Could you paraphrase this for me?

From my experience, paraphrasing is easier when you break it down into steps.


Read the passage a few times over to get the gist of it

Jot down the key ideas/main points that the passage is trying to explain

Without looking at your source (so you don't feel the urge to reuse the same wordings) write down your impression of the information - if you were retelling this to someone, how would you explain it? (Use the key points you already wrote down if need be)


Remember, avoid using the same language as the author - use different sentence structures - change up the order, invert sentences, whatever it takes. Make sure to use different descriptions - synonyms are your friend!

If there's a specific adjective or noun used that is unique to the author, put it in quotations (ie everyone considered the prohibition laws to be a "bad joke")

And most importantly, GIVE CREDIT TO THE AUTHOR. You still need to cite your source, even though most of the information is in your own words... because the ideas aren't!


Hopefully this provides a little bit of insight on how to paraphrase and makes it easier for you. I doubt anyone will actually paraphrase this passage for you (because then you'd need to cite them as a direct quotation)...

but if you want to post your paraphrase of the passage, I'm sure someone would help you make it more solid and give some helpful pointers. Good luck with your writing!