Embedding Quotations

Embedding Quotations

What is an embedded quotation?

An embedded quotation is a quotation that is integrated into the author's own words in order to improve sentence fluency.

Here is a quote we will work with today:

"A new species would bless me as its creator and source; many happy and excellent natures would owe their existence to me" (Shelley 40).

However, we won't use the whole quote, only the important snippet:

"A new species would bless me as its creator and source" (Shelley 40).

Snippet:

"A new species would bless me as its creator and source; many happy and excellent natures would owe their existence to me" (Shelley 40).

Original:

There are 3 places to embed a quote: beginning, middle, and end of a sentence

"A new species would bless me as its creator and source" fantasizes Victor, revealing that his motive for creating a new species is not entirely altruistic (Shelley 40).

Beginning of a sentence

Victor fantasizes that his "new species would bless [him] as its creator and source," revealing that his motive for creating a new species is not entirely altruistic (Shelley 40).

Middle of a sentence

Multiple Select

Why did I use a bracket in this sentence?

Victor fantasizes that his "new species would bless [him] as its creator and source," revealing that his motive for creating a new species is not entirely altruistic (Shelley 40).

• Pronoun agreement

• Sentence fluency (makes sentence flow better)

• First person isn't allowed in academic writing even quotes

A bracket [ ] is used to change a word (typically a pronoun) in an embedded quotation in order for there to be agreement between your sentence and the quote. This guarantees sentence fluency.

What are brackets and why do we use them?

Victor's motive for creating a new species is not entirely altruistic, but rather founded in his desire that his "new species would bless [him] as its creator and source...[owing] their existence to [him]" (Shelley 40).

End of a sentence

Food for thought

2. An embedded quotation immediately connects your evidence to your argument, saving your reader the time it would take them to make that intellectual jump.

1. An embedded quotation is not the same as introducing your quote with "[s]he says/states/explains..."

Multiple Choice

Where does the in-text citation go in a sentence with an embedded quotation?

• Always immediately next to the quote, regardless of where the quote falls in the sentence

• Always at the end of the sentence next to the punctuation regardless of where the quote falls in the sentence