Integrating Sources into Your Writing
One of the skills that beginning writers often struggle with is the integration of outside source material into their own writing in a smooth, logical way. Three of the major methods for incorporating source material are summarization, paraphrasing, and quoting.
- Summarizing – restating the overall thesis or argument of a piece of writing or research; if the source is a scientific study, this means restating the results or conclusions of the study
- Example: In 1999, a group of researchers from the University of Virginia School of Medicine concluded that prolonged lead exposure significantly increases Alzheimer’s risk.
- Paraphrasing – selecting a particular idea or statement from a piece of writing, and re-stating it in your own words
- Example: Original: “Regular exercise helps improve mental health.
- Paraphrased: Staying active can boost your mood and support mental well-being.
- Direct Quote – including the exact words of a source, inside quotation marks; should be used sparingly
- Example: “Memoirs are the backstairs of history,” writes George Meredith.
Remember that in all these cases, you must cite your sources with a parenthetical citation. If you’re using MLA style, that could look something like this:
Staying active can boost your mood and support mental well-being (Moore 23).
“Memoirs are the backstairs of history,” writes George Meredith (65).
Integrating Quotations into Your Writing (Video)
The Quotation Sandwich
When you use a direct quote, you would do well to build a “quotation sandwich.” This is a method to smoothly integrate the quote into your own writing and ensure that the contents of the quote support your ideas.
Imagine the quote itself is the filling of a sandwich, and your own words are the bread. You must “top” the quote with an introduction or signal phrase that attributes it to a particular writer or piece of writing, or otherwise explains where it is coming from. The bottom of the sandwich is your interpretation of the quote that clearly links it to the ideas in your paper.
Example:
According to the writer and theologian Thomas Merton, “Art enables us to find ourselves and lose ourselves at the same time.” In other words; art can be intensely personal while at the same time it can open up connections to the collective human experience.
Further reading on how to integrate source material into your own writing:
- Integrating Sources Into Your Paper (PVCC)
- Quote Sandwich (St. Louis Community College)
- Quoting, Paraphrasing, and Summarizing (Purdue University)
- Dumped Quotes (Virginia Western)
- How to Use Quotation Marks (Purdue University)