Quote or not to quote? … and also, how to.

Quoting your source is a powerful tool. A quote is a CD= evidence.

Quote really powerful and important words ONLY

Incorporating quotes in your writing smoothly and effectively is a very important skill. Read the following, awkward examples:

Romeo is quoted here, “Did my heart love till now? Forswear it, sight! / For I ne’er saw true beauty till this night” (I.v.57-58).

“Did my heart love till now? Forswear it, sight! / For I ne’er saw true beauty till this night” (I.v.57-58), a quote by Romeo.

  1. Use a variety of words to introduce the quote and make it an integral part of the sentence and the paragraph:

When Romeo first sees Juliet, he is so taken by her that he exclaims, “Did my heart love till now? Forswear it, sight! / For I ne’er saw true beauty till this night” (I.v.57-58).

Think of a variety of words that you can use: add, say, exclaim, claim, explain, state, etc.

Thinkmap Visual Thesaurus ( go to this site to look up synonyms for say)

  1. Cite the quote. Identify the source either in the sentence or in parenthesis.
  1. Cite verse (plays and poems) by divisions (act, scene) and lines; use periods to separate the various parts:

(II.iii.123-126)= ______

  1. The citation is part of the sentence. Place the period after the parenthesis.
  1. For short quotations of verse, use a diagonal (forward slash) to show where each new line of verse begins:

Romeo exclaims, “Did my heart love till now? Forswear it, sight! / For I ne’er saw true beauty till this night.” (I.v.57-58).

  1. Verse quotations of more than three lines should be indented 10 spaces and double-spaced. Each line of the poem or play begins a new line of the quotation; do not run the lines together or separate them with diagonals. Separate lines with diagonals only within the main text of your paper. With longer quotes noquotation marks are used. The introductory sentence is followed by colons.

Elizabeth Bishop’s poem “The Fish” contains layers of specific details:

He was speckled with barnacles,

Five rosettes of lines

and infested

with tiny white sea-lice,

and underneath two or three

rags of green weed hung down. (16-21)

  1. Partial quotations: If you want to leave out part of the quotation, use an ellipsis to signify the omission. An ellipsis ( . . . ) is three periods with a space before and after each one. Anything you take out of a quotation should not change the author’s original meaning.

When explaining Juliet’s age, the nurse says, “Susan and she . . . / Were of an age” (I.iii.23-24).

Original : “Susan and she (God rest all Christian souls!) / Were of an age.”

  1. Adding to a quote: In a quoted passage, put brackets around any word or punctuation mark that is not part of the original quotation.

Lord Montague anxiously inquires, “ Have you importuned him [Romeo] by any means?” (I.ii.153).

INTRODUCE (name who is talking and what is happening)

CITE

Worrying about Romeo’s depression, Lord Montague anxiously asks Benvolio,“ Have you importuned him [Romeo] by any means?” (I.ii.153).

Quote or not to quote? … and also, how to.

Quoting your source is a powerful tool. A quote is a CD= evidence.

Quote really powerful and important words ONLY

Incorporating quotes in your writing smoothly and effectively is a very important skill. Read the following, awkward examples:

Romeo is quoted here, “Did my heart love till now? Forswear it, sight! / For I ne’er saw true beauty till this night” (I.v.57-58).

“Did my heart love till now? Forswear it, sight! / For I ne’er saw true beauty till this night” (I.v.57-58), a quote by Romeo.

  1. Use a ______of words to introduce the quote and make it an ______part of the sentence and the paragraph:

When Romeo first sees Juliet, he is so taken by her that he exclaims, “Did my heart love till now? Forswear it, sight! / For I ne’er saw true beauty till this night” (I.v.57-58).

Think of a variety of words that you can use: ______

______

  1. ______the quote. Identify the source, either in the sentence or in parenthesis.
  1. Cite verse (plays and poems) by divisions (______) and______; use periods to separate the various parts:

(II.iii.123-156) = ______

  1. The citation is______. Place the period ______the parenthesis.
  1. For short quotations of verse, use a ______line (forward slash) to show where each new line of verse ______:

“Did my heart love till now? Forswear it, sight! / For I ne’er saw true beauty till this night” (I.v.57-58).

  1. Verse quotations of more than ______lines should be indented 10 spaces and double-spaced. Each line of the poem or play begins a new line of the quotation; do not run the lines together or separate them with diagonals. Separate lines with diagonals only within the main text of your paper. With longer quotes no ______are used. The introductory sentence is followed by ______.

Elizabeth Bishop’s poem “The Fish” contains layers of specific details:

He was speckled with barnacles,

Five rosettes of lines

and infested

with tiny white sea-lice,

and underneath two or three

rags of green weed hung down. (16-21)

  1. Partial quotations: If you want to ______part of the quotation, use an ellipsis to signify the omission. An ellipsis ( . . . ) is three periods with a space before and after each one. Anything you take out of a quotation should not ______the author’s original meaning.

When explaining Juliet’s age, the nurse says, “Susan and she . . . / Were of an age” (I.iii.23-24).

Original : “Susan and she (God rest all Christian souls!) / Were of an age.”

  1. Adding to a quote: In a quoted passage, put ______around any word or punctuation mark that is not part of the original quotation.

Lord Montague anxiously inquires, “ Have you importuned him [Romeo] by any means?” (I.ii.153).

INTRODUCE (name who is talking and what is happening)

CITE