Plagiarism
Statement
The following statement is abridged
from pages 66-75 of Joseph Gibaldi's sixth edition of
The MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers
(New York: MLA, 2003). This text is the foremost American
authority on scholarly writing in English literature and composition
courses. It is the ultimate source of documentary procedure
for English students.
2 Plagiarism
You have probably read or
heard about the charge of plagiarism in disputes in the
publishing and recording industries. You may also have
had classroom discussions about student plagiarism. Derived
from the Latin word plagiarius ("kidnapper"), plagiarism refers
to a form of cheating that has been defined as "the false
assumption of authorship: the wrongful act of taking the
product of another person's mind and presenting it as one's
own" (Alexander Lindey, Plagiarism and Originality [New
York: Harper, 1952] 2). Using another person's ideas
or expressions in your writing without acknowledging
that person's
work is intellectual theft. Plagiarism is a moral and
ethical offense . . . [and it] carries
severe penalties, ranging from failure in a course to
expulsion from school.
Often
plagiarism in student writing is often unintentional,
as when an elementary school pupil,
assigned to do a report on a certain topic, goes
home and copies down, word for word, everything on the
subject
in
an encyclopedia. Unfortunately, some students continue
to use such "research methods" in high school and even
in college without realizing that these practices constitute
plagiarism.
At all times during research and writing, guard against
the possibility of inadvertent plagiarism by keeping
careful
notes that distinguish between your own musings and
thoughts and the material you gather from others. Forms
of plagiarism
include the failure to give appropriate acknowledgement
when repeating another's wording or particularly apt
phrase,
when paraphrasing another's argument, or when presenting
another's line of thinking.
The MLA Style Manual
(New York: MLA, 1985) likewise clearly outlines the dangers
of plagiarism:
In short, to plagiarize is to give the
impression that you have written or thought something that you
have in fact borrowed from someone else, and to do so is considered
a violation of the professional responsibility to acknowledge
"academic debts" ("Statement on Professional Ethics," Policy
Documents and Reports, 1984 ed., Washington: AAUP, 1984, 134).
The most blatant form of plagiarism
is reproducing [or submitting] someone else's
sentences, more or less verbatim, and presenting them
as your own. Other forms including repeating another's
particularly apt phrase without appropriate acknowledgement,
paraphrasing someone else's argument as your own, introducing
another's line of thinking as your own development of
an idea, and failing to cite the source for a borrowed
thesis or approach. The penalties for plagiarism can be
severe, ranging from loss of respect to loss of degrees,
tenure, or even employment. At all stages of research
and writing, you must guard against the possibility of
inadvertent plagiarism. . . .
Even without considering the penalties
of plagiarism, the best scholars generously acknowledge
their debts to others. By doing so they not only contribute
to the historiography of scholarship but also help younger
scholars understand the process of research and discovery.
If you are taking an English course at
Carson-Newman College, you should become acquainted with the
procedures of research, composition, and documentation alluded
to in this passage. If you have not taken such a class before,
or if you did not master fully the procedures in such a course,
it is important to know that when presenting book-supported
writing you are held responsible for knowledge of and compliance
with research policies and procedures. Ignorance about plagiarism
is not considered an excuse.
For full guidance, see pages 65-75
of the sixth edition of the MLA Handbook for Writers of
Research Papers (New York: 2003, section two), or see
Writing at Carson-Newman College, 3rd edition, page
96. Ask your teacher if you have any questions.
Plagiarism: All work submitted
in this class must be your own work, generated exclusively
for this class, and not work intended for submission in another
course. The use of sources (ideas, quotations, paraphrasing)
should be properly documented. For the consequences of academic
dishonesty, refer to the College Catalog.
Click here for a copy of the plagiarism
statement you should print out and sign. It is also available
as a pdf downloadable
document.