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How to Put a Quote in an Essay
Last Updated: November 28, 2022 References
This article was co-authored by Christopher Taylor, PhD and by wikiHow staff writer, Danielle Blinka, MA, MPA . Christopher Taylor is an Adjunct Assistant Professor of English at Austin Community College in Texas. He received his PhD in English Literature and Medieval Studies from the University of Texas at Austin in 2014. There are 11 references cited in this article, which can be found at the bottom of the page. This article has been viewed 2,546,552 times.
Using a direct quote in your essay is a great way to support your ideas with concrete evidence, which you need to support your thesis. To select a good quote , look for a passage that supports your argument and is open to analysis. Then, incorporate that quote into your essay, and make sure you properly cite it based on the style guide you’re using.
Sample Quotes
Incorporating a Short Quote
- For instance, let's say this is the quote you want to use: "The brown leaves symbolize the death of their relationship, while the green buds suggest new opportunities will soon unfold."
- If you just type that sentence into your essay and put quotes around it, your reader will be disoriented. Instead, you could incorporate it into a sentence like this: "The imagery in the story mirrors what's happening in Lia's love life, as 'The brown leaves symbolize the death of their relationship, while the green buds suggest new opportunities will soon unfold.'"
- "Critic Alex Li says, 'The frequent references to the color blue are used to suggest that the family is struggling to cope with the loss of their matriarch.'"
- "According to McKinney’s research, 'Adults who do yoga at least three times a week have lower blood pressure, better sleeping patterns, and fewer everyday frustrations.'"
- "Based on several recent studies, people are more likely to sit on the park benches when they're shaded by trees."
- You still need to use quotation marks even if you're only quoting a few words.
- If you're in doubt, it's best to be cautious and use quotes.
- For example, let’s say you used the quote, “According to McKinney’s research, ‘Adults who do yoga at least three times a week have lower blood pressure, better sleeping patterns, and fewer everyday frustrations.’” Your commentary might read, “This shows that yoga can have a positive impact on people’s health, so incorporating it into the workplace can help improve employee health outcomes. Since yoga makes employees healthier, they’ll likely have reduced insurance costs.”
- When you use a paraphrase, you still need to provide commentary that links the paraphrased material back to your thesis and ideas.
Using a Long Quote
- The reader will recognize that the material is a direct quote because it's set off from the rest of the text. That's why you don't need to use quotation marks. However, you will include your citation at the bottom.
- "In The Things They Carried , the items carried by soldiers in the Vietnam war are used to both characterize them and burden the readers with the weight they are carrying: The things they carried were largely determined by necessity. Among the necessities or near-necessities were P-38 can openers, pocket knives, heat tabs, wristwatches, dog tags, mosquito repellent, chewing gum, candy cigarettes, salt tablets, packets of Kool-Aid, lighters, matches, sewing kits, Military Payment Certificates, C rations, and two or three canteens of water." (O'Brien 2)
Variation: When you're citing two or more paragraphs, you must use block quotes, even if the passage you want to quote is less than four lines long. You should indent the first line of each paragraph an extra quarter inch. Then, use ellipses (…) at the end of one paragraph to transition to the next.
- Your block quote will use the same spacing as the rest of your paper, which will likely be double-spacing.
- For example, “According to Li, “Rosa is the first sister to pick a rose because she’s the only one who’s begun to move on after their mother’s death” might become “According to Li, “Rosa is the first sister to pick a rose because she’s … begun to move on after their mother’s death.”
- Don’t eliminate words to change the meaning of the original text. For instance, it’s not appropriate to use an ellipsis to change “plants did not grow faster when exposed to poetry” to “plants did … grow faster when exposed to poetry.”
- For example, let’s say you want to use the quote, “All of them experienced a more relaxed, calmer disposition after doing yoga for 6 months.” This doesn’t tell the reader who you’re talking about. You could use brackets to say, “All of [the teachers in the study] experienced a more relaxed, calmer disposition after doing yoga for 6 months.”
- However, if you know the study is talking about teachers, you couldn’t use brackets to say, “All of [society experiences] a more relaxed, calmer disposition after doing yoga for 6 months.”
- If you don't explain your quote well, then it's not helping your ideas. You can't expect the reader to connect the quote back to your thesis for you.
- For instance, you may prefer to use a long block quote to present a passage from a literary work that demonstrates the author's style. However, let's say you were using a journal article to provide a critic's perspective on an author's work. You may not need to directly quote an entire paragraph word-for-word to get their point across. Instead, use a paraphrase.
Tip: If you’re unsure about a quote, ask yourself, “Can I paraphrase this in more concise language and not lose any support for my argument?” If the answer is yes, a quote is not necessary.
Citing Your Quote
- An MLA citation will look like this: (Lopez 24)
- For sources with multiple authors, separate their names with the word “and:” (Anderson and Smith 55-56) or (Taylor, Gomez, and Austin 89)
- If you use the author’s name in your lead-in to the quote, you just need to provide the year in parentheses: According to Luz Lopez, “the green grass symbolizes a fresh start for Lia (24).”
- An APA citation for a direct quote looks like this: (Ronan, 2019, p. 10)
- If you’re citing multiple authors, separate their names with the word “and:” (Cruz, Hanks, and Simmons, 2019, p. 85)
- If you incorporated the author’s name into your lead-in, you can just give the year and page number: Based on Ronan’s (2019, p. 10) analysis, “coffee breaks improve productivity.”
- For instance, a Chicago Style citation will look like this: (Alexander 2019, 125)
- If you’re quoting a source with multiple authors, separate them with the word “and:” (Pattinson, Stewart, and Green 2019, 175)
- If you already incorporated the author’s name into your quote, then you can just provide the year and page number: According to Alexander, “the smell of roses increases feelings of happiness” (2019, 125).
- For MLA, you'd cite an article like this: Lopez, Luz. "A Fresh Blossom: Imagery in 'Her Darkest Sunshine.'" Journal of Stories , vol. 2, no. 5, 2019, p. 15-22. [17] X Trustworthy Source Purdue Online Writing Lab Trusted resource for writing and citation guidelines Go to source
- In APA, you'd cite an article like this: Lopez, Luz. (2019). A Fresh Blossom: Imagery in "Her Darkest Sunshine." Journal of Stories , 2(5), 15-22. [18] X Trustworthy Source Purdue Online Writing Lab Trusted resource for writing and citation guidelines Go to source
- For Chicago Style, your article citation would look like this: Lopez, Luz. "A Fresh Blossom: Imagery in 'Her Darkest Sunshine.'" Journal of Stories 2 no. 4 (2019): 15-22. [19] X Trustworthy Source Purdue Online Writing Lab Trusted resource for writing and citation guidelines Go to source
Selecting a Quote
Tip: Quotes are most effective when the original language of the person or text you’re quoting is worth repeating word-for-word.
- If you’re struggling to explain the quote or link it back to your argument, then it’s likely not a good idea to include it in your essay.
- Paraphrases and summaries work just like a direct quote, except that you don’t need to put quotation marks around them because you’re using your own words to restate ideas. However, you still need to cite the sources you used.
Community Q&A
Video . By using this service, some information may be shared with YouTube.
- Always cite your quotes properly. If you don't, it is considered plagiarism. ⧼thumbs_response⧽ Helpful 0 Not Helpful 0
You Might Also Like
- ↑ https://www.ursinus.edu/live/files/1160-integrating-quotespdf
- ↑ https://lsa.umich.edu/sweetland/undergraduates/writing-guides/how-do-i-incorporate-quotes-.html
- ↑ https://helpfulprofessor.com/quotes/
- ↑ https://advice.writing.utoronto.ca/using-sources/quotations/
- ↑ https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/research_and_citation/mla_style/mla_formatting_and_style_guide/mla_formatting_quotations.html
- ↑ https://guides.libraries.psu.edu/apaquickguide/intext
- ↑ https://www.chicagomanualofstyle.org/tools_citationguide/citation-guide-2.html
- ↑ https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/research_and_citation/mla_style/mla_formatting_and_style_guide/mla_formatting_and_style_guide.html
- ↑ https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/research_and_citation/apa_style/apa_formatting_and_style_guide/reference_list_articles_in_periodicals.html
- ↑ https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/research_and_citation/chicago_manual_17th_edition/cmos_formatting_and_style_guide/periodicals.html
- ↑ https://writingcenter.unc.edu/tips-and-tools/quotations/
About This Article
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The content of this article is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, examination, diagnosis, or treatment. You should always contact your doctor or other qualified healthcare professional before starting, changing, or stopping any kind of health treatment.
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To put a quote in an essay, incorporate it directly into a sentence if it's shorter than 4 typed lines. For example, you could write "According to researchers," and then insert the quote. If a quote is longer than 4 typed lines, set it off from the rest of the paragraph, and don't put quotes around it. After the quote, include an in-text citation so readers know where it's from. The right way to cite the quote will depend on whether you're using MLA, APA, or Chicago Style formatting. For more tips from our English co-author, like how to omit words from a quote, scroll down! Did this summary help you? Yes No
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Ways to introduce quotes
When (event in book) happened, (character) states, "..."
Ex: When Lady Macbeth kills herself, Macbeth states, "Life's but a walking shadow, a poor player that struts and frets his hour upon the stage and then is heard no more (V.V.19-20).
(Character) explains: "..." (citation).
(Your own words) "direct quotes from book" ...
Ex: Macbeth pines over his miserable fate, calling life a "walking shadow" (citation).
Ways to paraphrase
Directly look at quote and replace the text with your words. It is vitally important to maintain the same meaning:
Ex: In other words, Macbeth compares his existence to the condition of being a mere ghost. He goes on to compare people to actors who worry about their brief moment in the spotlight only to cease to exist before he realizes his life is over.
Ways to analyze
Look at the subtle parts of the quote, and explain why the author used them in his writing--Tone, diction, mood, figurative language (metaphors, similes, imagery, alliteration, onomatopoeia, personification...there are A LOT).
Ex: The metaphors Shakespeare uses, comparing life to a "walking shadow" and man to "a poor player" emphasize the fleeting nature of life. Shadows are gone as soon as they appear, and actors only assume their character: the people they represent have no true meaning.
Ways to evaluate
Show the importance of the quote with respect to your argument and your thesis. Explain the significance...Tell the reader why they bothered to read your essay. This is where you tie your thoughts together in a nice bow.
Ex: Here, Macbeth realizes that his pitiful existence, from the moment he decided to kill King Duncan to the moment when his beloved wife killed herself, has been consumed by his reckless ambition. This directly shows the damaging power of ambition. If Macbeth had been content with his previous title, which was prestigious enough, a host of tragedy would have been avoided.
When Lady Macbeth kills herself, Macbeth states, "Life's but a walking shadow, a poor player that struts and frets his hour upon the stage and then is heard no more" (V.V.19-28). In other words, Macbeth compares his existence to the condition of being a mere ghost. He goes on to compare people to actors who worry about their brief moment in the spotlight only to cease to exist before they realize it is over. The metaphors Shakespeare uses, comparing life to a "walking shadow" and man to "a poor player" emphasize the fleeting nature of life. Shadows are gone as soon as they appear, and actors only assume their character: the people they represent have no true meaning. Here, Macbeth realizes that his pitiful existence, from the moment he decided to kill King Duncan to the moment when his beloved wife killed herself, has been destroyed by his reckless ambition. This directly shows the damaging power of ambition, a major theme of the play. If Macbeth had been content with his previous title, which was prestigious enough, a wealth of tragedy would have been avoided.
Write your thesis here for reference:
1. Write the quote here, with a way to introduce it:
2. Write a paraphrase here (remember to keep the same meaning):
3. Write your analysis here (look for the subtle, key parts of the quote):
4. Write your evaluation here (prove why the quote is important in relation to your thesis):
5. Repeat for the rest of your text-based essay!!!
Sarah Cohen
Student Learning Center, University of California, Berkeley
©2009 UC Regents
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License.
How to Quote a Quote?
- In American English , use double quotation marks for quotations and single quotation marks for quotations within quotations.
- In British English, use single quotation marks for quotations and double quotation marks for quotations within quotations.
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The rules for using quotation marks can seem complicated, but once you understand the basic principles, it’s not so bad. But what do you do when you’ve got a quote within a quote? Read on to find out.
Quotations within quotations
Why would you ever have a quotation within a quotation? Lots of reasons. For example, a character in a story may quote someone else aloud.
“Let us explore the meaning of the quote ‘Do unto others as you would have them do unto you,’”said the teacher.
The example above uses American-style quotation marks. The main quote is enclosed in double quotation marks. The quote within the quote, Do unto others as you would have them do unto you , is enclosed in single quotation marks. (The British convention is the opposite; the main quote would use single quotation marks and the quote within the quote would use double quotation marks.) If your single and double quotation marks end up next to each other (either at the beginning or end of the quote), you don’t need to add a space between them.
Quoting a quote
How do you quote a quote? That is to say, what do you do when you’re quoting material that already contains a quote? The principle doesn’t change. In American English, use double quotes for the outside quote and single quotes for the inside quote. In British English, do the opposite.
Let’s say you need to quote a book for an essay, and the passage you have in mind contains a quote from some other source.
Imagine the original passage from the book looks like this:
I remember our father having strong opinions about many things. Pop was fond of saying “there’s no such thing as a free lunch, Jimmy,” but it seemed a little disingenuous because he wasn’t much of a lunch-eater anyway.
When you quote from this passage, you might say:
In the introduction of the book, the author describes a memory of his father. “Pop was fond of saying ‘there’s no such thing as a free lunch, Jimmy,’ but it seemed a little disingenuous because he wasn’t much of a lunch-eater anyway.”
Notice that the quotes around there’s no such thing as a free lunch, Jimmy were double quotes in the original passage. But when you quote the passage, there’s no such thing as a free lunch, Jimmy becomes a quote within a quote, so you should change them to single quotation marks.
How to use Quotes in an Essay in 7 Simple Steps
A quote can be an effective and powerful literary tool in an essay, but it needs to be done well. To use quotes in an essay, you need to make sure your quotes are short, backed up with explanations, and used rarely. The best essays use a maximum of 2 quotes for every 1500 words.
Rules for using quotes in essays:
- Avoid Long Quotes.
- Quotes should be less than 1 sentence long.
- Match Quotes with Explanations and Examples.
- Use Max. 2 Quotes for 1500 words.
- Use page numbers when Citing Quotes.
- Don’t Italicize Quotes.
- Avoid quotes inside quotes.
Once you have mastered these quotation writing rules you’ll be on your way to growing your marks in your next paper.
How to use Quotes in an Essay
1. avoid long quotes.
There’s a simple rule to follow here: don’t use a quote that is longer than one line. In fact, four word quotes are usually best.
Long quotes in essays are red flags for teachers. It doesn’t matter if it is an amazing quote. Many, many teachers don’t like long quotes, so it’s best to avoid them.
Too many students provide quotes that take up half of a paragraph. This will lose you marks – big time.
If you follow my perfect paragraph formula , you know that most paragraphs should be about six sentences long, which comes out to about six or seven typed lines on paper. That means that your quote will be a maximum of one-sixth (1/6) of your paragraph. This leaves plenty of space for discussion in your own words.
One reason teachers don’t like long quotes is that they suck up your word count. It can start to look like you didn’t have enough to say, so you inserted quotes to pad out your essay. Even if this is only your teacher’s perception, it’s something that you need to be aware of.
Here’s an example of over-use of quotes in paragraphs:
Avoid Quotes that are Too Long
Children who grow up in poverty often end up being poor as adults. “Many adult Americans believe that hard work and drive are important factors on economic mobility. When statistics show that roughly 42% of children born into the bottom level of the income distribution will likely stay there (Isaacs, 2007), this Is a consequence of structural and social barriers.” (Mistry et al., 2016, p. 761). Therefore poverty in childhood needs to be addressed by the government.
This student made the fatal mistake of having the quote overtake the paragraph.
Simply put, don’t use a quote that is longer than one line long. Ever. It’s just too risky.
Personally, I like to use a 4-word quote in my essays. Four-word quotes are long enough to constitute an actual quote but short enough that I have to think about how I will fit that quote around my own writing. This forces me to write quotations that both show:
- I have read the original source, but also:
- I know how to paraphrase
2. Do not use a Quote to that takes up a full Sentence, Starts a Sentence, or Ends a Paragraph
These are three common but fatal mistakes.
Essay quotes that start sentences or end paragraphs make you appear passive.
If you use a quotation in an essay to start a sentence or end a paragraph, your teacher automatically thinks that your quote is replacing analysis, rather than supporting it.
You should instead start the sentence that contains the quote with your own writing. This makes it appear that you have an active voice .
Similarly, you should end a paragraph with your own analysis, not a quote.
Let’s look at some examples of quotes that start sentences and end paragraphs. These examples are poor examples of using quotes:
Avoid Quotes that Start Sentences The theorist Louis Malaguzzi was the founder of the Reggio Emilia Approach to Education. “Children have the ability to learn through play and exploration. Play helps children to learn about their surroundings” (Malaguzzi, 1949, p. 10). Play is better than learning through repetition of drills or reading. Play is good for all children.
Avoid Quotes that End Paragraphs Before Judith Butler gender was seen as being a binary linked to sex, men were masculine and women were feminine. Butler came up with this new idea that gender is just something society has made up over time. “Gender is a fluid concept” (Butler, 1990, p. 136).
Both these quotes are from essays that were shared with me by colleagues. My colleagues marked these students down for these quotes because of the quotes:
- took up full sentences;
- started sentences; and
- were used to end paragraphs.
It didn’t appear as if the students were analyzing the quotes. Instead, the quotes were doing the talking for the students.
There are some easy strategies to use in order to make it appear that you are actively discussing and analyzing quotes.
One is that you should make sure the essay sentences with quotes in them don’t start with the quote . Here are some examples of how we can change the quotes:
Example 1: Start Quote Sentences with an Active Voice The theorist Louis Malaguzzi was the founder of the Reggio Emilia Approach to Education. According to Malaguzzi (1949, p. 10), “children have the ability to learn through play and exploration.” Here, Malaguzzi is highlighting how to play is linked to finding things out about the world. Play is important for children to develop. Play is better than learning through repetition of drills or reading. Play is good for all children.
Here, the sentence with the quote was amended so that the student has an active voice. They start the sentence with According to Malaguzzi, ….
Similarly, in the second example, we can also insert an active voice by ensuring that our quote sentence does not start with a quote:
Example 2: Start Quote Sentences with an Active Voice In 1990, Judith Butler revolutionized Feminist understandings of gender by arguing that “gender is a fluid concept” (p. 136). Before Butler’s 1990 book Gender Trouble , gender was seen as being a binary linked to sex. Men were masculine and women were feminine. Butler came up with this new idea that gender is just something society has made up over time.
In this example, the quote is not at the start of a sentence or end of a paragraph – tick!
How to Start Sentences containing Quotes using an Active Voice
- According to Malaguzzi (1949, p. 10), “…”
- Malaguzzi (1949, p. 10) argues that “…”
- In 1949, Malaguzzi (p. 10) highlighted that “…”
- The argument of Malaguzzi (1949, p. 10) that “…” provides compelling insight into the issue.
3. Match Quotes with Explanations and Examples
Earlier on, I stated that one key reason to use quotes in essays is so that you can analyze them.
Quotes shouldn’t stand alone as explanations. Quotes should be there to be analyzed, not to do the analysis.
Let’s look again at the quote used in Point 1:
Example: A Quote that is Too Long Children who grow up in poverty often end up being poor as adults. “Many adult Americans believe that hard work and drive are important factors in economic mobility. When statistics show that roughly 42% of children born into the bottom level of the income distribution will likely stay there (Isaacs, 2007), this Is a consequence of structural and social barriers.” (Mistry et al., 2016, p. 761). Therefore poverty in childhood needs to be addressed by the government.
This student has included the facts, figures, citations and key details in the quote. Essentially, this student has been lazy. They failed to paraphrase.
Instead, this student could have selected the most striking phrase from the quote and kept it. Then, the rest should be paraphrased. The most striking phrase in this quote was “[poverty] is a consequence of structural and social barriers.” (Mistry et al., 2016, p. 761).
So, take that one key phrase, then paraphrase the rest:
Example: Paraphrasing Long Quotes Children who grow up in poverty often end up being poor as adults. In their analysis, Mistry et al. (2016) highlight that there is a misconception in American society that hard work is enough to escape poverty. Instead, they argue, there is evidence that over 40% of people born in poverty remain in poverty. For Mistry et al. (2016, p. 761), this data shows that poverty is not a matter of being lazy alone, but more importantly “a consequence of structural and social barriers.” This implies that poverty in childhood needs to be addressed by the government.
To recap, quotes shouldn’t do the talking for you . Provide a brief quote in your essay, and then show you understand it with surrounding explanation and analysis.
4. Know how many Quotes to use in an Essay
There’s a simple rule for how many quotes should be in an essay.
Here’s a good rule to follow: one quote for every five paragraphs. A paragraph is usually 150 words long, so you’re looking at one quote in every 750 words, maximum .
To extrapolate that out, you’ll want a maximum of about:
- 2 quotes for a 1500-word paper;
- 3 quotes for a 2000-word paper;
- 4 quotes for a 3000-word paper.
That’s the maximum , not a target. There’s no harm in writing a paper that has absolutely zero quotes in it, so long as it’s still clear that you’ve closely read and paraphrased your readings.
The reason you don’t want to use more quotes than this in your essay is that teachers want to see you saying things in your own words. When you over-use quotes, it is a sign to your teacher that you don’t know how to paraphrase well.
5. Always use page numbers when Citing Quotes in Essays
One biggest problem with quotes are that many students don’t know how to cite quotes in essays.
Nearly every referencing format requires you to include a page number in your citation. This includes the three most common referencing formats: Harvard, APA, and MLA. All of them require you to provide page numbers with quotes.
Citing a Quote in Chicago Style – Include Page Numbers
- Incorrect: “Gender is a fluid concept” (Butler 1990).
- Correct: “Gender is a fluid concept” (Butler 1990, 136).
Citing a Quote in APA and Harvard Styles – Include Page Numbers
- Incorrect: “Gender is a fluid concept” (Butler, 1990).
- Correct: “Gender is a fluid concept” (Butler, 1990, p. 136).
Citing a Quote in MLA Style – Include Page Numbers
- Incorrect: “Gender is a fluid concept” (Butler).
- Correct: “Gender is a fluid concept” (Butler 136).
Including a page number in your quotation makes a huge difference when a marker is trying to determine how high your grade should be.
This is especially true when you’re already up in the higher marks range. These little editing points can mean the difference between placing first in the class and third. Don’t underestimate the importance of attention to detail.
6. Don’t Italicize Quotes
For some reason, students love to use italics for quotes. This is wrong in absolutely every major referencing format, yet it happens all the time.
I don’t know where this started, but please don’t do it. It looks sloppy, and teachers notice. A nice, clean, well-formatted essay should not contain these minor but not insignificant errors. If you want to be a top student, you need to pay attention to minor details.
7. Avoid quotes inside quotes
Have you ever found a great quote and thought, “I want to quote that quote!” Quoting a quote is a tempting thing to do, but not worth your while.
I’ll often see students write something like this:
Poor Quotation Example: Quotes Inside Quotes Rousseau “favored a civil religion because it would be more tolerant of diversity than Christianity. Indeed ‘no state has ever been founded without religion as its base’ (Rousseau, 1913: 180).” (Durkheim, 1947, p. 19).
Here, there are quotes on top of quotes. The student has quoted Durkheim quoting Rousseau. This quote has become a complete mess and hard to read. The minute something’s hard to read, it loses marks.
Here are two solutions:
- Cite the original source. If you really want the Rousseau quote, just cite Rousseau. Stop messing around with quotes on top of quotes.
- Learn the ‘as cited in’ method. Frankly, that method’s too complicated to discuss here. But if you google it, you’ll be able to teach yourself.
When Should I use Quotes in Essays?
1. to highlight an important statement.
One main reason to use quotes in essays is to emphasize a famous statement by a top thinker in your field.
The statement must be important. It can’t be just any random comment.
Here are some examples of when to use quotes in essays to emphasize the words of top thinkers:
- The words of Stephen Hawking go a long way in Physics ;
- The words of JK Rowling go a long way in Creative Writing ;
- The words of Michel Foucault go a long way in Cultural Studies ;
- The words of Jean Piaget go a long way in Education Studies .
2. To analyze an Important Statement.
Another reason to use quotes in essays is when you want to analyze a statement by a specific author. This author might not be famous, but they might have said something that requires unpacking and analyzing. You can provide a quote, then unpack it by explaining your interpretation of it in the following sentences.
Quotes usually need an explanation and example. You can unpack the quote by asking:
- What did they mean,
- Why is it relevant, and
- Why did they say this?
You want to always follow up quotes by top thinkers or specific authors with discussion and analysis.
Quotes should be accompanied by:
- Explanations of the quote;
- Analysis of the ideas presented in the quote; or
- Real-world examples that show you understand what the quote means.
Remember: A quote should be a stimulus for a discussion, not a replacement for discussion.
What Bad Quotes Look Like
Many teachers I have worked with don’t like when students use quotes in essays. In fact, some teachers absolutely hate essay quotes. The teachers I have met tend to hate these sorts of quotes:
- When you use too many quotes.
- When you use the wrong citation format.
- When you don’t provide follow-up explanations of quotes.
- When you used quotes because you don’t know how to paraphrase .
Be a minimalist when it comes to using quotes. Here are the seven approaches I recommend for using quotes in essays:
- Avoid Long Quotes in Essays
- Do not use a Quote that takes up a full Sentence, Starts a Sentence, or Ends a Paragraph
- Match Quotes with Explanations and Examples
- Use a Maximum of 2 Quotes for every 1500 words
- Always use page numbers when Citing Quotes in Essays
- Don’t Italicize Quotes
- Avoid quotes inside quotes
Chris Drew (PhD)
Dr. Chris Drew is the founder of the Helpful Professor. He holds a PhD in education and has published over 20 articles in scholarly journals. He is the former editor of the Journal of Learning Development in Higher Education.
- Chris Drew (PhD) https://helpfulprofessor.com/author/admin/ What do Portuguese People Look Like? (10 Features & Stereotypes)
- Chris Drew (PhD) https://helpfulprofessor.com/author/admin/ What do Spanish People Look Like? (Features & Stereotypes)
- Chris Drew (PhD) https://helpfulprofessor.com/author/admin/ 10 Italian People Features & Stereotypes (What They Look Like)
- Chris Drew (PhD) https://helpfulprofessor.com/author/admin/ 10 Polish people Features, Characteristics and Stereotypes
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Quote integration
Quote integration is arguably one of the most difficult parts of essay writing; however, it does not need to be. Here are some tips to make quote integration easier.
First things first, the most basic way to integrate quotes into any piece of writing is with the following format
Signal phrase + Quote + Citations
- Signal phrase: A short phrase or verb that indicates to the reader that you are going to introduce a quote.
- Quote: Short quotes are less than four lines and can be integrated into the actual body of your essay. Quotes over four lines typically should be formatted as block quotes (based on the citation style you are using).
- Citations in MLA 8th edition
- Citations in APA 7 th
- Citations in Chicago
- Citations in AMA
The following example follows the pattern of signal phrase , quote, and citation (in MLA style)
- Exercise has many benefits for not only an individual’s present health but in the long term as well : “exercise is known to reduce a number of inflammatory markers…which are linked to a number of diseases” (Walton 1).
Another way to introduce a quote into a source is to use the author’s name as your signal phrase with a subsequent verb that is used to introduce the quote. For citation styles such as MLA or APA, when you start with the author’s name to introduce the source, the end of text citation only needs to have the page number/year.
- Alice Walton writes that “exercise is one of the best-illustrated things we can do for our hearts, and this includes markers like blood pressure and cholesterol, in addition to the physical structure of the heart itself, and blood vessel function” (3).
Verbs to use to signal the beginning of a quotation
- Demonstrates
- Illustrates
Other methods to integrate a quote into a sentence
Introduce a quotation and have subsequent sentences that expand on the relevance.
- This is the best way to integrate quotes into a paper. It is crucial that anytime you use from an outside source, you explain the relevance of the quote to the rest of your paper .
- Dr. Carrie Fisher details some of the most pressing ethical concerns that arise in the field of public health: “the primary ethical concern of public health officials is creating a balance between the common good and the right of the individual, when we undermine autonomy we create distrust among the general public, destabilizing the governing principles of public health” (2). Dr. Fisher’s concerns surrounding the field of public health echoes the main dilemma that has plagued the field since its conception. Her argument that undermining autonomy betrays public trust demonstrates that as public health officials it is crucial to understand that if individual autonomy is restricted, it can only be in the direst of circumstances.
Make the quotation part of a complete sentence
- Current research indicates that exercise is beneficial for long-term health as it “can help control blood lipid abnormalities, diabetes, and obesity” (Fletcher et al., 1996).
Utilize brackets and ellipses to help improve clarity of a sentence
Brackets are used to add words to improve understanding. Ellipses are used to remove words to shorten a phrase.
- According to physical therapist Dr. Smith, developing a consistent and sustainable workout foundation is the key to long term success: “[Workout programs] must be enjoyable, you cannot expect an individual to adhere to a regimen where they dread each day they must go. I recommend that individuals find a workout routine that both challenges them but also excites them, where it does not feel like a chore to workout” (2).
Here is an example sentence that utilizes all of these tactics to integrate a quote into a sentence
- In the field of medicine, exercise recommendations remain hotly contested, “although a consensus is growing on the importance of the relation between physical activity and health and wellness, the specific dose of physical activity necessary for good health remains unclear… some of the inconsistency among physical activity recommendations is due simply to the inherent uncertainties of biomedical science” (Blair 2). It is crucial that the differing ideologies be addressed as they have the potential to impact the dissemination of information to the general public. The average American already struggles to meet the weekly exercise recommendations and conflicting information regarding these recommendations will only further exacerbate the issue.
Paraphrasing
- You may be thinking “isn’t this supposed to be about integrating quotes into an essay?” You are correct; however, there are many times (and citation styles) where it is best to paraphrase a source instead of integrating a whole quote into the paper. Quote integration is crucial when the exact wording of the primary source is critical to the point being made, whereas paraphrasing is sufficient when restating the general idea is all that is required.
- Despite continual recommendations put forth by the CDC regarding exercise and physical activity “80% of the population is not meeting the guidelines. Each year in the US, an estimated 10% of premature deaths and $117 billion in healthcare costs are associated with inadequate physical activity” (Smith, 2017).
Paraphrased
- The CDC estimates that 80% of the United States population is not adhering to the guidelines regarding weekly physical activity recommendations (Smith 3). Inactive adults cost the U.S health care system an estimated $117 billion per year; estimates suggest 10% of premature deaths are due to inactivity (Smith, 2017).
*Remember that when paraphrasing a quote from a source an in-text citation is still included.
Common mistakes to avoid
Drop quotes.
This is when you “drop” a quote into your essay without any form of introduction; the most common mistake is making the quote its own sentence.
This is what you don’t want to do
- There are numerous health benefits to working out. “Adults should move more and sit less throughout the day. Some physical activity is better than none. Adults who sit less and do any amount of moderate-to-vigorous intensity physical activity gain some health benefits” (CDC).
A better way to approach this is
- There are numerous health benefits to working. According to the CDC, “adults should move more and sit less throughout the day. Some physical activity is better than none. Adults who sit less and do any amount of moderate-to-vigorous intensity physical activity gain some health benefits” (2019).
Not using brackets
Using brackets when integrating a quote actually helps improve clarity while writing. Otherwise, if you integrate a quote directly without adjusting it through the use of brackets, the sentence can be confusing to readers.
- Dr. Smith, talks to patients candidly about the importance of physical activity while they are young, “it is important that you start working out when you are younger as it helps you build up bone density, which can decrease the risk of developing arthritis as you get older” (Horton 3).
- Dr. Smith talks to patients candidly about the importance of physical activity while they are young: “it is important that [individuals] start working out when [they] are younger as it helps [them] build up bone density, which can decrease the risk of developing arthritis as they get older” (Horton 3).
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When writing, you need to provide evidence to back up your ideas. Sometimes you can explain what a source says in your own words. But sometimes, you need to use the source's exact words. This is where you need a direct quote. A direct quote is an exact copy of words from a source. Direct quotes are important for giving evidence and meaning to your ideas.
Meaning of a Direct Quote
You will use direct quotes in essays and other forms of writing, persuasive or otherwise.
A direct quote is an exact copy of words from a source . A direct quote can include anything from one word to several sentences from a source.
A source is an object used to gather information and ideas. Sources can be written, spoken, audio, or visual materials.
Direct quotes can strengthen your arguments in several ways.
The Importance of Using Direct Quotes
Direct quotes are important for supporting and emphasizing specific points in an essay. Effectively choosing and using direct quotes is an important writing skill.
Some of the benefits of using direct quotes are:
- They allow you to analyze specific passages in a source.
- They emphasize an author's opinion.
- They stay true to a source's wording and intent.
- They support your argument with especially memorable statements.
When You Should Use Direct Quotes
Use direct quotes only a few times throughout an essay for emphasis, analysis, and evidence.
Direct quotes can be really helpful! But using too many of them can be distracting. An essay is supposed to be your own original work. When writing, use direct quotes sparingly. Focus on your own arguments and ideas. Use direct quotes only when necessary. Be strategic in your choices.
Use direct quotes when:
- The exact words of a source are important for understanding the source's meaning.
- The source's words are particularly important or memorable.
- You are analyzing the words and phrases of the source.
- You emphasize an author's opinion and don't want to misrepresent their ideas.
You might ask, what else can I use besides direct quotes ? Not all evidence needs to be in a source's exact words. Sometimes you need to translate a source for the reader. You can do this by paraphrasing and summarizing sources.
Paraphrasing is describing one key idea, concept, or fact from a source. Think of paraphrasing as your translation of one idea from a source (not the whole source).
Summarizing is providing a general overview of a source. Think of it as your translation of the source and its main idea. Summaries are always in your own words.
When writing, use a balanced blend of direct quote, paraphrase, and summary.
What To Include in a Direct Quote
A direct quote should include the exact words from a source, punctuation, and an introduction. Let's look at each of these elements more closely.
Using a Source's Exact Words
Direct quotes always include the exact words of a source. This doesn't mean you have to use an entire sentence, though. A direct quote can be just one word. Or it can be a phrase. Using a word or phrase from a source is called a partial quote. Partial quotes are helpful for smoothly integrating direct quotes into your own sentences.
Johnson argues the use of standardized testing is "ridiculously outdated."
Note how the quote includes only a couple of Johnson's words. This way, the quote complements the writer's ideas. Too many of Johnson's words would have distracted the reader from the writer's opinion.
Of course, direct quotes can be longer. They can be full sentences. Direct quotes can even be several sentences long! Direct quotes that include several sentences from a source are called block quotes. You won't need to use block quotes very often. They use a lot of valuable space in your essay.
Only use block quotes when:
You are analyzing the words used in the entire passage.
The entire passage is necessary to provide an example of your ideas.
In The Tyger, William Blake uses contrasts to emphasize his description of the tiger. In his questions to the tiger, he suggests the tiger is one of God's creatures. However, he questions how God could make something so beautiful and terrifying alongside more gentle creatures.
When the stars threw down their spears, And water'd heaven with their tears, Did he smile his work to see? Did he who made the Lamb make thee? 1
In this passage, Blake is describing the biblical tale of God creating the earth. He contrasts the tiger with the biblical symbol of purity, the lamb.
Note how the block quote in the above example is indented. This sets it apart from the rest of the paragraph. The writer introduces the block quote beforehand. Then, they analyze the passage afterward. n
Examples of Punctuating Direct Quotes
Did you notice how the examples above are punctuated differently? The partial quote uses double quotation marks, a comma, and a period. The block quote uses no quotation marks. It only includes punctuation copied from the source.
The punctuation you use for direct quotes depends on the type of direct quote. Let's go over how to use different types of punctuation in direct quotes.
Quotation Marks
All direct quotes should be separated from your words. For longer quotes, like block quotes, you can start the quote on a new line and indent it. This separates it from the rest of the paragraph.
For shorter quotes that are three lines or fewer, you can use quotation marks to separate them. Use double quotation marks on each side of the quote. This separates it from your words.
Fitzgerald reflects on the futility of trying to escape the past when he says, "So we beat on, boats against the current, borne back ceaselessly into the past." 2
Sometimes you might use a direct quote that contains another direct quote. This is called a nested quotation or a quote within a quote .
To separate the nested quote from the surrounding quote, enclose it in single quotation marks.
In The Great Gatsby, Nick Carraway introduces the story by quoting his father: "'Whenever you feel like criticizing anyone,' he told me, 'just remember that all the people in this world haven't had the advantages that you've had.'"
Note how double quotation marks separate the direct quote from the rest of the sentence. Single quotation marks separate Carraway's father's quote from Carraway's words.
Commas and Periods
When punctuating direct quotes, focus on how they fit into your sentence. For example, you might end a direct quote with a comma if it appears at the beginning of your sentence.
"The phone, though incredibly expensive, became a pop culture symbol," reports Amanda Ray. 3
Note how the comma appears BEFORE the closing quotation marks in the above example.'
If the direct quote appears toward the end of your sentence, you can use a comma before the quote to connect it to your words. You will also need a period at the end.
According to Amanda Ray, "The phone, though incredibly expensive, became a pop culture symbol."
Note how the comma appears BEFORE the opening quotation marks. The period at the end also appears BEFORE the closing quotation marks.
When using a direct quote without citations, the period always comes before closing quotation marks. However, when citing a direct quote, the period comes after the in-text citation .
An in-text citation is a short reference to a source. An in-text citation appears in parentheses after the quote. It includes the author's last name, the page number or other locator, and sometimes the year of publication.
The information you include in an in-text citation depends on the citation style you are using. See the section titled Citing direct quotes in MLA and APA styles below for more details.
The example below is in MLA format. You can find more examples of APA and MLA in-text citations below.
Although cell phones were very expensive at first, Amanda Ray says they quickly "became a pop culture symbol" (1).
Note where the period goes in the above example. The period always appears AFTER the in-text citation. Also note how there is no comma joining the quote to the sentence. This is because the writer used a partial quote to integrate it seamlessly without a comma.
Examples of direct quote introductions
Never insert a direct quote as a stand-alone sentence. Direct quotes are most effective when you integrate them into your own sentences. An easy way to integrate direct quotes is to introduce them in your own words.
There are three main ways to introduce a direct quote:
- Introductory sentence
- Introductory signal phrase
Blended partial quote
Let's take a closer look at each type of introduction with examples.
Introductory Sentence
An introductory sentence is a full sentence. It summarizes the main point of the direct quote you are introducing. It ends in a colon to connect it to the direct quote.
Introductory sentences are helpful for:
- Block Quotes
- Full-sentence direct quotes
According to Amanda Ray, the purpose of the cell phone has changed over time: "We now use our cell phones more for surfing the web, checking email , snapping photos, and updating our social media status than actually placing calls."
Note how BOTH the introductory sentence AND the direct quote are full sentences. This is why the colon is needed.
Introductory Signal Phrase
An introductory signal phrase is a short phrase that mentions the source of a direct quote. The introductory signal phrase is not a full sentence. An introductory signal phrase ends in a comma.
Introductory signal phrases are helpful for:
- Full-sentence direct quotes.
According to Amanda Ray, "We now use our cell phones more for surfing the web, checking email , snapping photos, and updating our social media status than actually placing calls."
Did you notice that the introductory signal phrase does not include a summary of the source's main idea ? When using this method, always follow up with a summary of the main point in the next sentence. That way, you can show the reader why you included the quote.
The best way to integrate a quote is to use a blended partial quote . A blended partial quote is a phrase from a source that doesn't form a full sentence. You can blend partial quotes into your sentences more smoothly than full-sentence direct quotes.
Blended partial quotes are helpful for:
- Integrating keywords, ideas, and phrases without using full sentences.
- Highlighting your own ideas while still supporting them.
The purpose of cell phones has changed, and we now use them "more for surfing the web, checking email, snapping photos, and updating our social media status" than for placing phone calls, as Amanda Ray reports.
Note how the above example emphasizes the writer's ideas rather than the source's ideas. The partial quotes are used to support their ideas rather than replace them.
Notice where the commas are in the above example? Since the partial quote integrates so smoothly into the sentence, commas are not needed to blend them. Partial quotes are the exception to the punctuation rule for commas!
Citing Direct Quotes in MLA & APA Styles
The two main citation styles you will use in an English class are MLA and APA .
MLA is the Modern Language Association's citation style. This citation style focuses on easily citing texts from different time periods. This is the style you will use most frequently in English literature and language classes.
APA is the American Psychological Association's citation style. This citation style focuses on being specific. This style is most helpful when you are synthesizing a lot of different sources.
Citing Direct Quotes in MLA Style
There are three main rules for citing direct quotes in MLA style:
- Short quotes = less than 3 lines of poetry OR 4 lines of prose
- Block quotes = more than 3 lines of poetry OR 4 lines of prose
- In-text citations include the author's name and the page number (or other locator).
MLA In-text Citations
In general, MLA in-text citations should look like this:
"Quote" (Author last name #)
Most ancient Greek and Roman texts were recorded on papyrus, which was "extremely vulnerable to rotting and wear and tear" (Hall 4). 4
If you name the author in your sentence, you do not need to include their name in the in-text citation. That will look more like this:
...Author name... "quote" (#).
Historian Edith Hall explains how ancient Greek and Roman texts were recorded on papyrus, which was "extremely vulnerable to wear and tear" (4).
Citing Direct Quotes in APA Style
There are three main rules for citing direct quotes in APA style:
- Short quotes = quotes under 40 words OR less than 4 lines.
- Block quotes = quotes longer than 40 words OR more than 4 lines.
- In-text citations include the author's name, the year of publication, and the page number.
APA In-text Citations
In general, APA citations should look like this:
"Quote" (Author last name, year, p. #).
Most ancient Greek and Roman texts were recorded on papyrus, which was "extremely vulnerable to rotting and wear and tear" (Hall, 2015, p. 4).
However, there are exceptions to this rule. For instance, if you name the author in the sentence, it should look more like this:
...Author name (year)... "quote" (p.#).
Historian Edith Hall (2015) explains how ancient Greek and Roman texts were recorded on papyrus, which was "extremely vulnerable to wear and tear" (p. 4).
Citing Block Quotes in MLA or APA
When citing a block quote in either MLA or APA , follow these rules:
- Do not use quotation marks.
- Start block quotes on a new line, with the entire quote indented 1/2 inch from the margin.
- Do not add extra space before or after the quote.
- Follow the same rules as short quotes for in-text citations.
- Place the in-text citation AFTER the period.
MLA example:
People did not always know how to properly care for ancient texts. So, many ancient texts were destroyed, as in the following example:
Unfortunately, the uneducated owners of the books decided to conceal them as if they were gold or coins, in a dug-out trench. They were damaged dreadfully by both moisture and moths. When they were finally purchased, it was by a man who loved to collect books rather than by a philosopher, and he "restored" the texts in such an amateurish way that, when they were eventually published, they were found to be full of mistakes. (Hall 4)
The only difference between APA and MLA block quotations is the in-text citation !
Quotes with No Page Numbers
Some sources do not have page numbers. Web pages, videos, and poetry often do not have page numbers.
When citing in APA style, you will NOT need to include any type of locator if a page number is not available.
When citing in MLA style, you WILL need to use a different kind of locator to replace the missing page number.
Here are some of the different types of locators you can use in place of page numbers:
Direct Quote - Key Takeaways
- A direct quote is an exact copy of words from a source. A direct quote can include anything from one word to several sentences from a source.
- Direct quotes are important for supporting and emphasizing specific points in an essay.
- Use direct quotes only a few times throughout an essay for emphasis, analysis, and evidence .
- A direct quote should include the exact words from a source, punctuation, and an introduction.
- The two main citation styles you will use in an English class are MLA (The Modern Language Association) style and APA (The American Psychological Association) style. MLA is more common for writing in English literature and language.
1 William Blake, "The Tyger," 1969.
2 F. Scott Fitzgerald, The Great Gatsby, 1925.
3 Amanda Ray, "The History and Evolution of Cell Phones," The Art Institutes , 2015.
4 Edith Hall, "Adventures in Ancient Greek and Roman Libraries," The Meaning of The Library: A Cultural History , 2015.
Frequently Asked Questions about Direct Quote
--> what is a direct quote.
A direct quote is an exact copy of words from a source. A direct quote can include anything from one word to several sentences from a source.
--> How do you cite direct quotes in APA?
To cite direct quotes in APA, add a parenthetical in-text citation that includes the author's name, the year of publication, and the page number. It should look like this: "Quote" (Author last name, year, p.#).
--> What is an example of a direct quote?
An example of a direct quote is as follows: Most ancient Greek and Roman texts were recorded on papyrus, which was "extremely vulnerable to rotting and wear and tear" (Hall, 2015, p. 4).
--> What is the importance of using a direct quote?
Direct quotes are important for supporting and emphasizing specific points in an essay.
--> When should you give a direct quote?
You should only give direct quotes a few times throughout an essay for emphasis, analysis, and evidence. Use direct quotes when the exact words from a are important to understand the source's meaning or are particularly memorable.
Final Direct Quote Quiz
What is a direct quote?
Show answer
A direct quote is an exact copy of words from a source. A direct quote can include anything from one word to several sentences from a source.
Show question
What is a source?
What are some of the benefits of using direct quotes?
Direct quotes allow a writer to analyze specific passages in a source.
Should a writer use a lot of direct quotes in their essay?
No. Direct quotes should only be used when necessary.
When should a writer use direct quotes in their essay?
When the exact words of a source are important for understanding the source's meaning.
What should a direct quote include?
the exact words from a source
What is a quote that is longer than 4 lines called?
A quote that is longer than 4 lines is called a block quote .
When should one use a block quote?
When they are analyzing the words of an entire passage
How are block quotes and short quotes punctuated differently?
Short quotes use quotation marks. Block quotes do not.
How does one punctuate a quote within a quote (a nested quote)?
single quotation marks within double quotation marks
What is in-text citation?
In-text citation is a short reference to a source. In-text citation appears in parentheses after the quote.
What does in-text citation include in MLA style?
In-text citation in MLA style includes the author name and the page number. Ex. (Hall 4).
What does in-text citation include in APA style?
In-text citation in APA style includes the author's name, the year of publication, and the page number. Ex. (Hall, 2015, p. 4).
Which type of introduction is the best way to integrate a direct quote into a sentence?
blended partial quote
Which in-text citation below is in MLA style?
It can include anything from one word to several sentences from a source.
Direct quote
It is an object used to gather information and ideas.
It allows you to stay true to a source's wording and intent.
It is describing one key idea, concept, or fact from a source.
It is providing a general overview of a source.
- Free Response Essay
of the users don't pass the Direct Quote quiz! Will you pass the quiz?
More explanations about Synthesis Essay
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What is your favourite quote and why? My favourite quote would have to be I can accept failure, everyone fails at something. But I can't accept not trying. Michael Jordan This is my favourite quote not because I love basketball and a Michael Jordan fan, because the quote is true. Accepting faliure is better than not even trying at all.
Cite this page as follows:.
"What is your favourite quote and why? My favourite quote would have to be I can accept failure, everyone fails at something. But I can't accept not trying. Michael Jordan This is my favourite quote not because I love basketball and a Michael Jordan fan, because the quote is true. Accepting faliure is better than not even trying at all." eNotes Editorial , 27 July 2012, https://www.enotes.com/homework-help/what-your-favourite-quote-why-407112. Accessed 3 Mar. 2023.
Expert Answers
Who are the experts? Our certified Educators are real professors, teachers, and scholars who use their academic expertise to tackle your toughest questions. Educators go through a rigorous application process, and every answer they submit is reviewed by our in-house editorial team.
Educator since 2012
606 answers
My favorite quote is:
"Gentlemen. You can't fight in here, this is the war room!"
Spoken by Peter Sellers' character (The President of the United States) in the movie " Dr. Strangelove: Or How I Learned to Stopped Worrying and Love the Bomb"
The irony of the quote makes me laugh as the President is concerned with people not fighting, while he negotiates with the Russians over a fight they're mutually embroiled in. He makes this statement as he's involved in a geopolitical crisis that could lead to the mutual destruction of the great powers of the day.
In essence, he makes this quote in a room devoted to the art of fighting, although there is to be no fighting or other unruly behavior in this room.
Educator since 2010
1,177 answers
One of my favorite quotes is: "Life doesn't let you down. Your expectations do!"
How many times have I been let down because of my expectations? Sometimes we expect more from people than they are capable or willing to give. In this instance, we will be let down because we expected too much or more than a person is willing or able to give. Be careful of expecting too much from people. We can only control ourselves. We cannot control other people.
Educator since 2011
4,614 answers
What a tough question. There are so many wonderful quotes to choose from. One of my favorite quotes is: "We are only limited by our own imaginations."
I have recently come to love another quote: "You are not special." This comes from David McCullough Jr. 's graduation speech. As a teacher, I appreciate what he said. Too often, schools and parents have become placid--graduating students who do not deserve it and parents who make excuses. Our graduating students need to realize that they are not special, in the same way that I am not special. BUT, our job from this day out it to be special for actually doing something that not everyone else has already done. This quote reminds me that I cannot stand by the side and simply let the rest of the "not-specials" to pass by.
Educator since 2009
2,418 answers
My favorite is a question:
Which are you drinking, the water or the wave?
This quote is from The Magus , by John Fowles, and it appears in the book first in Greek and then in translation. I have tried, unsuccessfully, to trace the origin of the quote, but I have come to the tentative conclusion that it is simply something that Fowles wrote himself.
This is a powerful metaphor for me, asking whether my choices and experiences are life-sustaining or life-enhancing.
College Professor
3,630 answers
Two quotes that I find particularly inspiring come from two of the great moral leaders of the 20th century, Gandhi and Martin Luther King, Jr.
Gandhi suggested that we should each "be the change you want to see in the world," which very succintly advises that we are all responsible for social action, social change, and we must accept this responsiblity ourselves before expecting others to do so.
King famously said that "Darkness cannot drive out darkness, only light can do that. And hate cannot drive out hate, only love can do that." The wisdom in these words is clear. Again, we are advised to choose the right path to change and not simply react, reciprocate and "give what we get".
35,352 answers
One that I like is "No one can make you feel inferior without your consent." This is attributed to Eleanor Roosevelt. I like it because I think that many people come to feel they are inferior to others, particularly when they are teens. This quote is useful as a way to remind us that we have some control over this sort of feeling.
And I must say here (because of your user name) that I hope very strongly that the Miami Heat have to accept failure in the next week or so...
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Fahrenheit 451 Quote Analysis
Summary: In this section of Fahrenheit 451, many interesting things happened. Montag kept bringing up Clarisse and what made her special. Mildred did not want to talk about Clarisse because she was dead and wanted to talk about someone who was alive. Montag wanted to learn why he was reading books and the purpose of them. He then remembered seeing an English professor about one year ago named Faber one day in the park. When Montag went to Faber, he was reading something about poetry. When Faber saw Montag, he started to run away because Montag is a fireman. Then Montag calmed Faber and got his phone number and his address. Montag needed a lot of help from Faber in many different ways, but Faber was not cooperating with him. Montag then
Abraham Lincoln, 16th President of the United States claims, “We are as happy as we make our minds to be”. In Ray Bradbury’s science fiction novel, Fahrenheit 451, Mildred and Montag, a married couple live in a technologically advanced society where books along with any other items or activities that provoke thought are not allowed. Drowning in technology, the society absorbs in distractions such as television and earbuds that isolate themselves. Though Mildred claims she lives her life satisfied, she proves she rejects her unhappiness by escaping society with meaningless relationships, drowning in technology, and attempting to commit suicide.
Fahrenheit 451 Quote Analysis Essay
“’She [Clarisse] started up her walk. Then she seemed to remember something and came back to look at him [Montag] with wonder and curiosity. ‘Are you happy?’ she said. ‘Am I what? ‘ he cried… Of course I’m happy. What does she think? I’m not? he asked the quiet rooms. He stood looking up at the ventilator grill in the hall and suddenly remembered that something lay hidden behind the grill, something that seemed to peer down at him now‘’ (Bradbury, 25-26).
Fahrenheit 451 Critical Lens Quotes
Lois Lowry once said, “Submitting to censorship is to enter the… world where choice has been taken away and reality distorted. And that is the most dangerous world of all.” This quote perfectly explains the major theme of Fahrenheit 451, which is censorship. Due to the use of censorship by the government, people in this society are unable to form their own opinions, make their own choices, and are forced to live with distorted realities of the world they actually live in.
Fahrenheit 451 Rhetorical Analysis
The novel also makes a unyielding point about the dangers of consumerism, emphasizing how creativity and individualism can be reduced by allowing the government and media to think for them. Perhaps the most important feature of the book is that readers understand the value of imagination and cultural heritage. These points would not be understood or accepted by readers if the novel failed to follow narrative structure, which is undeniably the most important aspect of any literary
Fahrenheit 451 Quotes Essay
loving his job to rethinking of his job. Montag came in mind that his job not only hurt him but
Examples Of Social Structure In Fahrenheit 451
Fahrenheit 451 is a novel written by Ray Bradbury. It is considered to be dystopian fiction which is used to display different social structures throughout the book. Published in 1953, this story takes place in a futuristic city in the United States of America. Books are illegal to own and anyone in possession of them will have to get them burnt. That is the job a the firefighters.
After interpreting the motif technology, Bradbury starts to shift the spotlight to nature and expose technology as destructive. This shift is most precedent in fictional character Guy Montag. He had started his journey overwhelmed with technology, to the point where he couldn't even see the side of nature. Mildred starts his journey off and shows Guy just how unhappy he is and what technology has done to this society. Beatty then furthers his mentality with his constant interference and ironic knowledge about books. Yet these characters only start to further Guys quest. Fictional character Clarisse truly ignites Guys passion to reunite with nature, the healthier option. She helps him start the path and start to discover his unpleasant
“Self absorbed people only think about what makes them feel good at the moment – they don’t have any respect or regard for anyone else.” This quote shows the type of person you can become if you live for only happiness and pleasure. Living for only happiness and pleasure is putting yourself before others and not living life to the fullest.
In a society where mindless activity suppresses people’s activity of the brain, nothing significant or influential will result in life. The people are not knowledgeable to understand the circumstances they live in. The most damaging effect begins when life becomes insufficient without meaning. Due to the constant enjoyment, life ends up trivial and full of displeasure. Similarly, in Ray Bradbury’s Fahrenheit 451, the society in which books are subjected to be destroyed emphasizes the effects of the control of human thought. Through a series of mind-opening events, Montag, a book-destroying fireman, suddenly realizes that the society that he lives in is meaningless and dissatisfying, leading to his conclusion that he does not know anything anymore. Clarisse McClellan is a young girl who is very different from
Fahrenheit 451 Power Quotes
“The media's the most powerful entity on earth. They have the power to make the innocent guilty and to make the guilty innocent, and that's power. Because they control the minds of the masses”(Malcom X). Fahrenheit 451 is a dystopia about the overuse of power and showing how society controls individuals. It talks about a story of power shifting between the society and an individual. Society controls individuals by limiting what people can see do or view, societal popularity, and fear of consequences.
Ray Bradbury's Fahrenheit 451
Fahrenheit 451 is a future, dystopian style novel written by Ray Bradbury in the 1950’s. Bradbury used his present situation to predict what would happen in the future if the world were to continue in this style. In the novel, the paper book is illegal and banned. Firemen have the authorization of the government to burn these books and the houses that they are found in. The government in Fahrenheit 451 brainwashes their citizens to think, act and follow the rules the exact same way as everybody else should.
In Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury a character named Faber (an old man that, Montag, the story’s protagonist meets) describes three things that are missing from their society. The three things that Faber talked about that are missing from society are quality of information, leisure to digest information, and the right to carry out actions based on the first two. The three things that are missing are related to books and how the society struggles without them.This book is based in a futuristic place that has lost touch with the important things in life, like books which are forbidden and burned.
“It was a pleasure to burn”(Bradbury 1). In this novel, Fahrenheit 451, Ray Bradbury, creates a dystopian fiction where the protagonist, Montag, ponders about reading books and now he must overcome this invincible society and the status quo of books being banned forever. Bradbury uses the social commentary in the novel to compare to the problems of life in the 1950s, some of these issues, for example: war, technology, families, and schools, are still prevalent in our society today.
Fahrenheit 451 By Ray Bradbury
“Fahrenheit 451” written in 1953 by American author and screenwriter, Ray Bradbury, is a dystopian novel that focuses on the internal struggle of the main character who correspondingly faces problems in his society.
More about Fahrenheit 451 Quote Analysis
Related topics.
- Fahrenheit 451
- Ray Bradbury
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How to Quote Someone in an Essay
Using direct citations in your academic paper or extended essays topics is the best way of substantiating your thoughts with solid proof and enhancing the credibility of your arguments. In addition to that, quotes are also very useful for proving the subject or the thesis of your essay. Nevertheless, your paper won’t be taken seriously unless you use citations adequately. To do so, you can either use the MLA quoting style or go for the APA style. Keep in mind that unless you mention the original writer when including a citation, your work will be regarded as plagiarized. After you insert the citations in your paper, you need to add a bibliography section at the very end. If wish to find out how to add citations to an academic paper, read on. We’ve listed out all of the steps you need to take to use the MLA and APA quotation styles.
How to Use the MLA Quotation Style
When using the MLA (Modern Language Association) formatting style in an essay , you need to indicate the writer’s name, as well as the number of the page you've taken the material from (for printed sources). When quoting poems, the number of the page will be replaced by verses. As opposed to APA style, you aren’t required to mention the year of the citation in the paper itself. However, you still have to mention the date in a comprehensive bibliography section at the end of the paper.
When using the MLA style, a fragment that includes less than 4 lines of narration or 3 verses of a poem is regarded as short. In case you wish to include such a citation, you have to take the following steps: 1) use double quotes on the fragment, 2) mention the writer’s last name, and 3) indicate the number of the page. When it comes to the writer’s last name, you have two options: you can either mention it before the citation or add it in brackets after the citation. The number of the page, which has to be placed at the end of the quote, doesn’t need to be accompanied by the letter “p” or any other symbol.
Keep in mind that before adding a quote, you need to say a few things about it using your own words. If you add a citation without presenting it properly, your audience will have trouble understanding your point. Write a couple of ideas to present the context and then proceed by adding quotation marks to the fragment. The next step is mentioning the writer’s last name and the number of the page in brackets. When finalizing the phrase, add a period. To understand the process better, take a look at our example:
Certain critics believe that literature “is heading in a wrong direction nowadays” (Johnson 145).
As an alternative, you can mention the writer’s last name in the text. This way, you won’t need to add it between brackets at the end of the sentence. Here’s an example:
Another way to do this is by presenting a fragment, quoting it and then making additional comments regarding the quote, as exemplified below:
A lot of individuals think that “literature is pointless nowadays,”(Johnson 33), while many others claim the exact opposite.
In case that the original fragment includes a punctuation mark, you’ll also be required to add it in the quote, similarly to the following example:
The main character always likes to say, “What a great day!”(Johnson 95).
When quoting a poem, you need to write the specific verses, separated by the following symbol: “/”. Here’s an example:
As pointed out by Johnson, “Nothing is nicer/than a dog yawning” (6-7), and a lot of people who like dogs would agree with him.
2. Quoting lengthy prose fragments.
In the MLA citation style, a fragment that includes over 4 lines of narration or 3 verses of a poem is regarded as lengthy. If you need to add such a quotation to your literary essay topics , you’ll be required to insert the fragment in separate chunks of text. Moreover, you mustn’t use quotation marks. The citation can be introduced by using a line of text as well as a colon. The only part that must be indented is the first line of the fragment. You need to use a one-inch indentation from the left side of the page. The double spacing must not be modified. At the end of the fragment, you can add a period, followed by the writer’s last name and the number of the page in brackets.
Here is an instance that illustrates how a lengthy fragment can be introduced and quoted:
In the collection of linked short stories “The Things They Carried”, the author points out to the harsh reality of war, emphasizing the idea that nothing good can ever come from it:
If at the end of a war story you feel uplifted, or if you feel that some small bit of rectitude has been salvaged from the larger waste, then you have been made the victim of a very old and terrible lie. There is no rectitude whatsoever. There is no virtue. (O’Brien, 68)
If you wish to quote more than one paragraph, you need to use block citations, regardless of the particular length of every fragment from those paragraphs. You ought to use an indentation of an additional quarter inch on the initial line of every paragraph. When you wish to move on to a new paragraph, you have to utilize ellipses (…) at the end of the one you’re currently dealing with.
3. Quoting a poetry.
When you need to quote an entire poem or a fragment from a poetry, you ought to preserve the original formatting style of the verses. This way, you’ll be able to transmit the genuine signification. To understand this, take a look at the following example:
Maya Angelou transmits a truly empowering message in her poem, “Still I Rise”:
You may shoot me with your words,
You may cut me with your eyes,
You may kill me with your hatefulness,
But still, like air, I'll rise. (17-20)
4. Insert or leave out words in citations.
This may be helpful when you are required to modify the significance of the quote to some extent, for the purpose of providing an adequate context or eliminating certain parts that may be irrelevant to your ideas. Keep this in mind while your toefl essay topic . Take a look at the following examples that illustrate the way in which you need to add the citation in both situations:
Use the symbols “[” and “]” to “introduce” your own words to offer information regarding the context of a citation:
Peter Johnson, a contemporary author of short stories, stated that “A lot of individuals [who are novelists] have an attitude of superiority towards authors of short stories, which is wrong”(25).
Use ellipses (…) when you wish to leave out a fragment that is irrelevant to your paper. Here’s how you do it:
Johnson thinks that a lot of college students “don’t regard teaching as an activity … as serious as management”(67).
5. Quoting more than one writer.
When you wish to quote a fragment that has multiple authors, you’ll be required to use commas as well as the conjunction “and” between their names. Here’s an example:
According to the findings of a lot of researches, MFA programs “constitute the best way of aiding amateur writers in becoming successful”(Johnson, Lloyd, and Robinson 94).
6. Quoting Internet articles.
Quoting fragments from online websites may be a bit more difficult, as you won’t have any page numbers. Still, you have to try and gather as much data as possible. For instance, you may find the author’s name, the date or the title of the online article or paper. Take a look at the following examples:
A particular movie expert claimed that Avatar was “the worst movie in the history of Hollywood”(Johnson, “Movie Reviews”).
Famous businessman Peter Johnson wrote on his popular blog that “Any intelligent person can become a successful businessman”(2008, “Peter’s Business Tips”).
How to Use the APA Quotation Style
When using APA (American Psychological Association) format, you’ll be required to mention the writer’s last name as well as the number of the page, similarly to the MLA style. The main difference between the two formatting styles is that in APA style you’re also required to mention the year and use “p.” before the number of the page.
When you want to quote a brief fragment (less than 40 words), you need to add the writer’s last name, the year of publication, as well as the number of the page (preceded by “p.” to highlight it) within the citation. Here are some examples that illustrate this:
As stated by Johnson (1999), “going to the gym is a great way of staying in shape” (p. 21).
Johnson points out that, “people who go to the gym regularly are able to sleep better”(1999, p.43).
He also mentioned, “Gym training is better than doing exercises at home, in what concerns the efficiency”(Johnson, 1999, p.74).
2. Quoting a lengthy fragment.
When you want to quote a lengthier fragment using APA style, you’ll need to introduce it in a standalone block of text. You have to start the citation on a new row. Moreover, you need to add an indentation of 0.5 inches from the left part of the page. Afterwards, you need to add the entire fragment while preserving the same margin. If the fragment includes more than one paragraph, you should add an additional indentation of 0.5 inches for each new paragraph. Your citation must also include double spacing. Stick to the same rule that we mentioned when we talked about brief fragments – indicate the writer, year, and page number. You can either do this in the introduction or the body of the citation. Take a look at our example:
Johnson’s research (1999) reached the following conclusions:
Students who went to the gym every day throughout an entire month were able to interact better with their peers and professors and feel more relaxed regarding their grades and day to day chores. (68-71).
3. Paraphrasing fragments.
When you want to paraphrase a fragment in APA formatting style, you have to indicate the writer, the year, and the number of the page, as shown below:
Johnson thinks that gym training is great for both the organism and the mind (1999, p.58).
As pointed out by Johnson, people should always find time to go to the gym (1999, p.85).
4. Quoting fragments with more than one author.
In case you want to cite a fragment that has multiple authors, you’ll be required to use the “&” sign to separate the surnames of the 2 writers. Moreover, you should add the authors in alphabetical order. Take a look at the following example:
The study revealed that “people who go to the gym on a daily basis have better sleeping patterns”(Johnson & Williams, 2002, p.72).
5. Quoting fragments from the Internet.
When adding a quote from an online source, you need to search for the writer’s last name, the date as well as the number of the paragraph (not that of the page), as exemplified below:
In his article, Johnson stated that “There are way too many online blogs nowadays”(2016, para.4).
If you can’t find the writer’s name, simply replace it with the title of the article. In case you can’t find the date of publication, add the mention “n.d.”. Here’s a good example:
According to the findings of the research, students who are assisted with their homework have better results (“School Advice,” n.d.).
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How to Block Quote | Length, Format and Examples
Published on April 25, 2018 by Courtney Gahan . Revised on November 4, 2022.
A block quote is a long quotation, set on a new line and indented to create a separate block of text. No quotation marks are used. You have to use a block quote when quoting more than around 40 words from a source.
In APA and MLA styles, you indent block quotes 0.5 inches from the left, and add an in-text citation after the period. Some other citation styles have additional rules.
Catherine Earnshaw, may you not rest as long as I am living; you said I killed you – haunt me, then! The murdered DO haunt their murderers, I believe. I know that ghosts HAVE wandered on earth. Be with me always – take any form – drive me mad! only DO not leave me in this abyss, where I cannot find you! Oh, God! it is unutterable! I CANNOT live without my life! I CANNOT live without my soul! (Brontë, 1847, 268)
Table of contents
How long is a block quote, step 1: introduce the quote, step 2: format and cite the quote, step 3: comment on the quote, when to use block quotes.
The minimum length of a block quote varies between citation styles . Some styles require block quote formatting based on the number of words, while others require it based on the number of lines.
Every time you quote a source , it’s essential to show the reader exactly what purpose the quote serves. A block quote must be introduced in your own words to show how it fits into your argument or analysis.
If the text preceding the block quote is a complete sentence, use a colon to introduce the quote . If the quote is a continuation of the sentence that precedes it, you don’t need to add any extra punctuation .
lawmakers and regulators need to stop pharmaceutical companies from marketing drugs like OxyContin and establish stronger guidelines about how and when doctors can prescribe them. These drugs are often the last resort for people with cancer and other terminal conditions who experience excruciating pain. But they pose a great risk when used to treat the kinds of pain for which there are numerous non-addictive therapies available. (The Editorial Board, 2018)
Prevent plagiarism. Run a free check.
Block quotes are not enclosed in quotation marks . Instead, they must be formatted to stand out from the rest of the text, signalling to the reader that the words are taken directly from a source. Each citation style has specific formatting rules.
APA and MLA format both require an indent of 0.5 inches on the left side. Block quotes are double spaced, the same as the rest of the document. Some other citation styles also require indentation on the right side, different spacing, or a smaller font.
To format a block quote in Microsoft Word, follow these steps:
- Hit Enter at the beginning and end of the quote.
- Highlight the quote and select the Layout menu.
- On the Indent tab, change the left indent to 0.5″.
Block quotes of more than one paragraph
If you quote more than one paragraph, indent the first line of the new paragraph as you would in the main text.
Mr. and Mrs. Dursley, of number four, Privet Drive, were proud to say that they were perfectly normal, thank you very much. They were the last people you’d expect to be involved in anything strange or mysterious, because they just didn’t hold with such nonsense.
Mr. Dursley was the director of a firm called Grunnings, which made drills. He was a big, beefy man with hardly any neck, although he did have a very large mustache. Mrs. Dursley was thin and blonde and had nearly twice the usual amount of neck, which came in very useful as she spent so much of her time craning over garden fences, spying on the neighbors. The Dursleys had a small son called Dudley and in their opinion there was no finer boy anywhere. (Rowling 1)
Citing block quotes
All block quotes must end with a citation that directs the reader to the correct source. How the citation looks depends on the citation style. In most styles, including APA and MLA , the parenthetical citation comes after the period at the end of a block quote.
A paragraph should never end with a block quote. Directly after the quote, you need to comment on it in your own words. Depending on the purpose of the block quote, your comment might involve:
- Analyzing the language of the quoted text
- Explaining how the quote relates to your argument
- Giving further context
- Summarizing the overall point you want to make
Block quotes should be used when the specific wording or style of the quoted text is essential to your point. How often you use them depends partly on your field of study.
- In the arts and humanities, block quotes are frequently used to conduct in-depth textual analysis .
- In social science research involving interviews or focus groups , block quotes are often necessary when analyzing participants’ responses.
- In scientific writing, block quotes are very rarely used.
Avoid relying on block quotes from academic sources to explain ideas or make your points for you. In general, quotes should be used as sparingly as possible, as your own voice should be dominant. When you use another author’s ideas or refer to previous research, it’s often better to integrate the source by paraphrasing .
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How to Put a Quote in an Essay
For any essay or other research paper, you always need to offer your opinion on the matter – and support it with evidence. Quotes are among the favorite proofs. By researching any subject, you collect the information for your theories and conclusions. And you always need citations.
A quote in an essay is an excellent tool if used correctly. It supports your thesis and makes your whole text more versatile. Besides, it works in your favor if you introduce interesting and original citations – it shows your ability to work with sources and understand them deeply.
At the same time, you need to know how to put a quote in an essay. Misusing them can do harm to the paper and your reputation.
Understand the Structure of a Quote in an Essay
After the mandatory research stage, you’ve collected enough data and defined some apt phrases. You will include them in your essay, but how will you do it? You can’t just copy and paste them into the text without the context of transitions.
To include a quotation in essay, you need to know the right structure of this text fragment. It is a form with three components:
- The Introductory phrase;
- The quote itself;
- The commentary.
Let’s have a look at these components.
- The Introductory phrase or a lead-in to the quote does the task of building the context. With its help, you inform your audience about the evidence for your statement. You also describe what that evidence is and what its source is. It adds “weight” to the quote if you refer to some authoritative source.
- The quote itself is the exact sentence or phrase that you include in your research paper. When you put it into your text, you need to frame it with quotation marks. This method separates the citation from the rest of the work and marks it as someone else’s words. It also is the best anti-plagiarism defense – you won’t plagiarize if you name the source.
- Commentary. Even if your quote is strong and expressive, you have to connect it with your statement. For that, you comment that citation. Add a short explanation of the quote’s meaning for your paper. It does not mean that you have to paraphrase the quotation, but you should expose its value as evidence. The commentary usually takes a couple of sentences.
e.g., According to Joseph Campbell, “If the deeds of an actual historical figure proclaim him to have been a hero, the builders of his legend will invent for him appropriate adventures.” This statement perfectly relates to the legends about such historical leaders as Cyrus II of Persia.
Things You Should Know Before Quoting Someone
Citations are necessary and useful. But using quotes in an essay has its rules that you have to know to do it in the right way. They are not difficult, and they refer to the logic of using citations and their format. Both of these aspects are essential.
The wrong choice of quotes ruins the overall experience of your essay. As for the form – even the most suitable evidence without the right formatting will do nothing but harm. Unfortunately, the incorrect format is an error as grave as the absence of reference at all. That’s why let’s examine both these aspects.
Logic of usage of quotes in essay papers
If you have a set of citations that you would like to include in your academic paper, you need to evaluate them first. The accurate quote must meet several criteria.
- Relevancy. Never take quotes that don’t relate to your thesis directly. Quotes must be thematic. Besides, you need to consider their authors. If it is a statement of some person not associated with your field professionally – it will be irrelevant. You should not introduce quotes for their form only – target towards their essence.
- Analysis. When you choose quotes for your essay, remember that you have to develop a context for them. Hence, consider your capabilities of analyzing such quotations in essay. You have to understand them precisely, and you need to fit them in your text. Quotes must not be there for their own sake – they have to support your words and serve as reliable evidence of your rightness.
- A reasonable share of quotes in your essay. Don’t overuse them; your job is to offer your ideas and understanding of the subject. If you use direct quotes, their overall volume should not exceed 5-10% of the text – it is the allowed share.
Select the Right Quote for Your Essay
Besides using quotations in essay to support claims, students often refer to these means as hooks for essay beginning. Starting an article with a quote is a popular and effective technique to attract the audience. We’ve already defined most of the criteria, so let’s get them together:
- The citation must correlate with your essay’s subject and support its claims.
- It must come from an authoritative source to be decent support for your statements.
- It should be original. There is no use to refer to the same authority and repeat the same words. You should show your more profound understanding of the context by using more original references.
- Make sure that the meaning of your quote is clear to the audience. Or, you can explain the missing information in commentary.
- It must be impressive. Depending on your goals, you may educate, inspire, entertain, or horrify your audience. Hence, evaluate how each of the citations would serve.
How to Place Quotes in an Essay
In general, it is all about where you insert a quote in an essay precisely and how you mark it. The essential thing here is that the rules of using quotes in an article are different for short and long quotes.
Short Quotes
The short quote is a fragment of the source text that is shorter than four lines. This definition is standard. If the quote you want to use in your essay matches the “short” size criteria, you need to insert it in the following way:
- The short quote is a part of your paragraph.
- For a short quote, you need to write a lead-in phrase. It should contain the name of the source (the title of the source and the name of the author). Also, it needs a transition word or phrase like “according to.”
- Insert the quote, put it in quotation marks, and add the reference to your bibliography list.
- No matter if there is a complete sentence from the source or a couple of words, the quotation marks are mandatory. Without them, your direct short quote will be marked as plagiarism, even if you add the name of the source.
- Proceed with your commentary to explain a quote in an essay. You need to stress its value and meaning as support for your ideas.
- You can paraphrase the citation – if you retell the essence of the sentence in your words, you may omit the quotation marks. But the correct reference to the source is still obligatory.
Long Quotes
In terms of essay writing, a long quote is any source text fragment that is longer than four lines. For this citation type, you have to separate it from the rest of your text, and format accordingly.
Here is how to put a long quote in an essay and mark it in the right way:
- Choose the quote that suits your needs for a particular case.
- You will also need an introductory phrase for it. For the long quote lead-in, you need a complete introductory sentence explaining what your readers should elicit from the citation. That sentence must be placed before the quote, and it must end with a colon.
- Separate the quoted text from the rest of your essay – it should start from the new line and after an interval. The blockquote must also use the indent of a half-inch from the left margin. This way, your readers will at once understand the text fragment is a quote.
- Don’t use the quotation marks for the long quote, but ensure to put the reference at the end.
- You can edit this quote by removing some words from it or including clarifications. However, your “intrusion” must not change the meaning of the quote!
- To shorten the quote, you can put an ellipsis on the place of the deleted fragment.
- …at the age of six was sent to a cloister to be educated as a priest. But he desired the life of a knightly warrior. To add words (for example, if the fragment you quote does not have the name of the actor, but you would like to include it), you should put the clarification into the square brackets.
- …under the name of Mainet, he [Charlemagne] rendered signal services to the king.
- Add your commentary. Note it must be more substantial than for the short quote – you will need a minimum two sentences, and in most cases – more. Your goal is to explain the meaning of this quote to your audience, and once more stress its importance.
- If needed, you can paraphrase the quote; it is a good practice if you deal with a large text fragment of several paragraphs. Summarizing will let you expose its essence and make your wiring more concise. Again, you won’t need to set the piece off. The reference will be enough.
Citing Your Quotes
With all respect to the choice of citations and their supportive value for your work, the most critical thing is the right format of quotations in an essay. Any academic paper must have a list of works cited. Every quote in your essay, even the shortest one, must have a reference to the source. If you don’t mark the origin, you’ll make the most terrible of all academic sins – plagiarism.
Being a student, you know how dangerous plagiarism is for the work and your reputation. Unfortunately, non-intended plagiarism is a common issue. It can be just carelessness, but it can cost your career.
There is just one solution: mark all your citations and their sources according to the format required.
The MLA format is the default for papers in Humanities.
- The in-text citations include the authors’ last names and the page number in parenthesis:
e.g., (Campbell 297)
- If you mention the author in the lead-in, you can only mark the page number in parenthesis. It must be at the very end of the quote, before the period and the closing quotation mark:
e.g., According to Joseph Campbell, ‘If the deeds of an actual historical figure proclaim him to have been a hero, the builders of his legend will invent for him appropriate adventures (296).’
- For work with several authors, you should separate their names with “and” and commas if there are more than two co-authors:
e.g., (Rivkin and Ryan 85-88) or (Leitch, Cain, and Williams 46)
APA format is the most widely used format in colleges and universities. Works in social studies, educational, and business topics are mostly APA-formatted.
- The in-text quote reference must include the author’s last name, the year of publication, and the page number, all in parenthesis:
e.g.: (Campbell, 2004, p.297)
- For the work of multiple authors, you write a quote and separate the last names with “and” (two authors) and commas (three and more authors):
e.g., (Rivkin and Ryan, 2017, p.85-88) or (Leitch, Cain, and Williams, 2018, p. 46)
- With the name of the author in the lead-in, you can include the year and the page number in parenthesis right after the author’s name.
e.g., According to Joseph Campbell’s (2004, p.296) study,
One of the academic formatting styles deals with papers in Humanities mostly. It requires that the writer puts the references at the bottom of the page or at the end – the traditional bibliography list.
- The default format is the author’s last name and the date – not separated by the comma. Then you put the page number without “p.” and after a comma:
e.g.: (Campbell 2004, 297)
- Sources with multiple authors: separate their names with “and” for two writers, and with commas for three and more writers:
e.g., (Rivkin and Ryan 2017, 90) or (Leitch, Cain, and Williams 2018, 46)
- If the name of the author is present in the lead-in phrase, you should include the year and the page number in parenthesis after the end of the quote:
e.g., According to Joseph Campbell, “If the deeds of an actual historical figure proclaim him to have been a hero, the builders of his legend will invent for him appropriate adventures” (2004, 296).
The right quote in an essay is an excellent tool to make your work more impressive for the tutor. It is also a chance for you to demonstrate original thinking and understanding of the subject and context. However, using this tool requires knowledge and skills. Use our recommendations, and you will surely master the art of how to cite a quote in an essay.
Or, if you are still struggling with your essays for any reason, our essay writing service will be glad to help you. We can support you with advice or compose exclusive pieces on your demand.
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Stephany is an expert with a big number of hobbies. Apart from working at Cornell University (which she graduated five years ago), she loves cooking and jogging. When Stephany is not helping students with their English and French assignments, she is writing a book of her own on the nature of habits and motivation.
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Quote Investigator®
Tracing Quotations
Quote Origin: The Creative Adult Is a Child Who Has Survived
Ursula K. Le Guin? Robin W. Winks? Julian F. Fleron? Apocryphal?
The creative adult is a child who has survived.
The prominent science fiction and fantasy writer Ursula K. Le Guin has received credit for this saying; however, she has adamantly disclaimed the statement. Would you please explore this topic?
Reply from Quote Investigator: The earliest match located by QI appeared in the 1983 tourist book “An American’s Guide To Britain” by Robin W. Winks. Boldface added to excerpts by QI : [1] 1983, An American’s Guide To Britain by Robin W. Winks, Revised Edition, Chapter: Introduction, Quote Page xi, Charles Scribner’s Sons, New York. (Verified with scans)
An excellent writer of science fiction, Ursula LeGuin, has written that the creative adult is a child who has survived. In this sense of the word, this book is meant to appeal to the child in most of us — for when we are truly an adult, we will also be dead.
Winks credited Le Guin, but he did not use quotation marks. Thus, the statement may have reflected his attempt to paraphrase Le Guin. Currently, Winks is the leading candidate for creator of the saying although the coinage was inadvertent. Also, it remains possible that Winks was simply repeating the misquotation from a previous writer.
QI conjectures that the statement was derived from an imprecise reading of a 1974 essay by Ursula Le Guin titled “Why Are Americans Afraid of Dragons?” published in “PNLA Quarterly”. The essay was reprinted in “The Thorny Paradise: Writers On Writing For Children” in 1975. Le Guin defended the imagination employed in “fairy-tale, legend, fantasy, science fiction, and the rest of the lunatic fringe”. She praised children’s librarians because they also welcomed this type of fiction: [2] 1975, The Thorny Paradise: Writers On Writing For Children, Edited by Edward Blishen, Chapter: This Fear of Dragons by Ursula Le Guin, Start Page 87, Quote Page 91, Kestrel Books: Penguin Books, … Continue reading
They believe that maturity is not an outgrowing, but a growing up; that an adult is not a dead child, but a child who survived. They believe that all the best faculties of a mature human being exist in the child, and that if these faculties are encouraged in youth they will act well and wisely in the adult, but if they are repressed and denied in the child they will stunt and cripple the adult personality. And finally they believe that one of the most deeply human, and humane, of these faculties is the power of imagination; so that it is our pleasant duty, as librarians, or teachers, or parents, or writers, or simply as grownups, to encourage that faculty of imagination in our children . . .
The quotation under examination was not present in the passage above, but an inattentive reader who was attempting to condense and simplify Le Guin’s words might have generated the saying.
Below are additional selected citations in chronological order.
In 1978 “Your Personality and How to Live with It” by Gregory G. Young published a thematically related remark: [3] 1978, Your Personality and How to Live with It by Gregory G. Young, Chapter 9: The Sensitive Personality, Quote Page 229, Atheneum, New York. (Verified with scans)
Remember: an adult is a child who has kept his sense of wonder intact while growing in wisdom and age.
In 1979 the collection “The Language of the Night: Essays on Fantasy and Science Fiction” reprinted the 1974 essay by Ursula K. Le Guin: [4] 1979, The Language of the Night: Essays on Fantasy and Science Fiction by Ursula K. Le Guin, Edited by Susan Wood, Essay: Why Are Americans Afraid of Dragons? Start Page 39, Quote Page 44, A Perigee … Continue reading
I believe that maturity is not an outgrowing, but a growing up: that an adult is not a dead child, but a child who survived.
In 1983 “An American’s Guide To Britain” by Robin W. Winks printed the flawed quotation and attribution as mentioned at the beginning of this article [5] 1983, An American’s Guide To Britain by Robin W. Winks, Revised Edition, Chapter: Introduction, Quote Page xi, Charles Scribner’s Sons, New York. (Verified with scans)
An excellent writer of science fiction, Ursula LeGuin, has written that the creative adult is a child who has survived.
In 1989 “Discovering the Writer Within: 40 Days to More Imaginative Writing” by Bruce Ballenger and Barry Lane attributed a variant of the quotation under exploration to Le Guin: [6] 1989, Discovering the Writer Within: 40 Days to More Imaginative Writing by Bruce Ballenger and Barry Lane, Chapter: Day Twenty-Nine: The Road Is Chasing Us, Quote Page 115, Writer’s Digest … Continue reading
When fantasy writer Ursula Le Guin says, “An adult is a child who survived,” she is referring indirectly to the many children whose imaginations don’t survive crippling educations and burdensome lives.
In 2006 “Treasury of Wit & Wisdom: 4,000 of the Funniest, Cleverest, Most Insightful Things Ever Said” printed the following entry: [7] 2006, Treasury of Wit & Wisdom: 4,000 of the Funniest, Cleverest, Most Insightful Things Ever Said, Compiled by Jeff Bredenberg, Topic: Adulthood, Quote Page 23, The Reader’s Digest … Continue reading
The creative adult is the child who has survived. — Ursula K. Le Guin
In 2014 Le Guin wrote an article about the quotation on her personal blog. She was unable to recall crafting the remark, and she concluded it was a misquotation. In a footnote she pointed to her 1974 essay which contained the phrase “child who survived” as a possible source of the misquotation. She commented about the difficulty of preventing the propagation of incorrect information: [8] Website: Ursula K. Le Guin, Article number: 91, Article title: The Inner Child and the Nude Politician, Article author: Ursula K. Le Guin, Date on website: October 2014, Website description: Personal … Continue reading
. .. a false attribution on the Internet is like box elder beetles—the miserable little things just keep breeding and tweeting and crawling out of the woodwork.
In 2022 QI received an email from Professor of Mathematics Julian F. Fleron of Westfield State University. [9] Personal communication via email, From: Julian F. Fleron at domain westfield.ma.edu, To: Garson O’Toole (Quote Investigator), Date: December 6, 2022, Subject: Quote Investigator – … Continue reading Fleron stated that he had created a database of quotations called the “Mathematical and Educational Quotation Server at Westfield State University” which became available by 1998. The contents of the database changed over time via updates.
In 2006 the misquotation from Le Guin was added to the database based on flawed information obtained from the BrainyQuote website. Le Guin contacted Fleron in 2016 to let him know that the quotation was inaccurate and Fleron removed the item from the database. [10] Website: Mathematical and Educational Quotation Server at Westfield State University, Website description: Database of Quotations, Created, Edited, and Maintained by Julian F. Fleron, Date: The … Continue reading Unfortunately, the quotation is sometimes misattributed to Fleron.
In conclusion, Ursula K. Le Guin did not create the quotation under examination, and she directly disclaimed it on her personal blog. In 1974 she did write a statement with a different meaning that partially matched the quotation by containing the word “adult” and the phrase “child who survived”. It is possible that someone misread Le Guin’s 1974 essay and created the quotation. The first known appearance occurred in a 1983 book by Robin W. Winks.
Image Notes: Children in silhouette from geralt on Pixabay. Image has been cropped and resized.
Acknowledgement: Great thanks to Julian F. Fleron whose note led QI to formulate this question and perform this exploration
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How to Use a Quote in an Essay
Table of Contents
MLA in-text citation how-to
You can take a quote from different sources of information, such as books, magazines, websites or printed journals. Using quotes in an essay serves three goals:
- Present additional evidence to support your point of view or oppose a claim or idea;
- Help a reader better understand a topic under analysis;
- Strengthen your argumentation on a topic using another writer’s eloquence.
Since quotes are mostly used in Humanities, you’ll have to follow MLA citation referencing guidelines. The Modern Language Association citation manual implies two types of quotes – short and long.
- Short quote – Is less than 4 lines of typed text and can be embedded directly into a sentence;
- Long quote – Is more than 4 lines of typed text and requires a separate content block in an essay without quotation marks.
Writing college essays, the recommendation is to use short quotes.
Parenthetical citation
Referring to the works of other authors in-text is done using a parenthetical citation . Such a method implies the author-page style of quoting. For example:
When it comes to writing, King suggests: “Write. Rewrite. When not writing or rewriting, read. I know of no shortcuts.” (5)
Given the MLA in-text citation already contains King’s last name, you shouldn’t mention it in the parenthesis. If the author’s name isn’t mentioned in-text, it has to be specified in a parenthetical citation.
When it comes to writing, there’s a quote I like the most: “Write. Rewrite. When not writing or rewriting, read. I know of no shortcuts.” (King 5)
According to MLA guidelines, at the end of the essay, there has to be the Works Cited page . It contains the full reference featuring author’s full name, the full title of the source, the volume, the issue number, the date of publishing, and the URL (if the source was found online). Here’s an example of the full referencing in the Works Cited:
King, Larry L. “The Collection of Best Works.” Oxford University Press, vol. 2, no. 3, Jan.-Feb. 2017, http://www.prowritersdigest.com/editor-blogs/inspirational-quotes/72-of-the-best-quotes-about-writing.
How to start an essay with a quote?
Starting an essay with a quote is a matter of controversy. Experts in the pro camp suggest that a quote at the beginning of an essay helps make a powerful statement right from the start. Moreover, an interesting, captivating quote grabs the reader’s attention right from the start.
Experts from the against camp suggest that when you begin an essay with a quote, you miss on the opportunity to present your own take on the subject matter. In their opinion, when writing the introduction, you have to rely only on your words. Whereas quotes are most useful in the main body, serving as an additional argumentation. In conclusion, a quote can be placed, too.
How to use quotes in the middle of an essay?
Main Body is the place you’re meant to state a quote or two, depending on the length of a paper. A standard 5-paragraph essay will imply you to use 2-3 quotes in the main body. More quotes aren’t necessary for such a short assignment. Two quotes in the main body will do just fine.
In the main body paragraph, a quote is placed in the middle of the passage . First, you introduce a focal sentence of a paragraph highlighting your point of view regarding a topic. After that, you provide the evidence data and argumentation, among which is a relevant quote. And finally, you smoothly transit to the next body paragraph or the conclusion. Here’re three examples of how to present a quote in one of the main body paragraphs.
Accurate integration of a citation in a text is key. Or the whole passage will sound off.
People who want to become a writer don’t really need any piece of advice. “Those (…) who know that they really want to do this and are cut out for it, they know it.”
College essay quotes have to be naturally embedded in a text .
People who want to become a writer don’t really need any piece of advice: “Those (…) who know that they really want to do this and are cut out for it, they know it.”
There’s also the way to write an essay with quotes in the smoothest way possible.
People who want to become a writer don’t really need any piece of advice. They simply “know that they really want to do this and are cut out for it, they know it.”
See how organically a quote is inserted in a sentence? That’s the best-case scenario of using a quote in a sentence.
How to end an essay with a quote?
Sometimes, ending an essay with a quote is better than merely restating your thesis statement. Citations can be taken from both primary and secondary sources. Good quotes to end an essay might be of your course professor’s. According to essay writing websites, quotations taken from the words of subject authorities and thought leaders will do great, too.
A quote ending an essay helps meet 5 objectives:
- Provide a solid closure to your essay;
- Fortify your point of view;
- Give one final argument in favor of your thesis statement;
- Establish your authority on a topic;
- Helps your essay stand out.
Having a quotation at the end of an essay gives a good chance to score an “A”.
15 tips for using quotations in an essay
- Look up quotes in academic sources in the first place;
- Rely on the printed matter rather than internet sources;
- Avoid citing information from Wikipedia;
- Give context to every quotation you use;
- Always use quotation marks to avoid plagiarism-related troubles;
- Explain why the quote you’re about to use in a text is important;
- Seek to integrate quotes smoothly in a sentence for the best effect;
- Each quotation has to be attributed to the original source using parenthesis;
- Gather 10-15 quotes relevant to your topic and then sift through 5 quotes that will serve you best;
- Use the exact wording, punctuation, capitalization and sentence structure as in the original;
- Watch your punctuation when using quotes in a sentence;
- Avoid misquotations, as it’s a sign of a careless attitude towards the assignment;
- Use an ellipsis (…) to withdraw a part of a quote you don’t actually need;
- Try to use short quotes rather than long;
- Avoid quoting quotes, as it’s where students make mistakes most often.
5 motivational quotes for essay writing
Inspiration is a staple in every great writer’s routine. As a student, you might find drawing inspiration a bit too difficult. Here’re a couple of inspiring essay motivation quotes to help you break through the writer’s block. Or you can buy argumentative essay if doing the task yourself isn’t an option.
“I don’t need an alarm clock. My ideas wake me.”
“It’s none of their business that you have to learn to write. Let them think you were born that way.”
“The difference between the almost right word and the right word is … the difference between the lightning bug and the lightning.”
“Making people believe the unbelievable is no trick; it’s work . … Belief and reader absorption come in the details: An overturned tricycle in the gutter of an abandoned neighborhood can stand for everything.”
“To defend what you’ve written is a sign that you are alive.”
Many times life catches us off balance. Lots of written homework. Tight schedule. Sudden illness. Personal matters. Writer’s block. An instructor returned the essay for revisions. At the moments like these, it’s always a good idea to have someone to cover your back. GradeMiners can always write you a new essay, rewrite an existing draft, perform an ending an essay with a quote , or proofread your text for mistakes, typos, as well as correct the use of quotations. Let us know if you need anything, and we’ll help you out!
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Definition and Examples of Direct Quotations
When and how should direct quotes be used.
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- An Introduction to Punctuation
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A direct quotation is a report of the exact words of an author or speaker and is placed inside quotation marks in a written work. For example, Dr. King said, " I have a dream ."
Comparing Types of Quotations
Direct quotations are commonly introduced by a signal phrase (also called a quotative frame), such as Dr. King said or Abigail Adams wrote , and are used in written and audio or visual media, especially if an anchor or reporter is giving someone's exact words without having a recording of the person actually saying it. For example, a newscaster would say, "Dr. King said, and I quote, 'I have a dream' unquote."
By contrast, indirect quotations may also have signal phrases leading into them, but the words are not what the person said or wrote word for word, just a paraphrase or a summary of what the words were, such as, At the March on Washington, Dr. King spoke of the dreams that he had for the nation.
A mixed quotation is an indirect quotation that includes a directly quoted expression (in many cases just a single word or brief phrase): King melodiously praised the "veterans of creative suffering," urging them to continue the struggle.
When you have a long direct quotation in a written work, more than 60 or 100 words or more than four or five lines, instead of using quotation marks around it, you may be told by your style guide or assignment parameters to set it off with indents on either side and to put the text in italics or make some other typographical change. This is a block quotation . (See the long quote in the next section for an example, though this site's style is to retain quote marks, even around block quotes.)
When to Use Direct Quotes
When you're writing, use direct quotes sparingly, because the essay or article is supposed to be your original work. Use them for emphasis when the reader needs to see the exact words for analysis and evidence or when the exact quote encapsulates the topic at hand more succinctly or better than you could.
Author Becky Reed Rosenberg discusses using direct quotes when writing in the sciences versus the humanities.
"In the first place, the general convention in the sciences and social sciences is that we use direct quotations as little as possible. Whenever possible, paraphrase your source. The exception is when the source is so eloquent or so peculiar that you really need to share the original language with your readers. (In the humanities, direct quoting is more important—certainly where you are talking about a literary source. There the original language IS the object of study very often.)" ("Using Direct Quotation." Writing Center at the University of Washington, Bothell)
In news writing, don't be tempted to correct grammar or other errors when you're directly quoting your source—though you would want to comment in your text about factual errors the speaker made at the time of the statement. You can use ellipses to cut some things out of a direct quote, but even that should be done sparingly. In news, accuracy and proper context are paramount, and you don't want to look like you're doctoring the source's words.
In essays and reports, anytime you use someone else's ideas in your work, either by direct or indirect quotations, that person needs attribution or credit, or else you are committing plagiarism.
Watch Now: Why is Proper Grammar Important?
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Quoting: When and how to use quotations
On this page, when should you quote, quoting basics, framing your quotations.
Quoting is an important technique used to include information from outside sources in academic writing. When using quotations, it is important that you also cite the original reference that you have taken the quotation from, as your citations provide your reader with a map of the research that you have done. Making effective use of quotations in your writing requires you to carefully assess the value of including someone else’s own words in the advancement of your own argument.
According to Jerry Plotnick (2002, Director of the University College Writing Workshop) using a quotation is appropriate in the following situations:
1. The language of the passage is particularly elegant, powerful, or memorable.
2. You wish to confirm the credibility of your argument by enlisting the support of an authority on your topic.
3. The passage is worthy of further analysis.
4. You wish to argue with someone else’s position in considerable detail. [1]
Research that involves participants (for example, interviews and participant-observation research) also often makes extensive use of quotations in order to foreground the unique voices and perspectives of the participants.
When you quote, you include the words and ideas of others in your text exactly as they have expressed them. You signal this inclusion by placing quotation marks (“ ”) around the source author’s words and providing an in-text citation after the quotation. Direct quotations differ from other in-text citations because they require that you include the page number on which the words can be found in the source text. For example:
According to scholars of rhetoric Graff and Birkenstein (2014), when you are inserting a quotation in your writing “you need to insert it into what we like to call a ‘quotation sandwich,’ with the statement introducing it serving as the top slice of bread and the explanation following it serving as the bottom slice” (p. 46). [2] This "sandwich" method ensures that your reader can clearly see the source you are referencing and also understands how this quotation supports your overall argument.
When you are quoting from a source that does not have page numbers (such as a website), you will consult your style guide to determine how best to reference your source. For example, both MLA and APA suggest listing the paragraph number or relevant heading.
You quote materials from a source text to support the arguments and ideas you are presenting in your own essay. Therefore, you must introduce the quotation and explain to your reader why you have included it and how it relates to, and helps to build, your argument. This is known as framing. It directs your reader’s attention to the specific elements of the quotation that are most directly relevant to your own arguments and ideas.
Here is an example of a quotation that is successfully “framed” within a text:
Citing the islands of Fiji as a case in point, Bordo notes that “until television was introduced in 1995, the islands had no reported cases of eating disorders. In 1998, three years after programs from the United States and Britain began broadcasting there, 62 percent of the girls surveyed reported dieting” (149-50). Bordo’s point is that the Western cult of dieting is spreading even to remote places across the globe. [3]
Remember that quoting is only one way of bringing someone else’s work into your own discussion. See the SLC handouts “Techniques for paraphrasing” and “Summarizing” for ideas on other ways to incorporate sources into your writing.
[1] http://www.writing.utoronto.ca/images/stories/Documents/quotations.pdf
[2] APA formatting
[3] Example taken from Graff, G. & Birkenstein, C. (2014). They say/I say: The moves that matter in academic writing. New York and London: W.W. Norton & Company.
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How to Use Essay Quotations And Citations Correctly
12 Feb 2021
Quick Navigation
✍️Types Of Quotations And Examples
📑The Types of Quotation Marks
✏️Types Of Citations And Examples
✅Citations and Quotation Tips
One of the essential things included in writing an essay is preparing quotations and citations that would fit organically into your text and support your main thesis. Why should students include quotes in a paper? Regardless of the purpose of your college essay, there is one general requirement that you must always keep in mind. While writing, you must add valuable facts, details, and specifics to the paper. Quotations and citations make this possible and prove that you used reputable and appealing sources to develop your essay well. We can add that essay quotes are mandatory and extremely beneficial. The same thing applies to citations.
When it comes to determining the terms quotation and citation that is where many people make the mistake of thinking that these two elements are identical and have no differences between them. In fact, they are different in the essay planning process. When you make an essay citation, you are referencing a specific source but do not provide a direct quote.
For example, you want to include a paragraph of some relevant article in your text and restate its main idea with your own words – this is a citation. In this case, you can’t just paste the original piece into your text. You still must use the proper citation method! Quoting, on the contrary, assumes that you will paste a direct phrase or paragraph without changing anything, and that is how these two elements are different. Quotations are when you directly use a sentence or something another person has said.
This is not all you need to know. The format of these components is another important thing. The format is determined by the citation styles, and you have to use the one that was specified in the guidelines by your instructor for your academic paper. Otherwise, you risk getting a lower grade.
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Types of quotations and examples.
How to use quotes in an essay? Below you can find a brief guide on inserting phrases from various sources in your text using the two most common styles – APA and MLA. How to put a quote in an essay? Read this, and you will find out.
MLA style quotations in an essay
Short - In accordance with this style, a short quote is a phrase that is less than four printed lines of text (novel, a story or etc.) or three lines of a poem.
If your phrase meets these requirements regarding length, then you will just need to mark it with double quotes, indicate the author’s last name, and specify the page number.
Also, you need to include some sort of introductory text before.
Some critics say that literary fiction “is all but dead in the 21st century” (Smith, 200).
Longer pieces are included in the form of a separate text without using quotation marks, and, as a rule, such pieces go after a colon to make them look organic.
These are also followed by the author’s family name and a page in parentheses. It should be indented 0.5 inches and double-spaced.
Nelly Dean treats Heathcliff poorly and dehumanizes him throughout her narration: They entirely refused to have it in bed with them, or even in their room, and I had no more sense, so, I put it on the landing of the stairs, hoping it would be gone on the morrow. By chance, or else attracted by hearing his voice, it crept to Mr. Earnshaw’s door, and there he found it on quitting his chamber. Inquiries were made as to how it got there; I was obliged to confess, and in recompense for my cowardice and inhumanity was sent out of the house. (Bronte, 78)
Short – Here, the format is similar to the MLA format, but you also have to write the page number after the following character, “p.” and indicate the year.
Some critics say that literary fiction “is all but dead in the 21st century” (Smith, 2004, p. 200).
Long – The format of longer pieces is also similar to MLA style but has to be followed with a brief reflection on the provided evidence that you write in your own words. They should also be double-spaced and s indented 0.5 inches. If you want to know how to start an essay with a quote format, this may be the most important example.
Nelly Dean treats Heathcliff poorly and dehumanizes him throughout her narration: They entirely refused to have it in bed with them, or even in their room, and I had no more sense, so, I put it on the landing of the stairs, hoping it would be gone on the morrow. By chance, or else attracted by hearing his voice, it crept to Mr. Earnshaw’s door, and there he found it on quitting his chamber. Inquiries were made as to how it got there; I was obliged to confess, and in recompense for my cowardice and inhumanity was sent out of the house. (Bronte, 2017, p. 78)
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The Types of Quotation Marks
Technically, there are two types of inverted commas. There are the double quotation marks that look like this “ ” and the single inverted commas that appear as such ‘ ’. Now, if this form of punctuation is already puzzling you, then the different types may only serve to confuse you more. Don’t worry, though, since this can be sorted out rather easily…
As a rule of thumb:
- British English and Australian English writers use ‘ ’ when writing
- American English writers rely on “ ” in their texts
This is more important than you may believe. Your professor will ask you to use correct quotation marks in all your essays, and if you make a mistake, in the best-case scenario, you will have to correct each one. You also need to know how to choose quotes for an essay properly and use the most suitable ones.
Another point to focus on is when mentioning a quotation during a text that involves a speech. Let’s consider the following example:
“What do you think she meant when she called me a ‘miser’?”
As you can see here, both types have been utilized. Once again, though, it is all about remaining consistent when quoting things inside inverted commas. If you are going to use the above structure once, then you will need to continue doing so for the rest of your text as well.
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Types Of Citations And Examples
Mla citation for an essay.
You will need to indicate only the author’s name and page.
In his work, Smith claims that fiction in literature is almost dead in the 21st century (200).
Chicago/Turabian
This style is different from others. Here you can make in-text citations using endnotes or footnotes, which means that you don’t need to include anything except the number of citations after the phrase, but on the endnotes page (or in footnotes), you will need to provide comprehensive bibliographical information.
The footnotes and bibliography style are mostly used in humanities topics such as history, arts, and literature. This style uses numbered footnotes or endnotes, which correspond to superscript numbers within the text. The reference sources are listed in a Chicago-style bibliography section at the end of the work. The benefit of this system is that it can incorporate awkward source links where the author-date system would struggle.
The author-date system is more common in social sciences and scientific fields of study. This style cites sources briefly within the text by inserting the author’s last name and year of publication. Each of these inserts is linked to the reference list, usually located at the end of the writing.
Look at the example below.
In his work, Smith claims that fiction in literature is almost dead in the 21st century. 1
1 First and last names of the author, the name of the source (Place where it was published, the name of the publisher, year), page number.
You have to include the author’s family name, as well as the year of publication and pages included in the parenthesis within the sentence that includes the phrase.
Smith (2004, p. 200) claims that fiction in literature is almost dead in the 21st century.
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Citations and Quotation Tips You Need To Know About
One of the best ways to teach you how to quote in an essay is to share a few tips with you that are effective and easy to use but do have a huge, positive effect on the overall result. These tips come from our writers, and they have been used in countless papers, so you can deduce why they are effective. You can also use the best citation generator if you need any help in this case scenario. Anyway, let’s share a couple of tips.
- Choose and use one citation style only
You must be consistent with the style you have chosen. A common mistake is for a student to use two or to mix the two styles. This will have a huge issue in your paper. Learn how to use the style and go for it. Learn how to use quotes in an essay as well, and don’t repeat the same mistake twice.
- Don’t use too many citations
Some students believe that if they use citations all the time, their papers will look better. This is not true. Never use one citation after another or 10 times on a single page. Citations are there to help you, but they cannot complete the paper instead of you.
- Use rarer quotas
Now that you know how to insert quotes in an essay, you will need to know which ones to use. The ones you can find in a Google search within 2 seconds are not great. They have been used countless times. Instead, read a book and find specific and rare quotas.
- Make quotas match the text
You can write on any topic possible. But you need to match the quotas to the style and the sentences you wrote. If you look at quotations in essay examples, you can see that they look like one thing. This is something you must do as well.
- You can start your essay with a quota
This can be hard for some students to implement. But, the benefit is massive. You will intrigue the reader and make your paper look very interesting. Learn how to use quotation marks in an essay, use quotas in general, and try a couple of things with this approach. You will see the appeal instantly.
We hope that you now have a better idea of how to use citations and quotations in your essay but keep in mind that you can always request professional assistance at a PapersOwl - a reliable essay writing service if you are having trouble with academic writing, editing, formatting, or other issues! We are here 24/7/365 and can assist you in any way you can imagine. Now that you know how to use citations and quotation in essay, our job will be much easier.
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MLA Formatting Quotations
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MLA (Modern Language Association) style is most commonly used to write papers and cite sources within the liberal arts and humanities. This resource, updated to reflect the MLA Handbook (8 th ed.), offers examples for the general format of MLA research papers, in-text citations, endnotes/footnotes, and the Works Cited page.
When you directly quote the works of others in your paper, you will format quotations differently depending on their length. Below are some basic guidelines for incorporating quotations into your paper. Please note that all pages in MLA should be double-spaced .
Short quotations
To indicate short quotations (four typed lines or fewer of prose or three lines of verse) in your text, enclose the quotation within double quotation marks. Provide the author and specific page number (in the case of verse, provide line numbers) in the in-text citation, and include a complete reference on the Works Cited page. Punctuation marks such as periods, commas, and semicolons should appear after the parenthetical citation.
Question marks and exclamation points should appear within the quotation marks if they are a part of the quoted passage, but after the parenthetical citation if they are a part of your text.
For example, when quoting short passages of prose, use the following examples:
When using short (fewer than three lines of verse) quotations from poetry, mark breaks in verse with a slash, ( / ), at the end of each line of verse (a space should precede and follow the slash). If a stanza break occurs during the quotation, use a double slash ( // ).
Long quotations
For quotations that are more than four lines of prose or three lines of verse, place quotations in a free-standing block of text and omit quotation marks. Start the quotation on a new line, with the entire quote indented 1/2 inch from the left margin while maintaining double-spacing. Your parenthetical citation should come after the closing punctuation mark . When quoting verse, maintain original line breaks. (You should maintain double-spacing throughout your essay.)
For example, when citing more than four lines of prose, use the following examples :
Nelly Dean treats Heathcliff poorly and dehumanizes him throughout her narration: They entirely refused to have it in bed with them, or even in their room, and I had no more sense, so, I put it on the landing of the stairs, hoping it would be gone on the morrow. By chance, or else attracted by hearing his voice, it crept to Mr. Earnshaw's door, and there he found it on quitting his chamber. Inquiries were made as to how it got there; I was obliged to confess, and in recompense for my cowardice and inhumanity was sent out of the house. (Bronte 78)
When citing long sections of poetry (four lines of verse or more), keep formatting as close to the original as possible.
In his poem "My Papa's Waltz," Theodore Roethke explores his childhood with his father:
The whiskey on your breath Could make a small boy dizzy; But I hung on like death: Such waltzing was not easy. We Romped until the pans Slid from the kitchen shelf; My mother's countenance Could not unfrown itself. (qtd. in Shrodes, Finestone, Shugrue 202)
When citing two or more paragraphs, use block quotation format, even if the passage from the paragraphs is less than four lines. If you cite more than one paragraph, the first line of the second paragraph should be indented an extra 1/4 inch to denote a new paragraph:
In "American Origins of the Writing-across-the-Curriculum Movement," David Russell argues,
Writing has been an issue in American secondary and higher education since papers and examinations came into wide use in the 1870s, eventually driving out formal recitation and oral examination. . . .
From its birth in the late nineteenth century, progressive education has wrestled with the conflict within industrial society between pressure to increase specialization of knowledge and of professional work (upholding disciplinary standards) and pressure to integrate more fully an ever-widening number of citizens into intellectually meaningful activity within mass society (promoting social equity). . . . (3)
Adding or omitting words in quotations
If you add a word or words in a quotation, you should put brackets around the words to indicate that they are not part of the original text:
If you omit a word or words from a quotation, you should indicate the deleted word or words by using ellipses, which are three periods ( . . . ) preceded and followed by a space. For example:
Please note that brackets are not needed around ellipses unless they would add clarity.
When omitting words from poetry quotations, use a standard three-period ellipses; however, when omitting one or more full lines of poetry, space several periods to about the length of a complete line in the poem:
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How much should I quote?
The focus of your essay should be on your understanding of the topic. If you include too much quotation in your essay, you will crowd out your own ideas. Consider quoting a passage from one of your sources if any of the following conditions holds:
- The language of the passage is particularly elegant or powerful or memorable.
- You wish to confirm the credibility of your argument by enlisting the support of an authority on your topic.
- The passage is worthy of further analysis.
- You wish to argue with someone else’s position in considerable detail.
Condition 3 is especially useful in essays for literature courses.
If an argument or a factual account from one of your sources is particularly relevant to your paper but does not deserve to be quoted verbatim, consider
- paraphrasing the passage if you wish to convey the points in the passage at roughly the same level of detail as in the original
- summarizing the relevant passage if you wish to sketch only the most essential points in the passage
Note that most scientific writing relies on summary rather than quotation. The same is true of writing in those social sciences—such as experimental psychology—that rely on controlled studies and emphasize quantifiable results. (Almost all of the examples in this handout follow the MLA system of citation, which is widely used in the humanities and in those social sciences with a less quantitative approach.)
Visit our handout on paraphrase and summary .
Why is it important to identify my sources?
Quotations come from somewhere, and your reader will want to know where. Don’t just parachute quotations into your essay without providing at least some indication of who your source is. Letting your reader know exactly which authorities you rely on is an advantage: it shows that you have done your research and that you are well acquainted with the literature on your topic.
In the following passage, the parenthetical reference to the author does not adequately identify the source:
The ancient Greeks never saw a need to justify wars that were waged outside the walls of the city state. “Hence we must turn to Roman antiquity to find the first justification of war, together with the first notion that there are just and unjust wars” (Arendt 12). Yet the Roman conception of a just war differs sharply from more modern conceptions.
When you are making decisions about how to integrate quotations into your essay, you might imagine that you are reading the essay out loud to an audience. You would not read the parenthetical note. Without some sort of introduction, your audience would not even know that the statement about Roman antiquity was a quotation, let alone where the quotation came from.
How do I introduce a short quotation?
The following offers just one way of introducing the above quotation:
The ancient Greeks never saw a need to justify wars that were waged outside the walls of the city state. As Hannah Arendt points out in On Revolution , “we must turn to Roman antiquity to find the first justification of war, together with the first notion that there are just and unjust wars” (12). Yet the Roman conception of a just war differs sharply from more modern conceptions.
Since the quotation is relatively short, the brief introduction works.
You could, however, strengthen your analysis by demonstrating the significance of the passage within your own argument. Introducing your quotation with a full sentence would help you assert greater control over the material:
The ancient Greeks never saw a need to justify wars that were waged outside the walls of the city state. In On Revolution , Hannah Arendt points to the role the Romans played in laying the foundation for later thinking about the ethics of waging war: “we must turn to Roman antiquity to find the first justification of war, together with the first notion that there are just and unjust wars” (12). Yet the Roman conception of a just war differs sharply from more modern conceptions.
In these two examples, observe the forms of punctuation used to introduce the quotations. When you introduce a quotation with a full sentence, you should always place a colon at the end of the introductory sentence. When you introduce a quotation with an incomplete sentence, you usually place a comma after the introductory phrase. However, it has become grammatically acceptable to use a colon rather than a comma:
Arendt writes: “we must turn to Roman antiquity to find the first justification of war . . .”
If you are blending the quotation into your own sentence using the conjuction that , do not use any punctuation at all:
Arendt writes that “we must turn to Roman antiquity to find the first justification of war . . .”
If you are not sure whether to punctuate your introduction to a quotation, mentally remove the quotation marks, and ask yourself whether any punctuation is still required.
Finally, note that you can deviate from the common pattern of introduction followed by quotation. Weaving the phrases of others into your own prose offers a stylistically compelling way of maintaining control over your source material. Moreover, the technique of weaving can help you to produce a tighter argument. The following condenses twelve lines from Arendt’s essay to fewer than two:
What Arendt refers to as the “well-known realities of power politics” began to lose their moral legitimacy when the First World War unleashed “the horribly destructive” forces of warfare “under conditions of modern technology” (13).
What verbs and phrases can I use to introduce my quotations?
Familiarize yourself with the various verbs commonly used to introduce quotations. Here is a partial list:
argues writes points out concludes comments notes maintains suggests insists observes counters asserts states claims demonstrates says explains reveals
Each verb has its own nuance. Make sure that the nuance matches your specific aims in introducing the quotation.
There are other ways to begin quotations. Here are three common phrasings:
In the words of X , . . .
According to X , . . .
In X ‘s view, . . .
Vary the way you introduce quotations to avoid sounding monotonous. But never sacrifice precision of phrasing for the sake of variety.
Visit the U of T Writing Website’s page on verbs for referring to sources .
How do I introduce a long quotation?
If your quotation is lengthy, you should almost always introduce it with a full sentence that helps capture how it fits into your argument. If your quotation is longer than four lines, do not place it in quotation marks. Instead, set it off as a block quotation :
Although Dickens never shied away from the political controversies of his time, he never, in Orwell’s view, identified himself with any political program:
The truth is that Dickens’ criticism of society is almost exclusively moral. Hence his lack of any constructive suggestion anywhere in his work. He attacks the law, parliamentary government, the educational system and so forth, without ever clearly suggesting what he would put in their places. Of course it is not necessarily the business of a novelist, or a satirist, to make constructive suggestions, but the point is that Dickens’ attitude is at bottom not even destructive. . . . For in reality his target is not so much society as human nature. (416)
The full-sentence introduction to a block quotation helps demonstrate your grasp of the source material, and it adds analytical depth to your essay. But the introduction alone is not enough. Long quotations almost invariably need to be followed by extended analysis. Never allow the quotation to do your work for you. Usually you will want to keep the quotation and your analysis together in the same paragraph. Hence it is a good idea to avoid ending a paragraph with a quotation. But if your analysis is lengthy, you may want to break it into several paragraphs, beginning afresh after the quotation.
Once in a while you can reverse the pattern of quotation followed by analysis. A felicitously worded or an authoritative quotation can, on occasion, nicely clinch an argument.
There is some flexibility in the rule that block quotations are for passages of four lines or more: a shorter passage can be represented as a block quotation if it is important enough to stand on its own. For example, when you are quoting two or more lines of poetry , you will probably want to display the verse as it appears on the page:
In the opening heroic couplet of The Rape of the Lock , Pope establishes the unheroic nature of the poem’s subject matter:
What dire offense from amorous causes springs, What mighty contests rise from trivial things. (1-2)
If you choose to integrate verse into your own sentence, then use a slash surrounded by spaces to indicate line breaks:
In Eliot’s The Waste Land , the symbols of a mythic past lie buried in “A heap of broken images, where the sun beats, / And the dead tree gives no shelter, the cricket no relief” (22-23).
How do I let my reader know I’ve altered my sources?
If you need to alter your quotations in any way, be sure to indicate just how you have done so. If you remove text, then replace the missing text with an ellipsis —three periods surrounded by spaces:
In The Mirror and the Lamp , Abrams comments that the “diversity of aesthetic theories . . . makes the task of the historian a very difficult one” (5).
If the omitted text occurs between sentences, then put a space after the period at the end of sentence, and follow that by an ellipsis. In all, there will be four periods. (See Orwell on Dickens, above.)
Many people overuse ellipses at the beginning and end of quotations. Use an ellipsis in either place only when your reader might otherwise mistake an incomplete sentence for a complete one:
Abraham Lincoln begins “The Gettysburg Address” with a reminder of the act upon which the United States was founded: “Four score and seven years ago our fathers brought forth on this continent a new nation . . .” (1).
Do not use an ellipsis if you are merely borrowing a phrase from the original:
In “The Gettysburg Address” Abraham Lincoln reminds his listeners of the principles that had inspired the creation of “a new nation” (1).
If you need to alter or replace text from the original, enclose the added text within square brackets . You may, for example, need to alter text to ensure that pronouns agree with their antecedents. Do not write,
Gertrude asks her son Hamlet to “cast your nighted colour off” (1.2.68).
Square brackets allow you to absorb Gertrude’s words into your own statement:
Gertrude asks her son Hamlet to “cast [his] nighted colour off” (1.2.68).
Alternatively, you can include Gertrude’s original phrasing in its entirety as long as the introduction to the quotation is not fully integrated with the quotation. The introduction can be an independent clause:
Gertrude implores her son Hamlet to stop mourning the death of his father: “cast your nighted colour off” (I.ii.68).
Or it can be an incomplete sentence:
Gertrude implores her son Hamlet, “cast your nighted colour off” (1.2.68).
How is punctuation affected by quotation?
You must preserve the punctuation of a quoted passage, or else you must enclose in square brackets any punctuation marks that are your own.
There is, however, one important exception to this rule. You are free to alter the punctuation just before a closing quotation mark. You may need to do so to ensure that your sentences are fully grammatical. Do not worry about how the original sentence needs to be punctuated before that quotation mark; think about how your sentence needs to be punctuated. Note, for example, that if you are using the MLA system of referencing, a sentence always ends after the parenthetical reference. Do not also include a period before closing the quotation mark, even if there is a period there in the original. For example, do not write,
According to Schama, Louis XVI remained calm during his trial: “The Terror had no power to frighten an old man of seventy-two.” (822).
The period before the closing quotation mark must go:
According to Schama, Louis XVI remained calm during his trial: “The Terror had no power to frighten an old man of seventy-two” (822).
However, if you are using footnotes, the period remains inside the quotation mark, while the footnote number goes outside:
According to Schama, Louis XVI remained calm during his trial: “The Terror had no power to frighten an old man of seventy-two.” 1
In Canada and the United States, commas and periods never go outside a quotation mark. They are always absorbed as part of the quotation, whether they belong to you or to the author you are quoting:
“I am a man / more sinned against than sinning,” Lear pronounces in Act 3, Scene 2 (59-60).
However, stronger forms of punctuation such as question marks and exclamation marks go inside the quotation if they belong to the author, and outside if they do not:
Bewildered, Lear asks the fool, “Who is it that can tell me who I am?” (1.4.227).
Why is Lear so rash as to let his “two daughters’ dowers digest the third” (1.1.127)?
Finally, use single quotation marks for all quotations within quotations:
When Elizabeth reveals that her younger sister has eloped, Darcy drops his customary reserve: “‘I am grieved, indeed,’ cried Darcy, ‘grieved—shocked'” (Austen 295).
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- Suggested Ways to Introduce Quotations
Suggested ways to introduce quotations
When you quote another writer's words, it's best to introduce or contextualize the quote.
How to quote in an essay?
To introduce a quote in an essay, don't forget to include author's last name and page number (MLA) or author, date, and page number (APA) in your citation. Shown below are some possible ways to introduce quotations. The examples use MLA format.
1. Use a full sentence followed by a colon to introduce a quotation.
- The setting emphasizes deception: "Nothing is as it appears" (Smith 1).
- Piercy ends the poem on an ironic note: "To every woman a happy ending" (25).
2. Begin a sentence with your own words, then complete it with quoted words.
Note that in the second example below, a slash with a space on either side ( / ) marks a line break in the original poem.
- Hamlet's task is to avenge a "foul and most unnatural murder" (Shakespeare 925).
- The speaker is mystified by her sleeping baby, whose "moth-breath / flickers among the flat pink roses" (Plath 17).
3. Use an introductory phrase naming the source, followed by a comma to quote a critic or researcher
Note that the first letter after the quotation marks should be upper case. According to MLA guidelines, if you change the case of a letter from the original, you must indicate this with brackets. APA format doesn't require brackets.
- According to Smith, "[W]riting is fun" (215).
- In Smith's words, " . . .
- In Smith's view, " . . .
4. Use a descriptive verb, followed by a comma to introduce a critic's words
Avoid using says unless the words were originally spoken aloud, for instance, during an interview.
- Smith states, "This book is terrific" (102).
- Smith remarks, " . . .
- Smith writes, " . . .
- Smith notes, " . . .
- Smith comments, " . . .
- Smith observes, " . . .
- Smith concludes, " . . .
- Smith reports, " . . .
- Smith maintains, " . . .
- Smith adds, " . . .
5. Don't follow it with a comma if your lead-in to the quotation ends in that or as
The first letter of the quotation should be lower case.
- Smith points out that "millions of students would like to burn this book" (53).
- Smith emphasizes that " . . .
- Smith interprets the hand washing in MacBeth as "an attempt at absolution" (106).
- Smith describes the novel as "a celebration of human experience" (233).
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How to Start an Essay with a Quote: Important Tips and Examples
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Preparing the introductory paragraph is one of the most challenging tasks in the essay writing process. When compared to other essential sections, the introduction plays a vital role because it is the opening part of an essay that has the responsibility to pull the readers inside the essay. Basically, there are different approaches available to begin the introductory paragraph in an essay but starting with a quotation is preferred the most. Because, when you start an essay with a quote that is unique and creative, your readers will find it curious to know what is there inside the essay and will end up reading the entire essay.
Never begin your essay without a catchy hook. A catchy hook is a powerful tool that has the vibes to grab the reader’s attention and generate interest in the topic. The hook can be a quote, a fact, a statistic, etc. But using a quote that is relevant to the topic is one of the most effective ways to begin an essay.
Are you aware of how to start an essay with a quote? If you don’t have any idea, then keep on reading this blog post. Here, in detail, we have explained how to find an ideal quote and open an essay with that ideal quote.
Definition of a Quote
A short phrase or a passage that is extracted from the written text or speech of other writers or speakers is identified as a Quote. It is one of the valuable tools that are used predominantly when writing essays, articles, and blog posts. The quotations can also be used when delivering a speech.
In general, there are several famous quotes available on plenty of topics such as friendship, life, knowledge, love, etc. Especially when preparing your written assignments or speeches, based on your topic, you can search and find the most famous quotes from any celebrities of the past or present.
On the whole, the quote is commonly classified into three types- Summary, Paraphrase, and Direct quotes . To start an essay, you can use any quote type. The summary gives brief details of the essential points in the initial quote. The paraphrase is nothing but reworded statements that provide the same meaning as original phrases. The words that are written or spoken are referred to as direct quotes.
Out of all these three different types of quotes, students often prefer direct quotes while writing an essay. But in order to avoid ruining the actual meaning of the original citation, you can use any of these quote types appropriately.
How to Start an Essay with a Quote
Wondering how to begin an essay with a quote? Cool! The below-mentioned tips will provide you with a clear idea of how to begin the introductory paragraph of an essay with a quote.
Give preference to your target readers
Before you begin searching for the quote for your essay, first understand the mindset of your target readers and then select a quote suitable for them. The quote that you select should be easy for your readers to relate to and understand. Never choose a quote that is insulting to your readers unless you plan to refute the quote.
In order to catch the attention of the general audience, you can pick quotes from a pop culture celebrity or renowned personality. But to engage with a specific set of audiences, find a quote from a source that matches the interest of your target readers. Remember, the quote you use at the start of your essay should be clear, informative, and shouldn’t offend the intelligence of your readers.
Avoid picking a quote that is unfamiliar to your target audience. Choosing a less popular quote will not create any impact on your readers while they read the opening paragraph of your essay. If you feel that the quote you have selected would be unfamiliar for your readers, provide more details on that quote.
Get to know the context of the quote
Don’t randomly use quotes that are appealing to you. Before you finalize a quote, identify the original context of that quote. If you have a proper understanding of that quote, then you yourself can determine whether or not that quote would be appropriate to use at the start of your essay.
Identify a quote relevant to the purpose of your essay
The quote that you have selected to use at the beginning of your essay should be relevant to the purpose of your essay. If you use any irrelevant quote at the start of your essay, then your readers will not even read your essay completely. Note that, using a quote mismatching to your essay purpose may easily distract your audience. Say, for instance, if you explain a sensitive topic with a humorous quote, then it won’t work for the readers. So, while selecting a quote, make sure to consider the purpose and the tone of the essay.
Never use clichés and popular quotations
Your readers will quickly get bored if you use popular quotes in the same way as every other person. Also, it might make your readers think that you haven’t put any effort or haven’t taken your target audience into account. So, whenever you choose a quote, say a big no to clichés and frequently used quotations.
Link your quote and point
When selecting a quote to start an essay, give preference to the quote that satisfies your arguments or main points. Your selected quote should sync with your essay topic or thesis. Also, you should remember to explain how the quote supports your opinion or argument about a particular essay topic.
Say, for example, while writing an essay on entrepreneurship topics, suitable to your main points or arguments, you can use quotes from a successful entrepreneur.
Cite the Sources
You must acknowledge the source of all the quotes that you have used in your essay. Specifically, you should mention where you took that quote and who said that quote. Note that, citing the sources would increase the credibility level of your essay.
To present the quotes in your essay, use a proper citation format or style such as Modern Language Association (MLA), American Psychological Association (APA) style, etc. The standard citation format or referencing style would help the readers to effortlessly identify the source of your quote.
By following all the above-mentioned tips, you can come up with the right quote to start an essay. No matter what quote you have selected for your essay, before including it at the start of your essay, check whether it is matching to the focus of your essay. Usually, the hook statement at the opening of your essay should be specific, clear, engaging, and concise. So, never choose unimpressive opening quotes that offer a boring feel to your essay.
How to Start an Essay with a Quote- Examples
The quote you use at the opening of the introductory paragraph should not stand alone. When writing the quote, you should use appropriate quotation marks around them and punctuate it. You may suffer from plagiarism problems if you fail to acknowledge the source of the quote.
Whenever you include a quote in your academic essay, you must cite the original source and the name of the person who wrote the quote as per the standard reference or citation style.
Here, we have listed a few examples to show the effective ways to cite the source of a quote using a proper citation style or format.
Franklin D Roosevelt once said, “The only thing we have to fear is fear itself”.
“I have a dream that my four children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character”.(Martin Luther King, Jr., “I have a dream” speech, August 28, 1963). This quote from the great Martin Luther King’s speech still remains as a dream. Even in this modern digital world, no change is born; someone somewhere is suffering from racism and discrimination issues and waiting for justice.
Mark Twain (1940) once wrote, “Give every day the chance to become the most beautiful of your life” (p. 235).
“The best definition of man is: a being that goes on two legs and is ungrateful” (Fyodor Dostoyevsky, Notes from Underground, 1864). It looks like human nature is a constant. Maybe Dostoyevsky would have changed his thoughts if he had a chance to live around grateful people.
Final Words
We hope you have gained a better understanding of how to start an essay with a quote. Basically, selecting a quote for beginning an essay is a tedious process that is time-consuming. But whenever you search for a quote, make sure to refer to printed books or credible online websites. The internet is loaded with a lot of fake information and the quote you pick might not be actually a quote. So, whenever you use a quote, check for the original source and the name of the person who said that quote.
For starting an essay, there are many catchy methods available but using a quote as a hook is one of the best methods to grab the attention of the readers. Remember, you may fail to impress your readers if you use a quote mismatching to the essay topic. Therefore, in order to identify an ideal quote suitable to the main points of the essay, invest more time and effort.
In case, you don’t know what quote to use in your essay, or if you are unsure of how to start an essay with a quote, call us for essay writing help . In our team, we have talented essay writers to offer reliable and cheap online essay writing services.
To get our instant academic paper writing assistance, just fill in what you need from us in the order form and submit it. Based on your requirements, we will provide the best assignment writing help for all the essay writing issues that you suffer from.
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International women's day 2023: quotes, images, caption and messages to share with incredible women around you, as a way to embrace and cultivate the lives and futures of women from all walks of life, we've created a list of inspiring quotes that you can share with aspiring women around you..
By India Today Information Desk : International Women's Day is celebrated on March 8 every year. In 1975, the United Nations began to celebrate International Women's Day, and in 1977, the UN General Assembly declared 8 March as International Women's Day in support of women's rights and global peace.
The day is dedicated to celebrating the social, economic, cultural, and political achievements of women, as well as raising awareness of the ongoing struggle for gender equality.
As a way to embrace and cultivate the lives and futures of women from all walks of life, we've created a list of inspiring quotes.
The theme of this year's women's day is "DigitALL: Innovation and technology for gender equality". It is aligned with the priority theme for the upcoming 67th Session of the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW-67), i.e. "Innovation and technological change, and education in the digital age for achieving gender equality and the empowerment of all women and girls".
#CSW67 is coming! Join us on 6-17 March for an opportunity to create the future we want. A future where: 💡 Women & girls are safe online 💡 Everyone has equal access to technology 💡 Women & girls are included in innovation and technology 💡 All #GlobalGoals can be achieved pic.twitter.com/FoqeaODUKm — UN Women (@UN_Women) February 25, 2023
We have created interesting and inspiring International Women's Day 2023 captions, quotes, and messages to share with incredible women around you:
- With love, a woman turns a house into a home. Happy Women's Day 2023!
- There is nothing stronger than a broken woman who has rebuilt herself
- Women are an inspiration to everyone. Cheers to all women on Women's Day 2023!
- There is no limit to what we, as women, can accomplish.
- Women don’t need to find a voice, they have a voice, and they need to feel empowered to use it, and people need to be encouraged to listen
- Ignore the glass ceiling and do your work. If you’re focusing on the glass ceiling, focusing on what you don’t have, focusing on the limitations, then you will be limited
- There are two powers in the world; one is the sword and the other is the pen. There is a third power stronger than both, that of women
- Females are the most beautiful, gorgeous creatures in the whole world. And I think that we are gorgeous no matter what size we are.” — Alicia Keys, musician
- You don’t have to play masculine to be a strong woman.” —Mary Elizabeth Winstead, actor
- I can never be safe; I always try and go against the grain. As soon as I accomplish one thing, I just set a higher goal. That’s how I’ve got to where I am." — Beyonce, musician
- Feminism isn't about making women stronger. Women are already strong, it's about changing the way the world perceives that strength
- They'll tell you're too loud, that you need to wait your turn and ask the right people for permission. Do it anyway
- A woman – a mother, sister, wife, grandmother, daughter or friend deserves nothing less than the best and utmost reverence and respect, which you give to god. She is a creator like god
- A wise woman wishes to be no one’s enemy; a wise woman refuses to be anyone’s victim
- What we women need to do, instead of worrying about what we don’t have is just love what we do have
- One of the most courageous things you can do is identify yourself, know who you are, what you believe in, and where you want to go
- A woman with a voice is by definition a strong woman. But the search to find that voice can be remarkably difficult
- Keep your face to the sunshine, and you cannot see the shadow
- Feminism isn’t about making women strong. Women are already strong. It’s about changing the way the world perceives that strength
- Always be a first-rate version of yourself, instead of a second-rate version of somebody else
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Students can quote ChatGPT in essays as long as they do not pass the work off as their own, international qualification body says
- Students taking the International Baccalaureate will be allowed to use ChatGPT, per The Times.
- The students can quote from the chatbot as long as they don't pass the work off as their own.
- Several schools and universities have already moved to ban the use of ChatGPT.
Students taking the International Baccalaureate (IB) will be allowed to use ChatGPT so long as they don't try to pass the work off as their own.
Matt Glanville, head of assessment principles and practice at the IB, a qualification body that's popular in Europe, told The Times of London that students would be allowed to quote AI-generated content. He compared the new technology with "familiar" challenges such as the risk of pupils buying essays from the internet.
Many people have expressed fears over ChatGPT's growing influence in the education sector. One writer who produces assignments for students previously told Insider: "I think ChatGPT has the potential to completely disrupt what I do," Austin said. Taylor added that demand had "dropped considerably."
Per The Times, Glanville said essay writing was being profoundly challenged by new technology and "there's no doubt that it will have much less prominence in the future." Institutions should try and embrace ChatGPT as an "extraordinary opportunity," he added.
Several schools and universities have already moved to ban the use of ChatGPT , citing concerns about plagiarism and misinformation . The New York City Department of Education blocked the chatbot from school networks and other US school districts have taken similar action.
The IB said it would work with schools to help students use AI ethically, per The Times. However, Glanville said trying to pass off AI-generated content as original work was an act of academic misconduct.
He told the Times: "The clear line between using ChatGPT and providing original work is exactly the same as using ideas taken from other people or the internet. As with any quote or material adapted from another source, it must be credited in the body of the text and appropriately referenced in the bibliography."
Representatives for the IB referred Insider back to The Times article when approached for comment.
Quoting and Paraphrasing
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College writing often involves integrating information from published sources into your own writing in order to add credibility and authority–this process is essential to research and the production of new knowledge.
However, when building on the work of others, you need to be careful not to plagiarize : “to steal and pass off (the ideas and words of another) as one’s own” or to “present as new and original an idea or product derived from an existing source.”1 The University of Wisconsin–Madison takes this act of “intellectual burglary” very seriously and considers it to be a breach of academic integrity . Penalties are severe.
These materials will help you avoid plagiarism by teaching you how to properly integrate information from published sources into your own writing.
1. Merriam Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary, 10th ed. (Springfield, MA: Merriam-Webster, 1993), 888.
How to avoid plagiarism
When using sources in your papers, you can avoid plagiarism by knowing what must be documented.
Specific words and phrases
If you use an author’s specific word or words, you must place those words within quotation marks and you must credit the source.
Information and Ideas
Even if you use your own words, if you obtained the information or ideas you are presenting from a source, you must document the source.
Information : If a piece of information isn’t common knowledge (see below), you need to provide a source.
Ideas : An author’s ideas may include not only points made and conclusions drawn, but, for instance, a specific method or theory, the arrangement of material, or a list of steps in a process or characteristics of a medical condition. If a source provided any of these, you need to acknowledge the source.
Common Knowledge?
You do not need to cite a source for material considered common knowledge:
General common knowledge is factual information considered to be in the public domain, such as birth and death dates of well-known figures, and generally accepted dates of military, political, literary, and other historical events. In general, factual information contained in multiple standard reference works can usually be considered to be in the public domain.
Field-specific common knowledge is “common” only within a particular field or specialty. It may include facts, theories, or methods that are familiar to readers within that discipline. For instance, you may not need to cite a reference to Piaget’s developmental stages in a paper for an education class or give a source for your description of a commonly used method in a biology report—but you must be sure that this information is so widely known within that field that it will be shared by your readers.
If in doubt, be cautious and cite the source. And in the case of both general and field-specific common knowledge, if you use the exact words of the reference source, you must use quotation marks and credit the source.
Paraphrasing vs. Quoting — Explanation
Should i paraphrase or quote.
In general, use direct quotations only if you have a good reason. Most of your paper should be in your own words. Also, it’s often conventional to quote more extensively from sources when you’re writing a humanities paper, and to summarize from sources when you’re writing in the social or natural sciences–but there are always exceptions.
In a literary analysis paper , for example, you”ll want to quote from the literary text rather than summarize, because part of your task in this kind of paper is to analyze the specific words and phrases an author uses.
In research papers , you should quote from a source
- to show that an authority supports your point
- to present a position or argument to critique or comment on
- to include especially moving or historically significant language
- to present a particularly well-stated passage whose meaning would be lost or changed if paraphrased or summarized
You should summarize or paraphrase when
- what you want from the source is the idea expressed, and not the specific language used to express it
- you can express in fewer words what the key point of a source is
How to paraphrase a source
General advice.
- When reading a passage, try first to understand it as a whole, rather than pausing to write down specific ideas or phrases.
- Be selective. Unless your assignment is to do a formal or “literal” paraphrase, you usually don?t need to paraphrase an entire passage; instead, choose and summarize the material that helps you make a point in your paper.
- Think of what “your own words” would be if you were telling someone who’s unfamiliar with your subject (your mother, your brother, a friend) what the original source said.
- Remember that you can use direct quotations of phrases from the original within your paraphrase, and that you don’t need to change or put quotation marks around shared language.
Methods of Paraphrasing
- Look away from the source then write. Read the text you want to paraphrase several times until you feel that you understand it and can use your own words to restate it to someone else. Then, look away from the original and rewrite the text in your own words.
- Take notes. Take abbreviated notes; set the notes aside; then paraphrase from the notes a day or so later, or when you draft.
If you find that you can’t do A or B, this may mean that you don’t understand the passage completely or that you need to use a more structured process until you have more experience in paraphrasing.
The method below is not only a way to create a paraphrase but also a way to understand a difficult text.
Paraphrasing difficult texts
Consider the following passage from Love and Toil (a book on motherhood in London from 1870 to 1918), in which the author, Ellen Ross, puts forth one of her major arguments:
- Love and Toil maintains that family survival was the mother’s main charge among the large majority of London?s population who were poor or working class; the emotional and intellectual nurture of her child or children and even their actual comfort were forced into the background. To mother was to work for and organize household subsistence. (p. 9)
Children of the poor at the turn of the century received little if any emotional or intellectual nurturing from their mothers, whose main charge was family survival. Working for and organizing household subsistence were what defined mothering. Next to this, even the children’s basic comfort was forced into the background (Ross, 1995).
According to Ross (1993), poor children at the turn of the century received little mothering in our sense of the term. Mothering was defined by economic status, and among the poor, a mother’s foremost responsibility was not to stimulate her children’s minds or foster their emotional growth but to provide food and shelter to meet the basic requirements for physical survival. Given the magnitude of this task, children were deprived of even the “actual comfort” (p. 9) we expect mothers to provide today.
You may need to go through this process several times to create a satisfactory paraphrase.
Successful vs. unsuccessful paraphrases
Paraphrasing is often defined as putting a passage from an author into “your own words.” But what are your own words? How different must your paraphrase be from the original?
The paragraphs below provide an example by showing a passage as it appears in the source, two paraphrases that follow the source too closely, and a legitimate paraphrase.
The student’s intention was to incorporate the material in the original passage into a section of a paper on the concept of “experts” that compared the functions of experts and nonexperts in several professions.
The Passage as It Appears in the Source
Critical care nurses function in a hierarchy of roles. In this open heart surgery unit, the nurse manager hires and fires the nursing personnel. The nurse manager does not directly care for patients but follows the progress of unusual or long-term patients. On each shift a nurse assumes the role of resource nurse. This person oversees the hour-by-hour functioning of the unit as a whole, such as considering expected admissions and discharges of patients, ascertaining that beds are available for patients in the operating room, and covering sick calls. Resource nurses also take a patient assignment. They are the most experienced of all the staff nurses. The nurse clinician has a separate job description and provides for quality of care by orienting new staff, developing unit policies, and providing direct support where needed, such as assisting in emergency situations. The clinical nurse specialist in this unit is mostly involved with formal teaching in orienting new staff. The nurse manager, nurse clinician, and clinical nurse specialist are the designated experts. They do not take patient assignments. The resource nurse is seen as both a caregiver and a resource to other caregivers. . . . Staff nurses have a hierarchy of seniority. . . . Staff nurses are assigned to patients to provide all their nursing care. (Chase, 1995, p. 156)
Word-for-Word Plagiarism
Critical care nurses have a hierarchy of roles. The nurse manager hires and fires nurses. S/he does not directly care for patients but does follow unusual or long-term cases. On each shift a resource nurse attends to the functioning of the unit as a whole, such as making sure beds are available in the operating room , and also has a patient assignment . The nurse clinician orients new staff, develops policies, and provides support where needed . The clinical nurse specialist also orients new staff, mostly by formal teaching. The nurse manager, nurse clinician, and clinical nurse specialist , as the designated experts, do not take patient assignments . The resource nurse is not only a caregiver but a resource to the other caregivers . Within the staff nurses there is also a hierarchy of seniority . Their job is to give assigned patients all their nursing care .
Why this is plagiarism
Notice that the writer has not only “borrowed” Chase’s material (the results of her research) with no acknowledgment, but has also largely maintained the author’s method of expression and sentence structure. The phrases in red are directly copied from the source or changed only slightly in form.
Even if the student-writer had acknowledged Chase as the source of the content, the language of the passage would be considered plagiarized because no quotation marks indicate the phrases that come directly from Chase. And if quotation marks did appear around all these phrases, this paragraph would be so cluttered that it would be unreadable.
A Patchwork Paraphrase
Chase (1995) describes how nurses in a critical care unit function in a hierarchy that places designated experts at the top and the least senior staff nurses at the bottom. The experts — the nurse manager, nurse clinician, and clinical nurse specialist — are not involved directly in patient care. The staff nurses, in contrast, are assigned to patients and provide all their nursing care . Within the staff nurses is a hierarchy of seniority in which the most senior can become resource nurses: they are assigned a patient but also serve as a resource to other caregivers. The experts have administrative and teaching tasks such as selecting and orienting new staff, developing unit policies , and giving hands-on support where needed.
This paraphrase is a patchwork composed of pieces in the original author’s language (in red) and pieces in the student-writer’s words, all rearranged into a new pattern, but with none of the borrowed pieces in quotation marks. Thus, even though the writer acknowledges the source of the material, the underlined phrases are falsely presented as the student’s own.
A Legitimate Paraphrase
In her study of the roles of nurses in a critical care unit, Chase (1995) also found a hierarchy that distinguished the roles of experts and others. Just as the educational experts described above do not directly teach students, the experts in this unit do not directly attend to patients. That is the role of the staff nurses, who, like teachers, have their own “hierarchy of seniority” (p. 156). The roles of the experts include employing unit nurses and overseeing the care of special patients (nurse manager), teaching and otherwise integrating new personnel into the unit (clinical nurse specialist and nurse clinician), and policy-making (nurse clinician). In an intermediate position in the hierarchy is the resource nurse, a staff nurse with more experience than the others, who assumes direct care of patients as the other staff nurses do, but also takes on tasks to ensure the smooth operation of the entire facility.
Why this is a good paraphrase
The writer has documented Chase’s material and specific language (by direct reference to the author and by quotation marks around language taken directly from the source). Notice too that the writer has modified Chase’s language and structure and has added material to fit the new context and purpose — to present the distinctive functions of experts and nonexperts in several professions.
Shared Language
Perhaps you’ve noticed that a number of phrases from the original passage appear in the legitimate paraphrase: critical care, staff nurses, nurse manager, clinical nurse specialist, nurse clinician, resource nurse.
If all these phrases were in red, the paraphrase would look much like the “patchwork” example. The difference is that the phrases in the legitimate paraphrase are all precise, economical, and conventional designations that are part of the shared language within the nursing discipline (in the too-close paraphrases, they’re red only when used within a longer borrowed phrase).
In every discipline and in certain genres (such as the empirical research report), some phrases are so specialized or conventional that you can’t paraphrase them except by wordy and awkward circumlocutions that would be less familiar (and thus less readable) to the audience.
When you repeat such phrases, you’re not stealing the unique phrasing of an individual writer but using a common vocabulary shared by a community of scholars.
Some Examples of Shared Language You Don’t Need to Put in Quotation Marks
- Conventional designations: e.g., physician’s assistant, chronic low-back pain
- Preferred bias-free language: e.g., persons with disabilities
- Technical terms and phrases of a discipline or genre : e.g., reduplication, cognitive domain, material culture, sexual harassment
Chase, S. K. (1995). The social context of critical care clinical judgment. Heart and Lung, 24, 154-162.
How to Quote a Source
Introducing a quotation.
One of your jobs as a writer is to guide your reader through your text. Don’t simply drop quotations into your paper and leave it to the reader to make connections.
Integrating a quotation into your text usually involves two elements:
- A signal that a quotation is coming–generally the author’s name and/or a reference to the work
- An assertion that indicates the relationship of the quotation to your text
Often both the signal and the assertion appear in a single introductory statement, as in the example below. Notice how a transitional phrase also serves to connect the quotation smoothly to the introductory statement.
Ross (1993), in her study of poor and working-class mothers in London from 1870-1918 [signal], makes it clear that economic status to a large extent determined the meaning of motherhood [assertion]. Among this population [connection], “To mother was to work for and organize household subsistence” (p. 9).
The signal can also come after the assertion, again with a connecting word or phrase:
Illness was rarely a routine matter in the nineteenth century [assertion]. As [connection] Ross observes [signal], “Maternal thinking about children’s health revolved around the possibility of a child’s maiming or death” (p. 166).
Formatting Quotations
Short direct prose.
Incorporate short direct prose quotations into the text of your paper and enclose them in double quotation marks:
According to Jonathan Clarke, “Professional diplomats often say that trying to think diplomatically about foreign policy is a waste of time.”
Longer prose quotations
Begin longer quotations (for instance, in the APA system, 40 words or more) on a new line and indent the entire quotation (i.e., put in block form), with no quotation marks at beginning or end, as in the quoted passage from our Successful vs. Unsucessful Paraphrases page.
Rules about the minimum length of block quotations, how many spaces to indent, and whether to single- or double-space extended quotations vary with different documentation systems; check the guidelines for the system you’re using.
Quotation of Up to 3 Lines of Poetry
Quotations of up to 3 lines of poetry should be integrated into your sentence. For example:
In Julius Caesar, Antony begins his famous speech with “Friends, Romans, Countrymen, lend me your ears; / I come to bury Caesar, not to praise him” (III.ii.75-76).
Notice that a slash (/) with a space on either side is used to separate lines.
Quotation of More than 3 Lines of Poetry
More than 3 lines of poetry should be indented. As with any extended (indented) quotation, do not use quotation marks unless you need to indicate a quotation within your quotation.
Punctuating with Quotation Marks
Parenthetical citations.
With short quotations, place citations outside of closing quotation marks, followed by sentence punctuation (period, question mark, comma, semi-colon, colon):
Menand (2002) characterizes language as “a social weapon” (p. 115).
With block quotations, check the guidelines for the documentation system you are using.
Commas and periods
Place inside closing quotation marks when no parenthetical citation follows:
Hertzberg (2002) notes that “treating the Constitution as imperfect is not new,” but because of Dahl’s credentials, his “apostasy merits attention” (p. 85).
Semicolons and colons
Place outside of closing quotation marks (or after a parenthetical citation).
Question marks and exclamation points
Place inside closing quotation marks if the quotation is a question/exclamation:
Menand (2001) acknowledges that H. W. Fowler’s Modern English Usage is “a classic of the language,” but he asks, “Is it a dead classic?” (p. 114).
[Note that a period still follows the closing parenthesis.]
Place outside of closing quotation marks if the entire sentence containing the quotation is a question or exclamation:
How many students actually read the guide to find out what is meant by “academic misconduct”?
Quotation within a quotation
Use single quotation marks for the embedded quotation:
According to Hertzberg (2002), Dahl gives the U. S. Constitution “bad marks in ‘democratic fairness’ and ‘encouraging consensus'” (p. 90).
[The phrases “democratic fairness” and “encouraging consensus” are already in quotation marks in Dahl’s sentence.]
Indicating Changes in Quotations
Quoting only a portion of the whole.
Use ellipsis points (. . .) to indicate an omission within a quotation–but not at the beginning or end unless it’s not obvious that you’re quoting only a portion of the whole.
Adding Clarification, Comment, or Correction
Within quotations, use square brackets [ ] (not parentheses) to add your own clarification, comment, or correction.
Use [sic] (meaning “so” or “thus”) to indicate that a mistake is in the source you’re quoting and is not your own.
Additional information
Information on summarizing and paraphrasing sources.
American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (4th ed.). (2000). Retrieved January 7, 2002, from http://www.bartleby.com/61/ Bazerman, C. (1995). The informed writer: Using sources in the disciplines (5th ed). Boston: Houghton Mifflin. Leki, I. (1995). Academic writing: Exploring processes and strategies (2nd ed.) New York: St. Martin?s Press, pp. 185-211.
Leki describes the basic method presented in C, pp. 4-5.
Spatt, B. (1999). Writing from sources (5th ed.) New York: St. Martin?s Press, pp. 98-119; 364-371.
Information about specific documentation systems
The Writing Center has handouts explaining how to use many of the standard documentation systems. You may look at our general Web page on Documentation Systems, or you may check out any of the following specific Web pages.
If you’re not sure which documentation system to use, ask the course instructor who assigned your paper.
- American Psychological Assoicaion (APA)
- Modern Language Association (MLA)
- Chicago/Turabian (A Footnote or Endnote System)
- American Political Science Association (APSA)
- Council of Science Editors (CBE)
- Numbered References
You may also consult the following guides:
- American Medical Association, Manual for Authors and Editors
- Council of Science Editors, CBE style Manual
- The Chicago Manual of Style
- MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers
- Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association
Academic and Professional Writing
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Here's my 5 essential tips on how to write an essay about a quote: 1. Select your Quote Wisely (If you get to choose the Quote!) Okay, so sometimes you're asked to choose a quote and write an essay about it. Other times your teacher gives you the quote and you have to write about the quote they choose.
The quoted text is enclosed in quotation marks or formatted as a block quote The original author is correctly cited The text is identical to the original The exact format of a quote depends on its length and on which citation style you are using.
Using a direct quote in your essay is a great way to support your ideas with concrete evidence, which you need to support your thesis. To select a good quote, look for a passage that supports your argument and is open to analysis. Then, incorporate that quote into your essay, and make sure you properly cite it based on the style guide you're using.
1. Write the quote here, with a way to introduce it: 2. Write a paraphrase here (remember to keep the same meaning): 3. Write your analysis here (look for the subtle, key parts of the quote): Type; Importance; 4. Write your evaluation here (prove why the quote is important in relation to your thesis): 5. Repeat for the rest of your text-based ...
In American English, use double quotes for the outside quote and single quotes for the inside quote. In British English, do the opposite. Let's say you need to quote a book for an essay, and the passage you have in mind contains a quote from some other source. Imagine the original passage from the book looks like this: I remember our father ...
A quote can be an effective and powerful literary tool in an essay, but it needs to be done well. To use quotes in an essay, you need to make sure your quotes are short, backed up with explanations, and used rarely. The best essays use a maximum of 2 quotes for every 1500 words. Rules for using quotes in essays: Avoid Long Quotes.
Quote: Short quotes are less than four lines and can be integrated into the actual body of your essay. Quotes over four lines typically should be formatted as block quotes (based on the citation style you are using).
A direct quote is an exact copy of words from a source. A direct quote can include anything from one word to several sentences from a source. Direct quotes are important for supporting and emphasizing specific points in an essay. Use direct quotes only a few times throughout an essay for emphasis, analysis, and evidence.
This quote is from The Magus, by John Fowles, and it appears in the book first in Greek and then in translation. I have tried, unsuccessfully, to trace the origin of the quote, but I have come to ...
Fahrenheit 451 is a future, dystopian style novel written by Ray Bradbury in the 1950's. Bradbury used his present situation to predict what would happen in the future if the world were to continue in this style. In the novel, the paper book is illegal and banned. Firemen have the authorization of the government to burn these books and the ...
Using direct citations in your academic paper or extended essays topics is the best way of substantiating your thoughts with solid proof and enhancing the credibility of your arguments. In addition to that, quotes are also very useful for proving the subject or the thesis of your essay.
Step 1: Introduce the quote. Every time you quote a source, it's essential to show the reader exactly what purpose the quote serves. A block quote must be introduced in your own words to show how it fits into your argument or analysis. If the text preceding the block quote is a complete sentence, use a colon to introduce the quote.
A quote in an essay is an excellent tool if used correctly. It supports your thesis and makes your whole text more versatile. Besides, it works in your favor if you introduce interesting and original citations - it shows your ability to work with sources and understand them deeply. At the same time, you need to know how to put a quote in an essay.
Quotations should add impact to the essay and not steal the show. If your quotation has more punch than your essay, then something is seriously wrong. Your essay should be able to stand on its own legs; the quotation should merely make this stand stronger. How Many Quotations Should You Use in Your Essay?
An excellent writer of science fiction, Ursula LeGuin, has written that the creative adult is a child who has survived. In 1989 "Discovering the Writer Within: 40 Days to More Imaginative Writing" by Bruce Ballenger and Barry Lane attributed the quotation under exploration to Le Guin: [6] When fantasy writer Ursula Le Guin says, "An adult ...
Quotations are an instrument to prove your point of view is correct. An essay aiming for 85+ score points contains 2-4 quotes. Each citation supports the thesis statement and strengthens your argument. Quotations are mostly used in Humanities. Social Sciences rely more on paraphrasing, data analysis and statistics.
Quotes tagged as "essay" Showing 1-30 of 302. "It is easy in the world to live after the world's opinion; it is easy in solitude to live after our own; but the great man is he who in the midst of the crowd keeps with perfect sweetness the independence of solitude.". ― Ralph Waldo Emerson, The Complete Prose Works Of Ralph Waldo Emerson.
When to Use Direct Quotes . When you're writing, use direct quotes sparingly, because the essay or article is supposed to be your original work. Use them for emphasis when the reader needs to see the exact words for analysis and evidence or when the exact quote encapsulates the topic at hand more succinctly or better than you could.
Quoting is an important technique used to include information from outside sources in academic writing. When using quotations, it is important that you also cite the original reference that you have taken the quotation from, as your citations provide your reader with a map of the research that you have done.
Short - In accordance with this style, a short quote is a phrase that is less than four printed lines of text (novel, a story or etc.) or three lines of a poem. If your phrase meets these requirements regarding length, then you will just need to mark it with double quotes, indicate the author's last name, and specify the page number.
For quotations that are more than four lines of prose or three lines of verse, place quotations in a free-standing block of text and omit quotation marks. Start the quotation on a new line, with the entire quote indented 1/2 inch from the left margin while maintaining double-spacing. Your parenthetical citation should come after the closing ...
The focus of your essay should be on your understanding of the topic. If you include too much quotation in your essay, you will crowd out your own ideas. Consider quoting a passage from one of your sources if any of the following conditions holds: The language of the passage is particularly elegant or powerful or memorable.
Quoting, paraphrasing, and summarizing are all different ways of including evidence and the ideas of others into your assignments. Using evidence from credible sources to support your thesis is an important part of academic writing. Citing the source of any quote, paraphrase, or summary is an important step to avoid plagiarism.
How to quote in an essay? To introduce a quote in an essay, don't forget to include author's last name and page number (MLA) or author, date, and page number (APA) in your citation. Shown below are some possible ways to introduce quotations. The examples use MLA format. 1. Use a full sentence followed by a colon to introduce a quotation. Examples:
A short phrase or a passage that is extracted from the written text or speech of other writers or speakers is identified as a Quote. It is one of the valuable tools that are used predominantly when writing essays, articles, and blog posts. The quotations can also be used when delivering a speech.
We have created interesting and inspiring International Women's Day 2023 captions, quotes, and messages to share with incredible women around you: With love, a woman turns a house into a home. Happy Women's Day 2023! There is nothing stronger than a broken woman who has rebuilt herself ; Women are an inspiration to everyone.
Students taking the International Baccalaureate will be allowed to use ChatGPT, per The Times. The students can quote from the chatbot as long as they don't pass the work off as their own. Several ...
Quoting and Paraphrasing. College writing often involves integrating information from published sources into your own writing in order to add credibility and authority-this process is essential to research and the production of new knowledge. However, when building on the work of others, you need to be careful not to plagiarize: "to steal ...