Integrating Quotations
What is your reaction to the differences between sample paragraphs 1 and 2?
Sample 1
In the 1992 book, Cooking Disasters of the 20th Century, by Fred Smith, it explains why an important state dinner celebrating the Treaty of Ulm was ruined, resulting in a social calamity that caused the host, Lord Alfred, to lose nearly all of his social status and prestige: "Lord Alfred's infamous celebration in honor of the Treaty of Ulm was marred when an assistant chef failed to notice that the cheese was was spoiled. The foul taste sparked a squabble at a side table, which led the French ambassador to believe he had narrowly escaped assassination by poison. While the legal matter was quickly put to rest, Lord Alfred's reputation never fully recovered from the scandal, and his future in politics was all but ruined" (Smith 102). As you can see from the example of Lord Alfred, overlooking a small detail might lead to a great disaster.
Work Cited
Smith, Fred. Cooking Disasters of the 20th Century. New York: Half-Baked Press,1992.
Sample 2
At Lord Alfred's infamous Treaty of Ulm Banquet, a junior chef ruined the cheese, and the scandal "all but ruined" Lord Alfred (Smith 102).
Work Cited
Smith, Fred. Cooking Disasters of the 20th Century. New York: Half-Baked Press,1992.
What point is the author making with both passages? Would you rather have to read through a long passage in Sample 1, or would you rather read the one-sentence version?
Note that Sample 2 does not present the title of the book or the full name of the author. Sample 2 only quotes three words from the original source, but they are three carefully-chosen words that make a clear point.
Your reading assignment for today is "Integrating Quotations," a handout that goes into more detail about why and how to move from a rookie's citation style, which uses a lot of words but says very little, to a smoother, more advanced style (that leaves more room for you to develop your ideas).
Integrating Quotations:
"The streets are full of people who talk to themselves, who write journal entries to nobody. Do they feel that speaking and writing is more important than listening and reading? These people are boring at parties, but are they arrogant? They are compulsive communicators. It's more likely that they simply live in perpetual fear of silence."
This quote appears to me as having asked too many questions, and is unnecessarily words. If the author were to "fish out" the unnecessary words, it would be able to summarize Talott's argument in a more clear and concise manner. Also, I feel that it is vital that the author also include a quote to further illustrate the author's point so that the reader has a clear understanding of what the author is trying to say.
Thanks, Lauren, for sharing your reaction online when you couldn't be present in class.