Rules for punctuating quotations



Rules for Punctuating Quotations

There are a few rules you should follow for punctuating quotations. Note that formatting is different for short versus long quotations.

SHORT QUOTATION: If the passage you are quoting is four lines long or less, punctuate the quotation to make it flow smoothly into your own text, as if it were dialogue. Closing punctuation should appear outside of the quotation marks and after the parenthetical citation. For example, your essay could read as follows:

At the beginning of Heart of Darkness Marlow is described as having “sunken cheeks, a yellow complexion, a straight back … and, with his arms dropped, the palms of hands outwards, resembled an idol” (4). His physical characteristics as well as the twilight setting on the Thames help to [etc]…

Note that the page reference is bracketed after the quotation marks and that the final period does not go inside the quotation marks but after the brackets.

[Exception: Only if the selected quotation ends with a question mark (?) or an exclamation mark (!) as it appears in the original text should the closing punctuation go within the final quotation marks.]

LONG QUOTATION: If the passage is longer than four lines of text then the quotation should be introduced with a full colon (:). Indent the passage on both sides of the page by ½” and do not use quotation marks (unless they appear in the original text for dialogue). The passage should be double spaced (just like the rest of your essay) and final punctuation should appear before the parenthetical citation. Example:

Marlow points out early in the novel that Britain, too, had once been “one of the dark places on earth” (7) and comments on contemporary forms of European imperialism by way of the Roman example:

They were conquerors, and for that you want only brute force -- nothing to boast of, when you have it, since your strength is just an accident arising from the weakness of others. …The conquest of the earth, which mostly means the taking it away from those who have a different complexion or slightly flatter noses than ourselves, is not a pretty thing when you look into it too much. (8)

In no uncertain terms, then, Conrad directly implicates early 20th C. Europeans with participating in an overtly imperialistic colonialist system that actively subjugated other nations. By his very use of inclusive language such as “your strength” rather than “their strength” (which would be more fitting to refer to the Romans), Conrad points an accusing finger at his very readers, forcing them to consider their own role within a nationalistic form of cultural, political, and economic hegemony. This is only reinforced by his inclusionary term “ourselves” – which cannot be anything but arresting even to modern day readers of the text – and demands that readers, both current and contemporaneous to Conrad, do examine the ugly face of imperialism.

Citing Sources

MLA (Modern Language Association) format uses parenthetical documentation, not footnotes or endnotes. This means that you identify your source directly within your own text by using parentheses (round brackets).

You must do this:

• after a direct quotation;

• after paraphrasing another’s words;

• to credit another person’s ideas.

Try to keep references brief – you need include only as much information as is needed to clearly identify your source. These references must clearly point to corresponding entries in your Works Cited and Consulted list.

An example of a direct quotation:

Numerous critics have reacted to Achebe’s 1977 lecture accusing Conrad of being a racist and suggest that he, in fact, played against standard racial stereotypes. “Far from being a ‘purveyor of comforting myths’, Conrad most deliberately and incisively debunks such myths” (Watts 197).

Note that the AUTHOR and the PAGE NUMBER have been indicated after the direct quotation, so now the reader can consult the Works Cited and Consulted list to see what text is being cited by looking up the entry under “Watts”.

If it is obvious to the reader whom you are referencing because it has already been made clear in your own text, then you need only include the page number. Using the same example:

…he, in fact, played against standard racial stereotypes. Watts contends that “far from being a ‘purveyor of comforting myths’, Conrad most deliberately and incisively debunks such myths” (197).

Since Watts is mentioned preceding the quotation, there is no need to indicate his name in parentheses – the reader can already tell to whom it is that you are referring.

If there are multiple entries in your Works Cited and Consulted list under Watts, then you need to indicate which title you are referencing. Use only a shortened form to save space, but make sure that it is clearly identifiable:

…he, in fact, played against standard racial stereotypes. “Far from being a ‘purveyor of comforting myths’, Conrad most deliberately and incisively debunks such myths” (Watts, “About Achebe’s View” 197).

Bibliographical Entries

In MLA format it is most common to use a “Works Cited” list rather than a bibliography. This list is literally only works that you cite (either directly or by paraphrasing). A “Works Consulted” list is a compilation of works which you consulted as part of your research but which you may not end up actually citing in your essay. When at university check with your professor for what type of list s/he prefers (some may want them as separate pages).

A safe bet is to make a “Works Cited and Consulted” list which shows everything.

BOOKS

For books you need to show:

• the author

• the title of the work

• publishing details including

o the location where it was published

o the publisher’s name (sometimes a university press)

o the year it was published.

Use the following format:

Moore, Gene M. Joseph Conrad’s Heart of Darkness: A Casebook. New York: Oxford UP, 2004.

Make sure the author’s surname appears first, and that the first line of any new entry is left-justified with the margin; all subsequent lines within the same entry are indented.

JOURNAL ARTICLES

For journal articles you also need to list not only the title of the article, but also the title of the journal; also include details for the volume (and issue, if applicable) in which it appeared, including the date and page numbers:

Curtler, Hugh M. “Achebe on Conrad: Racism and Greatness in Heart of Darkness.” Conradiana, 29.1 (Mar. 1997): 30-40.

Watts, Cedric. “‘A Bloody Racist’: About Achebe’s View of Conrad.” The Yearbook of English Studies, 18 (Jan. 1983): 196-209.

** Even if you access journal articles using a database, you are still responsible for including all publishing details of the journal in which the article was originally published. It is NOT sufficient just to include a URL.

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