Summary Assignment

Tips for Drafting of the Summary

I know I’m repeating myself a bit here, but just in case you’ve forgotten….

Writing a summary requires essentially two kinds of skills: identifying the main idea(s) of the piece you are summarizing, and recognizing the evidence that supports the idea(s).

· Assume your reader has not read the text you are summarizing.

· In the beginning of your summary, mention the title of the piece, who the author is, when the piece was originally published, the setting of the piece, and what kind of writing it is (a story, a poem, a lecture, a chapter from a textbook, etc.). In other words, give your reader the entire context of the piece so that we know exactly what you’re writing about.

· Limit yourself to presenting only the key points of the piece. A summary is NOT a restating of every point but rather a distillation of the most important features.

· You can find the key points that support the main idea by looking for clusters of sentences or groups of paragraphs that convey the writer’s meaning. Because paragraphs work together, you cannot simply summarize each paragraph independently. You may need to summarize a group of paragraphs. This all depends on the length and complexity of the text you are summarizing.

· Maintain a neutral, objective, and academic tone. Move through the piece systematically, relating main points, etc. as they occur in the text, explaining them and moving on. Present the author’s words and ideas accurately and fairly.

· Be concise. Make every word count.

· ALWAYS write in 3rd person, present tense.

· Don’t evaluate the author and the piece, or give us your subjective opinion of them. Remember that you are not writing an analysis, just a summary of the key points as written.

· Keep your focus on the text. Don’t state the author’s ideas as if they were your own.

· Put the summary of the author’s ideas in your own words. You will only ever quote directly (and then only very briefly) when you need to show your readers a specific, important term or phrase that’s pivotal to our overall understanding of the piece.