Why use quotations, paraphrases, and summaries?
Quotations, paraphrases, and summaries can all provide useful support for claims that you are making, and can be used to give examples of other points of view, or to provide background information that is relevant to your own ideas. A paraphrase is more appropriate than a quote in cases where the original author’s ideas are more important than the manner in which they are expressed, and where the authority of the author is not an issue. Paraphrases and summaries can also serve a useful pedagogical function. It is only possible to give an accurate paraphrase or summary of an author’s ideas if you have a clear understanding of those ideas and the language that the author is using to express them.
