How to Write a Summary

Writing a summary requires you to distill the content of a reading, putting its main ideas into your own words. When it is a course assignment, as it is in introductory history courses at RMC, the purpose of the summary is to demonstrate that you have understood and absorbed the important ideas and information in the assigned reading. Professors will often assign difficult readings for summary, forcing the student to engage with key course materials. A summary is a means toward and not a substitute for critical thinking, however.

A summary, by one definition, is “a brief restatement, in your own words, of the content of a passage (a group of paragraphs, a chapter, an article, a short book).” The summary should focus on the important details and central ideas of the passage. Points should be presented in the order in which they appear in the original, in condensed form. Your own opinions or critical judgments on the substance of the passage should be repressed. Indeed, by definition, a summary is not to engage in critical analysis of the original text. The qualities you are aiming for in a good summary are brevity, comprehensiveness, and objectivity. Here is how you should proceed when asked to write a summary of something you have read:

	Carefully read through the text to be summarized with attention to how the piece is structured. Try to determine the writer’s purpose in the essay or book chapter. This will help you identify the most important points.
	Read the passage a second time with an eye to discerning the underlying outline to the argument or narrative. Divide the passage into sections, each section marking off a particular idea or topic. The paragraphing in the original should indicate stages in the argument or discussion. Underline key words and phrases.
	Write a one-sentence summary of each section or paragraph in the original. Put the ideas and information into your own words. If you need to borrow key phrases from the original, be sure to put them in quotation marks. But you should attempt to use your own words as much as possible
	Identify the writer’s thesis and write a one-sentence summary of the central idea in the passage. Depending on the structure and nature of the original, for example, if the passage is primarily narrative or description, you may have to distill the writer’s big idea from your reading of the whole. In an argumentative essay the writer’s thesis should be expressed somewhere in the opening paragraphs. Summarize the thesis argument, or, if necessary, quote it directly in your summary.
	Now organize your overall summary by combining the thesis with the series of one-sentence summaries you created for each stage or section of the original. Add to this any other significant details in the original passage that help to tie the points together. Be mindful to use as few words as possible.
	Check your summary by comparing it point for point with the original. Revise as necessary to ensure that you have accurately and completely expressed the main points.
	Read your summary through checking for style and flow of your sentences. Add connective words and phrases if necessary, or combine sentences. You want to avoid a choppy, pasted-together feel. This is the challenge of summary writing.