

How do you quote a passage that has used '[sic]' mistakenly? - m_myers
http://english.stackexchange.com/questions/24750/how-do-you-quote-a-passage-that-has-used-sic-mistakenly

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jakewalker
Off topic, but reminded me of a great joke from Judge Kozinski in the
Roomates.com case, viz.:

". . . Some subscribers are just looking for someone who will get along with
their significant other[34] or with their most significant Other.[35]"

[34] "The female we are looking for hopefully wont [sic] mind having a little
sexual incounter [sic] with my boyfriend and I [very sic]."

[http://scholar.google.com/scholar_case?q=521+F.3d+1157&h...](http://scholar.google.com/scholar_case?q=521+F.3d+1157&hl=en&as_sdt=2,5&case=12982314326945878032&scilh=0)

~~~
idonthack
unfortunately his rapier wit also demonstrates an internal bias. if he feels
the need to put down people with nontraditional sex lives maybe he shouldn't
be judging a case involving such things.

~~~
jakewalker
I think the [very sic] referred to the fact that it should be "my boyfriend
and me." That's all.

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hugh3
Practical solution: remove the "sic" and replace it with a "..." to indicate
that you've excised a portion of the quote. Or, y'know, don't bother to quote
the passage with the offending "sic" at all. You could even come up with a way
to phrase it so that you're quoting the original rather than quoting the
quotation.

If you wanted to include it and do it unambiguously you'd need to come up with
a convention and state it clearly in the text. "Please note that all instances
of "[sic]" which use square brackets are author B's insertion when he quoted
author A, while instances of "(sic)" with parentheses are my own insertion in
quoting author B."

Thus we have "a letter from me [sic] (sic) to you".

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bajsejohannes
You use escaping of course:

    
    
        ...suppose I write a letter from me \[sic\] [sic] to you.

~~~
function_seven
Ok, but imagine for a moment that you use the wrong-facing slash like so:

    
    
        ...suppose I write a letter from me /[sic/] [sic] to you.
    

What now, huh?

    
    
        ...suppose I write a letter from me /[sic]\[sic\]/[sic] \[sic\] to you

~~~
conover
It's turtles all the way down...

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radley
Unless you're making a point about the [sic], Just remove it. It adds no value
and distracts from the original message.

 _Fun question =)_

~~~
alex_h
Yes, I think 2 negatives make a positive here, and the situation where you do
want to draw attention to a misplaced [sic] is so rare that it warrants
further discussion in your text.

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kens
Based on some investigation in Google Books, what books actually do is use a
footnote: "blah blah [sic] blah" 1

1 [sic] in original.

It's fundamentally the same thing as clarifying "blah _blah_ blah" (emphasis
added) or (emphasis in original).

Note that the purpose of [sic] is not to point out how clever you are to find
an error, but to clarify for the reader that the text is copied accurately.
Thus, the original question about putting a [sic] on a mistaken [sic] is not
something that makes sense to do.

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corin_
Unless your actual aim is to draw attention to the incorrect use of [sic],
when would this actually be needed? Surely the normal use would be "So and so
is quoted in the <whatever source> as saying:" in which case you can quote
what they said without needing any editorial additions, such as [sic], that
the source added themselves.

~~~
endtime
Their [sic] will look like yours, though. And since it's stipulated that the
quotee used [sic] incorrectly, you (the quoter) will look as if you are using
it incorrectly.

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bonaldi
Happily, readers aren't fragile parsers, demanding escaping or special
formatting. They can handle you making your meaning explicit, either inline or
in a footnote.

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devindotcom
Note beforehand or in brackets at the end that the [sic] was not added -
wherever you'd add "emphasis mine" if you'd highlighted part of it.

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marchdown
Italicize the quote or set it in different font. If that is not possible
(because of strict style guidelines, maybe), your best remaining option is to
lampshade its appearance.

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ZeSmith
That's what you call a "meta sic".

