Unit
Four
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Your primary source may provide you with all the material
you need on a subject. For example, if you are writing a paper
on Hamlet's madness, you may find all you need in the text
of Hamlet.
Similarly, if you are writing a
paper on crime in your city during
the last two years, you may find
enough material in the local
newspapers.
After going through this primary
material, you may form good ideas and
strong arguments on a subject.
Unfortunately, your personal ideas
and arguments may not be acceptable
to your readers until you convince
them that you are familiar with what
the authorities on the subject have
said or written.
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You lend credibility
to your writing by adequate documentation, by quoting
and citing authorities on the subject.
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However, in quoting and citing,
you should remember the following:
- If you borrow words or ideas
from another writer, you
must make an acknowledgement.
It is plagiarism,
if you don't. It is a form of
theft and the punishment may
be severe.
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- Don't
quote extensively.
Restrict your quotations to
about ten percent of the
total length of your paper.
If you don't, you may give
the impression that you have
written your paper on
borrowed words and ideas.
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- Don't
quote repeatedly from one
source only.
If you do, you tell your
reader that you have depended
on one authority only and
that you haven't read
anything else. Rely on at
least three different
sources.
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- If possible, quote
two or three words instead of
an entire sentence or
passage.
If
you borrow words or ideas,
you must acknowledge your
sources.
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How you acknowledge or cite
depends on the subject of your paper.
There are two well known systems of
citing sources. In the Humanities,
you follow the MLA Style; in Social
Sciences and Sciences, you normally
cite according to the APA Style.
One more word of caution.
Integrate
your quotations into the text
of what you are writing.
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Examples:
Faulty:
- Meaning and content in a
speech fall under Davies'
principle of Tongue. "It
is almost wholly a matter of
vocabulary" (694).
The words of a speech must be
carefully chosen in order to
ensure a meaningful speech.
Revised:
- Meaning and content in a
speech fall under Davies'
principle of Tongue, which
"is almost wholly a
matter of vocabulary"
(694).
The words of a speech must be
carefully chosen in order to
ensure a meaningful speech.
Faulty:
- Paul and his rocking horse
provide an example of
supernatural forces at work;
riding the horse gives him
the names of the winners in
the races. "'God
told me,' he asserted"
(319).
Revised:
- Paul and his rocking horse
provide an example of
supernatural forces at work;
riding the horse gives him
the names of the winners in
the races. When
his mother asks him about his
good luck, Paul simply
answers, "God told
me" (319).
Next to Citing In-text: MLA Style
Back to Quotation Marks: Test Yourself
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