The Art of Paraphrasing

Paraphrasing means to borrow someone else's ideas but render these ideas in your own words. This literally isn't true: you may and sometimes must borrow a word or two from the original. In addition, the length of a paraphrase, unlike a summary, is often similar to the length of the original text. Here's an example borrowed from authors Rise B. Axelrod and Charles R. Cooper entitled Reading Critically, Writing Well (New York: Bedford St. Martin's, 2002):

Original (from Martin Luther King, Jr.'s "Letter from Birmingham Jail"):

I had hoped that the white moderate would understand that law and order exist for the purpose of establishing justice and that when they fail in this purpose they become the dangerously structured dams that block the flow of social progress. I had hoped that the white moderate would understand that the present tension in the South is a necessary phase of the transition from an obnoxious negative peace, in which the Negro passively accepted his unjust plight, to a substantive and positive peace, in which all men will respect the dignity and worth of human personality.

Paraphase:

In his "Letter from Birmingham Jail," Martin Luther King, Jr. writes that he had hoped for more understanding from the white moderate--specifically that they would recognize that law and order are not ends in themselves but means to a greater end of establishing justice. When law and order do not serve this greater end, they stand in the way of progress. King expected the white moderate to recognize that the current tense situation in the South is part of a transition that is necessary for progress. The current situation is bad because although there is peace, it is an "obnoxious" and "negative" kind of peace based on blacks passively accepting the injustice of the status quo. A better kind of peace, one that is "substantive," real and not imaginary, as well as "positive," requires that all people, regardless of race, be valued.

Note how the original language has changed, but the ideas have not. Note also that the lengths are roughly similar. Finally, note that while the paraphrase means to be neutral--you are just attempting to render in your own words what someone else has said--you cannot avoid the fact that when you paraphrase, you interpret. To do so in such a way as to make your words informative while faithful to the original text, is the art of paraphrasing.

Here's an attempt that doesn't work:

Original (from Manwatching, by Desmond Morris published by Abrams of New York in 1977, page 131)

Unfortunately, different countries have different ideas about exactly how close is close. It is easy to test your own "space reaction": when you are talking to someone in the street or in any open space, reach with your arm and see where the nearest point on his body comes. If you hail from western Europe, you will find that he is at roughly fingertip distance from you. In other words, as you reach out, your fingertips will just about make contact with his shoulder. If you come from eastern Europe, you will find you are standing at "wrist distance." If you come from the Mediterranean region, you will find that you are much closer to your companion, at little more than "elbow distance."

Unacceptable paraphase:

Regrettably, different nations think differently about exactly how close is close. Test yourself: When you are talking to someone in the street or any open space, stretch your arm out to measure how close that person is to you. If you are from western Europe, you will find that your fingertips will just about make contact with the person's shoulder. If you are from eastern Europe, your wrist will reach the person's shoulder. If you are from the Mediterranean region, you will find that you are much closer to your companion, when your elbow will reach that person's shoulder (Morris 131).

Try another example for yourself (borrowed from page 541 of The Little Brown Handbook, 6th edition. New York: HarperCollins Publishers, 1995):

Original (from Anne Hughey and Eric Gelman, "Managing the Woman's Way," Newsweek 17 March 1986: 47)

Generalizing about male and female styles in management is a tricky business, because stereotypes have traditionally been used to keep women down. Not too long ago it was a widely accepted truth that women were unstable, indecisive, temperamental and manipulative and weren't good team players because they'd never played a team sport like football. In fighting off these prejudices many women simply tried to adopt masculine traits in the office.

How might you paraphrase this? Remember that a successful paraphrase must use your own words but preserve the idea. A good rule of thumb is to make not only changes in diction but also in syntax. Here are two possible results: a longer version and a shorter version.

Continue to work on this skill by paraphrasing as you take notes during your research. While a number of good notes will include quotations, I would encourage you to use mostly summaries and paraphrases as you read your resources.