Plagiarism hoopla

[sari_malfoy]

Okay. Maybe (just maybe) I'm an ignorant, but until two days ago I knew nothing of Cassie Claire and the whole plagiarism debackle. I had heard a sentence here or there, but had no real idea wtf everything was about. I have to admit, I'm still kind of confused. I've been reading the whole thing in a nutshell

Comments

Plagiarism

[drcjsnider]

I was just talking about this with my students the other day. For my profession (historian) plagiarism is defined as using someone words or original ideas with the intent to deceive. Therefore, in a scholarly/academic article it is not just enough to give credit at the end of an article or book for all the sources you may have used. You also have to put any exact words you use from another sources in quotations marks and then footnote them. Likewise, if you don't use someone's exact words - but you paraphrase their arguments, sentences, ideas, you need to footnote that as well

Re: Plagiarism

[quicksilvereyes]

I agree with your thoughts on plagiarism. I'd also add that people should also educate themselves on proper conduct because not "intending to decieve" isn't an excuse for utter ignorance.

Also, I do think CC should be held accountable even if there was no fandom code because she plagiarized whole passages of one book and word for word phrases from other media as well. Just because it's fandom doesn't mean you can do whatever you want and copying others' works to such an extent without credit would be wrong in any context rules or no rules.

Re: Plagiarism

[drcjsnider]

I would suggest that copying whole passage of another book is having an intent to deceive.

Re: Plagiarism

[precariously]

that I can definitely understand. but does anyone know what exactly she copied? I haven't read it in forever -- ever since the d/g became a huge portion of the story and the d/hr faded out.

Re: Plagiarism

[sari_malfoy]

Behind the link in my post, there a several examples of the scenes she "paraphrazes", meaning you can see the original text from the book and what she did with it.

I'm still asking though, if borrowing a line or several, credited or not, make a fanfic better or worse, or does it have any difference in your opinion? In which cases would it be either..?

Re: Plagiarism

[precariously]

to me, borrowing a couple of lines [with credit or not] pales considerably to borrowing an entire fictional universe.

Re: Plagiarism

[quicksilvereyes]

Well, when you borrow a universe, there's an understanding by all that its not yours. (Authors decide whether or not they will condone fanfic about their work and I'm not talking about authors who don't like it.) It's why everyone is there to read/write/whatever about it. Even if not credited, everyone knows it isn't yours if you don't credit for whatever reason.

However, if you use specific lines or passages without crediting, no one has to know its not yours. And it's certainly harder for the author to know you're using their stuff.

Re: Plagiarism

[precariously]

see, I think borrowing "passages" is certainly stepping over the line. a snarky quip or something from a movie or tv show once in awhile isn't really serious, but passages are a different story.

from that point on, it's a large departure. actively stealing someone else’s writing pattern, style, and plot itself through passages is absolutely plagiarism. especially without crediting, but it still would be plagiarism even with credit.

taking a story/idea and making it your own through fandom or snagging a couple of lines is definitely not as severe as lifting solid chunks of text.

Re: Plagiarism

[quicksilvereyes]

I think borrowing a line is fine if credited and its really clever or says exactly what you're trying to. If not, then why do it in the first place? It shouldn't edge out your own original words though, heh.

Re: Plagiarism

[sari_malfoy]

That's a matter of taste isn't it. The cleverness I mean, or lack there of.

As for my personal line-usage, I guess it wouldn't kill my story to NOT use "William, William it was really nothing." as a line, but at the time I thought it was genuinely funny. Wether or not it was clever enough to bother using it, I couldn't say.

Re: Plagiarism

[quicksilvereyes]

Lol, if you think it was clever, then that's what matters I think. It's your story and it should be fun.

Re: Plagiarism

[drcjsnider]

I still believe that under fan-fics community standards borrowing a line or two with credit is fine. Borrowing without credit will get you charged with plagiarism as soon as someone else recognizes it.

Borrowing entire paragraphs of material even if credited is walking a line that I think is unacceptable even in fan-fics.

Re: Plagiarism

[precariously]

then again, she was much younger when she actually wrote it. I understand that she could have cited them a little bit more strictly, but I don't think we should jump down her throat for it.

sometimes, I have to wonder: would it still be a big deal if no one was reading it?

Re: Plagiarism

[quicksilvereyes]

Well there'd be no one to complain about it, but it'd still be bad, lol. It did blow up quite spectacularly because of her fame, but she also had a lot of people on her side that maybe a lesser known person wouldn't have had. I think it balances out with her coming out a bit better in the end. ;)

Re: Plagiarism

[precariously]

hahaha, see, I think it came out evenly, or maybe even worse? her name is practically synonymous with hp fandom wank, now. I still can't help but think that no one would be discussing it at all or even caring had it been a seriously poorly-typed bad!fic with "sppeling erors."

Re: Plagiarism

[quicksilvereyes]

The only reason I think she came out better is that she has a book coming out soon (or it already came out, can't remember) and EVERYONE knew about it. They wanked all over the preview chapter. But even though her name is shit in fandom now, she still has a quite a few fangirls left who will read her books when they come out. She doesn't even have to work to fans for her book now and there are people like me who missed when she was in fandom and curiously read the preview. I don't think it was anything special, but I still read it and there are probably new people who might go out and buy it.

But then again, the wankers like to wank and she's like Santa Clause to them. :P