Using brackets in a quote?

Question

I'm quoting a source that already has brackets. I want to change the wording in the brackets back to language that more closely matches the original source. (Rules of the assignment are that I must quote the source I was given.) So I have two questions: (1) If I leave the quote as-is, how do I let the reader know that the bracketed language was changed by the source that I'm quoting and not by me, and (2) If I change the language in the brackets, how do I let the reader know that I didn't just misquote my source, but instead made a change purposely?

Answer 1

Oh gosh....ummmm

I learned in my freshman college english course that you can actually put at the end of a quotation (I cant remember the exact phrase but I'm sure you can find it) it basically means that the quote was like that to begin with....the mistake wasn't yours.

Answer 2

You could possibly leave the quote as is, and then put parenthesis around the original wording or source, adding a footnote at the bottom, to indicate what you've done.
Would that work?

"Misquotation is, in fact, the pride and privilege of the learned. A widely- read man never quotes accurately, for the rather obvious reason that he has read too widely."
[ Ann Wilding ]
(Hesketh Pearson, Common Misquotations (1934), Introduction)

"He can compress the most words into the smallest ideas of any man I ever met."
[ Robin Williams]
(Abraham Lincoln speaking to congress 1862 )

I hope this helps.... and good luck

Answer 3

This sounds so complicted that what I'd suggest you do is explain in a footnote what you have (or have not) done for a given quotation.