In order to strengthen our arguments and gain more credibility with our audience we offer evidence in support of our arguments. What kind of evidence do we need? How and where to search for it? How to evaluate it and determine its reliability and credibility and relevance? How to reproduce it in our own texts? How to distinguish between what is our voice/opinion and those of others? How to acknowledge the sources without abuse?
We shall look at the attached handouts as we move from the first essay to the second:
Using Evidence In Your Writing
Ø Offer evidence that agrees with your stance up to a point, then add to it with ideas of your own.
Ø Present evidence that contradicts your stance in order to argue against (refute) it and therefore strengthen your position.
Ø Use sources against each other, as if they are experts on a panel discussing your proposition.
Ø Use quotations to support your assertion, not merely to state or restate your claim.
Weak and Strong Uses of Evidence
In order to use evidence effectively, you need to integrate it smoothly into your paragraph by following this pattern:
Ø State your claim.
Ø Give your evidence, remembering to relate it to the claim.
Ø Comment on the evidence to show how it supports the claim.
Weak Use of Evidence
Today, we are too self-centered. Most families no longer sit down to eat together, preferring instead to eat on the go while rushing to the next appointment
(Gleick 148). Everything is about what we want.
This is a weak example of evidence because the evidence is not related to the claim. What does the claim about self-centeredness have to do with families eating together?
The writer doesn’t explain the connection.
A More Effective Use of Quotation
Today, Americans are too self-centered. Even our families don't matter as much anymore as they once did. Other people and activities take precedence, as James
Gleick says in his book, Faster, “We are consumers-on-the-run…the very notion of the family meal as a sit-down occasion is vanishing. Adults and children alike
eat…on the way to their next activity” (148). Sit-down meals are a time to share and connect with others; however, that connection has become less valued, as
families begin to prize individual activities over shared time, promoting self-centeredness over group identity.
The second example is more effective because it uses a “lead-in” phrase to introduce the direct quotation. This “lead-in” phrase helps to integrate the quotation with the
writer’s ideas. Also notice that the writer discusses and comments upon the quotation immediately afterwards, which allows the reader to see the relationship between
the quotation and the writer’s point.
REMEMBER: Discussing your evidence’s significance develops a paper!
Smooth & Meaningful Integration
Bridge : Establishes a logical connection between the idea and the source information. Can be a word, sentence or two.
Lead-in: Provides information about the source in order to establish credibility and reliability.
Information from source: Supports idea and can be brought in as quote, paraphrase or summary.
Citation: Depends on the lead-in. Clarifies author of the ideas and directs the reader to information on the Works Cited page.
3 Ways of Bringing in Information
Quotes:
“must be identical to the original, using a narrow segment of the source. They must match the source document word for word and must be attributed to the original author.”
Paraphrasing:
“involves putting a passage from source material into your own words. A paraphrase must also be attributed to the original source.” Paraphrased material can be shorter than or longer than the original passage.
Summary:
“involves putting the main idea(s) into your own words, including only the main point(s). Once again, it is necessary to attribute summarized ideas to the original source. Summaries are significantly shorter than the original and take a broad overview of the source material.”
Quoting and Editing
Ø Changing pronouns for clarity and grammatical purposes [ ]
Ø Excluding text to be concise . . .
Ø Clarifying mistakes are author’s [sic]
Introducing Quotations
Ø Sprinkle discussion with key phrases
Ø Use an indirect statement with “that”
Ø Blend your lead-in and quotation
Ø Use a complete sentence lead-in
Ø Use an introductory phrase or clause
Ø Split the quotation
Ø Paraphrasing
Q: What is an unacceptable paraphrase?
A:
Ø Five same words in a row
Ø Close in keywords
Ø Close in structure
Q: What is an acceptable paraphrase?
A: An acceptable paraphrase is one which presents the ideas of an author, acknowledging the author and giving necessary credit for the ideas while presenting the
information in a new form. This involves rewriting using different words and structures.
Combining Methods
In his famous and influential work On the Interpretation of Dreams, Sigmund Freud argues that dreams are the "royal road to the unconscious" (page), expressing in
coded imagery the dreamer's unfulfilled wishes through a process known as the "dream work" (page). According to Freud, actual but unacceptable desires are censored
internally and subjected to coding through layers of condensation and displacement before emerging in a kind of rebus puzzle in the dream itself (pages).
Indirect Source
Although it is better to get your information straight from the horse’s mouth, sometimes you will need to use indirect sources. An indirect source is someone’s published
account of another’s spoken remarks.
Even a spokesperson for Verizon Wireless has said that statewide bans are preferable to a “crazy patchwork quilt of ordinances” (qtd. in Haughney A8).
When should I quote?
Discussing specific arguments or ideas.
At the beginning of World War Two, almost all Americans assumed the war would end quickly.
If it is especially important that you formulate a counter-argument to this claim, then you might wish to quote the part of the statement that you find questionable and
establish a dialogue between yourself and John Doe:
Historian John Doe has argued that in 1941 "almost all Americans assumed the war would end quickly" (Doe 223). Yet during the first six months of U.S. involvement,
the wives and mothers of soldiers often noted in their diaries their fear that the war would drag on for years.
Giving added emphasis to a particularly authoritative source on your topic.
There will be times when you want to highlight the words of a particularly important and authoritative source on your topic.
Harriet Jacobs, a former slave from North Carolina, published an autobiographical slave narrative in 1861. She exposed the hardships of both male and female slaves
but ultimately concluded that "slavery is terrible for men; but it is far more terrible for women."
In this particular example, Jacobs is providing a crucial first-hand perspective on slavery. Thus, her words deserve more exposure than a paraphrase could provide.
Spicing up your prose.
In order to lend variety to your prose, you may wish to quote a source with particularly vivid language. All quotations, however, must closely relate to your to your topic
and arguments.
One example of a quotation that adds flair:
Calvin Coolidge's tendency to fall asleep became legendary. As H. L. Mencken commented in the American Mercury in 1933, "Nero fiddled, but Coolidge only
snored."
How do I set up and follow up a quotation?
Once you've carefully selected the quotations that you want to use, your next job is to weave those quotations into your text. The words that precede and follow a
quotation are just as important as the quotation itself. Below are four guidelines for "setting up" and "following up" quotations.
In illustrating these four steps, we'll use as our example,
Franklin Roosevelt's famous quotation, "The only thing we have to fear is fear itself."
How can I make my integration more meaningful?
Attribute each quotation to its source.
Ø Even if you place an internal citation after a quotation, you must still attribute the quotation within the text.
Ø What is attribution? Simply tell your reader who is speaking. A good rule of thumb is this: Try reading your text aloud. Could your reader determine
without looking at your paper where your quotations begin? If not, your paper probably contains "hanging quotations," which leave your reader hanging
because they lack attribution.
add remark state predict propose
announce reply estimate denies relates
comment respond agrees derides reports
write retort argues disagrees proclaim
argue exclaim asks disputes reveals
declare criticize asserts emphasizes says
note complain believes explains sees
observe question claims finds shows
Provide a context for each quotation.
Ø Do not rely on quotations to tell your story for you. It is your responsibility to provide your reader with a context for the quotation. The context should
set the basic scene for when, possibly where, and under what circumstances the quotation was spoken or written. So, in providing a context for our above
example, you might write:
When Franklin Roosevelt gave his inaugural speech on March 4, 1933, he addressed a nation weakened and demoralized by economic depression. He proclaimed:
"The only thing we have to fear is fear itself”(11). With that message of hope and confidence, the new president set the stage for his next one-hundred days in office and
helped restore the faith of the American people in their government.
How do I combine quotation marks with other punctuation marks?
Keep periods and commas within quotation marks.
Ø According to Professor Jones, Lincoln "feared the spread of slavery," but many of his aides advised him to "watch and wait."
The main exception to this rule involves the use of internal citations, which always precede the last period of the sentence. For example:
Ø According to Professor Jones, Lincoln "feared the spread of slavery," but many of his aides advised him to "watch and wait" (Jones 143).
Place all other punctuation marks (colons, semicolons, exclamation marks, question marks) outside the quotation marks, except when they were part of the original
quotation.
Ø The student wrote that the U. S. Civil War "finally ended around 1900"!
Ø The coach yelled, "Run!”
Extended Quotes should:
Ø Introduced in the text of the paper and set off by a colon ( : )
Ø Be more than 4 lines in your paper
Ø Be indented one inch from the left margin
Ø Not be placed inside quotation marks
Ø Cited outside the period
Sample extended quote (you will not be using these in 101 or 102!):
The concluding line of the chorus in King Oedipus clarify the significance of the drama just witnessed by the audience:
Sons and daughters of Thebes, behold, this was Oedipus. Greatest of men; he held the key to the deepest mysteries was envied by all his fellow men for his great
prosperity; Behold, what a full tide of misfortune swept over his head. Then learn that mortal man must always look to his ending, and none can be called happy
until that day when he carries His happiness down to the grave in peace. (68)