In This Chapter
As we saw in an earlier chapter, a main feature of academic writing is that it is well sourced. This means that academic writing depends upon the use of outside research and sources for evidence and support.
Academic writers use authoritative, relevant, and appropriate sources to support the arguments they make. Academic writing requires that a writer understands a topic thoroughly before writing. These sources are always responsibly and clearly cited in the text. Academic writing relies on citation styles like MLA or APA to properly give credit to the resources it uses.
Academic writers at the college level are expected to understand the basics of responsible source use. You should already know that any time you use the words of another writer, you are required to put those words into quotation marks and provide a citation.
Using the words of another writer without proper acknowledgment is plagiarism, a form of academic dishonesty that has serious repercussions.
You may not know, however, that it isn’t simply exact wording that must be cited. If you use ideas from a source in your own writing, you must also give credit to the writer and source where those ideas were found
One of the primary learning objectives for EGL 1010 is an ability to cite sources effectively and responsibly. Your professors in every college course will expect that you are able to give clear indications of where your information comes from. Providing citations not only gives credit to your sources, though. Providing clear and effective citations also serves to give you credit for the hard work of reading, analyzing, and learning that went into your essay.
This chapter will introduce you to the basic features of responsibly and effectively integrating sources into your writing.
Citation Basics
Every time you use the words or the ideas from a source, you must provide a complete and correct citation. Citation styles vary with different courses and disciplines. For this class, we will be using MLA Citation Style. But all citation styles follow the same basic rules and conventions.
Every source that you use must be cited.
Every citation consists of two parts:
- In the Text
- Name of the author
- Parenthetical citation with a page number, if relevant
- Bibliographic information
- Works Cited Page
To have a complete citation, you must provide a clear introduction or in-text reference to the source. The in-text citation usually will include the author’s name.
In addition to referring to the source clearly in the text, you must also provide the bibliographic information at the end of the document. For MLA style, you will list the bibliographic information in a Works Cited page.
Only sources cited within the text itself should appear in the Works Cited page.
All sources listed in the Works Cited page must be used and clearly cited in the body of the document.
You cannot have one without the other. The text and the bibliography must match.
Summary, Quotation, Paraphrase
There are three ways to integrate information from outside sources into your own writing: Summary, Quotation, and Paraphrase.
Summary
Summaries are condensed overviews of texts. Summaries can vary in length, depending on the writer’s need, but in general summaries must contain complete, accurate, and descriptive overviews of all main ideas and arguments in a source.
See the chapter on Summary for more complete information.
Quotation
Quotations are used when the wording of a source is so specific or effective that any change made would negatively affect the source’s use.
Quotations must be signaled with the use of quotation marks. Place quotation marks (” “) around the quoted material. Do not make any changes to the wording or punctuation of the source text.
Paraphrase
Paraphrases are used when the information from a source is essential but the wording is either unremarkable or could interfere with your reader’s understanding of the source. Paraphrases can be helpful when a writer needs to condense information in a long, overly-wordy passage, when a writer wants to use information from a source that is too technical or specific for their own audience, or when data or other information needs to be translated for a more general readership.
Paraphrase is an advanced technique that college-level writers need to learn. Paraphrases allow a writer to have more agency in their writing, because they can use their own unique voice and create a more unified and cohesive text.
See the later chapter on Paraphrases for more complete information and examples
Introducing the Source
At bare minimum, any source that you use in your writing must include a citation. The citation must include the author’s name and the page number where the quote or information was found.
If you are working with an electronic source that doesn’t have numbered pages, you will not include a page number. Do not create page numbers or paragraph numbers if the source does not include them.
Signal Phrase
The best way to integrate any outside information into your own writing is by using a signal phrase. A signal phrase should include identifying information from the source and an action verb that accurately describes the source.
The goal of creating a signal phrase is to provide information and context for the quote, paraphrase, or summary that you wish to include in your text. Writers should choose the most important and relevant information when crafting their signal phrases.
Think about what information would be most persuasive for your readers:
- Is the author well known?
- Is the publication one that the average reader would know the name or reputation of?
- Does the article title provide any information? (many titles are short summaries of the article’s main point)
- Is it necessary to inform your reader about when the text was published?
Remember, academic writing is argumentative writing and the sources you use to support your claims and reasons are a large part of that argument. Effective writers know how to introduce a source to build its authority, relevance, and appropriateness for the reader.
Author’s Name
The first time you introduce a source, you must use the author’s first and last name. Do not use any titles (Mr., Mrs., Ms., etc.).
When you mention the same source after the initial introduction, use only the author’s last name. Do not use any titles (Mr., Mrs., Ms., etc.).
Repetition of an author’s name throughout the paragraph or essay can help writers achieve a sense of unity. The repetition of an author’s name emphasizes a continuation and can be used to transition between ideas within a paragraph or an essay.
Identifying the Source
Part of your signal phrase might include a description of the source. Identifying what genre or type of text the source is can help your readers understand more about the source’s authority, relevance, and appropriateness.
Examples of Source Descriptions:
In his New York Times editorial, Stanley Fish makes his opinion about college composition clear.
The essay, “The Five Paragraph Essay Transmits Knowledge,” addresses the problem with teaching students that essays are one-size-fits-all.
One error that students routinely make is making mistakes in identifying the source type. Be aware that not everything is a “story.” You may use a variety of source types in a single piece of writing, and providing a correct label for the source is essential to your reader being able to understand its appropriateness.
Common Source Types:
- Articles: Newspaper article, Magazine article, Academic Journal article, Peer-reviewed article
- Editorials: opinion pieces, sometimes unsigned and written collectively by the editorial staff
- Essay: Academic essay, Creative non-fiction essay
- Book: Monograph (single author), Edited edition (multiple authors)
- Film
- Website
- Podcast
There are some subtle differences between articles and essays. Articles tend to be usually objective and neutral. They are always intended for publication, whether in a newspaper, magazine, or journal. Essays, on the other hand, tend to be more personal in nature. They can still take on an academic tone, like the essays in Bad Ideas about Writing, but they usually represent a personal take on the topic.
Parenthetical Citation
In addition to introducing the source within the text of your essay, MLA Citation uses parenthetical citations. Parenthetical citations in MLA Style include the author’s last name and the page number where the information was found within parentheses at the end of the paraphrase or quote.
Because summaries should include an overview of the entire source, they do not require parenthetical citations.
Rules for Parenthetical Citations:
- If the author is not named in the signal phrase, list the author and page number in parentheses at the end of the paraphrase or quote.
- If the author is named in the signal phrase, list only the page number in parentheses at the end of the paraphrase or quote.
- If there is no named author, introduce the title of the source in the signal phrase and list only the page number in parentheses at the end of the paraphrase or quote.
- If the source is electronic and has no marked page numbers, do not assign page numbers or paragraph numbers. Introduce the source using title or publication information and include the author’s name in parentheses at the end of the paraphrase or quote.
The above rules are not the only ways to correctly cite a source. For complete citation information, refer to the Purdue OWL website.
In general, it is essential that you signal to your reader where your source information begins and ends. Quotation marks used around quoted portion of the text create a visual indication of where outside source material has been inserted.
Paraphrases, however, create a different situation. Because a paraphrase consists of ideas from a source but written in your own words, a signal phrase and parenthetical citations are essential for showing the beginning and end of the source material.
Below are three examples of how parenthetical citations could appear to cite the same source. Notice how the information in the parentheses changes depending on whether the author is named in the signal phrase. The third example is a paraphrase.
Two-Part Citation
To have a complete citation, two things are required:
- Specific citation within the text
- Bibliographic citation at the end of the document
If you have one without the other, you do not have a complete citation.
The two parts of any citation must work together. They form a breadcrumb trail of sorts, linking the information in the text to the information that would allow your readers to find the source for themselves.
It is essential to mention the author’s name in the text, because your Works Cited page is alphabetized by author last name. A reader who is interested in learning more–or a professor who is interested in checking the accuracy of your work–will locate the source through the bibliography.
Remember: citation is important because it gives credit to the original author(s) of a source. But citation is equally important because it is the best way for a writer to build their authority.
As a FYC student, you likely are not yet an expert in any field. By using consistent and clear citations, you can demonstrate the expertise you have earned through your research and reading.