THE POWER OF A QUOTATION

I forget what I was taught. I only remember what I have learnt.

- Patrick White

What is a quote?

When we are talking quoting from a book, or citing evidence from a text, a quote should be: Something insightful Something significant Actual sentences from a specific section of

text Backing up an observation on character,

relationships, theme, setting, point of view, tone, voice, symbolism, imagery, or other literary devices

Direct Example

The following example is from the book Delirium by Lauren Oliver:

“Hana, with her golden, halo hair and bright gray eyes, and perfect straight teeth, and her laugh that makes everyone in a two-mile radius whip around and look at her and laugh too” (Oliver, 27).

Another example: “I’m so angry and frustrated I’m shaking” (310).

Indirect Example

This example is also from Delirium by Lauren Oliver:

“I whip back around, pressing flat against the wall of a hardware store and inching back in the direction I’ve come. The chances any of the regulators saw me are slim- I was a block away and it’s pitch-black – but still, my heart never goes back to its normal pace” (Oliver, 210).

What does this show us?

Indirect Example, #2

“Maybe it was the race, or beating him to the buoys, or the fact that he didn’t criticize me or my family when I told him about my mother, but in that moment the giddiness and happiness is flowing strong and I feel like I could tell Alex anything, ask him anything” (162).

This quote shows us that she is starting to trust Alex as a person, and is starting to have feelings for him. It also shows us how deeply she takes to heart what has happened with her family.

From Wonder by R.J. Palacio

“I loved hanging out by the campfire after dark. I loved the way bits of fire dust would float up and disappear into the night air. And how the fire lit up people’s faces. I loved the sound the fire made, too. And how the woods were so dark that you couldn’t seen anything around you, and you’d look up and see a billion stars in the sky . . . like someone sprinkled salt on a shiny black table” (258).

What do all these quotes have in common??

PAGE NUMBERS!!!!!!! When you have pulled out what you want

to use: Put the whole thing in quotations When you are at the end of your quote, put

the closing quotation marks, then parentheses, the author (the first time), the page number, end parentheses and then punctuation.

Bad Quotes

“She was very tall with red hair.” “He said, “I love you” and she said, “I

know.” “Let the Hunger Games begin!” “Die, villan, die.” “He looked around and decided to sit

down.”

Let’s Start Looking at YOUR Book. . .

Let’s practice what quotes you may use. Remember that the reason WHY they are

significant is very important. You will need to share not only the quote itself, but the rationale of why you picked it and what it teaches you about the character.