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(Good quote
choice.) |
See:
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The key to cinching your essay's argument is
finding the perfect quote to support your
point. Don't let the quotation overwhelm
your argument. Instead, choose the key
portion of the passage which relates most
specifically to the point you are making at
that moment in your argument.Example:
When Macbeth learns of his
wife's death, he cannot grieve
for her. Instead, he reflects
upon the pointlessness his
existence.
Tomorrow and
tomorrow and
tomorrow
Creeps in this petty
pace from day to day
To th' last syllable
of recorded time.
And all our
yesterdays have
lighted fools
The way to dusty
death.... (V, v,
18-22)
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More on correct quotation
form:
Using MLA Format (Powerpoint) (Purdue
OWL)
Using MLA Format (Purdue OWL)
The MLA
Website
Brief Overview of Quotation Marks
(Purdue OWL)
|
Jump to:
Usage
Punctuation
& Capitalization
Form
Content |
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(You need a good quote to support the point
you are making.) |
See:
|
The key to cinching your essay's argument is
finding the perfect quote to support your
point. Don't let the quotation overwhelm
your argument. Instead, choose the key
portion of the passage which relates most
specifically to the point you are making at
that moment in your argument. The reader
will know if you use quotes as padding. In
general, the length of the quote should be
proportional to its importance in your
argument. Use longer, indented quotes
sparingly. Look at the quotes you use
carefully to see if you can pare them down.
Why does the quote support your thesis? Do
you need the whole quote? Perhaps you only
need one part of the quote, or one phrase.
If so, pull out this essential part for your
reader and leave the rest of the quote
where you found it. If you make your reader
do this himself, he may fail to do so and
then miss your point.Examples:
Long quotes:
(Use sparingly.)
Phrases less essential
to your paper should be removed:
Fitzgerald makes this
clear early on, when Nick says:
Only Gatsby,
who gives his name
to this book,
was exempt from my
reaction -- Gatsby
who represented
everything for which
I have unaffected
scorn. ...No --
Gatsby turned out
all right at the
end; it is what
preyed on Gatsby,
what foul dust
floated in the wake
of his dreams
that temporarily
closed out my
interest in the
abortive sorrow and
short-winded
elations of men
(6). |
Trimmed version:
Fitzgerald makes this clear
early on, when Nick says:
Only Gatsby...was
exempt from my
reaction -- Gatsby
who represented
everything for which
I have unaffected
scorn. ...No --
Gatsby turned out
all right at the
end; it is what
preyed on Gatsby,
what foul dust
floated in the wake
of his dreams...(6). |
Or the quote can be worked
into the text in several ways:
- 1. Trim it down
further:
Perhaps the entire second
half of the quote is
non-essential:
Fitzgerald makes this
clear early on, when Nick
says, "Only Gatsby...was
exempt from my reaction --
Gatsby who represented
everything for which I have
unaffected scorn"(6).
- 2. Break it up with
your analysis:
Fitzgerald makes this clear
early on, when Nick says
that "...Gatsby...was exempt
from my reaction," despite
the fact that Nick has
"unaffected scorn" for
everything Gatsby stands for
(6). What Nick hates is not
Gatsby, or Gatsby's dreams,
but "what foul dust floated
in the wake of his
dreams"(6).
- 3. Paraphrase:
Put the passage into
your own words. Usually this
involves taking a longer
passage and condensing it:
Fitzgerald makes this
clear early on when Nick
says that he despises
everything Gatsby stands for
but not Gatsby himself.
Nick does not hate Gatsby's
dreams, per se, but
something associated with
them.
#2 and #3 should probably
be your most common quoting
techniques. |
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More
on correct quotation form:
Quoting, Paraphrasing and Summarizing
(Purdue OWL)
Using MLA Format (Powerpoint) (Purdue
OWL)
Using MLA Format (Purdue OWL)
The MLA
Website
Brief Overview of Quotation Marks
(Purdue OWL)
|
Jump to:
Usage
Punctuation
& Capitalization
Form
Content |
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