Avoiding Plagiarism Using MLA Style
What Is MLA Style? MLA is the style guide for the Modern Language Association. It is generally used to write papers and cite sources in the fields of the liberal arts and humanities. It also establishes standards for organizing and citing references and provides a style guide to follow.
You Use MLA for the Same Reasons as APA Simplifies the work of editors by having everyone use the same format for a given publication Makes it easier for readers to understand a text by providing cues in a familiar structure they can follow Demonstrates an awareness of your audience and their needs as fellow researchers
Who Should Use MLA? MLA Style describes rules for the preparation of manuscripts for writers and students in: English composition Literature History Other branches of the Humanities Your professor will let you know which style he/she prefers for your papers.
General MLA Guidelines Your essay should be typed, double-spaced on standard-sized paper (8.5" x 11") with 1" margins on all sides. You should use a clear font that is highly readable. MLA recommends using 12 pt. Times New Roman font.
How to Start MLA does not require a cover page, a running header, or an abstract. Your last name & the page # should be on the right, 1/2 from the top of the page (use setting #3 for header on Word). Heading (not the same as header) is 1 from the top of the page on the left. It should only be on the first page and includes, in the following order: Your name Your professor s name The class The date Title is centered one double-space below the date Title should be original - that is not Research Paper or Essay #1 or the like
For Example: Tony Stark Professor Hammer ENGL 1301 May 1, 2013 How I Saved the World The title should be correctly capitalized, no quotation marks, not bolded or italicized, and in the same size font as the rest of the paper. Paragraphs should be indented one tab or 5 spaces.* * this is not 12 font!
The Paper Paper margins should be 1 at the top, bottom, and sides. Paper should be double-spaced with no extra spaces between paragraphs (set spacing to double and click Remove Space after Paragraph when you begin). Your paper is going to contain statistics, quotes, and references to sources that you have used in your research, as well as your own ideas. You MUST correctly cite these sources, both in the text and on the Works Cited page.
The Works Cited Page The list of sources for a paper in MLA is called a Works Cited. This should appear at the top of the page, 1 margins all around. It does not include a heading. The WC page is numbered as the final page of the paper. For example: if you have written a 5 page paper, your WC will be page 6. Entries are alphabetized by the author s last name.* *see our presentation on citation for more detailed information
Formatting the Works Cited Alphabetize by author s last name. If no author is listed, use the first few words of the title. Use a hanging indent ½ from the left margin on each line after the first line of every entry. Double-space with no extra spaces between entries. For example: McGonigal, Joan. Reality is Broken: Why Games Make Us Better and How They Can Change the World. NY: Penguin Books, 2011. Print.
In-text Citation In addition to your Works Cited page, you must cite all the sources you use in the body of the paper. In-text citation occurs at the end of the quote or paraphrase. Also called parenthetical citation, it is a shortened version of the information on your Works Cited page. MLA uses (author last name pg#). For example: (Smith 124). Always punctuate outside ( ).
Why Do We Cite? To indicate we ve done our research To give credit to the authors of the works we are using To demonstrate that we are using someone else s ideas To avoid plagiarism and accusations of plagiarism
What Is Plagiarism? Many people think of plagiarism as copying another's work or borrowing someone else's original ideas. However, terms like "copying" and "borrowing" can disguise the seriousness of the offense, and plagiarism is a serious offense.
Plagiarism Is: Co-opting (stealing) and passing off the ideas or words of another as one's own Using someone else s intellectual production, words, images, etc. without crediting the source Literary theft Presenting as new and original an idea or product derived from an existing source Plagiarism is an act of fraud. It involves both stealing someone else's work and lying about it afterward.
Plagiarism Is Illegal! According to U.S. law, the expression of original ideas is considered intellectual property and is protected by copyright laws, just like original inventions. Almost all forms of expression fall under copyright protection as long as they are recorded in some way (such as a book or a computer file).
Consequences: Fine of between $100 - $50, 000 Up to a year in jail Suspension from school Banned from returning to college
All of the Following Are Considered Plagiarism: turning in someone else's work as your own copying words or ideas from someone else without giving credit failing to put a quotation in quotation marks giving incorrect information about the source of a quotation changing words but copying the sentence structure of a source without giving credit copying so many words or ideas from a source that it makes up the majority of your work, whether you give credit or not
Types of Plagiarism The Top Ten
#1: Cloning Submitting another s work word-forword as one s own, such as copying and pasting a paper from the internet or buying a paper that someone else wrote.
#2: Ctrl C Contains significant portions copied and pasted from another text without significant alteration
#3 Find-replace Changing key words or phrases to make the text sound like you, but not citing the actual author whose ideas you are using.
#4 Remix Pieces of quotes or paraphrases from several authors put together in a different way to make sentences, such as using several articles on the same topic to piece together your own work.
#5 Recycle Borrowing from your own earlier work without mentioning that you are re-using it or quoting another paper
#6 Hybrid Combines some perfectly cited sources with directly copied, un-cited material meant to sound like it is original
#7 404 Error Includes citations to non-existent sources or uses inaccurate sources
#8 Mash-up Mixes blocks of copied material from different sources
#9 Aggregator Paper is almost entirely composed of sources; even though cited and quoted it contains no original work.
#10 Re-tweet Includes proper citation, but relies too closely on the text s original wording and/or structure at the expense of originality. This is probably the least serious kind of plagiarizing, but it is still not recommended.
When in Doubt: Cite Most cases of plagiarism can be avoided by citing sources. Simply acknowledging that certain material has been borrowed and providing your audience with the information necessary to find that source is usually enough to prevent plagiarism.
Sources owl.english.purdue.edu plagiarism.org All images from google images
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