Table of Contents
# Table of Contents# What's all this about?
# STEP ZERO: Quote or paraphrase?
# STEP ONE: Figure out what you need to cite, and how to do it.
# STEP TWO: Make your References List or Bibliography
# Other Important Pages
The first section is why; the remainder is how. Printable versions (Microsoft Word) are available by clicking the menu to the left.
The how sections are modified from "How to Cite It" by John Bozeman.
What's all this about?
You're here to get a degree. You're supposed to actually know the stuff you're supposed to learn for the degree. Among other things, that means when you write a paper, the writing should represent your thought.
Would you go to a doctor if you knew he had cheated on all the med school exams? No? Why not? You expect the doctor to actually know the stuff he was supposed to learn.
Suppose your sweetheart gave you a touching poem that they said they wrote just for you. It really captured how deeply they care, and made you admire them even more for being able to express themselves so well. Suppose you later discover they just recycled something a previous lover had written to them? Wouldn't you feel cheated?
Your assignments are always supposed to be just for this class and just from you. Anything else is cheating.
"But, I'm just learning this stuff -- I'm not an expert!" No, you're not. Like a reporter, you are expected to consult sources. Also like a reporter, you are expected to cite your sources.
"But, I found a service that will sell me a paper they 'guarantee' is not plagiarized." (a) You mean, you want to hire someone else to write the paper for you, and then present it as if it were your own? You're not serious are you? Would you go to a doctor who hired someone else to take all his tests for him? (b) They are 'guaranteeing' that their writer didn't plagiarize. Not that you won't be plagiarizing! (c) By the way, I've checked -- their writers do plagiarize, and they do it badly. (d) More to the point, have you stopped to ask why you're trying to get a degree?
"So, is citing complicated?"
The basic idea is simple: look stuff up, ask experts, and then cite them to give credit where it's due. Okay?
Only the mechanics are complicated, and the basic idea is much more important than mechanical formatting.
"How serious is this?" Famous reporters, tenured professors, and university vice presidents have been fired when previous plagiarism has been revealed. Most universities reserve the right to expel you for clear cases of copy-and-paste, or intent to deceive. In theory you can spend a year in jail, though this is rare for coursework incidents.
"How likely am I to get caught?"
1. You shouldn't be thinking this way.
2. If you can Google it, so can I. I've been Googling since before Google.
3. I even have robots to Google for me. And services like TurnItIn
4. During my own studies, I've probably read many or most of the articles or books you're likely to find.
"But, my writing isn't very good." So you can either (a) use your own writing, citing sources as you go, and suffer about a 10% penalty for bad writing, or (b) copy & paste, and run a substantial risk of getting a zero (0) for the assignment or the course, and possibly being expelled. You do the math.
"My writing is really bad. What if I just copy and paste, and make sure to cite everything."
If you are very careful to cite everything, so that it is immediately obvious that your "paper" is just a collection of material, then at least you have not plagiarized. On the other hand, you also have not done your own thinking, except as required to arrange your quotations. You should expect no more than a C, and you should check with your instructor ahead of time!
By all means, start here if you must. But once youv'e done that, why not add some original writing?
"What do I do if I'm not sure?"
ASK! Most teachers like to talk to their students, and love to help students learn. That's why they teach. (It's usually not for the pay.)
"What resources are available?"
- See "Other Important Pages" below.
STEP ZERO: Quote or paraphrase?
So you want or need to cite another paper or an expert. Do you quote them, or write their idea in your words (paraphrase)? Generally, you only quote if the precise wording is important for your point. If you do quote, you have to make it clear which words are being quoted exactly! You have two options: (a) Use quotations marks, "like this here", for short quotations; (b) Use block indents for long quotations. This is the kind of indented block to use for a block quotation. On a printed page, it is indented about 1/2 inch from both the left and right margins. Of course, not every indented block is a quotation, so make sure to introduce it, and put a citation either just before the block quote, or at the end of the block quote, like this (Beeblebrox, 42). Your own text then continues after the block quotation. The purpose of the indenting is just to make it clear which material is yours, and which is quoted. The visual separation also makes it easier to read and understand.
STEP ONE: Figure out what you need to cite, and how to do it.
1. When you quote somebody directly in the text:
Whenever you use someone else's words, you must cite them. The great scholar, John Bozeman, wrote in his autobiography, "I was hungry, so I ate something" (Bozeman 34).Ruth Lee, interviewed by Daniel Traster in the New York Times, said "Stratford University is the best school in the whole entire world!" (Traster A4)
"What's (Bozeman 34) mean?" That's the citation. The name is the person who wrote the book or article, while the number is the page in the book, magazine, or newspaper where the article was found. In this case, (Bozeman 34) means the author is named Bozeman, and the quote is on page 34. The reader then looks in the References List at the end to figure out which article or book that refers to.
2. When you paraphrase (that is, you take significant ideas from other people and put them in your own words):
For example, suppose we are referring to Alton Brown:
Celebrity chef Alton Brown has noted that many American casserole dishes use cream of mushroom soup as a binder. However, other things can also be used, with different and sometimes improved results (Brown 23)
3. Make sure that the reader can tell which ideas came from whom:
For example, if we have multiple sources: Alton Brown (Brown 23) seems to avoid using cream of mushroom soup in casseroles, while John Bozeman (Bozeman 34) and Miriam Turner (Turner, personal communication) do not. But that was really awkward. We could also do this: Alton Brown seems to avoid using cream of mushroom soup in casseroles, while John Bozeman and Miriam Turner do not (Brown 23; Bozeman 34; Turner, personal communication).
4. Things that are considered to be common knowledge usually do not need to be cited, though specific supporting facts should be.
For example: Many people think that kittens are cute and fuzzy. For example, a recent Gallup poll shows that 85% of children like to play with them (Walden 45). However, some parents do not want their kids to have kittens because they suspect they will be stuck taking care of the pet. Only the Gallup poll needs to be cited. The other information is common knowledge and/or the viewpoint of the author.Here we can see another reason that scholars and scientists cite sources: it allows the reader to go check the facts. This is critically important in science, and in other fields. Sometimes the cited source does not bear the weight placed upon it.
STEP TWO: Make your References List or Bibliography
Your reader needs to know what (Bozeman 34) refers to, so she could look it up in the library. You give this information once, at the end of your paper, in a list called a Bibliography or References list. There are several standard formats. Below is a simple guide.Note, for reading ease, bibliographies have a "hanging indent" format. For each reference, the first line hangs on the margin, and the following lines are indented. See immediately below.
Book with one author:
Gibbons, Gail. Caves and Caverns. New York:Harcourt Brace, 1993.
1. Author, last name first 2. Title of Book (italicized) 3. City of publication: 4. Publisher, date of publication
Book with two authors:
Ride, Sally and Tom O'Shaughnessy. The Third Planet. New York:Crown Publishers, 1994
1. Authors, in the order they are listed on the title page. Rest as per Book with one author, above
To Be Continued....
See How to Cite for the full printable guide (Microsoft Word format).Other Important Pages
- Plagiarism Resource Center (external link)
- The OWL at Purdue (external link)
- For a quick list of when to cite (and when you needn't), see the OWL page on When to Cite.