Would this be considered plagiarism?

Question

I had an idea for what a theme may be in the book I'm reading.
I went on the internet and found that it was, in fact a theme. I put it in my essay, but will I have to say that a website confirmed my idea?

Answer 1

Use the information you received from the site, however dont stop there.

1. Cite it in a bibliography or a footnote.
2. Elaborate a little further as in why the website confirmed why you wanted to use the theme.

Those 2 steps will allow you to get around plagiarism, most of times.

Answer 2

Is this a research paper or a paer where you are asked to cite sources? If so, then yes you will need to include the website in your Works Cited Page at a minimum. If you had the paper completely written and di nothing more than look it up on the website AND you were not asked for any source maerial then I think that's another story myself. But, go with your gut. Kudos to you for being sensitive to this issue too!

Answer 3

No -
Plagiarism is the practice of "dishonestly" claiming or implying original authorship of material which one has not actually created, such as when a person incorporates material from someone else's work into their own work without attributing it. Within academia, plagiarism is seen as academic dishonesty and is a serious and punishable academic offense. Plagiarism may happen unintentionally in the case of unconscious plagiarism or if a plagiarist is unaware of the need for citation. Unintentional plagiarism is not dishonest but it may be careless.

Answer 4

Students' Guide to Preventing and Avoiding Plagiarism

http://www.liu.edu/CWIS/CWP/library/exhibits/plagstudent.htm

Merriam-Webster's Online Dictionary defines Plagiarism using another's words and ideas and passing them on as your own. Words, ideas, or knowledge are considered the Intellectual Property of the original author.


Plagiarism

The idea of research is to study what others have published and form your own opinions. When you quote people, or even when you summarize or paraphrase information found in books, articles, or Web pages, you must acknowledge the original author.

If you use someone else's words or ideas without crediting them, you are committing a type of theft called plagiarism. Plagiarism can be as obvious as turning in another person's paper or project as your own or as subtle as paraphrasing sections of various works. It is also incorrect to copy text from Web pages or other sources without identifying where they came from.

http://www.liu.edu/CWIS/CWP/library/workbook/evaluate.htm#plagiarism

Paraphrase: Write it in Your Own Words

http://owl.english.purdue.edu/handouts/research/r_paraphr.html

Practice Exercises in Paraphrasing

http://owl.english.purdue.edu/handouts/research/r_paraphrEX1.html

A paraphrase is an indirect quotation. It must be documented because it relates in your own words and style the thoughts you have borrowed from another person. Paraphrases are more flexible than quotations. They fit more smoothly into your text, and you can express your own interpretations as you paraphrase.

http://leo.stcloudstate.edu/research/usingpara.html

http://www.utoronto.ca/ucwriting/paraphrase.html

Good luck.

Kevin, Liverpool, England.

Answer 5

If you used info from that website in your paper, then cite it. If not, then don't. A works cited list is a list of all the sources that you actually cited in your paper. It should not include other things that you just looked at. A bibliography would include all relevant things that you looked at.

Answer 6

nope. aslong as you provide details other than what is given on that site, and as long as you dont use word for word help. truthfully its just about being honest with yourself. if you went on the site and found a theme you hadnt thought up, then maybe youd like to cite your source but in your case you do not have to

Answer 7

Plagiarism is using another person's words and passing them off as your own.

Answer 8

Yes. Otherwise the teacher has no way of knowing that you didn't steal it straight from the web site.

Answer 9

To be UP and UP.. YES.. You would have to cite it.. Or you could take a chance that no one would catch it

Answer 10

yes