Why Do We Quote? the Culture and History of Quotation.

Quoting is all around us. But do we really know what it means? How do people actually quote today, and how did our present systems come about? This book brings together a down-to-earth account of contemporary quoting with an examination of the comparative and historical background that lies behind it and the characteristic way that quoting links past and present, the far and the near. Drawing from anthropology, cultural history, folklore, cultural studies, sociolinguistics, literary studies and the ethnography of speaking, Ruth Finnegan's fascinating study sets our present conventions into crosscultural and historical perspective. She traces the curious history of quotation marks, examines the long tradition of quotation collections with their remarkable recycling across the centuries, and explores the uses of quotation in literary, visual and oral traditions. The book tracks the changing defi nitions and control of quoting over the millennia and in doing so throws new light on ideas such as 'imitation', 'allusion', 'authorship', 'originality' and 'plagiarism'.

5 stars
Reviewed By Chris Fischer for Readers' Favorite

In a highly interesting and well done book in the category of cultural nonfiction, Why Do We Quote? The Near and Far of Others' Words and Voices by author Ruth Finnegan is a worthwhile read. Pulling from anthropology, cultural history, folklore, cultural studies, socio-linguistics, literary studies, and the ethnography of speaking, the book provides an absolutely fascinating look at why people in our society quote others and how we do it. The book also serves as an excellent study into ideas like imitation, allusion, authorship, originality and plagiarism, and will make readers think deeply into our framework for why we think the way we do about quoting and our use of quotations. This book is both entertaining and educational, and readers will enjoy it from start to finish.

I must admit, when I looked at Why Do We Quote? The Near and Far of Others' Words and Voices, my first thought was, "A whole book about quotations? How is that possible? And how could it be interesting?" But I was certainly surprised by author Ruth Finnegan's excellent work. Her work is amazing in that it presents form and usage of speech in a highly interesting fashion, and her style of historical inquiry into the topic almost makes one feel as if you are reading a whodunit mystery. I was drawn into this book from the very beginning, and enjoyed it so thoroughly that I read the whole thing in only a few sittings. I highly recommend Why Do We Quote? to any reader looking for a unique and interesting book with a wonderful historical perspective. I look forward to reading more from author Ruth Finnegan as soon as I can, and hope that she is hard at work on her next book!

The anthropologist RuthFinnegan's study testifies to the sheer diversity of motives people have hadand still have for quoting, and to the surprising variety of forms that quotationstake and have taken, throughout history and across cultures ... A matter ofparticular interest to students and critics of literature emerges in chapter 6,in Finnegan's discussion of oral performance. Because one can signal quotationin oral performance by shifts of tone, gesture, and inflection, a speaker cansuggest that certain words are held at a greater distance than others, withdifferent attitudes towards those words held nearer and further away, so thatthere exists in oral performance a 'gradient of quotedness' ... The power ofher study's central principle is that it does not reduce all humancommunication to a uniform, single practice; it does not imply that all wordsor voices are the same. The principle of a gradient insists upon diversity asthe essential characteristic of quotation. The strength of Finnegan's study asa whole is the way in which it testifies to the principle's truth by the sheervariety of quotations and quoting practices that she showcases, describes, andanalyses. OwenBoynton, Essays in Criticism
 
Written for a broadreadership by a respected scholar of, among other things, oral literature, Why Do We Quote? is above all aneminently enjoyable read. [...] If the main part of the book is blissfully richin data past and present, woven together through Finnegan's meaningful analyticvoice, she opts not to bow to but make visible the scholarship that has beendevoted to facets of quoting and footnoting in an appendix entitled"Quoting the Academics" [...] The added benefit: Finnegan does not justsketch how this terrain has been researched, but she also elaborates on how shewould characterize her own approach vis-à-vis these others, claiming a placefor her mixture of ethnographic, literary, and historical perspectives that isindeed unique -- and that should be appealing to folklorists and ethnographersof communication. Regina Bendix,Journal of Folklore Research
 

In the days following the death of Osama bin Laden, a quote attributed to Martin Luther King pinged about social networking websites and into email inboxes: "I mourn the loss of thousands of precious lives, but I will not rejoice in the death of one, not even an enemy. Returning hate for hate multiplies hate, adding deeper darkness to a night already devoid of stars. Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate, only love can do that."

While the second, third and fourth sentences were spoken by King in 1957, the first 23 words are the appended thoughts of a US schoolteacher. In a cyberspatial game of Chinese whispers, the distinguishing marks of punctuation become detached as quickly as you can say "retweet". In a short time, the Twitter-friendly opening line ensured that the hybrid phrase was truncated to its first sentence, King's name still affixed.A number of journalists have since traced the alchemy and transmission of an unknown teacher's thoughts to a misdescribed memetic sensation. Yet the pathologies failed to investigate questions that seem far more fundamental. Why did so many feel impelled to disseminate it? In what way did the attachment of a famous name make it more meaningful? Ruth Finnegan's study makes a remarkable attempt at answering these types of question.
Quotation, with its bedfellows imitation and allusion, is at least as old as written civilisation. Through ever-increasing distances from the present and the personal, this book from the innovative Open Book Publishers (it can be read online for free) works through the thicket surrounding the verbal and grammatical mechanics of quoting. It has enlightening things to say about the Western tradition of compiling books of quotations. Quotation is often used to connect us with the supposed wisdom of the ancients, but humanity has always searched in the past for phrases to help understand the present. Just as books of quotations remain popular today, Erasmus' Adages has been called the first best-seller of the printed age. The Distichs of Cato were compiled in the 3rd or 4th century AD, and Plato has Socrates quote Homer more than 100 times.A scholar who has long investigated orality in the fields of literature, sociology and anthropology, Finnegan offers analyses of proverbs, storytelling and the rich intricacy that signals spoken quotation that do much to illuminate the complexity of oral communication. The verbal realisation of quotation is the core concern of the volume, which crosses academic and cultural disciplines with effectiveness and confidence.
If there is a gap in Finnegan's analysis, it is her failure to fully investigate quotation's most contemporary forms. Two initial chapters repeat a set of responses to a 2006 Mass Observation questionnaire on quotation. This ought to have been complemented with a wider investigation of modern Western usage.Different forms of quotation suffuse popular culture - intertextuality and referentiality are endemic in contemporary music and film. The internet is a vast machine for recycling old saws and chestnuts, for instantaneous conveyance of trivialities spoken by celebrities, and for competing and often spurious versions of poems, lyrics and aphorisms. Yet it is hardly mentioned here. I was left wondering if the internet might not be changing the way we quote, even as it increases our opportunities to misquote. (Times Higher Education)
In a highly interesting and well done book in the category of cultural nonfiction, Why Do We Quote? The Near and Far of Others' Words and Voices by author Ruth Finnegan is a worthwhile read. Pulling from anthropology, cultural history, folklore, cultural studies, socio-linguistics, literary studies, and the ethnography of speaking, the book provides an absolutely fascinating look at why people in our society quote others and how we do it. The book also serves as an excellent study into ideas like imitation, allusion, authorship, originality and plagiarism, and will make readers think deeply into our framework for why we think the way we do about quoting and our use of quotations. This book is both entertaining and educational, and readers will enjoy it from start to finish.

I must admit, when I looked at Why Do We Quote? The Near and Far of Others' Words and Voices, my first thought was, "A whole book about quotations? How is that possible? And how could it be interesting?" But I was certainly surprised by author Ruth Finnegan's excellent work. Her work is amazing in that it presents form and usage of speech in a highly interesting fashion, and her style of historical inquiry into the topic almost makes one feel as if you are reading a whodunit mystery. I was drawn into this book from the very beginning, and enjoyed it so thoroughly that I read the whole thing in only a few sittings. I highly recommend Why Do We Quote? to any reader looking for a unique and interesting book with a wonderful historical perspective. I look forward to reading more from author Ruth Finnegan as soon as I can, and hope that she is hard at work on her next book! (Chris Fischer, Readers Favorite)

Rabia Tanveer for Readers' Favorite

Why Do We Quote? by Ruth Finnegan is a book on the history of quotations and how these were used since the beginning of literature. This book is definitely a great help for students who study literature and are working on their research reports. Apart from that, Finnegan talks about who uses quotations and how they do it in their respective fields. She is tracing the history of quotations and how they became what they are today. 

It was very interesting to read about quotations. You might think that this subject matter would be boring, but it is not. Finnegan keeps us entertained with her dry sense of humor and quality written material. You cannot question her research because she has covered every single aspect of it and backed her theories with solid arguments. I wish I'd had a reference book like this when I was working on my research thesis. 

Finnegan actually gives us so much more than simple quotations. She also talks about things that plague research students, such as the modern concepts of plagiarism and the originality of content and an idea. As research work is becoming far reaching and everyone and anyone is producing research on any given topic, this book will help students in deciding on their topics and making sure that their work remains "original" and not a "plagiarised idea." I would recommend this book to students who want some guidance in their research work.I wish I had something like this to help me with my thesis. Highly interesting to;pcReviewed By Mamta Madhavan for Readers' Favorite

Why Do We Quote?: The Near and Far of Others' Words and Voices by Ruth Finnegan is an engaging book that speaks about quoting, and the tradition of quoting during public speaking and writing essays. Quoting and quotations have flourished in written forms for many centuries now. Though quoting in writing is common, oral quotation is also significant in speeches, poetry readings, proverbs, catchphrases, and many more. The book speaks about the conventions of oral quoting, which is learned informally, while written quoting is well-recognized in practice and has a powerful position. 

The author's demarcation of oral and written quoting is interesting to read and learn. The book will be useful to all those associated with literature as it gives them an idea on how to use the words and voices of others while expressing their thoughts. It's also the sort of book that many types of readers will enjoy. Why do we quote? The book states that the use of quotation is not new. The background to our practice of quoting is vast and goes back centuries, showing how many a time our speeches are filled with others' words.

I found the book highly interesting. It makes one ponder about the use of quotation and it's a book that all English language lovers will enjoy reading. The book also shows an interesting point in the approaches to language and writing, and it also demonstrates the dominant practices when it comes to education, speech, and writing.