How should you quote from your sources?
Quoting means copying a passage of someone else’s words and crediting the source. We distinguish between direct quotations and indirect quotations.
Direct quotations
A direct quotation is another person’s exact words copied and weaved into your writing. The use of direct quotations often spices up your text, and they can provide examples that strengthen an idea or a thought.
However, you should only use it if the exact phrasing of the original quotation is crucial to your point. If you can paraphrase the idea in your own words, do so. Too many and too long quotations will give the reader the impression that you are not thinking for yourself. When used sparingly and correctly, direct quotations make an impression that strengthens your words.
If the quotation is shorter than three lines, like the one below, you should use quotation marks, and it should be incorporated into your text:
In the words of Winston Churchill, “A fanatic is one who can't change his mind and won't change the subject.”
However, if it is longer than three lines, you should place the quotation in a free-standing block of text and omit quotation marks. Start the quotation on a new line, with the entire quote indented:
On 4 June, 1940, following the evacuation of British and French armies from Dunkirk, Winston Churchill gave a speech in the House of Commons that is remembered to this day. As the German tide swept through Europe and France, he encouraged the British people and stated:
We shall not flag or fail. We shall go on to the end. We shall fight in France, we shall fight on the seas and oceans, we shall fight with growing confidence and growing strength in the air. We shall defend our island, whatever the cost may be. We shall fight on the beaches, we shall fight on the landing-grounds, we shall fight in the fields and in the streets, we shall fight in the hills. We shall never surrender!
Indirect quotations
You can also paraphrase or summarise the words of someone else and work them into the text you are writing. This is called indirect quotations, and just like direct quotations, they can add information that strengthens your content. Indirect quotations carry the meaning of a speaker or writer’s original words without using the exact words.
Winston Churchill claimed that a fanatic is someone who is unwilling to change their mind, and who refuses to talk about anything other than the topic they care about.
Whether you are using a direct or an indirect quotation, you must always give credit to the person whose words and ideas you are using. This can easily be achieved by including the author or speaker’s name as a lead-in to the quotation. ('According to Winston Churchill ...', 'Winston Churchill claims that ...', 'In the words of Winston Churchill we can say that ...')
Both direct and indirect quotations also need an in-text citation and an end-text citation. You will find more information about this inn the article 'Referencing Sources'
Link to the NDLA article 'Referencing Sources'
Remember that if you do not give the appropriate credit where it is due, you are plagiarising.
Remember:
Writing is about conveying your own thoughts, ideas, and knowledge through your own words. If you use too many quotations and too many words from the mouths of others, it is no longer your own, personal work. Avoid piecing the work of others together and presenting it as your own. If you do, you run the risk of patchwork plagiarising. Strive to incorporate only those quotes that strengthen, back up, or demonstrate an idea or thought. Remember that you are the master of your text, and the reader should see your thoughts through the words on the paper.