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How to use Quotes in an Essay in 7 Simple Steps

01 june 2022

How to use Quotes in an Essay in 7 Simple Steps

A literary essay is an academic piece of writing that involves the study and examination of the academic work of existing scholars and researchers. The essay writer uses different academic material from articles, books, and publications of different journals. This essay at times contains direct quotes and most of the time use paraphrased information. The use of direct quotes is common among school and college essays as per the requirements of teachers and academic criteria. In this article, we will get to know about how to add direct quotes and cite them accordingly; we will also see a few general rules for adding a direct quote in a literary essay.

 

Generally, when I write my essay there comes a point where it is extremely challenging for me to rephrase the statement made by an author. To cope with the situation, I opt for using direct quotes in my document. To state a direct quote, there is a need to address the quote properly. First, the quote needs to be introduced and then incorporated with the inverted commas, after that a closing statement summarizes the quote. The rule is known as Ice Sandwich Rule. Here, example is stated for your better understanding;

Bertella in a research paper states about qualities of entrepreneurs, “The most creative entrepreneurs are characterized by exceptional creativity, sense of attachment to the local heritage, quite extensive social capital and sensitivity to the wellbeing of community”. The statement suggests that these qualities must be present in entrepreneurs.

 

This is an example of how we apply the Ice Sandwich Rule to every format of literary analysis essay.

Up till now, the only concern was how to induce a direct quote in just any research or literary essay. However, now the flux of concentration will move towards a different direction that is the formats. When you write my paper you should know there are different formats of writing in academia, namely APA, MLA, Chicago, AMA, and Harvard. We will go through the rules and examples of all these formats to have a broad look at the basic citing style.

Let's start with APA, since it is most commonly used format in technical and argumentative essays. In APA, if a quote is more than 40 words, then the quote must be cited in block format with a double indent. In case, if the quote is less than 40 words, then the quote shall remain within the paragraph and cited in inverted commas. For example, the quote stated above contains 28 words, the direct words of author are quoted in inverted commas with parenthetical citation. If the quote was of 41 words, then it would have been block formatted with double indent.

Moving onto Harvard format, the rules for Harvard are quite different. If the quote is 35 words or more, then the quote will be double indented, otherwise, the quote will remain a part of the paragraph with the Ice Sandwich Rule applied. The example that myperfectwords.com are considering here consists of 28 words, so the quote will be integrated with the paragraph as shown above.

 

As for the AMA format, if the quote is longer than four lines only then it will be double indented in block formatting. Whereas, a direct quote under four lines is cited by using double quotation marks followed by a superscript. As the quote of Bertella, stated above, is of 3 lines, it will remain a part of the text. 

In MLA, if the quote is longer than 4 lines, block formatting should be used. Whereas, a quote lesser than four lines is incorporated within the text and set apart from the text with the use of double inverted commas. The rules to add direct quotes in Chicago format has different criteria. Quotes more than 100 words should be double indented in block format. If the quote is less than 100 words limit, it will remain the part of paragraph; however, separated by inverted commas. The quote we are considering in the example is a short quote so, it will remain assimilated with the paragraph without any indention.

 

Now if any of you are confused about what an indented quote will look like, then there is nothing to worry about paper writing service have got you covered. For instance, the quote is:

Bertella identified qualities of entrepreneurs in the essay, "The most creative entrepreneurs are characterized by exceptional creativity, sense of attachment to the local heritage, quite extensive social capital, and sensitivity to the wellbeing of the community. While these entrepreneurs' resources are applied to obtain benefits for the businesses and for the local area, they illustrate how heritage is created through creative practice”. The quote suggests that these qualities must be present in entrepreneurs.

Now the quote is 54 words, so according to APA, Harvard, AMA, and MLA, the quote should be double indented in a block format as follows:

Bertella stated the characteristics of entrepreneurs in the essay as,

 

The most creative entrepreneurs are characterized by exceptional creativity, sense of attachment to the local heritage, quite extensive social capital, and sensitivity to the wellbeing of the community. While these entrepreneurs' resources are applied to obtain benefits for the businesses and for the local area, they illustrate how heritage is created through creative practice.

She suggests that these qualities must be present in entrepreneurs.

The above context is all about citing direct quotes and evidence in literary essays. However, if you find it difficult and are short of time, then you can ask an essay writing service to help you in your essay. Writers in the essay writing service are professional, and they make sure that they follow the pattern attentively. There is nothing to worry about, one can do it themselves with little guidance and information. You are always welcome to ask for further assistance. 



 

 

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