1. Using Quotations effectively
Spring 2009
ENC 1102 Online
By Byrna Joseph

2. Purpose of a Quotation in a
Paper
• Good quotations are
supposed to support a
particular interpretation

3. Dropped Quotations
• A “dropped” quote is a quote that is put into a
sentence with no introduction.
• Ex. Fraser tries to convince us that by
reasonably cutting back, most of the problems
would be solved. “But the problem really isn’t
meat, but too much meat—
overgrazing, overfishing and overconsumption.
If American just ate less meat, the problem
could be alleviated without giving up meat
entirely” (Fraser 185).

4. Dropped Quotations
YOU NEVER WANT
TO DROP A
QUOTATION!!!
Because it
will pollute
your paper
Dropped
Quotation

5. Introduce you Quote!
A quotation should never
suddenly appear out of
nowhere!
Quotation
http://www.all4humor.com/images/files/Surprised%20Girl%20Face.jpg

6. Discuss your quotations
• What is your interpretation or
opinion of it?

7. A few ways to Introduce an
Explanation
• Here we see that
• This statement shows
• Clearly, then,
• We can conclude from this that
• This tells us that
• From this we can understand that

8. Verbs that Introduce
• says • claims
• writes • states
• observes • comments
• notes • thinks
• remarks • affirms
• adds • asserts
• declares • explains
• informs us • argues
• alleges http://www.runran.net/remix_visual/images/
20070204104049_verb.jpg

9. Try a Colon Introduction
• Sometimes you might want to use a colon
introduction.
• The colon is used to introduce a quotation or
formal statement, but you must put an
independent clause after the colon
• Ex. The speaker made the following
observation:“In the future, communication
between people all over the world will lead not
to an enriched culture but to a homogenous
one.”

10. Using An introductory phrase
• May sometimes be best. For example:
In the words of Fisher, quot;Art is a mirror of beliefquot;
(342).
As Ted Fisher has remarked, quot;Life imitates art.quot;
As Fisher reminds us, quot;Monkey see, monkey
do.quot;

11. Or…
• Sometimes you might want to begin your
quotation in the middle of the writer's
sentence.
• Ex.
Joe believes that quot;life is slow and softquot; in the
country (Living Easy 288).

12. Condense the Quotation
• You can sometimes leave out some words
from a quote in order to have the portion that is
absolutely relevant.
• Just don’t forget the mid-sentence ellipses
( three spaced dots…)
• Ex.
The surf on the beach at Tampa Bay beat
against the shore.
Your quotation:
James spoke of his wave watching, quot;The
surf . . . beat against the shore“

13. Condense the Quotation
http://www.uncrate.com/men/images/pushi
ng-bookends.jpg

14. Including /in-text citation
• The in-text citation is the author's last name
followed by a page number:
Ex. (Joseph 252)
• Make sure to cite this quotation or source in
your works cited or bibliography page

15. Make sure the words are right.
• If you need to change anything else
in the quotation or add some
comment within it, indicate your
change or addition by using square
brackets [this]

16. Long Quotation
• Quotations longer than four lines should be in
set-off block format.
• These should have a Left-indent
• Start these with a signal statement ending in a
colon:
• Ex: In his imaginary book little John says:
I enjoyed riding my bike today. I remember when
I first learned how to ride my bike. It was over
three years ago but I remember it like it was
yesterday. My dad waked me up early that
morning and he told me that he had a surprise
for me outside.

17. To end a quotation
• When there is a parenthetical citation
there are different rules for
punctuations
• Period Ex: quot;I cannot suppress,quot; Nietzsche says, quot;a sigh
and a last hopequot; (917).
• Question Ex: What is it,quot; Nietzsche asks, quot;that I especially
find utterly unendurable?quot; (917)
• Exclamation Ex: Nietzsche's melancholic energy is
unmistakable: quot;At this point I cannot suppress a sigh and
a last hope. What is it that I especially find utterly
unendurable? That I cannot cope with, that makes me
choke and faint? Bad air! Bad air!quot; (917)
Inside the “q” Outside the “q”
question mark period
exclamation mark

18. Remember
• It is important to find the BEST
quotations,
• Those that really serve your
purpose and help your paper.

19. Resources
• http://www.virtualsalt.com/quotehlp.htm
• http://instructors.cwrl.utexas.edu/mitchell/node/
29
• http://nutsandbolts.washcoll.edu/quoting.html
• http://www.cliffsnotes.com/WileyCDA/CliffsRevi
ewTopic/Uses-of-the-Colon.topicArticleId-
29011,articleId-28989.html