Integrating Outside Material-- Practicing CONVENTIONS of Academic Writing

Portions of this presentation are adapted from:

•The Writing Resources Center: http://wrc.uncc.edu/

•They Say/I Say: The Moves that Matter in Academic Writing, 1st ed., pp. 39-47, by Gerald Graff and Cathy Birkenstein.

•DePaul University School for New Learning: Teaching Resources

IN-TEXT CITATIONS

Remember that signal phrases (aka author signals) and hyperlinks with replace in-text citations in your online work.•Signal phrases make the distinction between writer and source clear for the audience.

•Signal Phrases should also be used to introduce direct quotes and paraphrased material.

Acceptable Paraphrase with Author Signal

According to Lizzie Borden: A Case Book of Family and Crime in the 1890s by Williams, Smithburn, and Peterson, Fall River, where the Borden family lived, was typical of northeastern industrial cities of the Nineteenth century. Steam-powered production had shifted labor from agriculture to manufacturing, and as immigrants arrived in the U.S. they found work in these new factories. As a result, populations grew, and large urban areas arose. Fall River was one of these manufacturing and commercial centers.

Also includes a signal phrase and an in-text hyperlink the way you might in your essay.

According to Williams, Smithburn, and Peterson, Fall River, where the Borden family lived, was typical of northeastern industrial cities of the Nineteenth century. Steam-powered production had shifted labor from agriculture to manufacturing, and as immigrants arrived in the U.S. they found work in these new factories. As a result, populations grew, and large urban areas arose. Fall River was one of these manufacturing and commercial centers.

Original Text

Signal Phrase vs. No Signal PhraseSample 1--No signal phrase:

The merits of cancer screening must be reappraised.

Revised with signal phrase: Doctors may conclude that the merits of cancer screening must be reappraised.

Sample 2--No signal phrase:

However, the merits of cancer screening are currently debated by new data. “Yearly prostate exams are not nearly as effective at reducing the risk of dying of prostate cancer as most men think.”

Revised with signal phrase: However, the merits of cancer screening are currently debated by new data. According to Dr. Dan Boyd, the director of cancer research at the Charlotte Clinic, who just produced one of the new studies on cancer screening, “yearly prostate exams are not nearly as effective at reducing the risk of dying of prostate cancer as most men think.”

It isn’t clear if the claim here is from the source or from the writer.

It isn’t clear why a quote is starting or where it’s coming from.

1. Vary signal phrase verbs for flow and reader interest.• avoids the “listy” effect

2. Choose verbs that appropriately characterizes the context of the idea being borrowed.

Examples of Signal Phrases--

As Smith noted, …

Jones concluded…

According to Stevens, …

McHugh contrasted this idea…

Moreover, Smith added…

Elliot and Pruett argued…

Choosing Signal Phrases

Here’s How it Looks…

Remember this from your LOI proposal?

INTEGRATING OUTSIDE

MATERIAL

Proportion: Using Quotations Sparingly Novice writers may be tempted to:

Over-quote Quote too little Quote for the wrong purposes Quote the wrong type of material

Over-quoting weakens argument and/or a sense of engagement: The essay tends to ramble and lack focus. The ideas and flow become choppy if unnecessary material

interrupts main ideas or too many different writing styles are combined.

If the writing is meant to be persuasive, the author may inadvertently reveal a very unpersuasive lack of self-confidence.

Proportion: Using Quotations Sparingly

1. Quote only the parts of others’ writing that relate to your point, never for “filler” or “padding”.Don’t use quotes just to show you’ve read something or for the sake

of having a quote. This can actually hurt your writing… and your grade on a paper. Not just any outside material is “quote-worthy.”

2. Quote when necessary to--1)establish authority from an expert2)make a clarification or give an example3)provide context4)pinpoint a controversy5)create a dramatic effect or showcase eloquence

Proportion: Using Quotations Sparingly

3. Don’t rely on quotes to speak for you. You should be able to lift direct quotes out of your text and still have the text make sense.

• Relying on quotes happens when writers haven’t really read a text closely enough to be able to talk about it in their words.

4. Often, you only need to paraphrase ideas in order to discuss them.

• Remember the 10% tip from earlier. It’s not a rule, just a general guideline to help you check for excessive quoting.

Dangling Quotes (AKA Hit and Run Quotes)

• “Dangling” or “Hit and Run” quotes happen when material appears SPLAT!!! in the middle of the paper without being introduced or explained.

• These types of quotes confuse the reader and disrupt the flow.

• This is point in the paper that makes the reader think, “Huh?”

Integrating Outside MaterialWhen incorporating outside material, the Framing Technique can situate outside material into your text clearly:

Introduce the material.Give the quote or paraphrase.Explain the material.

Remember, as always, this is not an exact formula or rule; the order can be switched up and played with as you practice, and should eventually become a habit of thinking. For instance, explanation can often come first and will often be meshed in with paraphrasing. What this does is help you think about what you need to include for the reader.

Introducing materialBe a good host.

Imagine the writing situation as an event where the guests don’t know each other and you are the host.It’s your responsibility to introduce them to each other and to be fair and courteous to everyone.Remember--1.You are the mediator between your sources and your audience.2.Your reader has not done your research and is unfamiliar with certain aspects of the issue or the immediate source that you may take for granted. 3.You want to invite curiosity, but you don’t want readers to have to leave your essay to find out something they need to know.

Things your reader does not know:Often the necessary information is summative information about the source’s context or writing situation--Where the material comes from: the author or publisher, what their background is, why they should be trusted, how their expertise relates to the topic.General Context or purpose of the source: Conditions or results of a study, the perspective the author has on the topic, etc.Specific Context– Which part of the source you are pulling the information from

Explaining the MaterialHow you explain the material is one of the key ways “your voice” starts to come in. It’s where you connect the dots for the reader.

Consider some of the following--• Are there terms, language, or wording that you understand

that the reader may not?• Does the information prove a certain point or perspective

from your research? • What do you think this information reveals about the issue

that you want the reader to pick up on as well?

Remember—

•Make sure the reader knows what the information or claim means.•Readers interpret material differently and may not infer the same things you infer, even when you are reading the same text, looking at the same statistic, etc.

• Tell readers how they should be reading or interpreting the material. Tell them what they are supposed to “get from it” or “realize” about the issue based on it.

•When offering a direct quote, your explanation is the “telling” that supports the information you are “showing.”

Remember: If it doesn’t need explanation and/or commentary, then it’s likely not worth incorporating, especially quoting.

Explaining the Material

Examples of Explaining Outside Material

• Basically, X is affirming _____________.• In other words, X believes _________.• In making this comment, X argues that

________.• X is insisting that __________.• X’s point is that ___________.• The essence of X’s argument is that __________.

Example 1

Original: • Martin Luther King knew how to skillfully appeal

to his audience in “Letter from Birmingham Jail.” For example, he writes: "In your statement you assert that our actions, even though peaceful, must be condemned because they precipitate violence…Isn’t this like condemning Jesus because his unique God-consciousness and never-ceasing devotion to God’s will precipitated the evil act of crucifixion?" (527). 

Revised

Martin Luther King knew how to skillfully appeal to his audience in “Letter from Birmingham Jail.” He understood that his audience, eight clergymen whose life’s purpose was to serve God, would understand and relate to religious references. For example, at one point King uses a particular religious reference to counter the clergymen’s claim that the actions of King and his followers, while nonviolent, must be denounced because they eventually incite violence in others. Specifically, King asserts: “Isn’t this like condemning Jesus because his unique God-consciousness and never-ceasing devotion to God’s will precipitated the evil act of crucifixion?” (527). King’s audience will likely understand and relate to this analogy, rendering King’s argument more credible to his readers.

Example 2

Susan Bordo writes about women and dieting: “Fiji is just one example. Until television was introduced in 1995, the islands had no reported cases of eating disorders. In 1998, three years after programs from the United States and Britain began broadcasting there, 62 percent of the girls surveyed reported dieting.”

RevisedThe feminist philosopher Susan Bordo deplores the hold that the Western obsession with dieting has on women. Her basic argument is that increasing numbers of women across the globe are being led to see themselves as fat and in need of a diet. Citing the island of Fiji as a case in point, Bordo notes that “until television was introduced in 1995, the islands had no reported cases of eating disorders. In 1998, three years after programs from the United States and Britain begun broadcasting there, 62 percent of the girls surveyed reported dieting” (149-50). Bordo’s point is that the West’s obsession with dieting is spreading even to remote places across the globe. Ultimately, Bordo complains, the culture of dieting will find you, regardless of where you live.

Framing PracticeSCENARIO: You’re writing a paper for class claiming that students and faculty on campus should get a flu shot. Below is a direct quote from one of Miss Eaker’s students from an interview you conducted. During the interview, the student also reveals that she believes everyone should get a flu shot.Original Material (Direct Quote): “Miss Eaker’s class was canceled last Tuesday because she came down with the flu, and it was the class before our assignment was due. I sent her an email about the questions I had, but I wasn’t able to show her the paper.” Student Interviewed: Jennifer Pooler

DIRECTIONS: Use the Framing Technique to integrate this quote into a paragraph that introduces the material and then explains it (how you interpret the info, how you think it relates to the issue, what it reveals about the issue, how it supports your perspective.)

ExampleDuring my research, I came to believe that flu shots are necessary during the flu season for everyone on campus. When I interviewed a UNCC student, Jennifer Pooler, she explained that she believes everyone on campus should get a flu shot; she told me about her teacher, Miss Eaker, having to cancel class because she came down with the flu. In my interview with her, Pooler stated: “Miss Eaker’s class was canceled last Tuesday because she came down with the flu, and it was the class before our assignment was due. I sent her an email about the questions I had, but I wasn’t able to show her the paper.” What this shows is that Pooler would have had access to more efficient and effective help that the instructor taken more precautionary health measures. Furthermore, this is probably not the only instance of classes being canceled or students missing class because of the flu. This helps to demonstrate that classes would flow more smoothly and time could be saved for both students and professors if they were not affected by the flu. In the end, the result would very likely be better education and student satisfaction.

Example (WITH PARAPHRASE)During my research, I came to believe that flu shots are necessary during the flu season for everyone on campus. When I interviewed a UNCC student, Jennifer Pooler, she explained that she believes everyone on campus should get a flu shot; she told me about her teacher, Miss Eaker, having to cancel class because she came down with the flu. The class had a paper due, and although Miss Eaker was available via email, Jennifer was unable to have her professor read the paper ahead of time like she had planned. What this shows is that Pooler would have had access to more efficient and effective help that the instructor taken more precautionary health measures. Furthermore, this is probably not the only instance of classes being canceled or students missing class because of the flu. This helps to demonstrate that classes would flow more smoothly and time could be saved for both students and professors if they were not affected by the flu. In the end, the result would very likely be better education and student satisfaction.