MLA

WHAT IS PLAGIARISM? Webster’s New Collegiate Dictionary defines it as “to steal and pass off the ideas or words of another as one’s own; use a created production without crediting the source; to commit literary theft; present as new and original an idea or product derived from an existing source.”

UNIVERSITY OF ARKANSAS PLAGIARISM POLICY “Plagiarism is defined in the University of Arkansas Catalog of Studies as "offering as one’s own work the words, ideas, or arguments of another person without appropriate attribution by quotation, reference or footnote" (section on "Academic Regulations: Academic Honesty").University of Arkansas Catalog of Studies The consequences of plagiarizing another's work can be very serious for one's course grade or for one's entire academic career. Plagiarism and academic dishonesty go beyond simply cutting and pasting text from an article or book into your paper without attribution; they can include paraphrasing without attribution or even citing sources that you have not consulted in your Works Cited list. Citing your sources is the first step to avoiding plagiarism. You might also review our plagiarism detection and prevention links and our Plagiarism LibGuide for more information. plagiarism detection and prevention linksPlagiarism LibGuide University of Arkansas policies relating to Academic Integrity can be found on the Provost's web site. You can also read more on our LibGuides. “Academic IntegrityProvost's web siteLibGuides From See:

TIPS FOR AVOIDING PLAGIARISM Use your own ideas as the focus. Use the ideas of others to support your argument, not take it over. Keep track of citation information as you gather your sources or take notes. When you are directly stating another’s words, use quotation marks. If you only change a word or two, you might as well keep it word for word and use quotation marks. Write a draft of your paper without any notes first, to separate your own ideas/words from those of the sources.

COMMON KNOWLEDGE—DON’T CITE IT. Common knowledge is considered facts or other information that is known by a lot of people. Things such as John F. Kennedy was assassinated. The sun sets in the west. The U.S. entered WWII after the bombing of Pearl Harbor. The KKK is a white supremacy group. Members of the KKK wear white robes. However, if you go more in depth, such as discussing the reasons behind the white robes, you would need to cite your source, as not everyone knows this information. If you are unsure whether something is common knowledge or not, it is always better to cite it.

CITING SOURCES You MUST cite your sources both WITHIN the text and on the Works Cited page. Within text: Wordsworth stated that Romantic poetry was marked by a “spontaneous overflow of powerful feelings” (263). Romantic poetry is characterized by the “spontaneous overflow of powerful feelings” (Wordsworth 263).

CORRECT IN-TEXT CITATION FOR THE FOLLOWING WOULD BE…? “It is surely possible to become a “Simpson”-style couch potato, imprisoned by the endless wash of images, immobilized, imbecilic, impotent.” Author: John McConnell Book: The Media as Babysitter Publisher: McGraw Hill Publication City: New York Publication Date: 1989 Page: 56

CORRECT ANSWER “It is surely possible to become a “Simpson”-style couch potato, imprisoned by the endless wash of images, immobilized, imbecilic, impotent” (McConnell 56).

WORKS CITED Book Author Last Name, First. Book Title. Publication City: Publisher, Year of Publication. Medium (Print). McConnell, John. The Media as Babysitter. New York: McGraw Hill, Print. Website/Article Author Last Name, First. “Article Title.” Website Name, Date of Publication. Medium (Web). Date of Access.