[Tex/LaTex] “direct” quotations and “entire paragraph” quotations

citingquoting

I need two types of citations which I have not figured out how to define:

(see highlighted in grey)

1) As Owens stated (2008, p.97), ‘the value of...’

2) Simone de Beauvoir (1972, p.365) examined her own past and wrote
rather gloomily:

The past is not a peaceful landscape lying there behind me, a country in which I
can stroll wherever I please, and will gradually show me all its secret hills and
dates. As I was moving forward, so it was crumbling.

I am confused about how to use \begin{quotation} or similar machineries (quote|quotation|verse|etc.) to define quotes/quotations, etc.

I use natbib (this might be irrelevant).

I would normally define a quote as \begin{quote}...\end{quote} but I find the lack of association between the quoted text and the actual bibliographic reference strange.

I don't know how to format a simple, in-text, quotation other than `blah' for single smart quotes and “blah'' for double smart quotes.

Again, the fact that I am putting a "quote object" inside some flowing text and I am not associating it, even in a hidden way, with the bibliography database sounds strange to me.

I would find this more natural: \shortquote[BibTeX:Reference][singlesmart]{Aha!}, or something to that effect.
Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Best Answer

As far as I can tell, your question is really about how to quote material -- either inline, with other text, or as a block quote. The fact that the material to be quoted comes from a specific cited source is peripheral to the issue, I believe.

  • To quote a fairly short string -- whether a single word, a few words, or an entire sentence -- inline, you just surround it by the quotation marks that are appropriate for the language and region you're writing for. For example, in US English it's common to surround inline-quoted material with double back-quotes and double (forward) quotes, as in 

      she said, ``Hello.''

    In UK English, it's more common to use single (back and forward) quotes. In other languages, other quotation mark styles prevail.

    • If there's a chance that your document will get translated in several languages, you may wish to familiarize yourself with the csquotes package and its \enquote command: Depending on the language specified as an option when this package is loaded, the language-specific (and, if applicable, region-specific) inline quotation sytle will be set up for you automatically.

  • To typeset longer quoted material, especially if it's longer than a sentence, it's common to use either the quote or quotation environment. The latter is recommended if you're block-quoting more than one paragraph.

    • I should add that the styles of these two environments satisfy US-English typographic conventions but may not be perfect for other typographic systems. Again, the csquotes package can be of service, as it provides the \blockquote command to implement a block-quotation style that's tailored towards your language.
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