Incorporating Source Material in MLA Format

Transcription

1 James 1 Incorporating Source Material in MLA Format When writing critical analytic essays or research papers, students are required to incorporate what is frequently called source material, the ideas or words found in another person s intellectual creation--whether a work of non-fiction (such as an essay, magazine or newspaper article, or book) or a work of fiction (such as a poem, short story, novel, or play). Even ideas and words found in commonly experienced media such as television shows, movies, or music CDs are also source material when used in a student s critical analysis essay or research paper. There are three different ways a student might include or incorporate source material: o Summary: a brief statement capturing the essence of the source s ideas, using the student s own words; appropriate when detailed information isn t needed o Paraphrase: a restatement of the source s ideas, strictly using the student s own words, and of approximately the same length as the original source version; appropriate when the language or diction level in the original differs significantly from the student s writing, which could affect clarity of the paper o Direct Quotation: a presentation of the source s words exactly as they appear in the original version being cited * All three methods of incorporation require an in-text Modern Language Association (MLA) parenthetical citation to give proper credit to the original source to avoid plagiarism. Summaries are very useful when a relatively large amount of source material is being presented not for detail, but only its broad ideas. [Note: The example summary below is from the following hypothetical source, as it would appear on an accompanying MLA Works Cited page: Doe, Jane E. Westside Road Expansion Debated. Houston Chronicle 1 Oct. 2011: A3. Print.] Here is the original material from the hypothetical news article source, followed by a summary and then a paraphrase:

2 James 2 Westside Road Expansion Debated by Jane Doe A proposed road expansion on the city s west side came under scrutiny in Monday s city council meeting. The road proposal would connect two major westside roads, Eldridge and Highway 6, to ease east-west traffic on nearby Clay Rd. The city would purchase the countyowned land for $3 million dollars. Construction of the new road would take 2 years and cost $5 million dollars, with the land purchase and road construction secured by bonds approved in the city s last election. In a statement released last Thursday, Mayor John Smith said, The city council has been briefed on the improvements proposed for the city s westside roadways and will vote on them next week. They are aware of the necessity for these changes for the long-term growth of the city of Houston. The mayor s press release maintained that, while his current proposal for new westside roads is focused primarily on certain well-developed neighborhoods, his long-term plan also encompasses some outlying, unincorporated areas not currently within the city limits, thus requiring Houston s annexation of those communities and incurring additional expenses the city s current budget doesn t cover. Some members of the city council have previously expressed concern about entering into major new projects in a time of budget cuts and layoffs. Debate over the proposed road focused on residents in the area, who feared the new road would increase traffic as well as affect property values in their neighborhoods. Councilwoman Barbara White, who represents the area, also voiced her constituents worries that children attending a local middle school would be endangered by the traffic. Mayor Smith defended the proposed road construction, saying, Houston s population has increased dramatically on the city s west side in the last five years, and that necessitates new roads, both in the city and in the county. The council voted to delay a final decision on the proposal until next week. A summary of the entire article above is shown in the following sentence: The Houston City Council debated a proposed new westside road backed by Mayor John Smith as part of a larger vision of expansion to the west. Some council members, including Barbara White, spoke during Monday s meeting of concerns about the new road and its impact on the area s residents but the council came to no decision on the road s approval (Doe A3).

3 James 3 Note the summary s brevity and focus on only the essential details of the original article. A paraphrase of specific information from the above article is shown in the following sentence: Concerns about how the proposed new westside road would affect area traffic and property values were raised Monday by Councilwoman Barbara White in the city s weekly council meeting. She also expressed area residents fears that increased traffic would threaten children s safety at a neighborhood middle school (A3). Note that the paraphrase focuses on details in a specific portion of the article, while avoiding direct quotation. Since direct quotations generally provide the best textual evidence in support of the student writer s view or opinion, and are perhaps the most challenging to the inexperienced writer, they require the most attention to be incorporated properly and smoothly. Viewed simply, direct quotations can divided into the following: o Complete-sentence quotations (one or more sentences being quoted) o Partial-sentence or phrase quotations (one or more words being quoted) There are two basic ways to incorporate complete-sentence quotations: o An introductory phrase, followed by a comma o A complete-sentence introduction, using a sentence which very briefly offers analysis of the source quotation s meaning, followed by a colon [Note: The example quotations below are from the same previously used hypothetical source.] Here is an example of a quotation being incorporated with an introductory phrase: Mayor John Smith claims, Houston s population has increased dramatically on the city s west side in the last five years, and that necessitates new roads, both in the city and in the county (Doe A3).

4 James 4 The introductory phrase is generally in the present tense in college analytic writing, and it can be changed to avoid monotony. Thus, the writer might use such words as says, indicates, thinks, etc., depending on the context of the quoted material. In addition, another alternative introductory phrase might be as follows: According to Mayor John Smith, Houston s population has increased dramatically on the city s west side in the last five years, and that necessitates new roads, both in the city and in the county (Doe A3). The second method of incorporating a complete-sentence quotation uses a complete-sentence introduction (rather than a brief phrase) and is followed by a colon, not a comma. For example: Mayor John Smith assessed the city s recent shift in geographic location of its residents: Houston s population has increased dramatically on the city s west side in the last five years, and that necessitates new roads, both in the city and in the county (Doe A3). On the other hand, partial-sentence or phrase quotations are incorporated into the student s own writing by matching the sentence structure of the quotation to the sentence the student is writing. For example: While discussing the city s expansion in recent years, Mayor John Smith directed attention to the fact that Houston had grown dramatically on the city s west side (Doe A3). This partial-sentence or phrase quotation approach to including quoted source material is often superior to the compete-sentence-quotation method because it allows the student to focus on his/her analysis of the material being quoted, and is often more efficient in a critical-analysis essay or research paper. As previously stated, each of the above methods of incorporating source material requires an intext MLA parenthetical citation to avoid plagiarism. An MLA guide must be consulted and carefully followed for both the in-text citations and the listing on the Works Cited page. In the above examples from a hypothetical newspaper article, the parenthetical citation uses the source s name and the section and page number where the material was found (Doe A3).

5 James 5 If the newspaper article had not carried the writer s name (known as a byline ), as some articles do not, the citation would make use of an abbreviated version of the newspaper article title (using the first key word of the title, in quotation marks) and the section and page number where the material was found. For example: ( Westside A3). For a critical analysis essay, the above methods of incorporation can be seen again with the minor variations in citation and Works Cited page listing, using another hypothetical source, as it would appear on the Works Cited page following the body of the essay: Doe, John H. Why is Cheating on the Rise in America s Colleges? The Sandstone Reader. Eds. William Hunt and June Christie. 6th ed. New York: Random, Print. Again, the two basic ways to incorporate complete-sentence quotations can be seen below. o An introductory phrase, followed by a comma: Education researcher John H. Doe believes, Cheating is more widespread today than in the past due to higher family expectations, as well as increased societal pressures placed on the modern student at least that s the excuse usually given (323). o A complete-sentence introduction, followed by a colon: Education researcher John H. Doe thinks that cheating is rationalized by today s students as a result of the many challenges they face in school and at home: Cheating is more widespread today than in the past due to higher family expectations, as well as increased societal pressures placed on the modern student at least that s the excuse usually given (323). o Partial-sentence or phrase quotation, incorporated into the student writer s sentence: Increases in students admitting to cheating in their course work are due to a variety of reasons, one researcher indicates, including higher family expectations as well as increased societal pressures placed on the modern student (Doe 323). Note that here the source is not named in the text, so the source s last name must be included in the citation. Alternatively, the quote could be introduced with the source s name: Increases in students admitting to cheating in their course work are due to a variety of reasons, researcher John H. Doe indicates, including higher family expectations as well as increased societal pressures placed on the modern student (323).

6 James 6 Since MLA format follows a very streamlined or abbreviated approach, the source name never appears in both the introductory phrase and the citation. Altering Direct Quotations for Grammatical Consistency: It is sometimes necessary to change one or more words in a direct quotation being used in order to make it clear or keep it grammatically consistent with the student s writing. For example, when the original being quoted fails to clarify necessary information, is in a different verb tense, or when the pronoun use is different from the student s, it is then appropriate to alter the original quotation, as long as its meaning is not changed or distorted. When doing so, the student will put the altered word(s) in brackets [ ]. Note: The previously used hypothetical newspaper article is again being cited. o Sample original source quotation in its entirety: In a statement released last Thursday, Mayor John Smith said, The city council has been briefed on the improvements proposed for the city s west side roadways and will vote on them next week. They are aware of the necessity for these changes for the long-term growth of the city of Houston. o Shortened student version with acceptable alteration: Referring to his proposal for new roads on the west side and the importance of its approval, Mayor John Smith states, [The city council is] aware of the necessity for these changes for the long-term growth of the city of Houston (Doe A3). Note that the original version s They are has been altered to clarify meaning and maintain grammatical correctness in the student s text, since the entire quote isn t being used here. Altering Direct Quotations to Omit Words to Shorten a Longer Quotation: Since the purpose of using direct quotations is to offer effective support for the student s ideas, a longer original quotation should sometimes be shortened to improve its conciseness or clarity. As with the use of brackets shown above, omitting words from the original quotation is only

7 James 7 acceptable if its meaning is not changed or distorted. When doing so, the student will indicate the omission with the use of an ellipsis. o Sample original source quotation: The mayor s press release maintained that, while his current proposal for new westside roads is focused primarily on certain well-developed neighborhoods, his long-term plan also encompasses some outlying, unincorporated areas not currently within the city limits, thus requiring Houston s annexation of those communities and incurring additional expenses the city s current budget doesn t cover. o Student version with acceptable alteration: The statement released by the mayor s office indicates that the mayor s roadway plans, while emphasizing areas nearer to the city s population centers, would include some outlying unincorporated areas not currently within city limits, thus incurring additional expenses (Doe A3) which this year s budget didn t plan for. Note that an ellipsis can be used to shorten a source s original sentence, but that strict adherence to proper sentence construction must be maintained and, more importantly, the meaning of the original quotation can t be altered in any way. Note: This document is the property of Professor David A. James, Houston Community College Northwest, and may only be used by permission.