WHETHER TO QUOTE
OR SUMMARIZE
QUOTE TEXT WHEN:
The wording is worth repeating (e.g. vivid or technical
language)
The author makes a point so well that no rewording will do
it justice
You want to cite the exact words of a known authority on
a topic
The author’s opinions challenge or disagree with those of
others
ELLIPSES
Indicate any omissions from a quotation with an
ellipsis (3 spaced dots).
You may sometimes delete words from your
quotation that are unnecessary for your point.
Be careful not to distort the source’s meaning.
EXAMPLES
Mark Twain writes, “I have never taken any
exercise . . . and I never intend to take any.”
Sir William Osler states, “A well-trained sensible
family doctor is one of the most valuable assets
in a community. . . . Few men live lives of more
devoted self-sacrifice.”
BRACKETS
Indicate an addition or alteration to a quotation
with brackets.
Sometimes you’ll need to change or add words
in a quote to make the quote fit grammatically in
you sentence.
EXAMPLES
I tried to make the dish mild enough for
everyone, but my idea of “add[ing] Cayenne
pepper to taste” was not the same as my friend’s
idea.
In Thomas Jefferson’s time there was definitely
a notion that “a little rebellion now and then
[was] a good thing.”
Punctuating quotations
Put periods and commas inside the quotation
marks, except when you have a parenthetical
citation at the end, in which case you put the
period after the parentheses.
Semicolons, colons, and dashes are generally
placed outside the terminal quotation marks.
EXAMPLE
“Country music,” Sam says, “is a crucial and
vital part of the American identity” (23).
George wrote that “those who cannot remember
the past are condemned to repeat it”; today, we
are in danger of forgetting the lessons of
history.
?&!
These go inside closing quotation marks if they
are part of the quoted material but outside when
they are not.
If there’s a parenthetical citation at the end, it
immediately follows the closing quotation mark,
and any punctuation that’s part of your sentence
comes after.
EXAMPLE
Speaking at a Fourth of July celebration,
Frederick Douglass asked, “What have I, or
those I represent, to do with your national
independence?” (34).
Who can argue with W. Charisse Goodman’s
observation that media images persuade women
that “thinness equals happiness and fulfillment”
(43)?
Signal Phrases
You need to introduce quotations and
summaries clearly.
Let the reader know who the author is and if
need be something about his credentials.
It makes clear that everything between the
signal phrase and the citation comes from that
source.
EXAMPLE
Professor and textbook author Elaine Tyler May
argues that many high school history books are
too bland to interest young readers (531).
A champion of civil liberties, Robert Ingersoll
insists, “I am the inferior of any man whose
rights I trample underfoot.”