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U200: Academic Writing ‘Writing a Summary’ 2018

Writing a Summary

A summary is condensed version of a larger reading. A summary is not a rewrite of the


original piece and does not have to be long nor should it be long. To write a summary, use
your own words to express briefly the main idea and relevant details of the piece you have
read. Your purpose in writing the summary is to give the basic ideas of the original reading.
What was it about and what did the author want to communicate?

While reading the original work, take note of what or who is the focus and ask the usual
questions that reporters use: Who? What? When? Where? Why? How? Using these
questions to examine what you are reading can help you to write the summary.

Sometimes, the central idea of the piece is stated in the introduction or first paragraph, and
the supporting ideas of this central idea are presented one by one in the following
paragraphs. Always read the introductory paragraph thoughtfully and look for a thesis
statement. Finding the thesis statement is like finding a key to a locked door. Frequently,
however, the thesis, or central idea, is implied or suggested. Thus, you will have to work
harder to figure out what the author wants readers to understand. Use any hints that may
shed light on the meaning of the piece: pay attention to the title and any headings and to
the opening and closing lines of paragraphs.

In writing the summary, let your reader know the piece that you are summarizing. Identify
the title, author and source of the piece. You may want to use this formula:

In "Title of the Piece" (source and date of piece), author shows that: central idea of the
piece. The author supports the main idea by using _____________________ and showing
that ______________________________________________________.

Here is a sample summary:

In the short story "The Secret Life of Walter Mitty," author James Thurber humorously
presents a character who fantasizes about himself as a hero enduring incredibly challenging
circumstances. In his real life, Walter Mitty lives an ordinary, plain life; he is a husband
under the control of an overbearing, critical wife. Thurber uses lively dialogue to give
readers an understanding of Mitty's character. The story takes place over a period of about
twenty minutes; during this brief time, Mitty drives his wife to the hairdresser and runs
errands that his wife has given him while he waits for her. In between his worrying that he is
not doing what she wants him to do, he daydreams about himself as a great surgeon,
brilliant repair technician, expert marksman, and brave military captain. This story shows
that fantasy is often a good alternative to reality.

Lecture Notes pfiambawe


U200: Academic Writing ‘Writing a Summary’ 2018

Remember:

 Do not rewrite the original piece.


 Keep your summary short.
 Use your own wording.
 Refer to the central and main ideas of the original piece.
 Read with who, what, when, where, why and how questions in mind.
 Do not put in your opinion of the issue or topic discussed in the original piece. Often,
instructors ask students to put their opinions in a paragraph separate from the
summary.

How to Write a Summary

Writing a summary is a great way to process the information you read, whether it’s an
article or a book. If you’re assigned a summary in school, the best way to approach it is by
reviewing the piece you’re summarizing. Skim it first, then read it thoroughly in preparation
for taking notes and where your notes are make sure you know where the notes are from to
make it clearer. When you get to writing your summary, rely on your memory first to make
sure the summary is in your own words. Then revise it to ensure that your writing is clear
and the grammar, punctuation, and spelling are all perfect.

Part 1: Reviewing the Piece

1. Read the piece thoroughly. You should read it without making any kind of marks.
Instead, focus on really understanding what the author is saying. This might mean
that you need to read one sentence or paragraph more than once. You might also
want to reread the whole piece. That's fine.[1]

2. Write down what you think the main point of the piece is. This will help you start to
put the piece's arguments in your own words. You can also ask yourself what point
or points or themes come up throughout the entire piece. The title can also give you
a tip as to the main point of the piece.[2]
 The author might also state their thesis more plainly by saying something like "my
argument is...."
 In a fiction piece, the author will more likely emphasize themes. So if you notice that
love - discussions or descriptions of it, for example - come up a lot, one of the main
points of the piece is probably love.
3. Reread the piece, taking notes on the major points of it. Once you know for sure
what the author's main point is, reread the piece, looking for the ways they support

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U200: Academic Writing ‘Writing a Summary’ 2018

that point. You can find supporting material by looking for details that refer to the
title, surprises in the argument or plot, repetition, or a lot of attention to detail.
Write down each time something like this occurs.[3]
 To put something in your own words, write it down as if you were explaining or
describing it to a friend. In that case, you wouldn't just read what the author wrote.
Do the same when you're writing down the major points in your own words.
4. Don't focus on the evidence that the author uses to support those points. You only
need to know what they're arguing. So, for example, say the author's main argument
is: "The U.S. Civil Rights Movement actually began in the 1950s." They might say that
black women's boycott of mass transit is an example of this. You only need to note
the black women's boycott, not the examples of that boycott that the author
uses.[4]
 For fiction pieces, this means avoiding rewriting every single thing that happens in
the piece. Focus instead on the major plot points and the main motivator for those
points. Don't include everything that happens to the character along the way.

Part 2: Writing The Summary in Your Own Words

1. Start with the source’s information. You should start every summary with the author
and the article’s title. This lets your reader know that you’re summarizing what
someone else has written.[5]
 For example, you can start with something like “George Shaw’s '‘Pygmalion’' is a play
that addresses issues of class and culture in early twentieth-century England.”
2. Work from memory to write the main point of each section. Without looking at your
notes, write a first draft that includes the main point of each section in your own
words. A summary shouldn’t just repeat what the original author said, so using your
own words is very important.[6]
 If you absolutely must use the original author’s words, put them in quotation marks.
This tells your reader those words aren’t yours. Not doing this is academic
plagiarism, and it can get you in a lot of trouble.
 Make sure you set up a quotation correctly. So if you're quoting what an author said
in their play, you could say something like: "Shaw's Henry Higgins has difficulty
seeing Eliza as a fully functioning person given his general attitude toward women.
Higgins argues that in his friendships with women they become 'exacting, suspicious,
and a damn nuisance.'"
3. Present the material in a neutral fashion. As you write, make sure you’re only
summarizing the original piece of writing. You shouldn’t be inserting your own
opinions of the piece or of the events the piece covers. Instead, only summarize
what the original author said.[7]

Lecture Notes pfiambawe


U200: Academic Writing ‘Writing a Summary’ 2018

 For example, you might think that Hamlet spends a lot of time thinking and not a lot
of time acting. You can say something like, "Hamlet is a man of thought, rather than
action," instead of "Why doesn't Hamlet do something once in a while?"
4. Use language appropriate to a summary. You want your reader to know that you’re
summarizing another person’s arguments. So you should occasionally use phrases
like “the author argues,” or “the article claims” when you’re presenting those
arguments. This reminds the reader that it’s not your piece, but someone else’s.[8]
 In fiction pieces, you can say something like "Shakespeare's Hamlet then spends a lot
of time brooding on the castle ramparts." This tells your reader you're talking about
Shakespeare's play, not inventing your own story.

Part 3: Revising Your Draft into a Coherent Summary

1. Reread the draft you wrote from memory against your notes. Take your notes out
and compare them to your from-memory draft. If there’s anything major you forgot
to include, put it in your second draft.[9]
2. Eliminate repetition. Sometimes in an article or book, the author might make the
same point multiple times as a way to underline their main points. In your summary,
you don’t need to do this. When you’re rereading your summary, delete any
repetitive points – even if the author makes them multiple times, you only need to
make them once.[10]
 If you notice an author has made the same point multiple times, though, it’s a good
indicator that this is an important point, and it should definitely be in your summary.
3. Add transitions where necessary. If you’re focused on getting all of the main points
down, you might not be paying attention to how the paragraphs of your summary fit
together. When you revise, make sure that you connect each paragraph to the next,
and back to the main point.[11]
 For example, in a summary of an article about the cause of the American Revolution,
you might have a paragraph that summarizes the author's arguments about taxes,
and another about religious freedom. You can say something like "Although some
colonists believed that taxes should entitle them to representation in Parliament, the
author also argues that other colonists supported the Revolution because they
believed they were entitled to representation in heaven on their own terms."
4. Check for grammatical and spelling errors. Once you've finished revising the
arguments in your draft, check the little things. Make sure there are no spelling or
grammar mistakes. Look for any additional or missing punctuation and correct that
as well.
 Don't use spell-checker for spelling errors. It will catch if you spell something wrong,
but not if you use the wrong spelling of a word. For example, it won't catch that you
used "there" when you meant "their."

Lecture Notes pfiambawe


U200: Academic Writing ‘Writing a Summary’ 2018

5. Check your length. Once you’ve added anything you might have forgotten to your
summary, check how long it is. A summary should be around one quarter the length
of the original piece. So if the original piece is 4 pages long, your summary should be
no more than a page.[12]
6. Ask someone else to read your work. Another person may see an argument or point
in a completely different light than you have, giving you a new feel for the work and
yours.
 Not only should they be comparing your work for accuracy, ask them to read it for
flow and summation. Can that person understand the sense of the article by reading
your summary?[13] Don't hesitate to ask for criticism; then weigh those criticisms
and make valid changes.

Community Q&A

 Are all main ideas included in the summary?

You should try to include all the main ideas if you can, but some things may have to be left
out to save space. If you think a point is important to the piece you're summarizing, add it to
your summary. However, keep in mind that your summary should be concise rather than
perfectly detailed.

 How should I begin a summary?

You should begin with "The book___________, by ___________, tells the story
of______________________.

 How can I start a summary?

These are some examples of the beginning of a summary: - The story is about... - The text
describes... - The article shows...

 Is three paragraphs considered "brief"?

A summary's length depends on the passage you're summarizing. If it's a short article or
story, then it should just be one long paragraph. If it's a novel, however, 3 to 5 paragraphs
should be enough. So really, it depends on the passage.

 Do I include headlines in a summary?

Yes it is obligatory, because readers of your summary must have a possibility to easily find
and read the original text, that you have summarised.

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U200: Academic Writing ‘Writing a Summary’ 2018

 Can I number things when summarizing?

No, just use the appropriate words to convey a chronological order, for example words like
"first," "second," "then," "finally," etc.

 What if the book has a lot of characters that are only mentioned once or twice?

If they are minor characters then you shouldn't include them in your summary. Decide on
whether the character is important to the storyline. You'll probably just need to focus on the
main characters to write an effective summary.

 How do I start a summary?

You start of a summary with the title of the book and the author. For example: "The
Book___________ by __________ tells the story of..." And then you introduce the
characters and the main idea of the story or book.

 Can I add points not covered in an article to a summary?

No. A summary consists only of information/content that is written in the article.

 When summarizing an article consisting of many paragraphs, should I summarize it


into one?

It depends on how your tutor/lecturer wants to see or be presented. Sub-topic wise


paragraphs can be included in a summary.

 When writing a summary with first person pronouns, do I summarize it with a first
person pronoun or second person?

In general, you should write summaries in the third person (he/she/it). The perspective
should stay the same throughout the summary whichever you choose to use though.

 What is the difference between active voice and passive voice?

In active voice, the subject is doing something. In passive voice, something is being done to
the subject. For example - Active: "The ballerinas beat the truck drivers at arm wrestling."
Passive: "The truck drivers were beaten in arm wrestling by the ballerinas."

 Must all the essential information be summarized in one sentence in the


introductory paragraph?

No. An introductory paragraph should only include an explanation of the situation as it


stands. The essential information or thesis you will be discussing should be placed after the
introduction, but before body paragraphs.

Lecture Notes pfiambawe


U200: Academic Writing ‘Writing a Summary’ 2018

 In which tense should I write a summary?

Typically a summary would be written in the past or present tense.

 What if there is more than one main character?

Include all the main characters, then. It is okay if there is more than one, but there shouldn't
be too many.

 How long should a summary be and should at least one example be included in a
summary?

If it is about a book, it should be at least half a page. If it is about a paragraph, it should be


around 4 to 6 sentences. Only include an example when it is about a book.

 How many words does a summary consist of?

It really depends, but typically between 100 and 500. There are brief, basic summaries and
there are more detailed summaries. The length or complexity of the thing you're
summarizing can also influence how long your summary is.

 Can I include pictures if I'm doing it for homework?

You might want to ask your teacher if it's okay to include pictures. It depends on the class,
the assignment, your grade, etc. Usually, pictures are fine for elementary school projects,
but they wouldn't be appropriate for most high school assignments.

 Can I make a summary in a 100 word paragraph?

Yes. Just briefly summarize your main points and restate your thesis.

 Do I only add the main encounters and important points from a story while writing a
summary?

Mostly. Throw in a little bit of detail that is important. However, when you choose your
detail, think about whether it is critical or not. If it's not, leave it out.

 Can I include a list of items in my summary?

It depends on the criteria but on a normal basis, a list could be helpful to the reader if you
choose wisely.

 Which punctuation do I need in a summary?

All normal rules of grammar apply to a summary, so you would need whichever punctuation
marks are required in your sentences - periods, question marks, commas, exclamation
points, etc.

Lecture Notes pfiambawe


U200: Academic Writing ‘Writing a Summary’ 2018

 How do I write a summary of a story that I didn't understand?

You can ask for clarification on the story before writing your summary, to ensure that you
understand what you are writing about.

 What if there wasn't an author because someone just said it?

You can still give credit to the person who said it.

 How should I title my summary?

You should title your summary according to the chapters or the story name.

 Is it okay if I use more than one quote?

It is good to use more than one quote but don't overdo it because then it just going to be a
page full of quotes. If it's a summary about an article, 2 or 3 quotes should be good.

Source:

https://www.wikihow.com/Write-a-Summary

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