Writing and Studying with Integrity

A summary captures the essence of an author’s work, whether it is a book or article. Summaries can vary in length from a single sentence to a paragraph to multiple pages. It’s important to remember when summarizing that you are not evaluating the work of the author, but describing the work.

Some key questions to consider when summarizing an argumentative piece of writing include:

• What is the topic?
• What is the research question?
• What is the thesis?
• What evidence does the author use to support the thesis?
• What is the significance of the work?

When summarizing scientific works, the following questions should be considered:

• What is the topic?
• What is the research gap?
• What is the objective of the study?
• What is the methodology?
• What are the results?
• What is the overall significance?

Since you’re not evaluating the work in a summary, try to suspend your beliefs about the author’s perspective. This method will help you to represent the author’s perspective as fairly and accurately as possible.

Most often, authors summarize the work of others in order to critically evaluate it. As a result, it’s important that your summary engages with the material that you will subsequently evaluate and will help guide the reader through your text.

Whereas a summary captures the main idea of an author’s work, a paraphrase focuses on a particular passage such as a paragraph. A paraphrase is therefore much more specific than a summary. The goal is not merely to articulate the main idea of the passage but to capture the relevant details.

Paraphrasing, like summarizing, isn’t easy. The skill of articulating someone else’s ideas in your own words takes practice. Here are some strategies that can assist you when paraphrasing:

Change the Structure of the Sentences

If the original passage is full of long and complex sentences, then try using short and simple sentences. If on the other hand the original passage uses simple sentences, then try capturing the ideas using more complex sentences. Using subordination terms (such as “while”, “although”, and “despite”) can often be useful in this respect.

Change the Subject of the Sentences

The subject of a sentence is a noun, pronoun or noun phrase that precedes the verb. One way to further change the structure of sentences is to locate the subject of the original and to change it in your paraphrase.

Change the Order of Ideas

One way to significantly reshape a passage is to articulate the author’s ideas in a different order from the original. As long as the meaning of the author’s view is maintained, this is a good paraphrasing strategy to use.

Use Synonyms Wherever Possible

While the first three topics will change the structure of the passage, it is also important to change individual words. Try to find synonyms that you could use for common English words in the original passage.

While there is no better way to accurately represent what an author says than by direct quotation, there is a tendency for novice writers to use quotation too much. This is a matter of integrity because over-quotation doesn’t treat the reader with respect. It leads to choppy writing, which can interrupt a reader’s flow. It also doesn’t demonstrate to the reader that the writer has taken the time to sufficiently understand the material.

Quotation certainly has a place in academic writing but be intentional when you do it. If an author’s text is so beautifully written that a paraphrase or summary won’t do it justice, then quotation is justifiable. In addition, if the author’s specific wording is central to an argument that you’re making, then quoting the author makes perfect sense. But in other circumstances, when you simply need to represent the author’s ideas or findings, it is generally preferable to paraphrase or summarize.

Whether you summarize, paraphrase or quote an author, you need a citation to let your reader know whose work you are using. By citing your sources you not only give credit to other authors, but you help your reader determine what work you will ultimately be building upon.

There are numerous citation styles each with their own guidelines, most notably APA, MLA and Chicago. We have a variety of citation resources to assist you.