The Crucible - Illustrating and Supporting Points

Of course, when you write your own essays or exam answers, you’ll need to remember to follow up your quotation with an explanation, too!

How to use evidence to support a point:

The three primary methods of using evidence when writing about a text are firstly, by paraphrasing; secondly, by quoting single words or short phrases; and finally, by quoting longer sections of text. One of the easiest, and most neglected, methods is the paraphrase. Practise this skill, which is an essential aspect of good writing. When you paraphrase, you clearly demonstrate your knowledge of a text, even in the absence of direct quotation. This method is especially effective when you do not have the text to hand, such as during an exam.

Another effective method of using evidence from the text is by selecting single words or phrases to quote. If you wish to draw attention to language choice or to minor details in the text, this is the most useful method. It is worth practising using combinations of methods, for example by mixing paraphrase and a short quotation in the same sentence. Learning to be flexible in this way is preferable to writing long sentences full of multiple quotations. A sentence filled with multiple short quotations can be awkward and very difficult to read.

Finally, another correct way to use evidence is to quote a full sentence or more. If a short phrase will not make sense on its own, or you plan to discuss a longer quotation in detail, this is the method to use.

It’s important to remember that you should only use quotation marks around a single word if that word is unusual or significant in itself. An ordinary word, such as “coat” does not require quotation marks unless there is something especially significant about its use (for example, if “coat” were being used metaphorically, you might use quotation marks). Quotation marks are required whenever you use an exact phrase or sentence from the text.

Have a go at this quiz on the best way to use evidence from The Crucible. Remember, the aim of this quiz is to test your ability to quote and to paraphrase; your knowledge of the text is not being tested here. One helpful tip is that it might be easier to eliminate the incorrect answers first!