Is plagiarism a mortal sin, and is this plagiarism?

[McatholicN]

I’m doing a report and just searching around for information online, but not really citing anything. Is this plagiarism?

Is it a mortal sin?

 

[1ke]

I’m doing a report and just searching around for information online, but not really citing anything. Is this plagiarism?

If you are copying verbatim what these people wrote and not using quotations in your report, then yes it is plagarism and if the materials is under copyright it’s infringement as well.

If you are reading various sources and then summarizing all the information creating your own, original work then no it isn’t plagarism. Depending upon the requirements of given to you for citing sources, do so in a bibliography or footnotes/endnotes.

Is it a mortal sin?

Copyright infringement, cheating/plagarism are sins against the Seventh Commandment.

 

[marchoi]

Simply put, plagiarism is the act of taking the ideas of someone else and presenting them as your own. It is a form of intellectual theft.

However, I would hesitate to classify it as a mortal sin. Mortal sin requires grave matter, sufficient knowledge of the moral evil involved, and sufficient consent to committing the moral evil. I do not think that a case of “simple plagiarism” would constitute grave matter. If this is a doctoral thesis that you’re using plagiarism to write - or something of significant importance like that - then it might warrant the status of mortal sin. But if it is a three-page reflection paper that doesn’t even count for 10% of a grade… eh, I don’t know about that. Besides, it’s really not that difficult to cite someone in a paper.

Note, however, that it is still not “okay” to commit venial sin. That is to say, you should not be thinking to yourself, “Hmm… if this is a mortal sin, I won’t do it. But if it’s a venial sin, hey, let’s go for it!” We should always be striving to stay away from all sin, mortal or venial.

 

[McatholicN]

Must I cite facts, or only ideas?

 

[McatholicN]

And what about stuff I knew already?

 

[PerfectTiming]

And what about stuff I knew already?

On principle, I find it easier to cite as much as I can to avoid any problems. If it’s someone elses idea you must cite it. Facts it depends. If it’s something that is common knowledge then you don’t have to cite it but if it’s not then cite it.

 

[1ke]

On principle, I find it easier to cite as much as I can to avoid any problems. If it’s someone elses idea you must cite it. Facts it depends. If it’s something that is common knowledge then you don’t have to cite it but if it’s not then cite it.

It also depends upon the nature of the paper and the instructions of the teacher. In some classes, we were required to have citations for every aspect of our papers. In others, it was not required.

 

[McatholicN]

It also depends upon the nature of the paper and the instructions of the teacher. In some classes, we were required to have citations for every aspect of our papers. In others, it was not required.

So it all depends on the teacher’s requirements?

 

[1ke]

So it all depends on the teacher’s requirements?

How and when you cite your summarized thoughts, yes.

The requirement to write original work and not copy someone else’s work without using direct quotation, no.

 

[McatholicN]

The requirement to write original work and not copy someone else’s work without using direct quotation, no.

If I reword it, its fine? There’s some things that can’t be put other ways.

You see, my report is on the relationship between Judaism, Christianity, and Islam and most of the stuff is just facts about beliefs.

In what case would someone commit plagiarism?

 

[davidv]

If I reword it, its fine? There’s some things that can’t be put other ways.

You see, my report is on the relationship between Judaism, Christianity, and Islam and most of the stuff is just facts about beliefs.

In what case would someone commit plagiarism?

It is plagierism where
dictionary.com:

the unauthorized use or close imitation of the language and thoughts of another author and the representation of them as one’s own original work.

Direct quotes and minor wording changes that are not acknowledged to belong to another would be plagierism.

 

[wjp984]

It depends on the teacher’s assignment:

If it is a reflection paper then you probably only need to cite if you are directly quoting an author, and you can just make references to the sources you got your thoughts from in general, somewhere in your paper.

However, if it is a paper, then ya, cite away. It can never hurt to cite too much. I use id. sometimes excessively to cover my butt just in case.

Is there a particular reason you don’t want to cite?

To answer your question: it’s probably not plagirism if you don’t cite your thoughts, but it certainly is plagirism if you don’t cite quotes and direct thoughts of another author with a few words changed.

When in doubt I say cite. I have written and edited papers when some of the pages have had more footnote text than ATL text (above the line as in the actual paper)

 

[McatholicN]

What must be cited? Do sources of facts need to be cited?

For some examples I’m making a book in school about grammatical rules and a report on British Rule in India. What in these would need to be cited?

Would using a Thesaurus need to be cited?

 

[PerfectTiming]

What must be cited? Do sources of facts need to be cited?

For some examples I’m making a book in school about grammatical rules and a report on British Rule in India. What in these would need to be cited?

Would using a Thesaurus need to be cited?

A thesaurus wouldn’t because things like are that don’t ‘belong’ to anyone. What words mean is common knowledge, so you don’t need to cite it. What you have to cite is ideas that aren’t yours, like a certain person’s interpretation of something or something they’ve developed.

For the report you describe, since history is basically public domain I would say don’t cite anything within what you write but have a bibliography at the end of sources you read and got information from.

 

[smichhertz]

And what about stuff I knew already?

I think there is a commonly used “three sources” rule. Where if you can find a fact in three unrelated and separate sources it can be considered common knowledge and there is no need to cite it. So for instance if I were to state “the pythagorean theorem is a2 + b2 = c2” I wouldn’t need to provide sources since it is common knowledge.

It is important to note that it only applies to facts / information and not to ideas / theories. But I state this because otherwise you wouldn’t even be able to write a paper without citing everything.