“As He Himself Puts It”: The Art of

Quoting

Chapter 3

To have an effective argument of your own, you must learn how to include arguments of others into your paper first.

One way to do this is through summary, which is putting into your own words what someone else is saying.

However, there are other ways of incorporating what others are saying.

Let’s review…

The art of quoting! Yes—it is an art to quote others in a way

that it helps (not hurts!) your argument. Unfortunately, not all students take this art

so seriously…

Introducing…

a. Quoting someone else gives your own writing more credibility. It proves someone else agrees with you in your argument.

b. Quoting can be more specific and useful than summarizing;

c. An author’s point can be so relevant to your argument that you don’t want to summarize it, for this runs the risk of distorting his/her point.

d. Quoting someone else is rewriting the ideas into your own words.

1) It is important to use quotations, or, quote authors directly in some cases. Which reason

does not apply?

1) It is important to use quotations, or, quote authors directly in some cases. Which reason does not apply?

Hopefully, you answered “D” for this question. Quoting is NOT rewriting someone else’s argument into your own words. In fact, it is quite the opposite.

ANSWER:

To quote someone directly means to take a specific part of his/her text, put quotation marks around it, and then frame it so it fits into your argument.

To frame it means to introduce and explain the quote, no matter what.

Framing and explaining quotes are covered in this PowerPoint, but all the nitty-gritty is covered in a separate presentation.

For now, let’s just focus on quoting and what it means, in general.

What it means to quote

a. To use quotes that are current in today’s news.

b. To use quotes that are relevant to the writer’s own life.

c. The use quotes that best support the writer’s argument because they are related.

d. To use quotes to show the naysayer or objection to a writer’s argument.

2) What does it mean to quote relevant passages?

The use quotes that best support the writer’s argument because they are related.

ANSWER:

You must know what you want to quote. In other words, it must be relevant to your

argument, not random! Like summarizing an author’s argument, it

takes going back to the text to find exactly what it is you want extract.

In this case, your annotations will be very helpful; you won’t have to reread the whole text, perhaps, but you can zero in on the quotes and passages you’ve already marked.

RULE #1: Find Relevant Quotes

3) What are some common mistakes that writers make when it comes to quoting?

Big mistakes…

Writers often quote too little.◦ Why? Maybe they don’t want to go back to the

text to find the exact words. Writers quote too much.

◦ Why? Maybe they don’t have the confidence or they don’t fully understand what they want to quote.

Worst of all, writers don’t explain the quote.◦ They’ve incorporated the quote, but the quote

isn’t explained; for instance, the writer doesn’t say why it is important!

ANSWER:

Once you have found relevant quotes, you need to make sure you explain how and why they are relevant to your argument.

To do that, writers must “frame” their quotes.

Quotes that are framed have a lead-in and a follow-up. They are introduced and explained.

Quotes that are not framed are often called “dangling” quotations or “hit-and-run” quotations.

RULE #2: FRAME THE QUOTE

a. Quotation that doesn’t have a frame, or, an introduction explanation surrounding it.

b. Quotation unrelated to the writer’s argument.

c. Quotation that hangs vertically in the margin.

d. Quotation that functions as a dangling modifier.

4) What is a dangling quotation?

I hope you answered “a”: Quotation that doesn’t have a frame, or, an introduction explanation surrounding it.

ANSWER:

The Dangling Quotation is also known as a “hit and run” quote.

Example: Jon Katz argues that there is a certain code of conduct that boys must follow when becoming a man. “Boys should never rat”(32). Katz goes on to explain…

In this example, there is no “lead in” or introduction for the quote and there is also no explanation or analysis provided after the quote.

Dangling Quotation Continued…

a. Smashing together two quotations without explaining each one.

b. Using two quotations on either side of a main claim.

c. Properly providing a lead-in and explanation for each quotation.

d. Using relevant examples to sandwich two quotations together.

5) What is a quotation sandwich?

To properly frame a quote, you need to insert it into what the “quotation sandwich” is. ( It’s in between “the lead in” and then “the follow up statement.”)

Your statement serves as your top slice of bread and the explanation that follows serves as your bottom slice.

Example revised: Jon Katz argues that there is a certain code of conduct that boys must follow when becoming a man. He explains that boys becoming men “should never rat ”(32). In other words, being a tattle-tale is inacceptable if a boy is transforming into a man.

Answer:

According to X, “________.” In her essay “____,” X argues that “_____.” X agrees when she writes, “________.” In X’s view, “____________.” X himself writes, “_________________.”

Example: Katzs explains that boys becoming men “should never rat ”(32).

It is highly recommended that you memorize a couple of these!

Some templates for introducing quotations:

In other words, X believes… X’s point is that… In making this comment, X urges us to… Meaning,… This means that…Example: He explains that boys becoming men

“should never rat ”(32). In other words, being a tattle-tale is inacceptable if a boy is transforming into a man.

You should memorize a couple of these follow up templates as well!

Templates for explaining quotations:

Chapter 3 provides a new way of integrating the arguments of others into your text: quoting directly.

To quote directly, find the most relevant quotes you want to use.

Always frame your quote: provide a lead in and follow up to introduce and explain your quote and how it fits your argument.

Never leave a quote dangling or one that is “hit and run.”

Wrap Up