quoting, paraphrasing, summarizing
By Jessica Elliott
Herman is a freshman at IU Southeast, and his teacher wants him to write a research paper. He decides to write his research paper on the topic of music censorship. His instructor wants his paper to use at least five sources, so Herman gets on the library website and starts searching for scholarly articles that are relevant to the argument he plans to make in his own paper. When he has his five sources, he's ready to start writing, but how is he supposed to include the ideas of his sources in his paper without being accused of plagiarism?
Rock Out Censorship (Sample Source)
Last fall, in the Pennsylvania state house, legislators held hearings to discuss a bill to criminalize the sale of obscene music to minors. C. Delores Tucker of the National Political Congress of Black Women stood in front of the crowd, holding a blow-up of lyrics from a Snoop Doggy Dogg song. She said the lyrics were fouler than anything you'd hear in a men's locker room, and offered $100 to anyone who dared to read them aloud in public. Suddenly, Randy Lee Payton started reciting the words at the top of his lungs. Payton was finally silenced, and Tucker never did pay up. But he made his point. Payton is co-founder of Rock Out Censorship, an Ohio-based group.
Rock Out Censorship has twelve chapters nationwide, and spends most of its energy fighting state laws that threaten musical expression, including mandatory labeling on certain tapes and CDs. Payton regularly travels around the country, testifying at hearings and lobbying officials. He and John Woods keep their followers informed through a bi-monthly paper called The ROC, produced on Woods's home computer. The group is currently fighting music-censorship laws pending in Pennsylvania, Washington, New York, and New Mexico.
quoting
To quote is to convey the exact words used by a source. Quotations are commonly used when the effect of a statement would be best preserved in its original form.
Example:
In her article, Mubarak Dahir explains that C. Delores Tucker, pro-censorship activist, stood in front of the Pennsylvania legislature, displaying a section of lyrics from a Snoop Dogg song. According to Tucker, "the lyrics were fouler than anything you'd hear in a men's locker room."
This selection of words has been placed in quotation marks because it would lose some of its effect if it were put in other words. Quoting is often an efficient means of preserving the ideas of the original source; however, it should be used minimally and only when absolutely necessary. If a paper is overrun with quotations, your professor will assume that you did not understand the relevancy of the source enough to explain it in your own words.
paraphrasing
To paraphrase is to present another person's ideas or statements in your own words without making any effort to identify the author's key points.
Example:
In the fall of 1994, legislators in Pennsylvania were presented with a bill that, if passed, would prohibit the sale of "obscene" records to persons under the age of 18. In her attempt to promote the passing of the bill, C. Delores Tucker, pro-censorship activist, stood in front of the Pennsylvania legislature, displaying a section of lyrics from a Snoop Dogg song. According to Tucker, "the lyrics were fouler than anything you'd hear in a men's locker room." She challenged the legislatures, saying that she would give one-hundred dollars to anyone who would read them out loud.
This example is a paraphrase of the first paragraph of the sample source. Notice how both paragraphs are almost equal in length. This is because paraphrasing is simply the restatement of an idea that is presented by a source without any attempt to express the source's main point. When paraphrasing, it is important that you do not look at the original document; instead, read through the article as many times as you need in order to fully understand the text, then put the article away and attempt to restate it in your own words. Not having the article in front of you will discourage the tendency to use the same words and form as the source (and this phenomenon is not always conscious!).
summarizing
To summarize is to develop a brief synopsis of a piece of writing. Summaries are commonly used to convey a document's key points.
In the sample article, there are two main points presented. First, the author addresses the failed attempt by C. Delores Tucker to sway the members of the Pennsylvania legislature by displaying the lyrics from rap songs. Secondly, the author presents an overview of the group "Rock Out Censorship." In a paper, you will rarely need to include every idea presented by a source. Say, for example, that you simply want to address the existence of the group Rock Out Censorship:
Example:
There are many groups that protest the censorship of music. Ohio's Rock Out Censorship is a group that fights music censorship laws in several states across the country. Additionally, twice a month, the group publishes an anti-music censorship newsletter, The ROC.
Summaries are probably the most commonly used technique of inserting others' ideas into your own paper. Summarizing allows you to address the specific parts of someone else's ideas as they are relevant to your own ideas. Additionally, summarization is a good technique to use when presenting a source's overall argument or conclusion.
finally – quoting, paraphrasing, and summarizing
As you may have noticed in the examples above, quoting, paraphrasing, and summarizing are often used simultaneously. For example, the sample source used in this brochure is one that Herman wants to use in his own research paper. In his paper, he'll use quoting, paraphrasing, and summarizing in order to make his point:
In the fall of 1994, legislators in Pennsylvania were presented with a bill that, if passed, would prohibit the sale of "obscene" records to persons under the age of 18. In her attempt to promote the passing of the bill, C. Delores Tucker, pro-censorship activist, stood in front of the Pennsylvania legislature, displaying a section of lyrics from a Snoop Dogg song. According to Tucker, "the lyrics were fouler than anything you'd hear in a men's locker room." She challenged the legislatures, saying that she would give one-hundred dollars to anyone who would read them out loud (Dahir 1).
However,Randy Lee Peyton, co-founder of Ohio 's anti-censorship group, Rock Out Censorship, took on Tucker's promise, standing up and reciting the displayed lyrics loudly. Rock Out Censorship is a group that fights music censorship laws. Additionally, twice a month, the group publishes an anti-censorship newsletter, The ROC (Dahir 1).
Work Cited
Dahir, Mubarak. "Rock Out Censorship." Progressive Nov. 1995: 16. Academic Search Premier. EBSCO. Indiana Univ. SE. Lib., New Albany. 24 Oct. 2006 <http:www.epnet.com>.
Always remember to cite the source you are using after summarizing, quoting, or paraphrasing one of their ideas – the rules for citation are style-specific (such as MLA, APA, or Chicago). The above example is cited using the MLA style.
