How to find and use quotations to support your thesis statement
By Liz Matthews
You may have written a great thesis statement for your paper, but now your teacher tells you that you need to use examples — direct quotations from the book — to support your point. If this task seems overwhelming, here are a few simple tips to keep in mind.
Be an active reader. As you read, always be on the lookout for lines or passages that jump out or speak to you. If you can write in your book, underline, star, or highlight these passages. If you can’t, use small Post-It notes or just keep track of page numbers and identifying words on a separate piece of paper. Don’t worry about what your teacher may be looking for. Your thesis statement will be stronger if it comes from what you’ve learned from your reading and research. When you sit down to write your essay, it will be a lot easier to find examples to support your thesis statement if you’ve already made note of key passages and lines.
Trust yourself and your own ideas. When searching for a quotation, simply think about what made you come up with your thesis in the first place. There had to be a scene or a passage that made you decide what you believe, so go to that part of the book and find your example there. For example, if you’re arguing that Holden Caulfield is afraid to grow up, find a scene in which he is acting immature or unsure of himself. Go back to parts of the book that stayed in your mind for some reason.
Be on the lookout for a book’s themes and symbols. If you have trouble thinking about which quotations to include, start with a passage that directly relate to one of the book’s symbols. For example, if you’re reading To Kill a Mockingbird, find a passage that mentions a mockingbird. You are sure to get to the heart of a story if you consider the symbols the author uses.
Don’t leave a quotation hanging. You can ensure that your example is relevant if you ask yourself the following questions: Does this quotation directly support my point? Is this quotation smoothly integrated into the paragraph? Do I give the quotation context by briefly explaining what is happening at that point in the story? And, lastly—and this is the most important question—do I follow up the quotation by explaining how it supports my point? Do not assume that your reader will make this connection. You should also make sure that the quotation makes sense on its own. In other words, include enough of it so that it sounds like a complete sentence—but not too much that is takes over your essay. In general, you should try not to use more than four lines.
