Writing Workshop: Integrating Quotations

Writing Workshop: Integrating Secondary Sources

When you incorporate research into your writing, you want to provide your reader with a smooth transition into and out of the quote or paraphrase. In order for quotes/paraphrases to be effective, you need to reduce the chance that they will be misinterpreted or will confuse your reader by seeming random or irrelevant; poorly used research will hurt your paper as much as well-used research will strengthen it.

Lesson 1: Remember that a) identifying the author of a quotation and b) interpreting the relevance of a quotation can make a huge difference. Note the following example.

Original:

“Twelve hour work days plus unpaid family labor is common among Korean immigrants. Many have college degrees that won’t even get them decent jobs because of discrimination” (Hu 314-315). Whites have the advantage over minorities.

Revised:

According to Arthur Hu, a writer for Asian Week, “Twelve hour work days plus unpaid family labor is common among Koreans” (314). Hu argues that discrimination causes even Koreans with college degrees to have difficulty securing living-wage jobs (315). In other words, discrimination makes it difficult for many minorities, regardless of their educational level or how hard they work, to live well in our nation. Furthermore, such systematic discrimination benefits the white majority.

Lesson 2: Remember to play with the wording until the quote or paraphrase fits smoothly into your writing. Quotes shouldn’t stand alone. (Note: A paraphrase must put the author’s language into your own words and a quote must be word-for-word from the original)

Original: The stories on Hill Street Blues are kept realistic. "These scripts don't spin innercity fairy tales -- the characters can't walk away easily, not out of their lives or their work, not into the next episode" (Freeman 12). This demonstrates the show's reallife focus.

Revised:

The stories on Hill Street Blues are kept realistic. TV critic Denise Jones explains that the characters are stuck, show after show, in demanding jobs and difficult personal lives (Freeman 12). This refusal to “spin innercity fairy tales” (Freeman 12) demonstrates the show's reallife focus.

Practice

Revise the following, identifying the author of a quotation, interpreting the relevance of a quotation and smoothly integrating a quotation (perhaps by paraphrasing it). Take as much liberty as you need in revision.

Research has shown that children watch too much television and have short attention spans. “We’re raising kids to have two-minute minds” (Zey 250).

“Analysis of newscasts of the major networks have shown that crime and violent world events are the most frequently covered topics. . . . Most children in the highest grades of elementary school watch the news at least several times a week” (Molen 1771). Indeed, entertainment media isn’t the only place that children witness violent images.