Quoting, paraphrasing, and summarizing are all crucial to writing a persuasive, well-reasoned paper. But do you know when and how to use each one? The chart below can help with that.
| Citation Technique |
Key Points |
When to Use It |
| Quoting |
- Use exact language of original source
- Put quotation marks around original language
- Use proper attribution
- Avoid using quotes too often
- Indent quotes of several lines (block quotes)
|
- The language of the original text is important
- The quote lends authority to the argument you are making
- Paraphrasing or summarizing the text would make it lose some of its meaning or power
- There is no other way to say something
|
| Paraphrasing |
- Restate the original text in your own words
- Restated text should have approximately same level of detail as original
- Wording, sentence structure, and order of ideas should be significantly different from original
- Faithful to the original meaning of the text
- Use proper attribution
|
- While quotes can be distracting, paraphrasing preserves continuity of style in your paper
- You want to simplify or clarify vocabulary, sentence structure, or arguments of original text
- You want to put technical language into language more appropriate for your audience
- You want to show you’ve understood the text by stating it in your own words
|
| Summarizing |
- Restate the original text in your own words
- Should be much more condensed than the original
- States only the main ideas
- Wording, sentence structure, and order of ideas should be significantly different from original
- Faithful to the original meaning of the text
- Use proper attribution
|
- The text you are summarizing supports your argument or provides background information
- You want to draw attention to the points that are relevant to your paper
- You want to leave out extraneous material
- You want to simplify the material
|
Want more tips on how to write a paper? Check out The Secrets of Top Students!
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Stefanie Weisman 