Turabian Citation and Documentation
Important terms:
Summary quotation plagiarism paraphrase parenthetical reference
footnote citation subsequent reference reference list style bibliography style
Examples:
Original:
Widespread exploration into the ability of animals to communicate through language first intensified two decades ago, when Tiki, a gorilla raised with human siblings by zoologists Erin and Patrick Kenzie, was taught to use sign language and was able to speak to his deaf human "brother," Michael Kenzie.
From Ann Peterson's 1995 article titled "Anthropomorphosis and Primate Language Capability in the Kenzie Studies," p. 52, published in Journal of Primate Studies 76 (January 1995).
Summary:
The study of the ability of primate animals to use language became popular in the mid-seventies, when a gorilla named Tiki was taught sign language by Erin and Patrick Kenzie (Peterson 1995, 52).
This is an example of parenthetical citation. Include the author’s last name, the year of publication, and the page number[s] in the parentheses. Notice that sentence punctuation follows the parentheses.
Paraphrase:
Interest in the ability of non-human primates to learn language mounted in the mid-seventies with reports that Tiki, a gorilla raised and trained like a human child by zoologists Erin and Patrick Kenzie, had learned to use sign language and was able to communicate with his human "brother," who was deaf.1
Here is how your first footnote citation would look:
1Ann Peterson, "Anthropomorphosis and Primate Language Capability in the Kenzie Studies," Journal of Primate Studies 76, no. 1 (January 1995): 52.
Quotation:
Interest in the capacities of gorillas to communicate linguistically rose when it was reported that Tiki, a gorilla reared like a human child, had been "taught to use sign language and was able to speak to his deaf human 'brother,' Michael Kenzie".2
Here is how a subsequent footnote citation of the same source and page number would look (use Ibid only if you are referring to the same source as that in the immediately previous footnote):
2 Ibid.
Here is a how a bibliography entry for this source would look:
Peterson, Ann. “Anthropomorphosis and Primate Language Capability in the Kenzie Studies.” Journal of Primate Studies 76, no. 1 (January 1995): 47-70.
Plagiarism:
Original Quote:
If even a professional zoologist like Erin Kenzie was startled by the notion of a gorilla's learning to use sign language, the average citizen was absolutely incredulous.
From Peterson's 2001 book Anthromorphosis in Human Primate Studies, published by Knox Press, which is located in New York City
Unacceptable Borrowing of Words:
The notion of a gorilla's using sign language startled zoologists and made average citizens incredulous. 3
Here is how a subsequent footnote reference to the same source last cited, but to a different page number, would look.
3 Ibid, 59.
Here is how a bibliography entry for this source would look:
Peterson, Ann. Anthrophomorphosis in Human Primate Studies. New York: Knox Press, 2001.
Unacceptable Borrowing of Structure:
If the presence of a signing gorilla was startling for scientists studying animals and language, it was completely unbelievable to ordinary people.
In both of these examples, the writer has not made it clear that he or she has borrowed the wording and/or structure from the original source. Either use a direct quote, or make sure your wording and sentence structure is completely different from that of the original source.
Hint: To avoid unintentional plagiarism, do not look at the source when you are summarizing or paraphrasing. Write from memory, then look back at the source to check your accuracy.
Acceptable Paraphrases:
When they learned of a gorilla's ability to use sign language, both zoologists and, even more so, ordinary people were taken by surprise (Peterson 2001, 56).
Here is how a reference list entry for this source would look:
Peterson, Ann. 2001. Anthropomorphosis in Human Primate Studies. New York: Knox Press.
According to Peterson, both professional scientists and ordinary people were unprepared for the news that a gorilla could communicate with its trainers through sign language.4
4 Ibid, 56.
Notice that you must cite the author whose ideas you are describing, even though you are summarizing or paraphrasing in your own words.
Integrating Quotations into your Paper
It's a good rule of thumb not to quote directly from the original source for more than 2 or 3 complete sentences; if you find that you want to use a larger portion of the original text, it's probably a better idea to summarize or paraphrase. Always use signal phrases (attribution phrases) to lead into a quote, rather than dropping in a quote without warning or identification of the writer (floating quote); or, alternatively, integrate the quote into your own sentence so that it's grammatically correct.
Examples:
Unacceptable:
Although signing gorillas still are not commonplace, people have become more accustomed to the notion that gorillas are capable of learning sign language. "Tiki paved the way for the revelations of other scientists about the linguistic abilities their research primates were able to acquire" (Peterson 1995, 62).
Acceptable:
Although signing gorillas still are not commonplace, people have become more accustomed to the notion that gorillas are capable of learning sign language. As Peterson points out, "Tiki paved the way for the revelations of other scientists about the linguistic abilities their research primates were able to acquire” (1995, 62).
Note that in the first (unacceptable) example, the last name of the author of the source is given in the parenthetical reference; in the second (acceptable) example, however, it is not. This is because in the first version, the author’s name is not mentioned in the sentence in which her words are quoted; in the second version, her name is given as part of the sentence itself, and therefore only the year of publication and the page number of the source should be given in parentheses. The third example (also acceptable) shows footnote citation style (subsequent reference) for this use of the quote.
Although signing gorillas still are not commonplace, people have become more accustomed to the notion that gorillas are capable of learning sign language; in fact, Peterson observes, "Tiki paved the way for the revelations of other scientists about the linguistic abilities their research primates were able to acquire."6
6 Ibid, 62.
Using Ellipses to Tailor a Quotation to your Needs
In some cases it is necessary to eliminate words or sentences from a quoted passage in order to adapt it to the grammatical structure of your own sentence or to omit specific details in the original that are not relevant to your discussion. Ellipses are also used in a quoted passage to indicate that you have included only enough information to give an overview of the author's point as it pertains to your concerns. You must take extreme care, however, not to omit words or sentences that will unintentionally distort the meaning or implications of the original, and you must NEVER omit words or sentences in order to misrepresent the author's meaning and make your own claim appear stronger. Doing so deliberately is a form of academic dishonesty, and doing so unintentionally only demonstrates your inexperience or carelessness in handling sources—neither of which inspires confidence in your reader or speaks to the quality of your scholarship!
Here are the basic rules for using ellipses:
- Use ellipses to indicate truncated material from within, but not at the beginning or end of, a quotation. [Note: the “textual studies method” has different rules about this use of ellipses (see pp. 356-57 of the Turabian handbook). Be sure you’re using the standard form or the textual studies form consistently—either is correct—but don’t mix them.]
- Type ellipses as three periods with spaces in between:
last word quoted before ellipses_._._._next word quoted after truncated words or sentences
Most word processors will automatically format ellipses with the proper spacing when you enter them this way.
- Use a fourth period to indicate when a sentence in the quoted passage ends with the words or sentences you have truncated.
Review sections 7.5 and 25.3.2 of the Turabian handbook for complete discussion and examples of the correct and incorrect usages of ellipses.
Examples
Original:
Widespread exploration into the ability of animals to communicate through language first intensified two decades ago, when Tiki, a gorilla raised with human siblings by zoologists Erin and Patrick Kenzie, was taught to use sign language and was able to speak to his deaf human "brother," Michael Kenzie.
Acceptable:
Peterson notes that “exploration into the ability of animals to communicate through language first intensified two decades ago, when Tiki . . . was taught to use sign language . . . ” (1995, 62).
Unacceptable:
Peterson says that “ . . . Tiki, a gorilla raised with human siblings . . . was able to speak to his . . . human “brother, Michael . . .” (1995, 62).
Note that in the acceptable example, the quotation is shortened in order to relate only the most important information related to the writer's point about the field of language studies with primate animals, but does not omit any crucial words or sentences that would change the meaning or implications of the original passage. In the unacceptable example, however, notice that the writer omits key words and phrases and thus gives an inaccurate sense of Peterson's original point when s/he truncates the quotation to suggest that the gorilla could actually speak orally as human beings do.
