Show, don’t tell, but do try to flag.īe careful not to over-flag your introductory material, which can make your paper sound mechanical. It would be better to say something like (for occasion), “The problem with is that … ,” or (for methodology), “This essay looks at from the perspective of … ,“ or (for assertions and analyses) to give the details specific to your ideas. Likewise, it would be awkward to read, “My occasion for this essay is … ,” or “My methodology is … ,” or “I assert that … ,” or “My analysis of this evidence is that … ”. For example, it would be awkward for a paper to say something like, “My text is … ,” a flag that could be better stated as, “In this paper, I examine … ”. That is, without being heavy-handed about it, include signal phrases in your writing that alert your reader to the kind of information you are communicating in each part of your paper. For example, if you incorrectly cited Samuel Johnson in the above example, yet you have Boswell listed on your Works Cited page, then your readers will be unable to reference the Johnson quote.When presenting academic information, show, don’t tell, but do try to flag.At all times, the author named in your parenthetical or signal phrase must correspond to the author named in your Works Cited page citation.Making parenthetical and Works Cited page citations work together: Samuel Johnson admitted that Edmund Burke was an “extraordinary man” (qtd.How would you properly compose your parenthetical? Like so: Perhaps Boswell quotes Samuel Johnson’s remarks about Shakespeare, and you want to quote Johnson.

What if you are reading an article about Edmund Burke, written by a writer named Boswell.

“Poets,” according to Shelley, “are the unacknowledged legislators of the world” (103-04).

Shelley thought poets “the unacknowledged legislators of the world” (794-95).Īnother example of a quotation that is an integral part of the sentence structure:.

Quoted material is usually preceded by a colon if the quotation is formally introduced and by a comma or no punctuation if the quotation is an integral part of the sentence structure.Įxample of a quotation that is an integral part of the sentence structure:.

If your signal phrase does not include the author’s name, then the pages number(s) and the author’s last name go inside the parenthetical.

If your signal phrase includes the author’s name, then only the page number(s) go inside the parenthetical.Although this is a simple revision tactic it is very effective, and will help to turn a somewhat tedious prose style into an interesting one.Īcknowledges, adds, admits, agrees, argues, asserts, believes, claims, comments, compares, confirms, contends, declares, denies, disputes, emphasizes, endorses, grants, illustrates, implies, insists, notes, observes, points out, reasons, refutes, rejects, reports, responds, suggests, thinks, writes. If you discover that your favorite signal phrase verb seems to be “suggests,” then edit your paper by varying the verb. The signal phrase often proves to be an instance where this repetitiveness occurs.ĭetecting the problem through proofreading and editing:Īfter you have a rough draft of your paper check all your signal phrases. In other words, writers find words and phrases that become favorites, and develop a tendency to use them frequently. The examples above are both fine signal phrases, but a research paper that contains many in-text citations can become rather tedious to read if every quotation is introduced in the same manner, for all writers tend to develop their own particular writing style habits. The two most common and scholarly signal phrases are “Smith suggests that.” and “Smith argues that.” Other artists hold a bolder view: “Poets are the unacknowledged legislators of the world” (Shelley 794-95).Shelley held a bold view: “Poets are the unacknowledged legislators of the world” (794-95).Įxample of a Signal Phrase without an accreditation:.Without an accreditation (the author’s name)Įxample of a Signal Phrase with an accreditation:.With an accreditation (the author’s name).The parenthetical sometimes gives the author’s last name, depending on the type of signal phrase you have written.ĭefinition of a Signal Phrase: A phrase that signals your reader that you are about to include a quote.The parenthetical gives the page number(s) of the quoted material’s source.Quoted material is followed by a parenthetical, also known as an in-text citation.

Citation signal phrases