Quote Sandwich Weaving Sources Synthesis Moves Practice

Using Sources in Your Argument

Master the art of incorporating sources like a pro

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I. The Quote Sandwich Method

The quote sandwich method ensures your quotes are properly contextualized and analyzed, rather than dropped into your text without explanation.

Structure:

  1. Top Bun – Introduce with a signal phrase and context that prepares your reader.
  2. Meat – Present the quote with its proper in-text citation.
  3. Bottom Bun – Explain, analyze, and connect the quote to your argument.
Example:
In her influential TED Talk, vulnerability researcher Brené Brown challenges conventional thinking by stating, "Vulnerability is the birthplace of innovation, creativity and change" (Brown). This powerful assertion reframes vulnerability not as a weakness to be avoided, but as a crucial strength that enables personal and professional growth in our increasingly complex world.

Build Your Own Sandwich

Practice creating a quote sandwich with this interactive builder:

Key Takeaway

Never let quotes speak for themselves. Every quote needs your introduction to provide context and your analysis to explain its significance to your argument.

MLA In-Text Citation, Quotations, and Paraphrases
II. Weaving Multiple Sources

Goal: help your reader follow a conversation, not a stack of quotes.

A simple weave pattern:

  1. Set up the point you want to make.
  2. Bring in Source A (briefly).
  3. Connect it to your claim in your own words.
  4. Add Source B to deepen, complicate, or challenge Source A.
  5. Explain the relationship between A and B (agreement, tension, cause/effect, example, exception).

Key Takeaway

Don't make sources do the talking for you. Your sentences should control the conversation.

III. Synthesis Moves

Synthesis is when you show how ideas connect (or clash) across sources.

Useful sentence stems:

  • Agreement: Both A and B suggest that...
  • Tension: While A argues ..., B complicates this by...
  • Extension: A focuses on ..., but B extends the discussion to...
  • Example: B illustrates A's claim when...
  • Exception: A is mostly true, except when...

Rule of thumb: If your paragraph could survive with the sources removed (because your claim + reasoning still holds), you're doing it right. Sources should support, sharpen, or challenge your thinking—not replace it.

IV. Practice: Integration Plan

Use this quick checklist before you paste a quote into your draft:

  • What is my point in this paragraph?
  • What does this source add (evidence, definition, example, counterargument)?
  • What will I say after the source to explain why it matters?
  • How does this connect back to my thesis?

Key Takeaway

If you can't explain a quote in your own words, it's not ready to be in your paper yet.