The question that arises is how this disparity came about. Readers-particularly white readers as we most closely match that ideal-must ask themselves: "Who or what is, after all, responsible for the soil that is bad for certain kinds of flowers, for seeds it will not nurture, for fruit it will not bear?" (Napieralski 61)

Edmands' introductory material, including the previously quoted Napieralski statement, quoted in the following passage:

Many scholars feel there is a need for white readers to wrestle with questions of race in Morrison's The Bluest Eye in a fashion different from readers of other races. Brenda Edmands, a lecturer in the English Department at Colorado State University, argues that white readers must consider questions of racial disparity in the novel more closely. According to Ms. Edmands: "Readers-particularly white readers as we most closely match that ideal-must ask themselves: 'Who or what is, after all, responsible for the soil that is bad for certain kinds of flowers, for seeds it will not nurture, for fruit it will not bear?' (Napieralski 61)" ("The Gaze That Condemns").

Note how the material quoted from Napieralski is enclosed by single quotation marks while the entire passage taken from the Edmands essay, including the Napieralski quote, is enclosed in double quotation marks. As with a direct quotation, the relevant documentation is cited within the sentence in which it appears.

Using Block Quotations

A lengthy quotation—one exceeding three lines of text—is often set off as a"block quotation," or independent passage indented on the left margin. Typically, they appear immediately following the paragraph introducing the quotation.

The general rule is to end the last sentence of the paragraph preceding the block quotation with a colon, then drop down a line in your text—as if beginning a new paragraph—before inserting the quoted material. One inch (about 10 spaces) is the standard.

Be sure to cite the source of your quotation properly: for more on that, please refer to the style rules of the documentation system (MLA, APA, Chicago Manual of Style, etc.) your academic discipline requires.

Note: Unlike other quotations, block quotations do not require the use of quotation marks. Blocking and indenting the text, as well as introducing the quotation in the preceding paragraph, sufficiently notifies the reader of its status.

Example of Block Quoting

In the article "Dispositions for Good Teaching," Gary R. Howard concludes:

Having said this, it remains true that all American citizens have a constitutionally guaranteed First Amendment right to remain imprisoned in their own conditioned narrowness and cultural isolation. This luxury of ignorance, however, is not available to us as teachers. Ours is a higher calling, and for the sake of our students and the future of their world, we are required to grow toward a more adaptive set of human qualities, which would include the dispositions for difference, dialogue, disillusionment, and democracy. These are the capacities that will make it possible for us to thrive together as a species. These are the personal and professional dispositions that render us worthy to teach. (para. 28)

Howard, G. R. (2007). Dispositions for Good Teaching. Journal of Educational Controversy . Retrieved Oct 25, 2007, from http://www.wce.wwu.edu/Resources/CEP/eJournal/v002n002/a009.shtml

When to Quote

Source material should be quoted when it enhances the focus of your document and maximizes the impact of the message you are trying to convey. When it does not, it's best to use your own words. In other words, you should only really quote if some kind of efficacy will be lost by not quoting.

Quoting a Well Known Person

Quoting a well known person helps catch the attention of your reader. A trait of human nature is that people often listen more carefully when a widely recognized authority speaks. When you include statements from such people, quote them directly, rather than paraphrasing or summarizing. Doing so preserves the accuracy of the author's original words.

Quoting Unique or Striking Material

Quoting unique or striking material preserves the freshness, power and beauty of the author's original words. Paraphrasing or summarizing this kind of material will diminish the inherent strength that attracted you to them in the first place.

Direct quotations allow you to "borrow" the writing tone and style of a recognized author. This will enhance your own writing, without plagiarizing, and make it more appealing to your reader while successfully conveying your own ideas.

Example of Unique or Striking Material

When you can "hear" an individual's spoken voice in a written passage or, when the writing is particularly beautiful or unique, quote it directly. The stylistic flair in the following passage, for instance, would be hard to duplicate if not quoted directly.

We've seen a huge rise in the number of fatal Human-Mountain Lion encounters during the past decade (Smith 21). With humans increasingly moving into the lion's natural territory, is it any wonder that these tragedies are occurring? These kinds of attacks must be laid squarely at the pedicured feet of the yuppie mountain dwellers who build million-dollar homes in the foothills, right smack in the middle of the mountain lion's usual hunting ground, and then wonder why their poodle Fifi becomes lion chow or why, when they go to put their garbage out, they find themselves staring into a lion's unblinking golden gaze.

Rephrasing "right smack in the middle" and "lion chow" with "directly in the path of" and "lion food", would diminish the spoken quality and sarcastic tone of the original wording; a "lion's unblinking golden gaze" would lose a great deal of beauty and rhythm if converted to "the lion's staring yellow eyes".

Quoting Controversial Material

Quoting controversial material puts distance between you and the quoted source. This is especially important when readers might react negatively toward information or opinions that contain startling, questionable or overly biased statements and statistics.

Example of Controversial Material

This paragraph contains controversial material. It is blunt, sarcastic and highly opinionated. It is best to quote statements of this nature directly, as they exhibit an overly biased position.

We've seen a huge rise in the number of fatal Human-Mountain Lion encounters during the past decade (Smith 21). With humans increasingly moving into the lion's natural territory, is it any wonder that these tragedies are occurring? These kinds of attacks must be laid squarely at the carefully pedicured feet of the yuppie mountain dwellers who build million-dollar homes in the foothills, right smack in the middle of the mountain lion's usual hunting ground, and then wonder why their poodle Fifi becomes lion chow or why, when they go to put their garbage out, they find themselves staring into a lion's unblinking golden gaze.

By directly quoting this material, you will avoid leaving the impression that the thoughts conveyed in the passage are yours. A quotation clearly indicates that you are not the author.

When Not to Quote

Source material should be quoted when it enhances the focus of your document and maximizes the impact of the message you are trying to convey. When it does not, it's best to use your own words.

In an argumentative piece, it’s especially important to ensure that your own voice is present and at the forefront at all times.

Overusing Quotations

Overusing quotations may leave the impression that you are simply cutting and pasting the words and opinions of other people into your document rather than expressing your own ideas. It may lead a reader to question your originality and understanding of the material you are quoting.

Example of Overusing Quotations

In the following paragraph, a series of quotations about smoking have been cut and pasted together. Each quote has a specific focus, ranging from medical dangers to lingering bad odors, and yet, none build up to or explain their relevance.

Smoking should be banned from restaurants. "The regulation is long overdue" (Jones 12). "We need to ban smoking to help prevent diseases such as cancer, asthma, and bronchitis" (Smith 45). According to one restaurant customer: "I find someone smoking next to me really destroys my meal. I can't taste it anymore" (qtd. in Smith 45). "Too many restaurant owners ignore how dangerous second hand smoke is. They don't take steps voluntarily to make sure their nonsmoking customers aren't exposed, so we need to force the issue through regulations" (Jones 21). "Smoking makes my hair and clothes smell. I always have to take a shower after I've been out to eat in a restaurant that allows smoking" (Andrews 5).

As it stands, the paragraph is no more than a list of random complaints serving no clear purpose. The quotes could easily be paraphrased and placed in a bulleted list entitled "Reasons Why Smoking Should be Banned from Restaurants".

Not only does the paragraph lack purpose as a result of overusing quotes, the author’s voice isn’t present either. It’s completely overshadowed by other people’s words. Each quote should be introduced, and the purpose of its inclusion should be made clear in the author’s own words.

Unmemorable Material

Unmemorable material contains widely accepted statements of fact that are unlikely to generate debate (i.e. "Smoking causes cancer"). There is nothing to be gained by quoting this kind of statement. Source material containing a generally neutral tone or stated without some sort of stylistic flourish that strengthens your own thoughts and ideas can just as easily be paraphrased or summarized.

Example of Unmemorable Material

There is nothing particularly memorable, stylish, or controversial in the highlighted sentence below. Since it can be rephrased without losing any meaning, quoting makes little sense.

Immediately upon opening Toni Morrison's The Bluest Eye we are confronted with the idea of othering and, in particular, that this othering is a result of establishing the white culture as the norm. The novel begins with a section from a classic children's book that paints an idealized picture of a family. We assume the family being described is white both because we are familiar with the book being excerpted and because of the era in which it was written.

--from Brenda Edmands, "The Gaze That Condemns: White Readers, Othering And Division in Toni Morrison's The Bluest Eye"

Irrelevant Material

Irrelevant Material contains information or opinions that have little to do with the point you are trying to make. Briefly summarizing this kind of material rather than quoting it will help keep your writing focused on a specific idea. In addition, your reader will not get the idea that quotations have been included as filler rather than as meaningful and useful information. Using a quote without reason can derail the focus of a paper and therefore confuse the reader.

Example of Irrelevant Material

In the passage below, the writer discusses how the Pulitzer Prize winning author Toni Morrison uses children's literature in her own writing. For an essay arguing that adult novelists frequently use children's literature in their works, quoting the passage might support the argument.

Including all, or even part of it, may leave your reader wondering who Pecola is, however, and why the details of her pregnancy are relevant to your focus.

Toni Morrison's novel begins with a section from a classic children's book that paints an idealized picture of a family. We assume the family being described is white both because we are familiar with the book being excerpted and because of the era in which it was written. Mother, father, sister, brother, cat and dog all live in harmony in a white and green house. Contrasted with this portrait on the very next page is an image of utterly frightening disharmony in a family--Pecola's father has gotten her pregnant--and of two sisters in disagreement over seeds being planted in black dirt. This first juxtaposition sets up a tension between black reality and white ideal. --from Brenda Edmands, "The Gaze That Condemns: White Readers, Othering And Division in Toni Morrison's The Bluest Eye"

The particular point Morrison makes when quoting The Bluest Eye has nothing to with an essay on novelists citing children's literature. It would be better to simply summarize the idea that Morrison quotes a child's book to set up tension and introduce her major themes, rather than quote the entire passage.

Overly Wordy Material

Overly Wordy Material should not be quoted. When you can restate the same information or the general idea in a more succinct fashion, do so. While it is tempting to include original wording to help increase the length of your essay, don’t do it. Similar to Irrelevant Material, Overly Wordy Material confuses the reader and makes your overall focus less clear.

Readers can spot this kind of filler easily and will cause them to question your integrity. Are you trying to present your points clearly and convincingly, or are you simply trying to fill up pages?

Example of Overly Wordy Material

Each sentence in the sample paragraph below says essentially the same thing, though in a slightly different manner. Together, they are a tangle of unnecessary, confusing and repetitive subordinate clauses. It would be better and more efficient to summarize what Bowers is saying, rather than quote the whole passage.

Teachers from all levels of the education process, from kindergarten to graduate schools, need to take immediate steps to ensure that all students leave school fully prepared to be contributing members of society. We must make certain that they graduate ready to give back to their communities, not just to take from them; that they walk out the doors of our institutions not just thinking about how to make a buck, but how to make a difference. Students must be taught to be civic minded, to think in terms not only of what will benefit them individually, but also in terms of what will benefit society as a whole. We have to teach them not to be selfish isolationists, but generous, willing contributors to our communities.   --from Angela Bowers, "Our Responsibility to the Community" *

*This is a fictional source created solely for the purpose of providing an example.

Sample Summary:

Angela Bowers, a professor of human development, feels that one of our duties as educators is to teach civic responsibility to our students. ("Our Responsibility" 21)

Note how this cuts to the chase of the main point of the source material, neither leaving out crucial points, nor repeating any statements included in the original passage.

Editing Quotations

In order to clarify vague references, avoid irrelevant details or blend a quoted passage smoothly into the surrounding text. You may also need to edit the quotations you use.

Omitting Words and Phrases

At times, you may wish to quote only parts of a passage, omitting words and phrases to avoid irrelevant details or combine it smoothly with the sentences in which it is framed. You may do so at the beginning, middle or end of the quoted material, but remember, your reader must be informed of the omission.

The manner in which you indicate what has been omitted depends upon where in the passage it occurs and whether it remains a complete grammatical unit after the omission.

Making Quotes Grammatically Correct

If, after omitting words from the beginning, the quoted passage becomes an incomplete grammatical unit, a dependent clause, you may either insert a bracketed ([]) word or phrase into the quote or, combine it with a framing sentence that corrects the improper grammar as in the following examples.

Example of Framing to Make a Quotation Grammatically Correct

"These kinds of attacks must be laid squarely at the pedicured feet of the yuppie mountain dwellers who build million-dollar homes in the foothills, right smack in the middle of the mountain lion's usual hunting ground, and then wonder why their poodle Fifi becomes lion chow or why, when they go to put their garbage out, they find themselves staring into a lion's unblinking golden gaze."

In this case you wish to preserve the author's unique and striking tone; however, the entire passage is too wordy. You may introduce the portion of the passage with a beginning frame.

Correctly Quoted:

The blame for the increasing frequency of these dangerous, and sometimes fatal, human-mountain lion encounters "must be laid squarely at the pedicured feet of the yuppie mountain dwellers who build million-dollar homes in the [Rocky Mountain] foothills. . . ." (Cronin 21)

Note how the clause before the quotation (the beginning frame) and the quotation itself are grammatically incomplete. Each is a dependent clause when standing alone. Notice that when the two clauses are combined, they form a complete and grammatically correct sentence.

Example of Inserting Words to Make a Quotation Grammatically Correct

"They feel there is only one answer to the lack of civility and increase in violence in schools: to post the Ten Commandments in every classroom."

The wording following the colon, "to post the Ten Commandments in every classroom", is all you intend to quote from the original passage, however, standing alone, it is an incomplete sentence, a dependent clause. To correct this you might insert the words [The answer is], in brackets, like so:

Congress has addressed violence in schools by pushing for laws that would require schools to provide a specific moral code to students: " [The answer is] to post the Ten Commandments in every classroom."

Omitting Words at the Beginning of a Quote

If, after omitting words from the beginning, the quoted passage remains a complete grammatical unit, an independent clause, simply capitalize the first letter of the first word of the shortened quotation. Brackets ([]) placed around the newly capitalized letter indicate that words preceding the bracketed letter have been omitted.

Example of Omitting Words at the Beginning of a Quote

Using Brackets to indicate Omitted Words

Second, there are economic benefits to cycling. I save money on gas, car insurance, parking fees, and maintenance costs on my car. While there are occasional costs for maintenance on my bicycle, much of the work I can do myself, and when I do have to take it to a bike shop, the hourly rate for labor is considerably lower than what most auto mechanics receive.

To blend the above passage more smoothly into a paragraph on the benefits of cycling, the author of the piece below removed the word "second". To indicate the omission, the first letter of the abbreviated quote was capitalized and bracketed.

In addition, according to cycling advocate Harold Burns, " [T] here are economic benefits to cycling. I save money on gas, car insurance, parking fees, and maintenance costs on my car. While there are occasional costs for maintenance on my bicycle, much of the work I can do myself, and when I do have to take it to a bike shop, the hourly rate for labor is considerably lower than what most auto mechanics receive" (154).

Omitting Words from the Middle or at the End of a Quote

When omitting words from the middle or end of a quoted sentence, indicate with an ellipse (…) where the omission occurs. When they occur at the end, place a period after the last word and then insert your ellipse. In either case, take care that the wording remains grammatically correct.

Example of Using Ellipses to Indicate Omitted Words

In example A below, the writer omitted words from the middle of the original passage, replacing them with an ellipse (?). In example B the writer omitted the entire second sentence, replacing it with an ellipse immediately following the period ending the first sentence.

"Second, there are economic benefits to cycling. I save money on gas, car insurance, parking fees, and maintenance costs on my car. While there are occasional costs for maintenance on my bicycle . . . the hourly rate for labor is considerably lower than what most auto mechanics receive."

"Second, there are economic benefits to cycling . . . . While there are occasional costs for maintenance on my bicycle, much of the work I can do myself, and when I do have to take it to a bike shop, the hourly rate for labor is considerably lower than what most auto mechanics receive."

Inserting Editorial Comments into a Quote

At times, you will find it necessary to add an editorial comment within a quotation in order to clarify terms or references which, having been pulled from their original context may not be as clear to your reader as they are to you.

Understanding your audience will help you decide what needs clarification. Bear in mind they may not have the same research and scholarship under their belt as you. The terms and references in a quote may be unfamiliar and need explaining.

Under such circumstances you may either insert an explanation, within brackets ([]), directly after the word or phrase needing clarification or, you may replace it entirely with the bracketed word or phrase.

Example of Using Brackets to Insert Editorial Comments

"They frequently argue for the need to apply the First Amendment to the issue of prayer in schools."

If you were to include the quotation above in a document you are writing, you would doubtless know to whom "they" refers because you would have read the original source material in which it was included. But will your reader?

To clarify who is making the argument about prayer in schools, an editorial comment can be inserted within brackets ([]) directly after the word "they", as in example A below or, instead of it, as in example B.

"They [religious leaders] frequently argue for the need to apply the First Amendment to the issue of prayers in school."

" [Religious leaders] frequently argue for the need to apply the First Amendment to the issue of prayers in school."

Blending Quoted Material

One of the goals of effective writing is creating a sense of unity, a sense that all parts of the text are clearly related. To achieve this you must connect each part. A quotation must blend into your text so that it reads as an integral part of the sentence and paragraph in which it is included.

A quotation that lacks a clear relationship to its surrounding text makes a paragraph sound choppy and unfocused. Your reader will find it more difficult to decide if the quotation expands or clarifies the idea being presented, or if it is an example of a situation or fact that supports the idea, or whether it presents an opposing view.

To avoid this, make sure to blend your quotations into the text of your document. Use frames and transitions that clue your reader into the reason why it is being included.

Framing to Blend Source Material

Framing any quote or paraphrasing that you use helps ensure that you are sufficiently analyzing that source material wherever it’s included. A frame is simply an introduction at the beginning of your quote and a follow-up statement at the end. They are the bookends that keep the quote from sliding off the shelf.

An Opening Frame is often called an "Author's Tag". It establishes the identity and credibility of your source. It also ties the quotation to the focus of your document, hinting at what you are going to reveal, explain, or support.

Without a beginning frame, your reader may rightly question the authority and trustworthiness of the source of the quotation.

A Closing Frame explains how the quotation is relevant to the point being made and, in addition, shows that you are capable of expressing ideas in your own words. This is important in the process of establishing your authority as a writer.

Without an end frame, different readers may take away different ideas from the same piece of text: an unintended consequence.

Example of Framing a Direct Quote

Notice how the opening frame in the paragraph below introduces the quotation. First, a general point is made regarding increased mountain lion encounters. Next, Biologist Samuel Cronin, a credible expert, is introduced. The fact that Cronin "agrees" tips the reader that the quotation is there to support the writer's view presented in the opening frame.

Each year has seen an increase in encounters between humans, and their pets, and mountain lions. This is the fault of humans encroaching on the animal's rightful territory. Biologist Samuel Cronin agrees: "These kinds of attacks must be laid squarely at the pedicured feet of yuppie mountain dwellers who build million-dollar homes in the foothills, right smack in the middle of the mountain lion's usual hunting ground, and then wonder why their poodle Fifi becomes lion chow, or why when they go to put their garbage out, they find themselves staring into a lion's unblinking golden gaze." It is our behavior that has created the danger. The lion did not come down out of the mountains into our suburban backyards; we've moved the suburbs into his.

The closing frame focuses the reader's attention on the fact that human behavior and the issue of where million-dollar homes are built is the main point and that other issues, such as keeping pets in a wild area and class-status of homeowners, is not.

Notice how restating the idea in the Cronin quotation allows the writer's own voice to emerge. A strong personal statement on the subject clarifies why the quotation was included in the first place.

Using Transitions to Blend Quoted Material

Transitions are words or phrases that indicate the relationship between two statements. They are the "bridges" that link two sentences or paragraphs together.

For instance, the words "furthermore", "also", and "additionally" are transitions indicating that the statement to follow will link to or build upon the ideas expressed just previously. Notice how this paragraph begins with "for instance".

Transitional words and phrases like "for example" and "for instance" establish that the following statement is going to illustrate the point made in the first. Words such as "however" and "although", on the other hand, establish that the statement following it is a contradiction to the preceding statement.

Using transitions before and after you insert outside source material clarifies for your reader why it was included and how it relates to your focus.

Example of Using Transitions

Notice how the phrase "In addition" tips off the reader that the quotation is going to build on the ideas in the preceding sentences. The transition indicates that the quotation is an additional item in the focus of this paragraph: the benefits of cycling.

There are many health reasons to bike instead of drive. It's a cardiovascular workout; it burns many more calories than driving; it's less stressful, so it keeps your blood pressure down; and it strengthens your muscles. In addition , according to cycling advocate Harold Burns, "[T]here are economic benefits to cycling. I save money on gas, car insurance, parking fees, and maintenance costs on my car. While there are occasional costs for maintenance on my bicycle, much of the work I can do myself, and when I do have to take it to a bike shop, the hourly rate for labor is considerably lower than what most auto mechanics receive" (154). Cycling, we can see, is good for the well being of your body and your wallet.

Grammar and Spelling Issues

Problems regarding misspelled words and grammatical errors are bound to occur when quoting an outside source. There are two underlying causes for this.

Quotations Containing Pre-existing Errors

Quotations containing pre-existing grammar and spelling errors are often found in source material published by highly recognized and credible authors. Naturally, you may be tempted to make an appropriate correction. Don't-doing so is against the rule disallowing the alteration of someone else's words. Instead of correcting spelling and grammar errors, simply note them for your reader's benefit.

Example of Noting Grammatical Errors in a Quotation

"Many activists feels that the gun lobby holds too much influence in Congress."

The original wording is grammatically incorrect due to a misspelled word. Regardless, you may not alter the original words. Note the error by inserting the word "sic", which means as it is in the original, in brackets ([]) directly after its occurrence in the sentence.

"Many activists feels [sic] that the gun lobby holds too much influence in Congress."

This is a signal to your reader that the error was not committed by you, that you are aware of the error and that your intention is to accurately and faithfully transcribe the original wording found in the quote. This is known as an editorial comment.

Creating Grammatical Errors by Omitting

Creating grammatical errors is the inevitable consequence of omitting words and phrases from a quotation. This usually happens at the beginning or end of a quote in order to eliminate irrelevant material or reduce its wordiness.

If a passage is no longer a complete grammatical unit after omitting words, you may either insert an editorial comment in brackets ([]) to help it make grammatical sense or, combine the quoted passage with an opening frame in a manner that creates a complete grammatical unit.

Example of Combining an Opening Frame with a Quotation

In the passage below the author's unique and striking tone is worth preserving, however, the entire passage is too wordy. Both the beginning and the end of the quotation are going to be omitted.

The clause before the quotation (the opening frame) and the quotation itself are dependent clauses when standing alone. When the two are combined, however, they form a complete, grammatically correct sentence.

Note how the writer has inserted an ellipse before the period at the end of the sentence to indicate omitted text. Note also how the bracketed words provide a clarification regarding to which foothills the quote refers.

Punctuating Quotations

An opening frame such as an attribution or Author tag introducing a quotation, and the quotation itself should be punctuated at the spot in the sentence where the two meet. This guide provides instructions on how to do that.

The grammatical relationship between the opening frame and the actual quotation will define what type of punctuation you should use.

Punctuating Two Independent Clauses

When a beginning frame is an independent clause and the quotation it precedes is also an independent clause, the two may be separated with a colon or semi-colon.

This indicates to the reader the close relationship between the two and that the quotation is either a restatement or a clarification of the idea presented in the beginning frame.

Both can stand on their own as complete grammatical units, however, the colon separating them indicates that the frame leads into the quotation.

Example of Punctuating Two Independent Clauses

Teachers have a responsibility to teach students to be contributing members of society: "We [educators] must make certain that they graduate ready to give back to their communities, not just ready to take from them. . . ." (Bowers 21)

Notice how the quotation elaborates on what is meant by "contributing member of society." It clarifies that "contributing" means "giving back." Each statement is an independent clause; however, the colon linking them together indicates a close relationship between the two.

Punctuating Two Dependent Clauses

When you choose to quote only part of an original passage and the resulting quotation becomes an incomplete sentence (a dependent clause), you may combine it with an opening frame that is also incomplete in order to form one complete grammatical unit.

Example of Punctuating Two Dependent Clauses

There is no doubt that those at fault are "yuppie mountain dwellers who build million-dollar homes in the foothills. . . ."

Neither clause in this sentence can stand on its own. When combined, however, the sentence reads as a complete grammatical unit. Though this is not always the case, in this example, the two dependant clauses are combined without any punctuation between the frame and the quotation.

Punctuating a Dependant and an Independent Clause

One of the most common opening frames is an author tag or attribution such as, "According to Howard Sprague, an accountant with…" or, "As President Clinton said in his first inaugural speech…."

By themselves neither is a complete sentence. We are left waiting to hear what was said by Mr. Sprague and what was said by President Clinton. As opening frames they are dependent upon the quotes they precede.

When the opening frame is a dependant clause, such as an author tag, and the following quote is an independent clause the two may be separated by a comma or a colon, depending upon the length of the quote, as in Examples A and B.

Example of Punctuating an Independent and a Dependent Clause

(A) Author Tag followed by a Short Quote

As John Murphy says, "There is no other viable option."

(B) Attribution followed by a Long Quote   Biologist Samuel Cronin contends: "These kinds of attacks must be laid squarely at the pedicured feet of yuppie mountain dwellers who build million-dollar homes in the foothills, right smack in the middle of the mountain lion's usual hunting ground, and then wonder why their poodle Fifi becomes lion chow, or why when they go to put their garbage out, they find themselves staring into a lion's unblinking golden gaze."

Here again, the beginning frame can not stand on its own as a complete grammatical unit. It is dependent on the quotation to make it a complete thought. Because the quotation is so long, a colon should be placed between the frame and the quotation.

Quick Guide to Punctuating Quotations

Here are some simple rules to follow when punctuating quotations:

• Place double quotation marks (""), often called opening and closing quotation marks, at the beginning and end of your quotation.
• Place single quotation marks (' '), at the beginning and end of a quotation that appears within another quotation.
• "Mary is fine," her sister said.
• "When Mary said 'she was cool' , she meant that she was fine," her sister said.
• What did Mary mean when she said she was "cool" ?
• Always place colons and semicolons outside quotation marks.
• Do not place quotation marks around extended blocks of quoted text. Instead, format four or more lines into an indented block one inch, or ten spaces, from the left margin. Place a colon at the end of the sentence that introduces your block quote.
• Place a three-point ellipse, with one space before and one after, to mark the location inside a quotation from which words have been omitted.
• Place a four-point ellipse, with no space before and one after, to mark the location of at the end of a quotation from which words have been omitted.
• Citation information placed in parentheses after a quotation should be followed by the appropriate punctuation mark (comma, period, colon, semicolon or question mark).

Paraphrasing Source Material

Paraphrasing restates ideas and information found in source material. It requires that you fully understand the contents of the passage enough to explain or reiterate them in your own words while retaining the meaning intended by its original author. This guide explains the paraphrasing process and provides both accurate and inaccurate examples, as well as tips on how to avoid plagiarism.

Overview: Paraphrasing

Simply quoting someone on a subject achieves little toward building your own scholarly reputation. In many cases, the choice to paraphrase rather than quote demonstrates your grasp of the subject matter. It also enhances your credibility as both a critical reader and thinker.

Being able to paraphrase accurately demonstrates that you respect the contributions made by others while showcasing your own skill as a writer. This is especially useful when you want to point out specific details or information bearing directly on your argument or, when you wish to reference an opposing idea.

As with summarizing and quoting, whenever you restate someone else's words, thoughts or points of view you must document the source.

Accurate Paraphrasing

Accurate paraphrasing requires careful attention to the nuance and meaning of words. The ones you choose must reflect the meaning found in the original source without plagiarizing its author.

The key to this begins with your own comprehension. How well you understand the contents of a passage will determine how accurately you restate it in your own words. Using sentence structures and rhythm patterns that are uniquely your own will distinguish your voice from the ones you paraphrase.

When you are through there should be no mistake regarding the speaker's identity. The following example illustrates accurate, inaccurate, and inappropriate paraphrasing.

Example of Punctuating Accurate Paraphrasing

The Lomonosov Ridge is 1,100 miles long, about the distance from San Francisco to Denver, and rises about 10,000 feet from the floor of the Arctic Ocean. Geologists think the ridge might have broken away from a continent about 55 million years ago and remained near the North Pole while other landmasses drifted away. Moran and other scientists chose the ridge for potential drilling during a 1991 cruise during which they crossed the North Pole. The site was intriguing for the fact that no one had ever drilled the seafloor for a core there because of sea ice that drifts around like pieces of a massive jigsaw puzzle.   Source: Rozell, N. (2005). A fern grows in the Arctic Ocean. Alaska Science Forum Article #1773. Retrieved December 15, 2005, from http://www.gi.alaska.edu/ScienceForum/ASF17/1773.html.

Accurate Paraphrase:

Climbing 10,000 feet above the floor of the Arctic Ocean, the Lomonosov Ridge stretches 1,100 miles in length: roughly the distance between San Francisco and Denver. Geologists believe that it may be what remains of a continent that broke apart and moved away from the North Pole around 55 million years ago. Moran and her colleagues, knowing that the shifting sea ice in the Arctic Ocean had prevented others from having ever drilled there, selected the Lomonosov Ridge location as a future core-sampling site on a 1991 excursion across the North Pole.

As you can see, when comparing the original passage with this paraphrase, the writer's word choices and sentence structure are not the same, yet the information has remained the same.

Inaccurate Paraphrase:

In 1991, Moran and her colleagues, convinced that the core samples retrieved would reveal startling new geologic information, chose to drill the Arctic Ocean seafloor near the 1,100 mile long Lomonosov Ridge, a left over relic of continents breaking up and moving away from the North Pole some 55 million years ago.

In this example, the wording and sentence structure are significantly different; however, the meaning of the original passage has been considerably distorted. Inferences are drawn that are simply not accurate enough for a paraphrase.

Inappropriate Paraphrase:

The 1,100 miles long Lomonosov Ridge, about the same distance from San Francisco to Denver, rises about 10,000 feet from the floor of the Arctic Ocean. Scientists think the ridge may have broken away from another continent about 55 million years ago, remaining near the North Pole while the rest of the landmass drifted away. Moran and other scientists chose this ridge for drilling on a cruise in 1991 in which they crossed the North Pole. They were intrigued by the fact that no one had ever drilled the seafloor there for a core because of sea ice drifting around like massive jigsaw puzzle pieces.

In this example, the wording and sentence structure corresponds too closely to the original for it to be fairly called a paraphrase.

How to Paraphrase Without Plagiarizing

Plagiarism is a serious offense. It means that you have used someone else's words or ideas without proper acknowledgement. This is easy to do unintentionally, especially when paraphrasing. Once understood, it can be avoided.

One useful technique for textual retention is to read the passage carefully several times to identify its main points; then set it aside. Try rewriting the main points in your own words without looking at the original. In other words, explain it to yourself.

When finished, set your draft aside and move on with the rest of your writing, or to some other activity. Turning your attention to something else puts distance between yourself and the original passage. It clears your head, so to speak.

When you return to it you will have a fresh perspective. Your recollection of the exact words being paraphrased will have faded to some degree and it will be easier to focus on your own language choices and sentence structure.

At this point, still not looking at the original, revise and polish your draft. You will discover your own voice asserting itself in the writing process. After editing and revising, compare your paraphrase with the original passage. Do your words accurately convey the original contents? Are they sufficiently different to avoid a charge of plagiarism?

You may find it useful to repeat the process several times. Revise your paraphrase, in other words. Examine your results carefully and compare them with the original to see that what you have written is original, gives credit and repeats the essential information. Below is an example that walks you through the paraphrasing process.

Example of How to Paraphrase Without Plagiarizing

Derived partially from the Greek prefix epi-, which means "on" or "in addition," the epigenome is to the cell what an organism's sensory organs are to the individual. Like an octopus's tentacles that, among other functions, gather information from the environment so that the brain can tell the neurons, "Move your eighth arm here," the epigenome gathers information from the cell's environment and tells the genes, "turn on" or "turn off." In science lingo, it governs "gene expression." Based on emerging evidence, the epigenome appears to play a vital role in most, if not all, cellular activity, from metabolism to fertilization.   Source: Pray, L. A. (2005). Soiled Genes: Can toxic exposures be inherited? Orion Magazine. Retrieved December 15, 2005, from http://www.oriononline.org/pages/om/05-6om/Pray.html.

The original passage contains three relevant pieces of information that need restating in order to create an accurate paraphrase. The highlights in paragraph A below identify these pieces of information.

(A) Derived partially from "the Greek prefix epi-, which means "on" or in addition," the epigenome is to the cell what an organism's sensory organs are to the individual. Like an octopus's tentacles that, among other functions, gather information from the environment so that the brain can tell the neurons, "Move your eighth arm here, " the epigenome gathers information from the cell's environment and tells the genes, "turn on" or "turn off." In science lingo, it governs "gene expression." Based on emerging evidence, the epigenome appears to play a vital role in most, if not all, cellular activity, from metabolism to fertilization.

Paragraph B below restates the highlighted information and cites the source. Notice that it is roughly the same length as the original. This is as it should be; a summary would need to be shorter. Consider Paragraph B a first draft. It's still a little wordy.

(B) Pray (2005) compares the epigenomes of a cell to the sensory organs of an individual. She likens them to octopus tentacles gathering information from the environment so that the brain has something to work with when deciding what instructions to send the neurons governing specific tasks, like moving an arm for instance. The epigenomes turn genes governing cellular activity on or off. The latest research suggests that epigenomes (the Greek prefix epi-, meaning "on") , are an integral and decisive part of practically every cellular activity, from metabolism to fertilization, known to science.

Paragraph C is a final revision based on the draft above. Notice how the sentence structure and word choices have evolved and yet the essential meaning of the paragraph has not changed.

(C) Reporting on recent research, Pray (2005) observes that epigenomes (the prefix epi-, meaning "on" in Greek) are much like the tentacles of an octopus. Attached to individual cells, the epigenomes collect and provide external data to specific genes as do the tentacles to the brain of an octopus. As the octopus's brain transmits a signal via a neuron back to one of its tentacles telling it to move, the latest scientific evidence indicates that epigenomes are the transmitters responsible for conveying the information that flips the on/off switch on the genes governing practically every kind of cellular-activity, from metabolism to fertilization, known to science.

Summarizing Source Material

A summary captures the general idea, main points or opinions found in your source material without providing a lot of details.

Note: The examples here have been created for instructional purposes using Mindy Pennybacker's article "Why Fast Food Costs Too Much" .

Overview: Summarizing Source Material

Summarizing a single source or a collection of related sources can provide your reader with background or supporting information that helps them better understand your chosen topic. It is also a useful method to point out material that either supports or contradicts your argument while not distracting your reader with irrelevant details.

As with quoting and paraphrasing, you must document the sources you summarize. Unlike a paraphrase, which rewords a specific passage and often remains the same length as the original, a summary reduces the material into a more concise statement. To be effective you must choose your words carefully, and make sure to be accurate, objective, focused, and concise.

Once you fully understand the intended meaning conveyed by the source material, write your summary. Pay close attention to the precise meaning of the words you choose and be especially careful not to introduce new ideas.

Developing critical reading skills will help you examine source materials with an eye toward what to include in a summary.

Being Accurate

Being accurate requires that you fully understand the ideas and information presented in your source material. Misunderstanding an author's tone of voice or misinterpreting the information he or she has extrapolated from numerical data, for instance, may cause you to inadvertently misrepresent their point of view, ideas, opinions or position.

Example of Being Accurate

Here is an example of source material being inaccurately summarized and a brief description of what the writer misunderstood. An accurate summary follows.

Original Source: At slaughterhouses, on too-fast production lines, manure and the contents of stomachs and intestines often splatter the meat. In winter, about 1 percent of cattle from feedlots harbor E. coli; in summer, up to 50 percent can do so. "Even if you assume that only one percent is infected, that means three or four cattle bearing the microbe are eviscerated at a large slaughterhouse every hour, and a single animal infected with E. coli can contaminate 32,000 pounds of ground beef," Schlosser writes. --Excerpted from Mindy Pennybacker, "Why Fast Food Costs Too Much"

Inaccurate Summary:

In her Green Guide article, "Why Fast Food Costs Too Much" Mindy Pennybacker states that one percent of the cattle slaughtered in a fast-paced, meat-processing plant on any given day carry the E. coli microbe and, as a result, 32,000 pounds of ground beef are contaminated in the eviscerating process every hour.

On the surface this summary appears to be accurate, however, it is not. As in most cases, inaccuracies are caused by omission or misinterpretation of facts.

In the first place, Pennybacker refers specifically to feedlot cattle in her article. This fact is important and must be included so that your readers understand the author's argument: pasture-fed and feedlot cattle carry widely differing risks in the slaughter and meat-packing process.

Secondly, the summary omits the fact that up to 50 percent of the cattle may carry the E. coli microbe during the summer months. It obscures the fact that the author deliberately chose the lower, one-percent figure as a baseline from which to draw a conclusion. The phrases "on any given day" and "every hour" are suggestive half-truths and completely inappropriate.

Lastly, the summary misstates the Eric Schlosser quote, which will lead the reader to a wrong conclusion. There is a world of difference between the words are and can. The summary states that 32,000 pounds of ground beef are contaminated every hour. In fact, in the original, Schlosser said "can contaminate", which only implies contamination and doesn’t explicitly state it.

Accurate Summary:

In her Green Guide article, "Why Fast Food Costs Too Much" Mindy Pennybacker states that one percent of feedlot cattle during the winter, and as much as 50 percent during the summer, carry the E. coli microbe from the feedlot to the slaughter house. Using Eric Schlosser's one percent baseline argument calculating three to four infected animals being slaughtered every hour, Pennybacker illustrates that 32,000 pounds of ground beef risk being contaminated every time one infected animal is eviscerated.

Being Objective

Being objective is as important as being accurate. It's a matter of fairness. Interjecting personal opinions into the ideas or information in your summary confuses the reader by obscuring the information in the original source material. Expressing your attitude toward it, whether negative or positive, is inappropriate and self-serving.

You may express your own opinions, of course, but that should be done in the surrounding comments framing your summary. Bear in mind, being respectful is simply a matter of good form when arguing a difference of opinion.

Example of Being Objective

Here is an example of source material being summarized in a non-objective manner and a brief discussion of the writer interjecting a personal bias. An objective summary follows.

Original Source: Other environmental costs include depletion of natural resources. It takes 4.8 pounds of grain to produce one pound of beef, Jim Motavalli reports in E Magazine . Animal feed corn "consumes more chemical herbicide and fertilizer than any other crop," Pollan writes, noting that the petrochemical fertilizer used to grow corn, he says, "takes vast quantities of oil-1.2 gallons for every bushel." The cow Pollan has bought "will have consumed in his lifetime roughly 284 gallons of oil." The industrial food system guzzles fossil fuels at a time when we should be conserving energy for the sake of our national security-and that of pristine ecosystems such as the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. --Excerpted from Mindy Pennybacker, "Why Fast Food Costs Too Much"

Non-Objective Summary:

In her leftist Green Guide article, "Why Fast Food Costs Too Much" Mindy Pennybacker reports that it takes 1.2 gallons of petrochemical fertilizer to grow one bushel of feed corn, making it the largest consumer of chemical herbicides among all industrial-farmed crops. Quoting tree-hugging writer Michael Pollan, she then points out, after first converting bushels to gallons, that a single cow consumes 284 gallons of oil before fulfilling its inevitable obligation of a once-in-a-lifetime pilgrimage to McDonalds. Concluding her environmental rant, she accuses the industrial food-production system of "guzzling" precious fossil fuel reserves at a time when we should be conserving energy.

This is an unfair summary: the writer's bias is clearly obvious. In this example, adjectives such as "leftist" and "tree-hugger" are derogatory labels deliberately expressing the author's low regard for Pennybacker's opinion.

Characterizing her opinion as an "environmental rant" is also deliberately belittling and the "pilgrimage to McDonalds" remark borders on editorializing, neither of which is appropriate in a summary.

Unfair labels and editorializing fall outside the boundaries of a summary for the simple reason that they add nothing new or helpful to the process of understanding the actual information. As a matter of fact, they get in the way, succeeding only in exposing personal biases.

Such distractions can lead the reader to question your motives and whether you are fully informed; to question whether your opinion is reasoned and credible.

In the revision below, the opinion of the writer has been removed and the summary succeeds in being far more objective. Notice that it is also much shorter.

Objective Summary:

In her Green Guide article, "Why Fast Food Costs Too Much" Mindy Pennybacker reports that 1.2 gallons of petrochemical fertilizer is required to grow one bushel of feed corn, making it the largest consumer of chemical herbicides among industrial-farmed crops. Using Michael Pollan's calculations to illustrate how conventional farming practices consume fossil fuels, she points out that a single cow, on a diet of petrochemically fertilized field-corn, will consume 284 gallons of oil in its lifetime.

Being Focused

Being focused means not wandering off-topic. Stick to what's important. A good summary highlights only those facts, ideas, opinions, etc., that are useful in helping your reader understand the topic being presented. Avoid a detailed account of the minutia contained in your source material.

Including minute details hinders the reader's ability to understand why the summarized information is relevant to your document in the first place and can lead them to conclude that you may not fully understand your topic.

Example of Being Focused

Here is an example of an unfocused summary and a brief discussion of how the writer wanders off point. A much more focused summary follows.

Original Source: Better Farming Methods: Organic farming of animals and field crops is cleaner. "Conventional farmers have no regulations regarding management of manure. Organic does," says Fred Kirschenmann, Ph.D., director of the Leopold Center for Sustainable Agriculture at Iowa State University. "You have to leave at least 90 days-120 days for root crops-between application of manure and the harvest. That's how long it takes for bacteria such as E. coli to degrade and become neutralized in the soil." Kirschenmann, who was a member of the National Organic Standards Board, expresses regret that the final rules don't require that ruminant animals be "pasture-based" to ensure that they get out and graze. In practice, though, "all the organic meat producers I know of are small, two to three hundred head, and they all graze, get exercise, eat organic foods-just before slaughter they are switched to corn, which is usually grown on the farm," says Scowcroft. If a cow gets sick and is treated with antibiotics, it cannot be labeled "organic." Wihelm says she would welcome an organic hog farm as a neighbor. Consumers can also seek ecological, humanely raised meat from local farms, or look for other sustainable labels. --Excerpted from Mindy Pennybacker, "Why Fast Food Costs Too Much"

Unfocused Summary:

In her Green Guide article, "Why Fast Food Costs Too Much" Mindy Pennybacker argues that applying organic methods when raising field crops and animals makes for cleaner farming practices. Citing Fred Kirschenmann, director of the Leopold Center for Sustainable Agriculture at Iowa State University and a member of the National Organic Standards Board, she points out that E. coli bacteria requires 90-120 days between manure application and the actual harvest to be rendered harmless. Since organic farmers must abide by regulations established by the National Organic Standards Board to be certified as organic, manure application to their crop fields is carefully monitored. Conventional farmers have no such oversight. Completely unmonitored, manure gets applied to their crops in ways that are hazardous to the environment. In turn, this creates ideal conditions in which E. coli, Salmonella and other infectious bacteria thrive and enter the food chain.

While this summary is accurate, it includes points that do little to help the reader understand the main focus. The fact that organic farming is cleaner than conventional farming is not really the point, nor the fact that a 90-120 day cycle is required for E. coli to be rendered completely harmless.

The main point is that, unlike organic farms, manure management on conventional farms is completely unregulated which creates a dangerously unhealthy environment in which to raise farm crops and animals.

Extra details clutter up this summary, creating additional distractions the reader must wade through while trying to grasp its main focus. The fact that Fred Kirschenmann directs the Leopold Center for Sustainable Agriculture at Iowa State University and is a member of the National Organic Standards Board is a case in point. It's extremely wordy and completely irrelevant.

Now, suppose the "90-120 day" detail in the summary was necessary. Should Fred Kirschenmann be cited? Not necessarily. Information of this sort quite often falls into the category of widely-accepted. Check a variety of resources. If you can find such information readily, it is not privately-held intellectual property and authorship need not be cited.

The following revision eliminates unnecessary details and is much more sharply focused on the main idea. Again, notice how much shorter the summary is.

Focused Summary:

In her Green Guide article, "Why Fast Food Costs Too Much" Mindy Pennybacker argues that, since organic farmers must abide by regulations established by the National Organic Standards Board to be certified as organic, manure application to their crop fields is carefully monitored. No other farmers have such oversight. As a result, manure is applied to conventional crops in ways that are hazardous to the environment, creating ideal conditions in which E. coli, Salmonella and other infectious bacteria thrive and enter the food chain.

Being Concise

Being concise means being as brief as possible. Details, examples and descriptions contained in the original source material should be removed, as well as information repeated or rephrased in slightly varying ways.

The whole idea of a summary is to be direct and to get to the point. Being focused, objective and accurate will go a long way toward achieving this goal.

Example of Being Concise

Here is an example of an overly detailed and repetitive summary along with a brief discussion of how it can be corrected. A concise summary follows and then, an even more concise summary.

Original Source: Stricter Regulation: "Delays in detection and recall of bad meat happen because the industry is too weakly regulated," Schlosser says. "By the time the USDA discovers tainted meat, it's already being distributed," he wrote in The Nation on September 16. Since then, the agency has announced that it will begin random tests at all meatpacking plants in the U.S., and will have the power to close facilities where contamination is found. What hasn't changed? The USDA still lacks the power to order the recall of contaminated meat. "Every other defective product can be ordered off the market. Mandatory recall is important because under the current voluntary standard the company decides how much meat needs to be recalled and doesn't have to reveal where the meat has been shipped," Schlosser says. He advises that we write our congressional representatives in support of the SAFER Meat, Poultry, and Food Act and the Meat and Poultry Pathogen Reduction Act, which would give the agency power to enforce limits on contaminants, order recalls and impose fines. The meat industry says it cannot produce bacteria-free meat, so it's up to us to cook it until it's safely well done (160? F) to kill E. coli. But the tainted food should not be getting to us in the first place. The industrial food system produces force-fed, disease-prone animals and people. An estimated 120 million Americans are overweight or obese. McDonald's announced in September, 2002 that it would switch to heart-healthier polyunsaturated vegetable oil, but that won't make the fries any less fattening. It's just a gloss on the system in which, through their massive purchasing and marketing power, giant companies control how our food is produced, from seed to feed to processing. As Wilhelm says of the big meat processors who buy from megafarms, "They say that we consumers want this pork and they need it to come from one place to be efficient. "It's time we consumers made it clear that industrial farms, fast foods and their costly "efficiencies" are not what we want. --Excerpted from Mindy Pennybacker, "Why Fast Food Costs Too Much"

Overly Detailed and Repetitive Summary:

In her Green Guide article, "Why Fast Food Costs Too Much" Mindy Pennybacker exposes a weakness in the regulatory procedures with which the USDA monitors the meatpacking industry: it lacks the power to order a recall of contaminated meat. By the time it gets discovered, contaminated meat is already on the market. All the USDA has done lately is announce random testing of all meatpacking plants in the U.S. and threaten to close contaminated facilities when they are discovered.   Leaving safety up to the consumer, the meatpacking industry claims that producing meat uncontaminated by E. coli and other bacteria is impossible. They say that meat cooked to 160? kills the bacteria. Consumers who cook their meat safely to 160? are in no danger. But the question remains: Why is tainted food allowed to get to the market in the first place? The answer, supplied by the meat-packing industry, is that consumers demand the product and suppliers can only meet the demand in an efficient manner by buying from giant mega farms that control production without the USDA looking over their shoulder. Pennybacker argues for mandating stricter regulations on meatpackers because tainted meat is being distributed and, after it's too late, meat is voluntarily recalled. The whole operation is managed, with no USDA oversight, by the meatpackers. Meatpacking companies who recall contaminated meat decide how much to recall and are not required to report where the meat was shipped and how much is actually recalled. She urges that every concerned person write congress in support of the SAFER Meat, Poultry and Food Act and the Poultry Pathogen Reduction Act. Enacting these laws would empower the USDA to enforce limits, order recalls and impose fines. The giant industrial food complex that controls food production, from seeding the fields to slaughtering the meat, and that wields massive purchasing and marketing power should not be in charge of voluntarily ordering recalls of tainted meat that has already made it to the marketplace.

In this summary, the writer includes unnecessary details and repeats information in a manner that adds no new information to the reader's knowledge. The fact that tainted meat gets to the market, for instance, is mentioned in each paragraph, though each time it is worded in a slightly different way.

The second paragraph presents an argument that is not central to the main point: USDA regulations need to be stricter and the agency needs to have greater enforcement power. The components of an argument should not be included in a summary unless summarizing the argument itself is the purpose.

Details such as what the USDA "has done lately" and how to "safely cook meat" should not be included in this summary either, as they do not inform the reader about the author's main point. Notice that the summary is nearly as long as the original passage.

By eliminating details and repetitious language, as in the following example, the summary will be far more concise while still providing an accurate picture of the author's main point.

Concise Summary:

In her Green Guide article, "Why Fast Food Costs Too Much" Mindy Pennybacker exposes a weakness in the regulatory procedures with which the USDA monitors the meatpacking industry: it lacks the power to order a recall of contaminated meat. By the time it gets discovered, contaminated meat is already on the market.   Pennybacker argues for mandating stricter regulations on meatpackers, noting that recalling meat is currently a voluntary operation wherein the industry itself decides how much to recall while not being required to report from where it was recalled. She urges that every concerned person write congress in support of the SAFER Meat, Poultry and Food Act and the Poultry Pathogen Reduction Act. Enacting these laws would empower the USDA to enforce limits, order recalls and impose fines. The giant industrial food complex that controls food production, from seeding the fields to slaughtering meat, and that wields massive purchasing and marketing power should not be in charge of voluntarily ordering recalls of tainted meat that has already made it to the marketplace.

An Even More Concise Summary:

In her Green Guide article, "Why Fast Food Costs Too Much" Mindy Pennybacker exposes a weakness in the regulatory procedures with which the USDA monitors the meatpacking industry: it lacks the power to order a recall of contaminated meat. By the time it gets discovered, contaminated meat is already on the market. Pennybacker argues for mandating stricter regulations on meatpackers, urging that every concerned person write congress in support of the SAFER Meat, Poultry and Food Act and the Poultry Pathogen Reduction Act. Enacting these laws would empower the USDA to enforce limits, order recalls and impose fines.

Additional Resources

Purdue OWL - ‘ Synthesizing Sources ’

Purdue OWL - ‘ Quoting, Paraphrasing, and Summarizing ’

East Carolina University Writing Center - ‘ Integrating Sources ’

University of Illinois Library - ‘ Integrating Sources ’

Northern Arizona University Writing Commons - ‘ Finding, Using, and Citing Sources in Disciplinary Writing ’

Palmquist, Mike, Peter Connor, & Andrea Bennett. (2022). Integrating Sources. Writing@CSU . Colorado State University. https://writing.colostate.edu/guides/guides.cfm?guideid=16

Information Literacy: 06. Incorporating Sources

• Goals & Objectives
• 00. Virtual Tour Library
• 01. Develop a Topic
• 02. Generate Search Terms
• 03. Evaluate Resources
• 04. Fight Misinformation
• 05. Plagiarism
• 06. Incorporating Sources
• 07. Peer-Review
• 08. What are Databases?
• 09. Artificial Intelligence (AI) (Redirect)
• 10. Library Catalogs
• 11. Interlibrary Loan
• 12. Popular vs. Scholarly
• 13. Primary & Secondary Sources
• 14. Types of Periodicals
• 15. Anatomy of a Scientific Scholarly Article
• 16. Grey Literature
• 17. Internet Search Tips
• 18. Research Consultations
• 19. Following Citations
• 20. Citation Styles (APA, MLA, Chicago...)
• 21. Annotated Bibliographies
• 22. Open Educational Resources
• 23. Data Management
• 24. Google Scholar
• 25. Copyright
• Learning Outcomes
• Reflecting on IL

Incorporating Sources Video

Incorporating Sources Students will learn how to incorporate sources into their college/university research papers by effectively structuring sources, including analysis and using sources to support an argument.

CLIP video, length 6:39 minutes)

Examples of Primary versus Secondary Sources

Incorporating Sources Into Your Research Paper

It is time to write a research paper. You thought about your topic, and gathered many sources.  How do you present those sources in your paper? You will learn how to structure your sources, include your own analysis, and refer to sources that build a foundation in of support your thesis.

Throughout history, all well-known figures have drawn ideas from those that came before them to formulate their own ideas. Isaac Newton famously said, "If I have seen further, it is only by standing on the shoulders of giants." All sorts of famous figures have used ideas that came before them to create their own original ideas including activists, business leaders and artists. Building on sources makes your own ideas better.

MAKE AN ARGUMENT

You can think of writing a research paper as presenting an argument or a point of view.  Every scholarly research paper contains a thesis, which is the central argument of your paper. 

Example Thesis: "Though some argue that there is a lack of evidence suggesting a future decline in polar bear populations, studies have shown that climate change will cause a significant decrease in their numbers."

All of the sources included in your paper must relate back to your thesis in some way. It is your job to use these sources to support your central thesis.  It is good to include sources that agree with your central thesis as well as discussing some sources that offer contrary viewpoints.  Similar to good preparation for a debate, you should be researching & discussing opposing viewpoints.   Examining and addressing multiple sides of the argument often makes your own argument stronger because it shows that you looked at the issue from different perspectives.

SCHOLARLY CONVERSATION

Think about sources on a given topic as a conversation between people you have not met. First you listen to the conversation for a while. As you listen, you develop an understanding about the people participating in that conversation. You think about how the characteristics that you observed might impact the arguments that other people are making.  Examples:

“Human abuse of natural resources has caused drastic climate change.  Polar bear populations will rapidly declining due to climate change.” –environmental activist, passionate, urgent

“Data supports the theory that climate change will contribute to a declining polar bear population.” –well-known environmental researcher, arguments based on studies, factual

“Climate change is a naturally occurring phenomenon. Environmentalists are using polar bear population statistics as a scare-tactic.” –background in business, calm tone, minority opinion

YOUR RESPONSE

After listening to the conversation for a while, you join in. When one person presents their ideas, you respond with your own thoughts. This is one of the main differences between scholarly research papers and other papers that you might have written in the past. It is not enough just to present sources. You also have to present your own ideas and responses in relation to those sources. Sometimes this is called presenting analysis.

3 COMPONENTS OF SOURCE INCLUSION

Whenever you present ideas from an outside source, there are three main components that you need to include:

First, provide an introduction.  It may include source info, background info, or transition phrases.  The introduction is a way for you to setup the information that you will be presenting from an outside source.

Next, include the idea from the source as either a direct quote, paraphrase or summary. Make sure to always properly cite ideas from outside sources.

Finally, include an analysis of the ideas that you presented. An analysis will include your response, interpretations or arguments in relation to the idea from the outside source.  Analysis is crucial for a good research paper, and demonstrating your insight is probably the most important step in this process.

CITATION TYPES

There are three primary ways to present ideas from another source in your research paper: direct quote, paraphrase and summary.

Direct quote: Exact words from a source. Include quotation marks (depending on quote length) and citation.

Paraphrase: Idea from a source that you rewrote, in your own words. Usually about the same length as the original quote. Often used to simplify language. No quotation marks BUT citation is still necessary.

Summary: Ideas from source written in your own words. Shorter than original quote.  Used to give an overview of many ideas.  No quotation marks BUT citation is absolutely necessary.

Be sure to cite correctly! See Willamette's Citation Guides for more info.

RELATE TO THE ARGUMENT

Remember that ideas that you present from outside sources must always relate back to your central thesis in some way. Make sure that you clearly present how these outside ideas relate to your thesis in your analysis.

Notice that this example includes an introduction, a direct quote and some analysis. Keep in mind that this is just a snippet of the analysis that would be necessary to include in a paper discussing this quote.

Amstrup et al. (2009) conclude their rebuttal, stating:  "The effects of global warming on polar bears, if it continues as projected, will be severe; by mid-century, polar bears will most likely be limited to a small portion of their current range" (366).  This conclusion is well supported by scientific evidence supplied in the report unlike the arguments set forth in Armstrong et al. (2008)...

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The Research Paper Process

• Is my topic too new?
• 2. Locate Background Information
• 3. Formulate a Research Question
• 4. Create Search Terms
• Evaluate Your Search Results
• 6. Develop a Thesis
• 7. Organize Your Research
• Integrating Your Sources
• 9. Finalize Format and Citations

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Integrating sources.

• Integrating sources gives your paper credibility by augmenting your argument with other author's writings. 
• A well written paper integrates sources smoothly, leaving the reader with no question of why you are including the source or which ideas are from that source.

There are three main methods of integration:

Quote:  

The exact wording of a source. A Pew Research Study found that, "Social media helps teens feel more connected to their friends’ feelings and daily lives..." (Lenhart, Smith, Anderson, Duggan, & Perrin, 2015, p.6).

Paraphrase:  

Putting the source in your own words. A Pew Research Study found that teens use social media to understand their peers' lives more deeply (Lenhart, Smith, Anderson,  Duggan, & Perrin, 2015, p.6).

Summary: 

The key points of the source.    A Pew Research Study found that teens use social media, online gaming, and mobile phones to meet friends, interact with peers, and gain a greater connection to others (Lenhart, Smith, Anderson, Duggan, & Perrin, 2015, p.6).  

Note:  These in text citations are  APA style.   Source: Lenhart, A., Smith, A.., Anderson, M., Duggan, M., & Perrin, A. (2015, August). “Teens, Technology and Friendships.” Pew Research Center. Retrieved from http://www.pewinternet.org/2015/08/06/teens-technology-and-friendships/   

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The Four Steps of Integration of Sources

Published by Alvin Nicolas at November 13th, 2023 , Revised On November 13, 2023

In academic writing and research, integrating sources plays a pivotal role in shaping the quality and credibility of your work. Whether writing an essay , conducting research for a thesis, or preparing a report, seamlessly incorporating various sources into your writing is essential.

This process not only adds depth to your arguments but also validates your claims by drawing from reputable and diverse sources of information. In this guide, we will discuss the four crucial steps of the integration of sources. But, before that, let’s discuss some basics.

Importance of Integrating Sources

Before discussing the practical aspects of integrating sources, it’s essential to grasp the significance of this process. 

Integration of sources is more than just adding quotations to your text; it involves seamlessly blending external information into your own words and ideas. This enhances the flow of your writing and showcases your ability to synthesise and critically analyse information from various sources.

The Four Steps of How to Integrate Sources Into an Essay

Integrating sources into an essay can be daunting, but breaking it down into manageable steps can simplify the process. Here’s a step-by-step guide on how to effectively integrate sources into your essay:

Step 1: Introduction And Attribution

Begin by introducing the source and its relevance to your topic. Clearly state the author’s name and provide context for the information.

Use signal phrases to attribute the information to its source. Signal phrases typically include verbs such as “argues,” “claims,” “states,” or “explains.”

Example: According to Smith (2018), the impact of climate change on biodiversity is a pressing concern.

Step 2: Summary or Paraphrase

Summarise or paraphrase the information from the source in your own words. This demonstrates your understanding of the material and helps you blend the information into your writing style.

Be sure to maintain the original meaning and context while avoiding direct copying of sentences or phrases.

Example (Paraphrase): Smith (2018) contends that the repercussions of climate change extend beyond rising temperatures, affecting the delicate balance of ecosystems and posing a threat to various species.

Step 3: In-Text Citation

Include an in-text citation immediately after the integrated information. This acknowledges the source and allows readers to trace the information back to its original location in the bibliography or works cited page.

Follow the source citation style specified by the academic or publishing guidelines (e.g., APA, MLA, Chicago).

Example: …a threat to various species (Smith, 2018).

Step 4: Analysis and Connection

Connect the integrated information to your own arguments, analysis, or research. Explain how the source supports or challenges your thesis or the point you are making.

Show critical thinking by source evaluation and checking the credibility and significance of the source in relation to your overall argument.

Example: This insight from Smith (2018) underscores the urgency of implementing sustainable practices to mitigate the adverse effects of climate change on biodiversity. By understanding the interconnectedness of ecosystems, we can work towards a more resilient and balanced environment.

Integrating Data From Multiple Sources

In research and academic writing , drawing information from multiple sources is often necessary to build a comprehensive and well-supported argument. However, integrating data from multiple sources requires careful planning and execution to avoid creating a disjointed narrative. Here’s how to effectively integrate data from various sources:

Thematic Organisation

Group sources with similar themes or topics together. This helps in presenting a structured and coherent argument.

Use Transitions

Employ transitional phrases or sentences to guide readers from one source to another. Phrases like “In addition to this” or “Contrary to the previous source” help maintain flow.

Compare and Contrast

Where relevant, compare and contrast information from different sources. Highlighting differences or similarities can add depth to your argument.

Maintain Consistency

Ensure that your writing style, tone, and formatting remain consistent throughout the integration of multiple sources. This creates a unified reading experience.

Evaluate Sources in Context

Consider the context in which each source was written. Discuss how the time period, author’s background, or intended audience may have influenced the information presented.

Integrating Sources Into Your Writing – Practical Examples

Let us explore practical examples of seamlessly incorporating sources into your writing to provide a clearer understanding of the integration process. These examples will illustrate the different ways you can integrate sources effectively:

Example 1: Paraphrasing and Incorporating Statistics

Original Source (Smith, 2019): “According to recent statistics, global greenhouse gas emissions have increased by 50% in the past decade.”

Integration into Your Essay: In the last ten years, there has been a significant surge in global greenhouse gas emissions, with a staggering 50% rise (Smith, 2019).

Example 2: Incorporating Expert Opinions

Original Source (Brown, 2020): “Renowned climate scientist Dr. Emily White believes that immediate action is crucial to combat climate change.”

Integration into Your Essay: Dr Emily White, a respected authority in the field of climate science, emphasises the urgency of taking immediate action to address the issue of climate change (Brown, 2020).

Types of Sources

Understanding the various types of sources is essential for effective source integration. Different types of sources require different approaches to integration. Here’s a breakdown of the types of sources:

Primary Sources

Explain what primary sources are and how to integrate them into your writing effectively. Discuss their significance in the research.

Secondary Sources 

Describe secondary sources and discuss their role in supporting or providing context for primary sources.

Academic Journals 

Explain how to integrate information from academic journals, highlighting the importance of peer-reviewed research.

Discuss integrating information from books, emphasising their in-depth analysis and reliability.

Explore how to integrate sources from websites, including considerations for credibility and relevance.

Using Visual Aids

Visual aids, such as graphs, charts, and images, can enhance the presentation of information in your writing. Here’s how to incorporate visual aids from external sources:

Importance of Visual Aids: Explain why visual aids are valuable in conveying complex information and supporting your arguments.

Citing Visual Aids: Highlight the significance of properly citing visual aids from external sources. Discuss citation formats for different types of visual content.

Formatting Guidelines: Provide guidelines on how to format visual aids within your text, ensuring they align with your writing’s overall structure.

Digital and Online Sources

In the digital age, integrating online sources is commonplace. However, it’s crucial to approach online sources thoughtfully and critically. Here’s what to consider:

Online Platforms: Explain how to integrate sources from online platforms, databases, and social media while maintaining credibility and relevance.

Credibility Evaluation: Highlight the importance of evaluating the credibility of online sources. Discuss strategies for assessing the reliability of information found online.

Revision and Editing

After integrating sources into your writing, revision and editing are necessary steps to ensure clarity and coherence. This includes:

Citation Accuracy: Explain how to check for citation accuracy and consistency in your work.

Flow and Coherence: Discuss the role of revision in ensuring that integrated sources flow seamlessly with your ideas and maintain overall coherence in your paper.

The research done by our experts have:

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Tips for Finding Reliable Sources

The reliability of your sources directly impacts the credibility of your work. Here are strategies for finding reputable sources:

Library Databases

Discuss how to use library databases effectively to locate academic sources.

Academic Search Engines 

Highlight the usefulness of academic search engines in finding peer-reviewed research.

Peer-Reviewed Journals 

Emphasise the significance of peer-reviewed journals and how to access them.

Critical Evaluation 

Explain the importance of critically evaluating sources for credibility and relevance to your topic.

Advanced Integration Techniques

For advanced writers, plunging into advanced integration techniques enhances their source integration skills:

Complex Arguments 

Discuss integrating sources within complex arguments, including strategies for effectively incorporating multiple sources to support nuanced viewpoints.

Addressing Counterarguments 

Explain how to integrate sources when addressing counterarguments, strengthening your position while acknowledging opposing views.

Integration in Specific Sections 

Explore how to incorporate sources into specific sections of your paper, such as the introduction, conclusion, or literature review, for a comprehensive and coherent argument.

Common Citation Styles

Understanding common citation styles is crucial for accurate source integration:

Citation Styles Overview:

Briefly introduce and explain common citation styles like APA, MLA, Chicago, and Harvard.

Style Guides 

Provide references or links to style guides for more detailed information on formatting and citing sources in each style.

Ethical Considerations

Ethical source integration is fundamental to maintaining integrity in your writing:

Accurate Representation 

Discuss the ethical imperative of accurately representing a source’s intended meaning.

Avoiding Cherry-Picking 

Emphasise the importance of avoiding cherry-picking data or information to fit your argument and maintaining honesty and transparency in source integration.

Understanding the integration of sources is a fundamental skill for any writer or researcher. It adds credibility to your work and enhances the depth of your arguments. By understanding the essence of integration, learning how to integrate sources into an essay, effectively combining data from multiple sources, and practising with practical examples, you can elevate your writing to new heights.

This “integration of sources” ties all these aspects together, ensuring that your academic or research writing is well-informed and well-integrated. Remember, integrating sources is not just a requirement; it’s a valuable skill that can set you apart as a knowledgeable and adept writer and researcher.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is source integration in academic writing.

Source integration in academic writing is the skill of seamlessly incorporating external information, like quotes or data, into your writing. It adds credibility and demonstrates your ability to analyse various sources.

How can I effectively integrate sources into my essay?

Effective source integration involves selecting relevant sources, understanding their content, using proper in-text citations, paraphrasing or summarising source material, providing context, and maintaining a smooth flow in your writing.

What are common citation styles for source integration?

Common citation styles include APA, MLA, and Chicago. They provide guidelines for formatting in-text citations and references, ensuring proper source attribution.

Can you provide examples of source integration in academic writing?

Certainly! Source integration can be demonstrated through paraphrasing, summarising, or quoting external material while seamlessly incorporating it into your text. This enhances your argument’s credibility.

Why is integrating data from multiple sources important in research?

Integrating data from multiple sources in research strengthens your argument by providing diverse perspectives and supporting evidence. It showcases a comprehensive understanding of your subject.

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