PARENTHETICAL DOCUMENTATION NOTES

WHY IS PARENTHETICAL DOCUMENTATION IMPORTANT? Improve credibility of you, the author. Selective quotes help to prove points and support arguments Avoid charges of plagiarism

WHEN TO DOCUMENT Document any original idea, theory, or opinion other than your own Document unusual, little known, or questionable facts Document statistics, survey information, research studies, or scientific experiments Don’t document common knowledge or well- known facts

WHY DO YOU DOCUMENT? To indicate to readers exactly what you took and exactly where you found the information for each source that you quote In-text citations take your reader to a Works Cited page for complete publication information The Works Cited page allows your reader to find your source material easily

HOW TO DOCUMENT Summarize—putting an author’s main points in your own words, still giving the original author credit for his/her ideas. Usually 1/3 the length of the original Example: According to Churchill, the British people would never give up fighting against the Nazis—no matter the cost(6).

Paraphrase: Putting an author’s original ideas in your own words, but still acknowledging the original author’s ideas. Example: According to John Mill, there was an agreement between 90% of educators that censorship is a problem (15).

Direct Quotation– Using the exact words of an author in your essay. Example: According to John Mill, “Ninety percent of educators agree that censorship is wrong” (15).

CITATION REQUIREMENTS 4 Steps to Every Citation: 1.Introduce the quote 2.Quote, summarize, or paraphrase the material 3.Use parentheses at the end of the sentence with the author’s name and page number EX: (Mill 13) 4.Explain how the evidence supports your claim

RULES FOR IN-TEXT CITATIONS Use quotes where a natural pause will occur in the sentence NEVER USE A QUOTE AS A SENTENCE BY ITSELF Final punctuation occurs after the parentheses If you introduce the quote using the author’s name, then the citation should only include the page number

Direct quotes can only be 10 words or less and must be incorporated into a sentence with your own words Use [ ] to indicate words you added to the quote to make ideas flow more smoothly or to clarify something in your sentence. EX: “It [static] can ruin the quality of your cellular communication” (Rodman 95).

GUIDELINES FOR USING QUOTES When quoting a whole sentence, introduce it with your own words. EX: As John Knowles sums it up: “Failing to research the product can cause you to lose thousands of dollars annually” (4).

Integrate quotes within a sentence of your own words EX: After analyzing options, “choose those which provide the most value for the money” (Johnson 32).

Quote just one word or a phrase within a sentence of your own EX: Digital television is no passing fancy; it is the “wave of the future” (Mac 23).

VERBS TO INTRODUCE BORROWED MATERIAL Acknowledges Adds Admits Agrees Argues Asserts Believes Claims Comments Compares Confirms Contends Declares Denies Disputes Emphasizes Endorses Grants Illustrates Implies Insists Notes Observes Points out Reasons Refutes Rejects Reports Responds Suggests Thinks Writes

UNUSUAL CASES 1.No author given—use the first key word or two of the title and page number EX: (“Winning” 8). 2.Two or Three Authors--EX: (Dyer and Foresman 34). (Dwight, Jones, and Nobel 18). 3.Four or more authors--EX: (Manely et al 67)

UNUSUAL CASES CONT… 4.Author is a corporation—EX: (Public Agenda Foundation 8). 5.Quoting someone which was quoted in a source--EX: Samuel Johnson admitted that “Edmund Burke was an extraordinary man” (qtd. In Pearson 97).

UNUSUAL CASES CONT… 6. Source with multiple volumes—volume number goes after the author’s name EX: (Boswell 2:59). 7.Citing two sources who both contributed to ideas—EX: (Johnson 32; Allen 5). 8.Two Sources by the same author—Include key word from title after author EX: (Graham, “Listening” 23).