conversation2e

Close With a Quotation

Select a quotation or paraphrase that does one of the following:

offers deeper insight into the points you’ve made in your document
points to the future of the subject
suggests a solution to a problem
illustrates what you would like to see happen
makes a further observation about the subject
presents a personalized viewpoint from someone who has experienced the subject you are portraying

Nick Bilton concludes his analytical blog entry about digital etiquette with a paraphrase of a Margaret Mead quotation. (See Chapter 19 for more on the differences between a paraphrase and a quotation.)

The anthropologist Margaret Mead once said that in traditional societies, the young learn from the old. But in modern societies, the old can also learn from the young. Here’s hoping that politeness never goes out of fashion, but that time-wasting forms of communication do.