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OASIS Writing Skills

Video Transcripts:
Using Quotations: Integrating Quotations Using "That" or a Comma

Transcripts for Writing Center videos

Using Quotations: Integrating Quotations Using "That" or a Comma

Last updated 5/6/2020

 

Visual: Screen opens to a background image with a person typing on a laptop and a notebook and pencil, along with the Walden University Writing Center logo. The title Walden University Writing Center and tagline “Your writing, grammar, and APA experts” appears on the screen. The screen changes to show the series title “Using Quotations” and the video title “Integrating Quotations Using ‘That’ or a Comma.”

Audio: Guitar music

 

Visual: Slide changes to the following examples:

Integrating using “that”:

  • Johnson et al. (2010) stated that “educators should control their students” (p. 57).
  • The authors indicated that “educators should control their students” (Johnson et al., 2010, p. 57).

Integrating using a comma:

  • Johnson et al. (2010) stated, “Educators should control their students” (p. 57).
  • The authors stated, “Educators should control their students” (Johnson et al., 2010, p. 57).

Audio: When integrating quotations, it’s generally helpful to avoid starting a sentence with a quotation. This is because the switch between your voice (in the previous sentence) and the quotation’s voice (in a current sentence) could be abrupt. One way to make that change in voice more gradual is to add an introductory clause before the quotation. There are two ways we can integrate a quotation with an introductory clause: using the word “that” or using a comma.

When using the word “that” to add an introductory clause to a quotation, you will usually begin with a citation or reference to the authors, include the word “that,” and then include the quotation. For example, here we have, “Johnson et al. (2010) stated that..." and then our quotation. When using “that” before a quotation like this, you don’t need to include a comma, and the first word of the quotation is lower-case.

Another option for adding an introductory clause to a quotation is to include a comma. With this approach, you will often begin with a citation or a reference to the authors, and you will then include your verb and a comma. For example, here we have, “Johnson et al. (2010) stated..." and then the comma before our quotation. There are other verbs you could use here, like noted or said as well. However, a specific formatting element for this example is that because we’re introducing this quotation as dialogue, we capitalize the first word of the quotation.  

Those are the two main ways you can incorporate an introductory clause before a quotation to help transition between your voice, as the author, and your source’s voice in the quotation, and our recommendation is to practice with both options so you can use both to integrate quotations into your writing.

 

Visual: The screen changes to an ending slide with slide a background image with a person typing on a laptop and a notebook and pencil, along with the Walden University Writing Center logo. The email address writingsupport@mail.waldenu.edu appears on the screen.