NAVIGATION: Index of Introduction to Poetry Materials Index of Dr. Weller's Class Materials


The Use of the Word "Quote"

Here is an example of a common error in the use of the word "quote":
Collins later depicts the "wrong way" to interpret a poem with this quote: "But all they want to do / is tie the poem to a chair with rope / and torture a confession out of it" (12-14).
This is wrong because Collins is not quoting. Here are two ways the error can be fixed:
Collins later depicts the "wrong way" to interpret a poem by saying of students in a typical literature class: "But all they want to do / is tie the poem to a chair with rope / and torture a confession out of it" (12-14).

Collins later depicts the "wrong way" to interpret a poem by saying that all the students "want to do / is tie the poem to a chair with rope / and torture a confession out of it" (12-14).