Society’s View on Plagiarism
...ot realize is that plagiarism is the opposite of these ethics. It takes away another person’s “intellectual property” (Crowson) and gives credit to someone who does not deserve it. It is unfair to the original writer and the people who work with the plagiarizer. Plagiarizing is taking an unfair advantage over those who play by the rules. This violates our theories of moral values. Copyright violations will no doubt lead to damages. A member of the Winonan was fired for plagiarizing a web site. Although the writer had plagiarized by accident, it was still plagiarism and she lost her job for it. We can see that plagiarism is not allowed in our society through this case. It does not matter how unintentional or innocent the act is done; we will be penalized for plagiarizing. We’ve been learning what society approves of in school. It is not theft and dishonesty, but responsibility for our actions. We are “cheating ourselves out of an education” (Heller-Ross) when we plagiarize. We are to be prepared for the consequences if we choose to plagiarize. Do not plagiarize and expect to be successful because society does not allow plagiarism as a push to succeed. Plagiarism is wrong not only because of moral values, but also because it will result in lack of thinking skills and creativity. Plagiarizing is simply copying another person’s ideas or wording. If one was given an essay assignment, instead of thinking up his or her own ideas, he or she chooses to plagiarize; this individual will not learn anything. It is alright to read and reference another person’s writing, but it is important that one learns while reading other’s work. Copying or changing a few words from the original copy will not increase one’s knowledge. The American Heritage Dictionary of English Language says that success is the achievement of something desired, planned, or attempted; plagiarism will not get you there. Success is not always about winning and it is definitely not about getting what one wants at all cost. Success is achieving something with honest hard work. It is doing something in one’s best ability. Although you might not receive a satisfying mark, you can at least say to yourself you have had “understood what excellence really is” (Gerstel, D6) and you have worked toward it. You’ll have a clean conscience this way and feel no guilt. After awhile of practice of doing your best, the quality of your ideas and writings will increase. The pride you will feel by the...