Introduction

So we already know that using quotations is important in academic writing, but have you ever considered how you use quotations? Have you ever thought about what the function is of each quotation in your writing? Broadly speaking, there are three different ways of using quotations. In each of the following examples, the scholarly quotations are all made up:

The 'Replacement Quotation'

Read the following paragraph. What do you notice about the way in which its author has used quotations?

The deployment of specific colour schemes is one method that filmmakers can use to create distinct atmospheres in their films. A particular filmmaker that uses this method particularly effectively is Wes Anderson, who 'has a distinct visual style, a contributing factor to his status as a modern-day auteur' (Knight 33). Take for instance his film The Fantastic Mr. Fox (2009). The colour palette of this film largely consists of rich browns, red, oranges, and yellows, which 'evokes a strong sense of nostalgia that is particularly fitting for a film adaptation of a children's book' (Vermeer 117). This sense of nostalgia helps to create a 'dream-like atmosphere' in the film that captivates its audience, proving that using specific colour schemes 'is a masterful tool for filmmakers to use in order to achieve particular effects in their art' (Flint 2).

What did the student writer do?

In this example, the student writer has used quotations to replace their own argument, placing an overwhelming emphasis on the thoughts of critics, rather on what they, themselves, have to say. Whilst this way of using quotations can, to quote Eric Hayot*, 'show your iceberg', and make it clear that you have conducted lots of research, putting quotations into an essay without interacting with them is not a good strategy to rely on, as you merely show that you have read, rather than understood, your sources.

The 'Platform Quotation'

Now consider this paragraph. It uses quotations in a specific way, but what is that way?

Archival research poses a number of challenges to researchers. One instance of a barrier that archival research poses is the legibility of handwriting present in historical manuscripts. Victoria Macleod, in her seminal paper about the handwriting practices of Elizabethan England, claims that 'a number of factors contribute to the legibility of a historical artefact' (83), but to better understand this barrier that faces researchers, these factors must be categorised. I suggest that the following categories are most insightful: material, personal, and environmental. Ernest McCrae asks us to consider that 'the quality of the materials used is one of the most significant factors in determining the legibility of handwriting' (12), which is true; even today, a blotchy ink pen can hinder the formation of letters, and low-quality paper can result in ink bleeds, and so this factor must have been all the more important in Elizabethan England, in which these materials were not as refined. 'Paper quality', argues Robert Hulmes, 'has no bearing on the legibility of the handwriting in historical manuscripts' (277), but it appears that Hulmes did not consider examples like the Gillespie Diaries. The later entries of these diaries are in a better condition than those that came before them, owing to the improved paper quality that Lady Gillespie had access to at this time, owing to her husband's increased wealth.

What did the student writer do?

In this example, the student writer has used quotations as a platform that their own argument can be built upon. Whether they agree (see the 'McCrae' example) or disagree (see the 'Hulmes' example) with the quotation cited, they use it as a basis for further critical development. Not only does this add to the critical field, but it places a strong emphasis on the writer's argument, rather than those of critics.

The 'Argument Quotation'

And here is a third paragraph. How are quotations used in this example?

The staging of the 2019 Edinburgh Fringe production of J. B. Priestley's An Inspector Calls was particularly distinct. Rather than set it in the Birling's dining room and adhering to the Aristotelian unities, as is traditional for this play, it was set across two tiers of three seats (similar to the TV show Blankety Blank), with the Birlings, Gerald, and Eva Smith sat in the seats and Inspector Goole acting as the game show host. Johanna Dumas claims that this staging 'heightens the farcical nature of Priestley's text', whereas Sarah Edwards suggest that it 'parodies the role of police inspector by amalgamating it with that of game show host' (60). Whilst it is true that this production highlighted the highly exaggerated events of Priestley's play, I contest the suggestion that it presented them as being humourous, given the seriousness with which Eva Smith's suicide is depicted. Instead, the claim that 'Inspector Goole, in his joint role of police inspector and game show host, offers the production's few moments of dark comedy' (Edwards 101) appears to be more apt, given, for instance, the incongruence between Goole's grave dialogue and the flamboyant ways he physically reacts to each character as they reveal their involvement in the young woman's death.

What did the student writer do?

In this example, the student writer has situated two quotations in opposition with each other, creating an argument between them. They then go on to navigate their way through this argument, which not only allowed them to locate their own position in this argument, but develop the critical field as they do so, too. This is another example of an author prioritising their critical voice, rather than the views of other academics.

Now that the three ways of using quotations have been discussed, click the 'next' button to take a short quiz that will ask you to identify the quotation method used in different examples of academic writing.

*Hayot, E. (2014), The Elements of Academic Style: Writing for the HumanitiesNew York: Columbia University Press - Highly recommended! Nicola Taylor (AWAS Advisor)