Placing sources in conversation (MLA)
When you synthesize sources, you show readers how the ideas of one source relate to those of another by connecting and analyzing the ideas in the context of your argument. Keep the emphasis on your own writing. After all, you’ve done the research and thought through the issues, so you should control the conversation. The thread of your argument should be easy to identify and to understand, with or without your sources.
In the sample synthesis, a student writer uses her own analyses to shape the conversation among her sources. She does not simply string quotations together or allow her sources to overwhelm her writing. I CHANGED TEXT HERE in her own voice, how the various sources support her argument.
When synthesizing sources, ask yourself the following questions:
- Which sources inform, support, or extend your argument?
- Have you varied the function of sources—to provide background, to explain concepts, to lend authority, and to anticipate counterarguments?
- Do you explain how your sources support your argument?
- I ADDED A NEW LINE TO THIS LIST
- Do you connect and analyze sources in your own voice?
- Is your own argument easy to identify and to understand, with or without your sources?
Related topic:
Considering how sources relate to your argument