Plagiarism

The strange thing about plagiarism is that its almost eer pointless. The writers who stand accused, from Laurence Sterne to Samuel Taylor Coleridge to Susan Sontag, tend to be more talented than the writers they emanation from. The well-regarded historians Stephen Ambrose and Doris Kearns Goodwin, recently charged with plagiarizing, fit the profile. Ambrose denied plagiarism but sworn to correct the errors in future editions of his latest book. Goodwins case resulted in a private settlement and more footnotes. Even their critics couldnt go for on the severity of their infractions. Problem is, as concepts go, plagiarism isnt that old. The Oxford side of meat Dictionary cites the Elizabethan playwright Ben Jonson as the first individual to use the word plagiary to designate literary theft--and he was reservation a joke. That was at the beginning of the 17th century, when everyone, including Shakespeare, windlessness borrowed early(a) peoples work and remade it. Originality had very little cred in the beginning the Romantics inflated it. The increasing prevalence of mass-produced books furthered the problem of plagiarism, too, because past there was something to steal from. The ensuing centuries dedicate left us with no lack of cases, but clear-cut definitions are still hard to come by.

Common sense--always in short bring out on this subject--has to settle the issue, says Thomas Mallon, author of the excellent autobiography of plagiarism, Stolen Words (from which nearly the entire paragraph above is lifted). How much(prenominal) material is involved? How many instances? In Ambroses case, literary detectives have ferreted out numerous examples of borrowing/lifting/stealing in at least five books published over three decades. Does that ground him a plagiarist? Mallon again: If there are 10 stab wounds, youre dealing with something other than a kitchen accident.Have You immortalise This Story Somewhere?Newsweek, 2/4/2002, Vol. 139 Issue 5, p10, 1/3p, 3c Jones, Malcolm If you want to get a full essay, order it on our website: Ordercustompaper.com

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