Quoting, Paraphrasing, and Summarizing

Contributors: Dana Lynn Driscoll, Allen Brizee

Last Edited: 2010-06-16 01:46:17
This handout is intended to help you become more comfortable with the uses of and distinctions among quotations,
paraphrases, and summaries. This handout compares and contrasts the three terms, gives some pointers, and includes
a short excerpt that you can use to practice these skills.

What are the differences among quoting, paraphrasing, and summarizing?

These three ways of incorporating other writers' work into your own writing differ according to the
closeness of your writing to the source writing.

Quotations must be identical to the original, using a narrow segment of the source. They must
match the source document word for word and must be attributed to the original author.

Paraphrasing involves putting a passage from source material into your own words. A paraphrase
must also be attributed to the original source. Paraphrased material is usually shorter than the
original passage, taking a somewhat broader segment of the source and condensing it slightly.

Summarizing involves putting the main idea(s) into your own words, including only the main
point(s). Once again, it is necessary to attribute summarized ideas to the original source.
Summaries are significantly shorter than the original and take a broad overview of the source
material.

Why use quotations, paraphrases, and summaries?

Quotations, paraphrases, and summaries serve many purposes. You might use them to . . .

Provide support for claims or add credibility to your writing

Refer to work that leads up to the work you are now doing
Give examples of several points of view on a subject
Call attention to a position that you wish to agree or disagree with
Highlight a particularly striking phrase, sentence, or passage by quoting the original
Distance yourself from the original by quoting it in order to cue readers that the words are
not your own
Expand the breadth or depth of your writing

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Writers frequently intertwine summaries, paraphrases, and quotations. As part of a summary of an
article, a chapter, or a book, a writer might include paraphrases of various key points blended with
quotations of striking or suggestive phrases as in the following example:

In his famous and influential work On the Interpretation of Dreams, Sigmund Freud argues that
dreams are the "royal road to the unconscious" (page #), expressing in coded imagery the
dreamer's unfulfilled wishes through a process known as the "dream work" (page #). According to
Freud, actual but unacceptable desires are censored internally and subjected to coding through
layers of condensation and displacement before emerging in a kind of rebus puzzle in the dream
itself (page #s).

How to use quotations, paraphrases, and summaries

Practice summarizing the following essay, using paraphrases and quotations as you go. It might be
helpful to follow these steps:

Read the entire text, noting the key points and main ideas.

Summarize in your own words what the single main idea of the essay is.

Paraphrase important supporting points that come up in the essay.

Consider any words, phrases, or brief passages that you believe should be quoted directly.

There are several ways to integrate quotations into your text. Often, a short quotation works well
when integrated into a sentence. Longer quotations can stand alone. Remember that quoting
should be done only sparingly; be sure that you have a good reason to include a direct quotation
when you decide to do so. You'll find guidelines for citing sources and punctuating citations at our
documentation guide pages.

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 Paraphrase: Write It in Your Own Words
Contributors: Dana Lynn Driscoll, Allen Brizee
Last Edited: 2010-06-16 01:46:25
Paraphrasing is one way to use a text in your own writing without directly quoting source material.
Anytime you are taking information from a source that is not your own, you need to specify where
you got that information.

A paraphrase is

Your own rendition of essential information and ideas expressed by someone else, presented
in a new form.

One legitimate way (when accompanied by accurate documentation) to borrow from a

source.

A more detailed restatement than a summary, which focuses concisely on a single main idea.

Paraphrasing is a valuable skill because...

It is better than quoting information from an undistinguished passage.

It helps you control the temptation to quote too much.
The mental process required for successful paraphrasing helps you to grasp the full meaning
of the original.

6 Steps to Effective Paraphrasing

Reread the original passage until you understand its full meaning.
Set the original aside, and write your paraphrase on a note card.
Jot down a few words below your paraphrase to remind you later how you envision using
this material. At the top of the note card, write a key word or phrase to indicate the subject of
your paraphrase.
Check your rendition with the original to make sure that your version accurately expresses
all the essential information in a new form.
Use quotation marks to identify any unique term or phraseology you have borrowed exactly
from the source.

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 Record the source (including the page) on your note card so that you can credit it easily if
you decide to incorporate the material into your paper.

Some examples to compare

The original passage:

Students frequently overuse direct quotation in taking notes, and as a result they overuse
quotations in the final [research] paper. Probably only about 10% of your final manuscript should
appear as directly quoted matter. Therefore, you should strive to limit the amount of exact
transcribing of source materials while taking notes. Lester, James D. Writing Research Papers. 2nd
ed. (1976): 46-47.

A legitimate paraphrase:

In research papers students often quote excessively, failing to keep quoted material down to a
desirable level. Since the problem usually originates during note taking, it is essential to minimize
the material recorded verbatim (Lester 46-47).

An acceptable summary:

Students should take just a few notes in direct quotation from sources to help minimize the amount
of quoted material in a research paper (Lester 46-47).

A plagiarized version:

Students often use too many direct quotations when they take notes, resulting in too many of them
in the final research paper. In fact, probably only about 10% of the final copy should consist of
directly quoted material. So it is important to limit the amount of source material copied while
taking notes.

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 Paraphrasing Exercise

Contributors: Purdue OWL, Last Edited: 2010-04-21 07:48:34

Directions: On a separate piece of paper, write a paraphrase of each of the following passages. Try
not to look back at the original passage.

1. "The Antarctic is the vast source of cold on our planet, just as the sun is the source of our heat,
and it exerts tremendous control on our climate," [Jacques] Cousteau told the camera. "The cold
ocean water around Antarctica flows north to mix with warmer water from the tropics, and its
upwellings help to cool both the surface water and our atmosphere. Yet the fragility of this
regulating system is now threatened by human activity." From "Captain Cousteau," Audubon (May
1990):17.

2. The twenties were the years when drinking was against the law, and the law was a bad joke
because everyone knew of a local bar where liquor could be had. They were the years when
organized crime ruled the cities, and the police seemed powerless to do anything against it.
Classical music was forgotten while jazz spread throughout the land, and men like Bix
Beiderbecke, Louis Armstrong, and Count Basie became the heroes of the young. The flapper was
born in the twenties, and with her bobbed hair and short skirts, she symbolized, perhaps more
than anyone or anything else, America's break with the past. From Kathleen Yancey, English 102
Supplemental Guide (1989): 25.

3. Of the more than 1000 bicycling deaths each year, three-fourths are caused by head injuries.
Half of those killed are school-age children. One study concluded that wearing a bike helmet can
reduce the risk of head injury by 85 percent. In an accident, a bike helmet absorbs the shock and
cushions the head. From "Bike Helmets: Unused Lifesavers," Consumer Reports (May 1990): 348.

4. Matisse is the best painter ever at putting the viewer at the scene. He's the most realistic of all
modern artists, if you admit the feel of the breeze as necessary to a landscape and the smell of
oranges as essential to a still life. "The Casbah Gate" depicts the well-known gateway Bab el Aassa,
which pierces the southern wall of the city near the sultan's palace. With scrubby coats of ivory,
aqua, blue, and rose delicately fenced by the liveliest gray outline in art history, Matisse gets the
essence of a Tangier afternoon, including the subtle presence of the bowaab, the sentry who sits
and surveys those who pass through the gate. From Peter Plagens, "Bright Lights." Newsweek (26
March 1990): 50.

5. While the Sears Tower is arguably the greatest achievement in skyscraper engineering so far, it's
unlikely that architects and engineers have abandoned the quest for the world's tallest building.
The question is: Just how high can a building go? Structural engineer William LeMessurier has
designed a skyscraper nearly one-half mile high, twice as tall as the Sears Tower. And architect
Robert Sobel claims that existing technology could produce a 500-story building. From Ron
Bachman, "Reaching for the Sky." Dial (May 1990): 15.

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