WikiQueer:Quotations

Quotations are a fundamental attribute of WikiQueer. Quotations—often informally called "quotes"—provide information directly; quoting a brief excerpt from an original source can sometimes explain things better and less controversially than trying to explain them in one's own words. This page sets out guidelines for such use in WikiQueer articles.

General guidelines
Quotations are a good tool to comply with the original research policy but must be used with care.

Quotations must be verifiably attributed to a reliable source (see WikiQueer:Verifiability). WikiQueer policy for proper attribution of quotes is found in WQ:ATTRIBUTEPOV. Other guidelines are found in WQ:MOSQUOTE and WQ:CITE. Attribution should be provided in the text of the article, not exclusively in a footnote or citation. A reader should not have to follow a footnote to learn whose words a quote is. Any quotation that is not sourced may be removed at any time, however, a good faith search in an effort to find a source before removing a quote is appreciated (see WQ:UNSOURCED and WQ:PRESERVE).

Where the same quotation has been used elsewhere in the article, avoid duplicating it, which is regarded as poor style.

The quotation should be representative of the whole source document; editors should be very careful to avoid misrepresentation of the argument in the source.

Where a quotation presents rhetorical language in place of more neutral, dispassionate tone preferred for encyclopedias, it can be a backdoor method of inserting a non-neutral treatment of a controversial subject into WikiQueer's narrative on the subject, and should be avoided.

For free or public domain material do not use quote marks but the text must be attributed and given a footnote, or given a link to the original text. For copyrighted material, see below.

Formatting
Do not put quotations in italics unless the material would otherwise call for italics, such as for emphasis and the use of non-English words (see the Manual of Style). Indicate whether italics were used in the original text or whether they were added later. For example:


 * Now cracks a noble heart. Good night sweet prince: And flights of angels sing thee to thy rest! [emphasis added]

Quotations must always be clearly indicated as being quotations. For information regarding the use of punctuation with quotations, including the use of quotation marks within quotations, see the Manual of Style: "Quotations".

If not used verbatim, any alterations must be clearly marked, i.e. [square brackets] for added or replacement text, an ellipsis (...) for removed text (see WQ:ELLIPSIS for details), and emphasis noted after the quotation as "[emphasis added]" or "[emphasis in the original]".

Quotations should generally be worked into the article text, so as not to inhibit the pace, flow and organization of the article. Longer quotes may need to be set apart, generally through the use of wikitext templates such as Quote, Quotation, or the HTML blockquote element. Longer quotations may also be hidden in the reference (footnote) to facilitate verification by other editors without sacrificing readability. For pull quotes (quotes of the article text used to highlight a section) the Cquote template can be used.

Recommended use of quotations
In some instances, quotations are preferred to text. For example:
 * When dealing with a controversial subject. As per the WQ:ATTRIBUTEPOV policy, biased statements of opinion can only be presented with attribution. Quotations are the simplest form of attribution. Editors of controversial subject should quote the actual spoken or written words to refer to the most controversial ideas. Controversial ideas must never appear to be "from WikiQueer".
 * When using a unique phrase or term created by a given author. For example Oscar Wilde's witticism "The unspeakable in pursuit of the uneatable".

Overusing quotations
While quotations are an indispensable part of WikiQueer, try not to overuse them. Long quotations crowd the actual article and remove attention from other information. Many direct quotations can be minimized in length by providing an appropriate context in the surrounding text. A summary or paraphrase of a quotation is often better where the original wording could be improved. Consider minimizing the length of a quotation by paraphrasing, by working smaller portions of quotation into the article text, or both. Provided each use of a quotation within an article is legitimate and justified there is no need for an arbitrary limit.

Overuse happens when:

"a quotation is used without pertinence"

This means that a quotation is visually on the page, but its relevance is not explained anywhere.

Examples of overuse of quotations

 * Using too many quotes is incompatible with the encyclopedic writing style; see WikiQueer:Writing better articles.
 * Quotations that can't be justified for use in an article directly may be placed in Wikiquote and a Wikiquote template put on the article to inform readers that there are relevant quotations regarding the subject.
 * As a matter of style, quoteboxes should generally be avoided as they draw special attention to the opinion of one source, and present that opinion as though WikiQueer endorses it. Instead of using quoteboxes to highlight its notability, explain its importance before introducing the quote or in an introduction to the quote.
 * WikiQueer is not a list or repository of loosely associated topics such as quotations.
 * Do not insert any number of quotations in a stand-alone quote section.
 * A quotation that does not directly relate to the topic of the article or directly support the information as it is presented should not be used, to avoid original research.
 * Intersperse quotations with original prose that comments on those quotations instead of constructing articles out of quotations with little or no original prose.
 * Longer quotations may be hidden in the reference as a footnote to facilitate verification by other editors without sacrificing readability.

Copyrighted material and fair use
When copyrighted text must be quoted, see the plagiarism and non-free content guidelines. Extensive quotation of copyrighted text is prohibited.

Although quoting involves copying of another's work without permission, it is generally considered one of the uses permitted under fair use in the United States. However, just as with fair-use images, fair-use quotation has limitations:
 * The copied material should not comprise a substantial portion of the work being quoted, and a longer quotation should not be used where a shorter quotation would express the same information. What constitutes a substantial portion depends on many factors, such as the length of the original work and how central the quoted text is to that work. In one extreme case, Harper & Row v. Nation Enterprises, 400 quoted words from a 500-page book were ruled to be infringement. . Editors are advised to exercise good judgment and to remain mindful of the fact that while brief excerpts are permitted by policy, extensive quotations are forbidden.
 * The quotation must be useful and aid understanding of the subject; irrelevant quotations should be removed.
 * All quotations must be attributed to their source.

Unlike fair-use images, quotations are permitted on talk pages and project pages where they are useful for discussion, but the requirements listed above should still be observed.

A special case is the use of quotations purely for interest or decorative purposes on user pages. By consensus such quotations are acceptable as long as they are limited in extent, particularly if they comment on the attitudes of the user in question; but because the claim of fair use is weaker, the restrictions on extent must be more strictly enforced.

Fair use does not need to be invoked for public domain work or available under a CC-By-SA-compatible free license so the use, length, and extent of the quotation is purely a content and style decision.