INTRODUCTIONS, PARAPHRASING, IN-TEXT CITATIONS

The last few things you need to know for your research paper to be a success.

INTRODUCTIONS
Most importantly, your intro needs to introduce the material in your paper in way that interests the reader. Make them want to keep reading. HOWEVER dont try so hard to write a flashy intro that you neglect to actually set up your paper (aka your argument). Per Writing Today, when we begin reading any text, we ask ourselves some version of the following questions so when you start writing, you should keep them in mind:
What is this? Why was this sent to me? (assigned, emailed, passed, etc.) What is this writer trying to make me believe or do? Is this important? Do I care about this?

INTRODUCTIONS
Your introduction should make use of the following moves the first 3 moves should definitely be a part of your introduction, although the order is up to you. 4 & 5 are up to you if you think adding that kind of information will strengthen your intro, then include it.
1. Identify your topic. [What are you writing about?] 2. State your purpose. [Why are you writing about it?] 3. State your main point, thesis statement, or a question you will answer. [What will you explain or prove?] 4. Offer background information on your topic. 5. Stress the importance of the topic to your readers.

In this example from WT Ch. 19, the writer makes all 5 movesand youll notice that this introduction is more than one paragraph. Yours can be longer than one paragraph too.

INTRODUCTIONS: ATTENTION GRABBERS

Grabbers/Hooks
Ask an interesting question. State a startling statistic. Make a compelling statement. Begin with a quotation. Use dialogue. Address readers as you.

Leads
Scene setter Anecdote Case history Personal sketch

BONUS: CONCLUSIONS
Conclusions, as you probably know, need to do a lot of the same kind of work that an introduction must do but this time instead of introducing, your wrapping things up. Conclusions should be short and succinct emphasize what you really want your reader to take away from your research paper. Conclusions should make use of a combination of the following moves.
1. 2. 3. 4. 5. Signal clearly that you are concluding. Restate your main point or thesis statement with added emphasis. Stress the importance of your topic again. Call your readers to action (if needed). Look to the future.

PARAPHRASING (& SUMMARIZING)

Avoiding plagiarism

WHAT IS PARAPHRASING?
Paraphrasing is not just restating the text in your own words if thats all youre trying to do you should probably just use a direct quotation. A good paraphrase explains and describes a portion of your source text in your own words. That means you need not just say the same thing in a dif ferent way, but integrate what the author of your source is saying with your own argument. A paraphrase should be used when you can directly bring your own argument and the information in the source -text together in a way that is useful to your argument.

PARAPHRASE CONTINUED
In a paraphrase any words or phrases that come directly from your source text should be in quotation marks within reason, of course. You dont need to put common words in quotes, but anything specific to that writer and his/her topic should be quoted. For a good and bad example of paraphrasing see W T Ch. 26 p. 494-495.

SUMMARY
If you have a significant source that you need to summarize in your paper, you need to pay attention to the following:
The sources structure Its tone, angle, or thesis Its style Its underlying values Its persuasive strategies

In general, if you want to summarize you should have some main point or idea from your source that you want to emphasize. When summarizing, as with paraphrasing, you want to avoid relying too heavily on the sources original wording (unless you attribute the wording to the source). For examples of summaries see WT Ch. 26 p 496-497

IN-TEXT CITATIONS

IN-TEXT CITATIONS
In MLA style (or any style, for that matter), you need to cite your sources in your paper as you use them not just on your works cited page at the end. Your in-text citations (parenthetical citations as W T calls them), will refer your reader to your works cited page and ensure that you avoid plagiarism by attributing all of the information youve gotten from your sources to those sources.

IN-TEXT CITATION BASICS

For a source with a known author and page numbers (even if you got the source online), in text citations are simple. At the end of the material youve taken from your source (whether thats a paraphrase or a quote), you include in parentheses before the period (or before the rest of the sentence if you move on to your own idea) the authors last name and the page number on which the material appears.

IN-TEXT CITATIONS: BEYOND BASIC

If you mention the author of your source by name in a sentence, you only need to include the page number in parentheses at the end of the sentence. If you cite more than one source in a sentence, you may include both sources in a single parenthetical citation at the end, separated by a semi -colon ex. (Irving 649; Ellis 375); or you can include the citations where they apply within the sentence. (see W T Ch. 27 p. 506) For an extended look at how to write parenthetical citations for a variety of sources, see W T Ch. 27 p. 508. The chart there explains how to cite things like multiple authors of one source, sources without authors, etc. HOWEVER, please note: When you have a source without page numbers, i.e. a website you do not need to invent page numbers or include paragraph numbers as the book describes just put authors name (or other as your source dictates) in the parenthetical citation.