what's the difference between an essay and summary

The Difference between an Essay and a Summary

If you sat down to write your essay and realized that what you've been assigned to write is a summary, you may be asking yourself what the difference is. Don't worry, there are just a few things you need to know.

What is an Essay?

An essay is a short, informative piece of writing that requires an introduction with a thesis statement that explains the writer's point in writing the essay. The introduction is followed by a body of at least three paragraphs with topic sentences that relate back to the thesis statement and expand on it. Finally, an essay should end with a conclusion that sums up the points and explains why those points led the writer to the conclusions they made on the topic.

Traditionally, an essay comes in four basic types: expository, descriptive, narrative, and persuasive. While essays are short in length, they should fully lay out the writer's thoughts in a concise way.

What is A Summary?

While an essay includes a summary at the end, the definitions of an essay and a summary are quite different. A summary is usually a very short piece of writing that is concise yet thorough. When all the main points in a piece of writing are explained in a much shorter way, a summary is complete.

What Should You Include in Each?

For most essays, you should include relevant information from outside sources and a bibliography or works cited page that gives proper credit to the writers of those sources. A clear thesis statement is key, as every essay should have a point that's easy to understand to anyone reading your essay. You should also include a summary of all your main points.

A summary should include only a quick recap of what's written in your essay or any other piece of writing you're summarizing. Give only the main points and a brief description of why they're important without expanding on them or adding additional commentary not found in the writing itself. A summary is never the place to introduce new information.

If you've been assigned a summary to write, your teacher or professor just wants to know that you understood the writing and were able to clearly identify the most relevant points. For an essay, you're being asked to offer new thoughts or information in a way that is solely yours.

Essay vs Summary - What's the difference?

As nouns the difference between essay and summary, as a verb essay, as an adjective summary is, derived terms, related terms.

Introduction

Goals and Goal Setting

Goals Common to All RST Writers

Other Goals to Consider

Defining My Own Goals

Advice about Assignments

Getting Started: Listing Topics to Write about in the Tutorial

Narrative One: Personal Piece on a Significant Experience

Narrative Two: Academic Piece on a Significant Experience

Summary/Response One

Summary/Response Two

Tutorial Evaluation Postscript

On Using the Resources for Writers

Generating and Developing Ideas

Finding/Expressing Main Ideas

Showing v. Telling Sentences

Focusing Topic Sentences

Thesis Statements

Reading Strategies

Assessing Your Reading Strategies

Summarizing

Writing Effective Summary and Response Essays

Discourse Analysis Worksheet

Trade Magazines

Selecting Readings

A summary is a concise paraphrase of all the main ideas in an essay. It cites the author and the title (usually in the first sentence); it contains the essay's thesis and supporting ideas; it may use direct quotation of forceful or concise statements of the author's ideas; it will NOT usually cite the author's examples or supporting details unless they are central to the main idea. Most summaries present the major points in the order that the author made them and continually refer back to the article being summarized (i.e. "Damon argues that ..." or "Goodman also points out that ... "). The summary should take up no more than one-third the length of the work being summarized.

The Response:

A response is a critique or evaluation of the author's essay. Unlike the summary, it is composed of YOUR opinions in relation to the article being summarized. It examines ideas that you agree or disagree with and identifies the essay's strengths and weaknesses in reasoning and logic, in quality of supporting examples, and in organization and style. A good response is persuasive; therefore, it should cite facts, examples, and personal experience that either refutes or supports the article you're responding to, depending on your stance.

Two Typical Organizational Formats for Summary/Response Essays:

1. Present the summary in a block of paragraphs, followed by the response in a block:

Intro/thesis Summary (two to three paragraphs) Agreement (or disagreement) Disagreement (or agreement) Conclusion

Note: Some essays will incorporate both agreement and disagreement in a response, but this is not mandatory.

2. Introduce the essay with a short paragraph that includes your thesis. Then, each body paragraph summarizes one point and responds to it, and a conclusion wraps the essay up.

Intro/thesis Summary point one; agree/disagree Summary point two; agree/disagree Summary point three; agree/disagree Conclusion

Summary: Using it Wisely

What this handout is about.

Knowing how to summarize something you have read, seen, or heard is a valuable skill, one you have probably used in many writing assignments. It is important, though, to recognize when you must go beyond describing, explaining, and restating texts and offer a more complex analysis. This handout will help you distinguish between summary and analysis and avoid inappropriate summary in your academic writing.

Is summary a bad thing?

Not necessarily. But it’s important that your keep your assignment and your audience in mind as you write. If your assignment requires an argument with a thesis statement and supporting evidence—as many academic writing assignments do—then you should limit the amount of summary in your paper. You might use summary to provide background, set the stage, or illustrate supporting evidence, but keep it very brief: a few sentences should do the trick. Most of your paper should focus on your argument. (Our handout on argument will help you construct a good one.)

Writing a summary of what you know about your topic before you start drafting your actual paper can sometimes be helpful. If you are unfamiliar with the material you’re analyzing, you may need to summarize what you’ve read in order to understand your reading and get your thoughts in order. Once you figure out what you know about a subject, it’s easier to decide what you want to argue.

You may also want to try some other pre-writing activities that can help you develop your own analysis. Outlining, freewriting, and mapping make it easier to get your thoughts on the page. (Check out our handout on brainstorming for some suggested techniques.)

Why is it so tempting to stick with summary and skip analysis?

Many writers rely too heavily on summary because it is what they can most easily write. If you’re stalled by a difficult writing prompt, summarizing the plot of The Great Gatsby may be more appealing than staring at the computer for three hours and wondering what to say about F. Scott Fitzgerald’s use of color symbolism. After all, the plot is usually the easiest part of a work to understand. Something similar can happen even when what you are writing about has no plot: if you don’t really understand an author’s argument, it might seem easiest to just repeat what he or she said.

To write a more analytical paper, you may need to review the text or film you are writing about, with a focus on the elements that are relevant to your thesis. If possible, carefully consider your writing assignment before reading, viewing, or listening to the material about which you’ll be writing so that your encounter with the material will be more purposeful. (We offer a handout on reading towards writing .)

How do I know if I’m summarizing?

As you read through your essay, ask yourself the following questions:

• Am I stating something that would be obvious to a reader or viewer?
• Does my essay move through the plot, history, or author’s argument in chronological order, or in the exact same order the author used?
• Am I simply describing what happens, where it happens, or whom it happens to?

A “yes” to any of these questions may be a sign that you are summarizing. If you answer yes to the questions below, though, it is a sign that your paper may have more analysis (which is usually a good thing):

• Am I making an original argument about the text?
• Have I arranged my evidence around my own points, rather than just following the author’s or plot’s order?
• Am I explaining why or how an aspect of the text is significant?

Certain phrases are warning signs of summary. Keep an eye out for these:

• “[This essay] is about…”
• “[This book] is the story of…”
• “[This author] writes about…”
• “[This movie] is set in…”

Here’s an example of an introductory paragraph containing unnecessary summary. Sentences that summarize are in italics:

The Great Gatsby is the story of a mysterious millionaire, Jay Gatsby, who lives alone on an island in New York. F. Scott Fitzgerald wrote the book, but the narrator is Nick Carraway. Nick is Gatsby’s neighbor, and he chronicles the story of Gatsby and his circle of friends, beginning with his introduction to the strange man and ending with Gatsby’s tragic death. In the story, Nick describes his environment through various colors, including green, white, and grey. Whereas white and grey symbolize false purity and decay respectively, the color green offers a symbol of hope.

Here’s how you might change the paragraph to make it a more effective introduction:

In The Great Gatsby, F. Scott Fitzgerald provides readers with detailed descriptions of the area surrounding East Egg, New York. In fact, Nick Carraway’s narration describes the setting with as much detail as the characters in the book. Nick’s description of the colors in his environment presents the book’s themes, symbolizing significant aspects of the post-World War I era. Whereas white and grey symbolize the false purity and decay of the 1920s, the color green offers a symbol of hope.

This version of the paragraph mentions the book’s title, author, setting, and narrator so that the reader is reminded of the text. And that sounds a lot like summary—but the paragraph quickly moves on to the writer’s own main topic: the setting and its relationship to the main themes of the book. The paragraph then closes with the writer’s specific thesis about the symbolism of white, grey, and green.

How do I write more analytically?

Analysis requires breaking something—like a story, poem, play, theory, or argument—into parts so you can understand how those parts work together to make the whole. Ideally, you should begin to analyze a work as you read or view it instead of waiting until after you’re done—it may help you to jot down some notes as you read. Your notes can be about major themes or ideas you notice, as well as anything that intrigues, puzzles, excites, or irritates you. Remember, analytic writing goes beyond the obvious to discuss questions of how and why—so ask yourself those questions as you read.

The St. Martin’s Handbook (the bulleted material below is quoted from p. 38 of the fifth edition) encourages readers to take the following steps in order to analyze a text:

• Identify evidence that supports or illustrates the main point or theme as well as anything that seems to contradict it.
• Consider the relationship between the words and the visuals in the work. Are they well integrated, or are they sometimes at odds with one another? What functions do the visuals serve? To capture attention? To provide more detailed information or illustration? To appeal to readers’ emotions?
• Decide whether the sources used are trustworthy.
• Identify the work’s underlying assumptions about the subject, as well as any biases it reveals.

Once you have written a draft, some questions you might want to ask yourself about your writing are “What’s my point?” or “What am I arguing in this paper?” If you can’t answer these questions, then you haven’t gone beyond summarizing. You may also want to think about how much of your writing comes from your own ideas or arguments. If you’re only reporting someone else’s ideas, you probably aren’t offering an analysis.

What strategies can help me avoid excessive summary?

• Read the assignment (the prompt) as soon as you get it. Make sure to reread it before you start writing. Go back to your assignment often while you write. (Check out our handout on reading assignments ).
• Formulate an argument (including a good thesis) and be sure that your final draft is structured around it, including aspects of the plot, story, history, background, etc. only as evidence for your argument. (You can refer to our handout on constructing thesis statements ).
• Read critically—imagine having a dialogue with the work you are discussing. What parts do you agree with? What parts do you disagree with? What questions do you have about the work? Does it remind you of other works you’ve seen?
• Make sure you have clear topic sentences that make arguments in support of your thesis statement. (Read our handout on paragraph development if you want to work on writing strong paragraphs).
• Use two different highlighters to mark your paper. With one color, highlight areas of summary or description. With the other, highlight areas of analysis. For many college papers, it’s a good idea to have lots of analysis and minimal summary/description.
• Ask yourself: What part of the essay would be obvious to a reader/viewer of the work being discussed? What parts (words, sentences, paragraphs) of the essay could be deleted without loss? In most cases, your paper should focus on points that are essential and that will be interesting to people who have already read or seen the work you are writing about.

But I’m writing a review! Don’t I have to summarize?

That depends. If you’re writing a critique of a piece of literature, a film, or a dramatic performance, you don’t necessarily need to give away much of the plot. The point is to let readers decide whether they want to enjoy it for themselves. If you do summarize, keep your summary brief and to the point.

Instead of telling your readers that the play, book, or film was “boring,” “interesting,” or “really good,” tell them specifically what parts of the work you’re talking about. It’s also important that you go beyond adjectives and explain how the work achieved its effect (how was it interesting?) and why you think the author/director wanted the audience to react a certain way. (We have a special handout on writing reviews that offers more tips.)

If you’re writing a review of an academic book or article, it may be important for you to summarize the main ideas and give an overview of the organization so your readers can decide whether it is relevant to their specific research interests.

If you are unsure how much (if any) summary a particular assignment requires, ask your instructor for guidance.

Works consulted

We consulted these works while writing this handout. This is not a comprehensive list of resources on the handout’s topic, and we encourage you to do your own research to find additional publications. Please do not use this list as a model for the format of your own reference list, as it may not match the citation style you are using. For guidance on formatting citations, please see the UNC Libraries citation tutorial . We revise these tips periodically and welcome feedback.

Barnet, Sylvan. 2015. A Short Guide to Writing about Art , 11th ed. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall.

Corrigan, Timothy. 2014. A Short Guide to Writing About Film , 9th ed. New York: Pearson.

Lunsford, Andrea A. 2015. The St. Martin’s Handbook , 8th ed. Boston: Bedford/St Martin’s.

Zinsser, William. 2001. On Writing Well: The Classic Guide to Writing Nonfiction , 6th ed. New York: Quill.

You may reproduce it for non-commercial use if you use the entire handout and attribute the source: The Writing Center, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

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summary vs analysis

In academic writing, writers are often expected to use a combination of summary and analysis in their papers. However, the two processes are often confused especially by beginning writers. This handout aims to help you better identify the differences between summary and analysis.

• The purpose of a summary is to reduce information already known down to its essential parts.
• The information stated usually consists of the main points and key supporting points.
• Summaries can use direct quotes or paraphrasing to convey the main or key points. However, more often, a paraphrase is used.
• Summaries do not evaluate, judge, or interpret the information. They present the facts as the original writer or speaker intended.
• When writing a summary, writers should avoid adding their personal reactions, biases, opinions, and beliefs.
• Summaries are typically substantially shorter than their source texts, as they contain only the key points presented in an abbreviated form.
• The purpose of an analysis is to interpret or find meanings or patterns in information.
• Analyzing statements will take a step beyond summary and describe the writer’s personal findings and interpretations of the source material.
• An analysis usually is presented after a statement of evidence, which can have direct quotes or summary. After the evidence is presented, the analysis of that evidence should not summarize or describe the information. Rather, an analysis will uncover something new about the evidence.
• Analysis can provide readers a more thorough understanding of the facts presented, but writers should avoid adding their personal reactions, biases, opinions, and beliefs.
• Although an analysis may be influenced by personal beliefs, an analysis tends to be based more in facts and patterns than thoughts and emotions.

Below, we have provided an example of a summary paragraph and an analysis paragraph to help you identify the differences between them.

Prompt : You will choose a short film, and determine what the short film is communicating to its audience through the marriage of narrative and technique. Your job is to construct an analysis around a thesis statement arguing what the message is that is being communicated within this short piece. This message isn’t the plot; rather, you need to find out what the main theme of the story is, and then tell us how the short film conveys that through the use of various techniques.

Summary Paragraph Example

In “Mr. Foley,” a short film directed by D.A.D.D.Y., the sound effects are the star. In film production, a Foley artist is the person who generates sound effects artificially to play over footage. This important job is exaggerated into absurdity in this short film, where a man named Mr. Foley wakes up in a hospital and suddenly all the sounds he makes and hears is produced by a team sitting in his room. The first thing we hear as an audience is white noise, almost like a record player’s static. Next, as Mr. Foley’s bandages are removed we hear music start to swell. We also catch glimpses of hands manipulating cloth and ripping tape off a surface as well. Sounds are exaggerated to the extreme: as the nurse clicks her pen one of the men across the room clicks a giant pen.

• The preceding papragraph is a great example of a summary. It merely describes what is happening in this short film, without analyzing any meaning or providing any argument about the different sounds and shots it mentions.
• However, this would not be appropriate for the prompt given above. It clearly asks for an analysis of the short film’s use of technique, so some revision of the paragraph above is needed to make it appropriate for the assignment. Below is a paragraph with more analysis added.

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When it comes to sharing information in a concise way, two useful tools are the synopsis and the summary. These tools help in shortening longer works, but they do so differently. It’s important to know the difference between them for clear writing and communication. A synopsis is a short overview of a story or plot, mainly used for novels, plays, or movies. A summary, on the other hand, condenses the main points and ideas of a text, like an article or report. Understanding when to use a synopsis or a summary can improve your ability to communicate effectively.

Definition and Purpose: Summary VS Synopsis

A synopsis is a short overview that gives a quick glimpse into the main points or plot of a work. It’s often used in books, movies, or plays to give readers or industry professionals a concise outline without revealing every detail. The main purpose of a synopsis is to provide enough information to spark interest or give a clear idea of the storyline or argument, without going into the depth that the full work would.

On the other hand, a summary is a condensed version of a text that brings out its key points and main ideas. Unlike a synopsis, which is more focused on plot or structure, a summary aims to give readers a fast understanding of what the content is about. It distills the essential information, leaving out the finer details and examples. The purpose of a summary is to allow someone to grasp the main arguments or themes of a text quickly, making it easier to decide whether to delve deeper into the full work.

Key Differences

When comparing synopses and summaries, it’s important to recognize their distinct features, as they serve different purposes in communication and writing. There are three main differences to consider.

A key difference lies in their length and level of detail . A summary is typically shorter and less detailed than a synopsis. It provides a brief overview, focusing on the main points or ideas of the text. In contrast, a synopsis offers a more detailed outline, especially in the context of a story or narrative. It includes key events, character arcs, and plot points, giving a fuller picture of the work’s structure.

The focus of each also differs. A synopsis usually concentrates on the plot or structure of a story, outlining the sequence of events and the development of characters. This makes it particularly useful for narratives, where understanding the storyline is crucial. On the other hand, a summary is more concerned with the main ideas and arguments of a text. It aims to condense the essential content, stripping away narrative details to highlight the core message or thesis.

The contexts in which synopses and summaries are used also vary. Synopses are commonly found in literature and the film industry, where they provide potential readers or collaborators with a snapshot of a story’s plot. They are often required by publishers, agents, or producers when evaluating a manuscript or script. Summaries, however, have a broader application across fields such as academic writing and business. They are valuable for distilling articles, reports, or research papers, allowing readers to quickly grasp the key points or findings.

By choosing the appropriate tool based on the intended purpose and audience, writers can ensure that their message is conveyed clearly and effectively.

Writing Tips for Students

When writing a synopsis , it’s important to provide a clear and concise outline of the plot and character arcs. Start by summarizing the main events in the story, focusing on the key turning points that drive the narrative forward. Introduce the main characters and describe their development throughout the story, highlighting any significant changes or challenges they face. Keep the language simple and direct, avoiding any unnecessary details that don’t contribute to the overall understanding of the plot.

For summaries , the goal is to distill the content down to its essential points. Begin by reading the text thoroughly to identify the main ideas and arguments. Then, organize these points in a logical order, creating a coherent overview of the material. It’s crucial to avoid adding personal interpretation or opinion; instead, stick to the facts and present the information objectively. Summaries should be brief, so focus on including only the most important information that provides a clear understanding of the text’s content.

So, What’s Main Difference Between a Synopsis and a Summary?

In conclusion, while both synopses and summaries are used to shorten information, they have distinct purposes. A synopsis provides a quick outline of a story’s plot, useful in the literary or entertainment fields. A summary, however, focuses on distilling the key ideas and arguments of a text, often used in academic or professional settings. Knowing the differences between these two tools is crucial for effective writing and communication. By selecting the right one based on your goal and audience, you can ensure your message is clear and concise.

What is the difference between a synopsis and a summary?

The main difference between a synopsis and a summary lies in their focus and detail. A synopsis provides a detailed outline of a story’s plot, including key events and character arcs, and is often used in literature or film. A summary, on the other hand, condenses the main ideas and arguments of a text, focusing on the essential points without going into narrative detail.

When is it appropriate to use a synopsis instead of a summary?

A synopsis is appropriate when you need to present a detailed overview of a story’s plot, such as when pitching a book or script to publishers or producers. It’s also useful for giving readers or collaborators a quick understanding of a narrative’s structure. A summary is more suitable for academic or professional contexts where the focus is on distilling the main ideas or arguments of a text.

How long should a synopsis be compared to a summary?

A synopsis is typically longer than a summary, as it includes more detailed information about the plot and characters. While there’s no strict rule, a synopsis might be a few paragraphs to a couple of pages long, depending on the complexity of the story, whereas a summary is usually a few sentences to a paragraph, focusing on brevity.

Are synopses and summaries used differently in academic writing?

Yes, in academic writing, summaries are more commonly used to condense the main points of articles, research papers, or studies. Synopses are less common in academic writing, but they may be used in literary analysis or film studies to provide an overview of a work’s narrative structure.

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Quoting, Paraphrasing, and Summarizing

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This handout is intended to help you become more comfortable with the uses of and distinctions among quotations, paraphrases, and summaries. This handout compares and contrasts the three terms, gives some pointers, and includes a short excerpt that you can use to practice these skills.

What are the differences among quoting, paraphrasing, and summarizing?

These three ways of incorporating other writers' work into your own writing differ according to the closeness of your writing to the source writing.

Quotations must be identical to the original, using a narrow segment of the source. They must match the source document word for word and must be attributed to the original author.

Paraphrasing involves putting a passage from source material into your own words. A paraphrase must also be attributed to the original source. Paraphrased material is usually shorter than the original passage, taking a somewhat broader segment of the source and condensing it slightly.

Summarizing involves putting the main idea(s) into your own words, including only the main point(s). Once again, it is necessary to attribute summarized ideas to the original source. Summaries are significantly shorter than the original and take a broad overview of the source material.

Why use quotations, paraphrases, and summaries?

Quotations, paraphrases, and summaries serve many purposes. You might use them to:

• Provide support for claims or add credibility to your writing
• Refer to work that leads up to the work you are now doing
• Give examples of several points of view on a subject
• Call attention to a position that you wish to agree or disagree with
• Highlight a particularly striking phrase, sentence, or passage by quoting the original
• Distance yourself from the original by quoting it in order to cue readers that the words are not your own
• Expand the breadth or depth of your writing

Writers frequently intertwine summaries, paraphrases, and quotations. As part of a summary of an article, a chapter, or a book, a writer might include paraphrases of various key points blended with quotations of striking or suggestive phrases as in the following example:

In his famous and influential work The Interpretation of Dreams , Sigmund Freud argues that dreams are the "royal road to the unconscious" (page #), expressing in coded imagery the dreamer's unfulfilled wishes through a process known as the "dream-work" (page #). According to Freud, actual but unacceptable desires are censored internally and subjected to coding through layers of condensation and displacement before emerging in a kind of rebus puzzle in the dream itself (page #).

How to use quotations, paraphrases, and summaries

Practice summarizing the essay found here , using paraphrases and quotations as you go. It might be helpful to follow these steps:

• Read the entire text, noting the key points and main ideas.
• Summarize in your own words what the single main idea of the essay is.
• Paraphrase important supporting points that come up in the essay.
• Consider any words, phrases, or brief passages that you believe should be quoted directly.

There are several ways to integrate quotations into your text. Often, a short quotation works well when integrated into a sentence. Longer quotations can stand alone. Remember that quoting should be done only sparingly; be sure that you have a good reason to include a direct quotation when you decide to do so. You'll find guidelines for citing sources and punctuating citations at our documentation guide pages.

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Writing in college often means using ideas from other sources. There are times when it may be best to quote the sources directly, while other times may be better served by paraphrasing or summary. In order to decide which technique to use, it is helpful to think about how you are using the information in your paper.

Definitions

• Quotation reproduces a statement word-for-word as it appears in its original source
• Paraphrase explains a statement by using your own words and sentence structure
• Summary explains a statement using your words, but typically condenses a larger statement into a shorter explanation

How to decide which approach to use

Direct quotations can be useful when the exact wording of a statement is important. The exact wording of a quotation may be significant to your claim. In example 1 below, the contrast between adjectives are important to the claim. Also, direct quotation may be important when you want to make sure you are being precise in representing the author’s position. Finally, you might choose to use a direct quotation when the original statement is particularly well written or structurally persuasive. If a statement uses elements such as parallelism or alliteration, you might not be able to recreate that same effect. An important element of the quotation in example 1 is the parallel structure between "lowest and vilest alleys" and "smiling and beautiful countryside."

When Sherlock tells Watson "the lowest and vilest alleys in London do not present a more dreadful record of sin than does the smiling and beautiful countryside,” he intensifies suspense by equating innocence with evil ("The Adventure of the Copper Beeches" 502).

Paraphrasing is usually expected in research and argumentative essays. These type of papers benefit from paraphrasing because it shows that you understand the source and are therefore a reliable voice on that source. Paraphrasing can make the evidence more straightforward. Another reason to paraphrase is to adjust your tone for your audience. If the assignment asks you to write a presentation for your classmates, you do not want to quote scientific jargon. Your source is only persuasive and supportive if your readers understand it. The paraphrase of the quotation below is shorter, and more direct.

Original quotation:  “In the case of Facebook, it has changed its format multiple times, and merged other literacy practices – email, instant messaging, games – into its structure in an attempt to keep users on the site” (Keller 2014, 74).

Paraphrase: Facebook has tried to hold on to its users by incorporating new functions like games and email (Keller 2014).

Summaries can also be used in reviews, research papers, and argumentative essays. They have a similar purpose as paraphrasing, but they condense a large work (i.e. an entire chapter, article, or book) into a shorter text such as a paragraph or a short essay. Summaries allow you to focus your description on  the parts that are relevant to your discussion. Example 3 briefly summarizes Anne of Green Gables, focusing on Anne as a strong female character and could lead into a discussion of how the series teaches girls self-respect while also cherishing romance.

Anne of Green Gables is a book series that follows the life of an unruly red-headed orphan as she grows from an romantic adolescent into an independent young woman.

What can the Writing Center do to help?

Writing Center consultants can help you if you aren't sure what style of source integration works best for an assignment. Some essays require a mix of methods. Consultants can help you determine if your writing needs a better balance of integration methods. If you are less familiar with one of the three uses of sources, the Writing Center can give you additional pointers.

See our section on how to incorporate sources for more on punctuating and introducing quotations. Also see our section on avoiding plagiarism to learn how to paraphrase and summarize.

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Frequently asked questions

What’s the difference between an abstract and a summary.

An abstract concisely explains all the key points of an academic text such as a thesis , dissertation or journal article. It should summarize the whole text, not just introduce it.

An abstract is a type of summary , but summaries are also written elsewhere in academic writing . For example, you might summarize a source in a paper , in a literature review , or as a standalone assignment.

All can be done within seconds with our free text summarizer .

Frequently asked questions: Working with sources

Synthesizing sources means comparing and contrasting the work of other scholars to provide new insights.

It involves analyzing and interpreting the points of agreement and disagreement among sources.

You might synthesize sources in your literature review to give an overview of the field of research or throughout your paper when you want to contribute something new to existing research.

You can find sources online using databases and search engines like Google Scholar . Use Boolean operators or advanced search functions to narrow or expand your search.

For print sources, you can use your institution’s library database. This will allow you to explore the library’s catalog and to search relevant keywords.

Lateral reading is the act of evaluating the credibility of a source by comparing it with other sources. This allows you to:

• Verify evidence
• Contextualize information
• Find potential weaknesses

As you cannot possibly read every source related to your topic, it’s important to evaluate sources to assess their relevance. Use preliminary evaluation to determine whether a source is worth examining in more depth.

This involves:

• Reading abstracts , prefaces, introductions , and conclusions
• Looking at the table of contents to determine the scope of the work
• Consulting the index for key terms or the names of important scholars

You might have to write a summary of a source:

• As a stand-alone assignment to prove you understand the material
• For your own use, to keep notes on your reading
• To provide an overview of other researchers’ work in a literature review
• In a paper , to summarize or introduce a relevant study

You can assess information and arguments critically by asking certain questions about the source. You can use the CRAAP test , focusing on the currency , relevance , authority , accuracy , and purpose of a source of information.

Ask questions such as:

• Who is the author? Are they an expert?
• Why did the author publish it? What is their motivation?
• How do they make their argument? Is it backed up by evidence?

Critical thinking skills include the ability to:

• Identify credible sources
• Evaluate and respond to arguments
• Assess alternative viewpoints
• Test hypotheses against relevant criteria

Critical thinking refers to the ability to evaluate information and to be aware of biases or assumptions, including your own.

Like information literacy , it involves evaluating arguments, identifying and solving problems in an objective and systematic way, and clearly communicating your ideas.

It is important to find credible sources and use those that you can be sure are sufficiently scholarly .

• Consult your institute’s library to find out what books, journals, research databases, and other types of sources they provide access to.
• Look for books published by respected academic publishing houses and university presses, as these are typically considered trustworthy sources.
• Look for journals that use a peer review process. This means that experts in the field assess the quality and credibility of an article before it is published.

In academic writing, the sources you cite should be credible and scholarly. Some of the main types of sources used are:

• Academic journals: These are the most up-to-date sources in academia. They are published more frequently than books and provide cutting-edge research.
• Books: These are great sources to use, as they are typically written by experts and provide an extensive overview and analysis of a specific topic.

Scholarly sources are written by experts in their field and are typically subjected to peer review . They are intended for a scholarly audience, include a full bibliography, and use scholarly or technical language. For these reasons, they are typically considered credible sources .

Popular sources like magazines and news articles are typically written by journalists. These types of sources usually don’t include a bibliography and are written for a popular, rather than academic, audience. They are not always reliable and may be written from a biased or uninformed perspective, but they can still be cited in some contexts.

There are many types of sources commonly used in research. These include:

• Journal articles
• Encyclopedias

You’ll likely use a variety of these sources throughout the research process , and the kinds of sources you use will depend on your research topic and goals.

You usually shouldn’t cite tertiary sources as evidence in your research paper, but you can use them in the beginning stages of the research process to:

• Establish background information
• Identify relevant keywords and terms
• Familiarize yourself with current debates in your field

Use tertiary sources in your preliminary research to find relevant primary and secondary sources that you will engage with in more depth during the writing process .

What constitutes a tertiary source depends on your research question and how you use the source.

To determine whether a source is tertiary, ask:

• Am I examining the source itself, or am I using it for background information?
• Does the source provide original information ( primary ) or analyze information from other sources ( secondary )? Or does it consolidate information from other sources (tertiary)?

Primary sources provide direct evidence about your research topic (photographs, personal letters, etc.).

Secondary sources interpret and comment on information from primary sources (academic books, journal articles, etc.).

Tertiary sources are reference works that identify and provide background information on primary and secondary sources . They do not provide original insights or analysis.

A tertiary source may list, summarize , or index primary and secondary sources or provide general information from a variety of sources. But it does not provide original interpretations or analysis.

Some examples of tertiary sources include:

• Bibliographies
• Dictionaries

It can sometimes be hard to distinguish accurate from inaccurate sources , especially online. Published articles are not always credible and can reflect a biased viewpoint without providing evidence to support their conclusions.

Information literacy is important because it helps you to be aware of such unreliable content and to evaluate sources effectively, both in an academic context and more generally.

Information literacy refers to a broad range of skills, including the ability to find, evaluate, and use sources of information effectively.

Being information literate means that you:

• Know how to find credible sources
• Use relevant sources to inform your research
• Understand what constitutes plagiarism
• Know how to cite your sources correctly

When searching for sources in databases, think of specific keywords that are relevant to your topic , and consider variations on them or synonyms that might be relevant.

Once you have a clear idea of your research parameters and key terms, choose a database that is relevant to your research (e.g., Medline, JSTOR, Project MUSE).

Find out if the database has a “subject search” option. This can help to refine your search. Use Boolean operators to combine your keywords, exclude specific search terms, and search exact phrases to find the most relevant sources.

Proximity operators are specific words used alongside your chosen keywords that let you specify the proximity of one keyword in relation to another.

The most common proximity operators include NEAR ( N x ), WITHIN ( W x ), and SENTENCE .

Each proximity operator has a unique function. For example, N x allows you to find sources that contain the specified keywords within a set number of words ( x ) of each other.

Boolean operators are specific words and symbols that you can use to expand or narrow your search parameters when using a database or search engine.

The most common Boolean operators are AND , OR , NOT or AND NOT , quotation marks “” , parentheses () , and asterisks * .

Each Boolean operator has a unique function. For example, the Boolean operator AND will provide search results containing both/all of your keywords.

A Boolean search uses specific words and symbols known as Boolean operators (e.g., AND , OR ) alongside keywords to limit or expand search results. Boolean searches allow you to:

• Prioritize keywords
• Exclude keywords
• Search exact keywords
• Search variations of your keywords

The CRAAP test is an acronym to help you evaluate the credibility of a source you are considering using. It is an important component of information literacy .

The CRAAP test has five main components:

• Currency: Is the source up to date?
• Relevance: Is the source relevant to your research?
• Authority: Where is the source published? Who is the author? Are they considered reputable and trustworthy in their field?
• Accuracy: Is the source supported by evidence? Are the claims cited correctly?
• Purpose: What was the motive behind publishing this source?

To avoid plagiarism when summarizing an article or other source, follow these two rules:

• Write the summary entirely in your own words by paraphrasing the author’s ideas.
• Cite the source with an in-text citation and a full reference so your reader can easily find the original text.

A summary is always much shorter than the original text. The length of a summary can range from just a few sentences to several paragraphs; it depends on the length of the article you’re summarizing, and on the purpose of the summary.

A summary is a short overview of the main points of an article or other source, written entirely in your own words. Want to make your life super easy? Try our free text summarizer today!

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Scribbr specializes in editing study-related documents . We proofread:

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Scribbr’s Plagiarism Checker is powered by elements of Turnitin’s Similarity Checker , namely the plagiarism detection software and the Internet Archive and Premium Scholarly Publications content databases .

The add-on AI detector is powered by Scribbr’s proprietary software.

The Scribbr Citation Generator is developed using the open-source Citation Style Language (CSL) project and Frank Bennett’s citeproc-js . It’s the same technology used by dozens of other popular citation tools, including Mendeley and Zotero.

You can find all the citation styles and locales used in the Scribbr Citation Generator in our publicly accessible repository on Github .

• Key Differences

Know the Differences & Comparisons

Difference Between Summary and Conclusion

In the absence of conclusion, the research paper might seem incomplete. It is often contrasted with a summary, but there are subtle differences between the two. A summary is nothing but a short and clear account of the text, covering the main points, facts or elements only.

Content: Summary Vs Conclusion

Comparison chart.

Definition of Summary

A summary is the compact account of the main text, i.e. an article, essay, drama, or some other form of literature. It gives an overview of the key points of the piece of writing. Moreover, one can also summarize anything which he/she has seen and heard, like speech, movie or lecture, etc.

It is typically about 5% to 15% of the original work, i.e. it may extend up to one to three paragraphs, which is around 100 to 300 words. It simply depends on the length of the text which is summarized. Its aim is to describe a piece of writing while including considerably less content than its original.

Ideal Summary

• An ideal summary is one that objectively highlights the entire form of literature.
• It should cover the focal point of every paragraph and the evidence supporting it.
• It should exclude all the irrelevant examples, details and information.
• It can make use of the keywords used in the original work, but should not use the same sentences and phrases, except if quotation marks are used.
• It must express the sense of the original work while using your own words and sentences.

Definition of Conclsuion

Conclusion refers to the epilogue which is given at the end of something, to deduce the findings. It forms part of the thought process, which combines all the points discussed, so as to reach a comprehensive idea or statement.

It is the final step in the process of reasoning, in which judgement, decision or opinion is formed after complete investigation and consideration. To conclude something, different types of perspectives are considered. It is only 10% of the research paper, which has two segments – summary and final thought .

Ideal Conclusion

• The conclusion is said to be ideal when it gives an interesting insight and should end on a positive note.
• Highlights the main argument presented in the piece of writing.
• Sums up the answer to the question, often stated in the introduction.
• Refer back the questions, states the key points and findings, and wind up the discussion with the final observation.
• Reinforces the primary theme of the study.
• Makes a strong and long-lasting impression on the reader.
• It should never introduce new points.

Key Differences Between Summary and Conclusion

The points stated below discuss the differences between summary and conclusion:

• A summary is an abridgement of the work of literature, which covers the key points succinctly. On the contrary, conclusion refers to the final part of the discourse which sums up the argument and gives a statement of opinion or judgement.
• A summary is written to provide the reader with a precise and objective narrative of the central ideas and aspects of the original text. Conversely, conclusion paragraph wraps up the text and presents the reader that you have accomplished, what you have set forth in the beginning.
• While a summary restates the facts and elements, which are discussed in the original text, conclusion tends to synthesize all the points and wrap up the discussion. It helps the reader understand the importance of the research.
• Ideally, the length of the summary is 5% to 15%, whereas the conclusion constitutes only 10% of the original work.
• A summary often demonstrates the central ideas of the text clearly and concisely. In contrast, the conclusion introduces a new outlook, proposes a course of actions, provides a solution to the problem, makes suggestions for further study, and makes deductions on the basis of the argument.
• A summary only includes the ideas of the original text. One should not insert their opinion, criticism, comments or interpretations. As against, the conclusion can include the researcher’s or writer’s views, ideas and criticisms at the end.

In a nutshell, a summary condenses the material as well as it informs the reader about the vital points. Contrastingly, a conclusion gives the reader the sense of completeness of the argument or topic, with a reason or final thought. It focuses on the final outcome of the argumentation or research.

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