Wikipedia:Contort the citations
 | This is an essay on the Verifiability policy and the Citing Sources guideline. It contains the advice or opinions of one or more Wikipedia contributors. This page is not an encyclopedia article, nor is it one of Wikipedia's policies or guidelines, as it has not been thoroughly vetted by the community. Some essays represent widespread norms; others only represent minority viewpoints. |
 | This page in a nutshell: Readable articles are more important than simple citation structures. Don't contort prose such that it's easier to cite, but harder to read. Put the complications into the citations , not the article text. |
Write readable, informative prose, then ruthlessly chop, splice, and hammer the citation structure to fit. If the link between the verifying citations and the article prose is complex, put the complex explanations
Sometimes the citations and text correspond conveniently, with each citation naturally supporting one sentence. Here, we discuss the more awkward cases.
The need for complex citations
Often, good writing may push an editor to combine facts from multiple sources in a single sentence or statement, or summarize excessively detailed facts, or
Calculations
Employees were paid 20 cents US per hour, on average.[3]
References
- ^ a b A widget-worker's wages, Parliamentary Committee on the Widget Industry, report number 4532 (page 265, end of left column)
- ^ "Widget Production Statistics", Huge Tome of Industrial Production Statistics, V. Weighty, ed.. Pages 3245, Table 1374, 18th row of table; see also context on pages 3198-3244.
- ^ employees were paid four cents US per widget,[1] completed an average of 35 widgets a day,[2] and worked for 7 hours a day.[1]
Verifiability
It is important to build
If the relationship between the cited facts and the source is complicated, then a detailed explanation should be included within the
Haplesses' first two plays, Bicycle Ballet and Airship Acrobats,[1] were modest critical and commercial successes.[2][3] In contrast, Hapless's third play, Dragondrama, suffered a series of disasters.[11] The fourth play, The Calamity Theater, a light comedy, was widely seen as a fictionalized account of Hapless's experiences with Dragondrama. It marked a notable departure from Hapless's early style, which had been criticized as over-earnest. The Calamity Theater was praised for its subtle and thought-provoking humour,[15] and Hapless was to use its gently ironic tone in all later works.[16]
References
- ^ Gaffer, Clerk (1976). H. Hapless: the complete bibliography of works (Dullard's Library ed.). Moebius Press.
- ^ Wys, N. "New playwrights to watch". Cosmopolitan Cultural Review. Pretentious Press.
- ^ Nobby, S. "Airship Acrobats to close for good this winter". Cosmopolitan Cultural Review. Pretentious Press.
- ^ Legere, Brandon (1871). "Major fire in Conflagration Street". Lexicopolis Letters. No. 17.
- ^ Legere, Brandon (1874). "Fire guts construction site in Conflagration Street". Lexicopolis Letters. No. 17.
- ^ Game, Blame (1875). "Grand Reopening of Conflagration Street Theater goes much as expected". Lexicopolis Letters. No. 20.
- ^ "Bankruptcy filing for Incandescent Theater Company, Incorporated.", Lexicopolis bankruptcy filings, no. 456, 1877
- ^ Game, Blame (1875). "Chickenpox outbreak in Lexicopolis started in the theater scene". Lexicopolis Letters. No. 20.
- ^ Game, Blame (1875). "Weasel Solicitors collapses, international corruption investigation begins". Lexicopolis Letters. No. 21.
- ^ Corn, S. "The year's worst flop you never heard of". Cosmopolitan Cultural Review. Pretentious Press.
- ^ The theater burned down,[4] twice,[5] and was destroyed for a third time in a gas main explosion on the date of its Grand Reopening,[6] the theater company became involved in extensive litigation, eventually filing for bankruptcy,[7] every member of the children's chorus came down with chickenpox just before the opening,[8] several members of the production's firm of solicitors absconded to the East Indies with the meager take, leaving the cast and suppliers unpaid,[9] and the production was forced to close within a week.[10]
- ^ Tamar, C. "Misfortune's favourite". Tamar's theater notes Review. Pretentious Press.
- ^ Game, Blame (1875). ""The Calamity Theater": better than the original". Lexicopolis Letters. No. 20.
- ^ Raize, Grugimp. "A theatrical disaster that is actually worth watching". Cosmopolitan Cultural Review. Pretentious Press.
- ^ formerly overearnest tone now improved, general praise:[12] just praise:[13][14] All three citations mention fictionalization.
- ^ "Hapless, H. (playwright)". Encyclopedia Obscura (3rd ed.). Dusty Press. 1994.
The uncontroversial generalization "a series of disasters" is quite adequately supported by the eleventh citation, which bundles a description of seven individually-cited disasters (presumably the editor was unable to find a source which explicitly stated that the production had been a series of disasters, or simply
It is important to note that a large number of reference tags does not imply that a fact is more reliable. It is often a good rule to have two or three solid sources for controversial statements, or when the statement is supported by
Obscure sourcing
Prefer obvious verification to obscure verification. A reference can explain why the sourcing supports a statement, where needed.
For instance, it is obvious that the statement "The president spoke to representatives in Nairobi" is supported by a source saying "The president travelled to Nairobi in order to talk to representatives there"; everyone knows that "talk"="spoke" in this context. If the synonyms in question are "Stefan–Boltzmann distribution", "Planck curve" and "blackbody radiation spectrum", it may be less obvious. Terms may need to be defined in the reference, where someone trying to verify the information might not otherwise understand (example).
Closeness to sources
| Excessively close paraphrasing & over-literal citing | A more readable text |
|---|---|
|
Anon was born in the 19th century[1]. She was born in Nowheretown[2]. Her parents worked as cobblers[3]. Her mother was named Anan[3]. Her father was named Anen[4]. Anon attended Nowheretown School[4]. She studied basketmaking in her first two years at Nowheretown School[4]. She also studied applied agrostology in her last year at Nowheretown School[5]. In 1982, the Nowheretown Post described her as a "elderly lady".[6] In 1982, the Journal of Applied Agrostology said that she was well-known to for her "application of agrostology to basketmaking"[7]. She died in 1982[8]. Her son gave the Nowheretown Botanic Gardens and Handicrafts Museum her collections[7]. Her collections included herbarium specimens and furniture[7]. |
Anon was born in Nowheretown[1] in the early 1880s[1] to two cobblers[3] named Anan[3] and Anen[4]. At Nowheretown School, she studied first basketmaking[4], then applied agrostology[5]. In later life,[6] she became well-known for her application of agrostology to basketmaking[7][8]. When she died at an advanced age in 1982, the Journal of Applied Agrostology published an obituary praising her work. Her herbarium specimens and furniture were donated to the Nowheretown Botanic Gardens and Handicrafts Museum[7]. |
Choosing how to express the facts