How NOT to Plagiarize

HOW NOT TO

PLAGIARIZE

 

From the Code of Behaviour on Academic Matters.

It shall be an offence for a student knowingly:

(d) to represent as one’s own any idea or expression of an idea or work of another in any academic examination or term test or in connection with any other form of academic work, i.e., to commit plagiarism.

Wherever in the Code an offence is described as depending on "knowing", the offence shall likewise be deemed to have been committed if the person ought reasonably to have known.

 

      You already know the warnings about plagiarism. Obviously, it’s against the rules to buy essays or copy chunks from your friend’s homework, and it’s also plagiarism to borrow passages from books or articles or Web sites without identifying them. In any case, you need to show your own thinking, not just create a patchwork of borrowed ideas. But you may still be wondering how you’re supposed to give proper references to all the reading you’ve done and all the ideas you’ve encountered.

      The point of documenting sources in academic papers is not just to avoid unpleasant visits to the Dean’s office, but to demonstrate that you know what is going on in your field of study. It’s also a courtesy to your readers because it helps them consult the material you’ve found.

      That’s not to say that questions about ownership of ideas are simple. The different systems for typing up references are admittedly a nuisance, but the real challenge is establishing your relationship as a thinker to the reading you’ve done. Here are some common questions and basic answers.

  1. Can’t I avoid problems just by listing every source in the bibliography? No, you need to integrate your acknowledgements into what you’re saying. Give the reference as soon as you’ve mentioned the idea you are using, not just at the end of the paragraph. That may mean naming authors ("X states" and "Y argues against X") and then going on to indicate your own stand. The examples in this handout show various wordings. Have a look at journal articles in your discipline to see how they refer to their sources.

  2. If I put the ideas into my own words, do I still have to clog up my pages with all those names and numbers? Sorry – yes, you do. In academic papers, you need to keep mentioning authors and pages and dates to show how your ideas are related to those of the experts. It’s sensible to use your own words because that saves space and lets you connect ideas smoothly. But whether you quote a passage directly in quotation marks, paraphrase it closely in your own words, or just summarize it rapidly, you need to identify the source then and there.

  3. But I didn’t know anything about the subject until I started this paper. So do I have to give an acknowledgement for every point I make? You’re safer to over-reference than to skimp. But you can cut down the clutter by recognizing that some ideas are "common knowledge" in the field – that is, taken for granted by people knowledgeable about the topic. Facts easily found in standard reference books are considered common knowledge: the date of the Armistice for World War I, for example, or the present population of Canada. You don’t need to name a specific source for them, even if you learned them only when doing your research. In some disciplines, information covered in class lectures doesn’t need acknowledgement. Some interpretive ideas may also be so well accepted that you don’t need to name a specific source: that Picasso is a distinguished modernist painter, for instance, or that smoking is harmful to health. Check with your professor or TA if you’re in doubt whether a specific point is considered common knowledge in your field.

  4. How can I tell what’s my own idea and what has come from somebody else? Careful note-taking helps, so you can attach names and dates to specific ideas. As you read, summarize useful points in your own words. If you record a phrase or sentence you might want to quote, put quotation marks around it to remind yourself that you’re copying the author’s exact words. Make a deliberate effort as you read to note connections among ideas – especially contrasts and disagreements– and also jot down questions or thoughts of your own. If you find as you write that you’re following one or two of your sources too closely, deliberately look back in your notes for other sources that take different views; then write about the differences and why they exist.

  5. So what exactly do I have to document? With experience reading academic prose, you’ll soon get used to the way writers in your field refer to their sources. Here are the main times you should give acknowledgements.

a)  Quotations, paraphrases, or summaries: If you use the author’s exact words, enclose them in quotation marks, or indent passages of more than four lines. But it’s seldom worthwhile to use long quotations. In literary studies, quote a few words at a time and comment on them. In other disciplines, quote only when the original words are especially memorable. In most cases, use your own words to summarize the idea you want to discuss, emphasizing the points relevant to your argument. But be sure to name sources even when you are not using the exact original words. As in the examples below, it’s often a good idea to mention the author’s name. That gains you some reflected authority and indicates where the borrowing starts and stops.

e.g. As Morris puts it in The Human Zoo (1983), "we can always be sure that today’s daring innovation will be tomorrow’s respectability" (p. 189) [APA system]

e.g. Northrop Frye discusses comedy in terms of the spring spirit, which he sees as representing renewal and integration (Anatomy 163). The ending of The Tempest fits this pattern. [new MLA system]

 

b)  Specific ideas used as evidence for your argument or interpretation: First consider whether the ideas you’re mentioning are "common knowledge" according to the definition in point 3; if so, you may not need to give a reference. But when you’re relying on ideas that might be disputed by people in your discipline, establish that they’re trustworthy by referring to an authoritative source.

e.g. In September 1914, more than 1300 skirmishes were recorded on the Western Front.8 [traditional endnote/footnote system]

e.g. Other recent researchers (4,11,12) confirm the finding that drug treatment has little effect in the treatment of pancreatic pseudocysts. [numbered-note system]

 

c) Distinctive or authoritative ideas, whether you agree with them or not: The way you introduce the reference can indicate your attitude and lead into your own argument.

e.g. In 1966, Ramsay Cook asserted that Canada was in a period of instability (174). That period is not yet over, judging by the same criteria of electoral changeability, economic uncertainty, and confusion in policy decisions. [new MLA system]

e.g. One writer (Von Daniken, 1970) even argues that the Great Pyramid was built for the practical purpose of guiding navigation. [APA system]

 

Prepared 1998 by Margaret Procter, Coordinator of Writing Support, for distribution at the University of Toronto.

This handout and over 100 others are also available online at http//:www.utoronto.ca/writing/plagsep.html
 
 
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