Plagiarism, Paraphrasing and citations

Do Now: Set up a page for Cornell notes

Your essay assignment

A five paragraph essay:• Topic: What is the theme of Lord of the Flies? • Each body paragraph must include at least one

direct quote from the book as evidence to support your thesis statement

• The first draft is due next week• You must do at least three drafts. You can re-

write as many times as you want until you get the grade you want

Plagiarism

What is plagiarism? To present the ideas or words of another as

one’s own Source: The Merriam Webster Dictionary

What are some of the consequences of plagiarism?

In Ms. Bloustine’s class you will receive a zero on the assignment

In many universities you can fail the class or even be expelled for plagiarism

Paraphrasing

What is paraphrasing? 1.a restatement of a text or passage giving

the meaning in another form, as for clearness; rewording.

2.the act or process of restating or rewording.

Source: dictionary.com

What is the purpose of paraphrasing?

To incorporate ideas from other sources without plagiarizing

Examples of paraphrasing

The automobile was crimson.

The adolescents were disruptive

Examples of paraphrasing

In the metropolis the recreational area was dilapidated.

I am experiencing a period of emotional difficulties and ennui.

Another example of paraphrasing

From Sparknotes: “Generally, however, Golding implies that the instinct of savagery is far more primal and fundamental to the human psyche than the instinct of civilization.”

Which is the better paraphrase?

Erika Ramirez in Vibe: “Brandy has escaped misery's grasp and jumped in to the arms of resilience, a move she fully documents on her fifth and most intimate album to date, Human (Sony).”

A: Brandy has escaped misery and embraced resilience, which she documents on her fifth and most intimate album, Human.

B: Brandy’s fifth album, Human, shows her triumph over tragedy and is open about her true emotions.

Answer: B

A is too close to the wording of the original. B keeps the main

ideas of the original but completely changes the wording.

Which is the better paraphrase?

Joe Neumaier in The Daily News, writing about the movie The Day the Earth Stood Still: “The film's major action sequences are never exciting, and even the now-requisite destruction of New York feels lazy.”

A: Even the parts of the movie with the most action are boring and it seems like the filmmakers didn’t put much effort in to the film.

B: The major action sequences are boring and the required destruction of New York feels like the director was lazy.

Answer: A

Remember, it’s not enough just to change a few words. You need to take the ideas and put it in

your own words completely.

Citations

Using citations are a way to give credit to others’ ideas and words. Any time you use a direct quote you must use a citation.

You also must use citations for ideas you take from another source.

The kinds of citations we are going to use are called parenthetical citations.

Example: On the island the boys live a “wild, brutal, barbaric life in the jungle” (Sparknotes).

Appropriate uses of Sparknotes

Getting a synopsis of the book if you haven’t read it all or didn’t understand everything that happened

Gaining a better understanding of the themes and symbolism of the book

Generating ideas for your essay

Inappropriate uses of Sparknotes

Directly quoting passages without citing them Taking ideas directly from the SparkNote and not

thinking of any ideas of your own Only using the SparkNote and not doing any analysis

of the book itself

When in doubt, cite!

Homework

Bring in a short article from a newspaper, magazine, or web site. Choose two or three sentences from the article, underline them, and paraphrase them.