Citation Advice

[skywalker]

Heya playground, I'm writing a paper and I've run up against the problem of trying to cite Paradise Lost. Specifically, I want to cite it like this:


On line 263 of Book I, Satan states that it is “Better to reign in hell, than serve in heav’n,”

My problem is, I'm completely at a loss as to what to put afterward in parenthesis. Harbrace says line number, but of course Milton's numbers reset with each book of the poem. Plus, I've already stated book and line number. Advice? Ideas?

[Berserk Monk]

Not sure how to help. Try asking your teacher. Also, are you sure you need to cit it? The idea of ruling in Hell/ serving in Heaven is a pretty well know idea that may not need to be referenced. You could just phrase it so that it's not a quote, and put it in your own words (if you want to be all sneaky like).

[PhoeKun]

This happens in every epic poem. Give book number, then line number. So in this case (I, 263).

edit: also, never ever try to pass off a line as yours to avoid citation. Ever.

tip#2 - If you're going to cite line numbers (and you should, in an academic paper), your sentence will thank you if you don't bother to mention book and line number beforehand. Things will look much crisper.

[skywalker]

This happens in every epic poem. Give book number, then line number. So in this case (I, 263).

edit: also, never ever try to pass off a line as yours to avoid citation. Ever.

tip#2 - If you're going to cite line numbers (and you should, in an academic paper), your sentence will thank you if you don't bother to mention book and line number beforehand. Things will look much crisper.

Good advice, part 2:

How should I cite song lyrics that go over 4 lines? I think it's important to preserve the line structure, but I'm not sure how to do that with an indented quote.

[PhoeKun]

Good advice, part 2:

How should I cite song lyrics that go over 4 lines? I think it's important to preserve the line structure, but I'm not sure how to do that with an indented quote.

Denote line breaks with "/". So, the song lyrics in my signature would read:

"Call the Rising Sun/Call the Winds of Change/etc".

[skywalker]

Denote line breaks with "/". So, the song lyrics in my signature would read:

"Call the Rising Sun/Call the Winds of Change/etc".

How do you know all this stuff? It's not in my handbook... :smallfrown:

[PhoeKun]

How do you know all this stuff? It's not in my handbook... :smallfrown:

Many, many years of writing papers. Huzzah for being a college graduate!

[Zeb The Troll]

Many, many years of writing papers. Huzzah for being a college graduate!Indeed! Yisserdey I coodin spell injuneer. T'day I are one. :smallbiggrin:

Also, if you're writing papers for college, check to see if your college offers any software to help out. For example, my school (UMUC) offers RefWorks but I've also seen them that offer EndNote or Reference Manager. These are very helpful tools.

[thubby]

i agree with asking the teacher, but all of mine wanted the citation for the poem, page/line, and then something to the effect of "as appears in", "as provided by", or "available from"

[Flame of Anor]

As for not being redundant, just don't say the book and line before the quote. Instead of On line 263 of Book I, Satan states that it is “Better to reign in hell, than serve in heav’n,” just put In Paradise Lost, Satan states that it is “Better to reign in hell, than serve in heav’n,” (I, 263).

[Ishmael]

If you're going to cite more than four lines of text, however, use a block quotation. Not only is it mandated by the MLA and Chicago-style gods, it also looks better and more professional.

[skywalker]

Ya, I did all this, thanks for the advice everyone.

I turned the paper in. Hooray for a night where I'm not up till 5AM...

[RTGoodman]

Well, it's a little late I guess, but here's a few other GREAT resources for research paper writing, citations, and stuff.

-Purdue University's Online Writing Lab (http://owl.english.purdue.edu/) - they literally have EVERYTHING. Bookmark it. Use it. Learn it. Enjoy.

-The MLA Handbook, Chicago Manual of Style, etc. - invaluable resources to have on hand just in case. Grab the one for your field (MLA for English and general courses, Chicago/Turabian for History, APA for Psychology, etc.).

-Rampolla's Pocket Guide to Writing History (http://www.amazon.com/Pocket-Guide-Writing-History/dp/0312403577/ref=pd_cp_b_1?pf_rd_p=413864201&pf_rd_s=center-41&pf_rd_t=201&pf_rd_i=031244673X&pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_r=1YTEBXGZPBFXQHQ80Q8R) - it's CHEAP, and it has a LOT of great information. It's for History papers, but you could probably use for other subjects.

-Zotero (http://www.zotero.org/) (Firefox Add-On) - If you're using online sources, it does almost everything FOR YOU. I haven't gotten to use it really since I found it after I graduated, but it looks promising.

[Zeb The Troll]

If you're going to cite more than four lines of text, however, use a block quotation. Not only is it mandated by the MLA and Chicago-style gods, it also looks better and more professional.I don't know about anyone else, but Alarra and I have always had to use APA, in both undergrad and grad work. Of course we never had to quote poetry so I'm not sure if this holds true there as well or not. Just saying that not everyone needs to obey MLA and Chicago.

[skywalker]

Well, it's a little late I guess, but here's a few other GREAT resources for research paper writing, citations, and stuff.

-Purdue University's Online Writing Lab (http://owl.english.purdue.edu/) - they literally have EVERYTHING. Bookmark it. Use it. Learn it. Enjoy.

-The MLA Handbook, Chicago Manual of Style, etc. - invaluable resources to have on hand just in case. Grab the one for your field (MLA for English and general courses, Chicago/Turabian for History, APA for Psychology, etc.).

-Rampolla's Pocket Guide to Writing History (http://www.amazon.com/Pocket-Guide-Writing-History/dp/0312403577/ref=pd_cp_b_1?pf_rd_p=413864201&pf_rd_s=center-41&pf_rd_t=201&pf_rd_i=031244673X&pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_r=1YTEBXGZPBFXQHQ80Q8R) - it's CHEAP, and it has a LOT of great information. It's for History papers, but you could probably use for other subjects.

-Zotero (http://www.zotero.org/) (Firefox Add-On) - If you're using online sources, it does almost everything FOR YOU. I haven't gotten to use it really since I found it after I graduated, but it looks promising.

I have a "Harbrace Handbook," which tells me most stuff, but not all. I will look up the zotero.


I don't know about anyone else, but Alarra and I have always had to use APA, in both undergrad and grad work. Of course we never had to quote poetry so I'm not sure if this holds true there as well or not. Just saying that not everyone needs to obey MLA and Chicago.

My English class is MLA. My Political Science class was MLA. My Public Speaking class is APA, and so will be any (however unlikely) psych classes I take.

Oy.