MLA Argument Analysis

Improved Essays
Over the course of the last week, the class has examined the proper ways in which to cite according to MLA specifications. We have reviewed the ways in which to prove whether or not a source is credible, and we have begun the work on our second-to-last paper, the annotated bibliography. Some of the most common mistakes that occur when writing a MLA formatted essay or other piece of writing can include improper citations or improper heading format. I struggled specifically with remembering the order in which the MLA header was supposed to be written. I did not actually sit down and commit to memory the correct order (name, teacher, class, date) until the summer before I started college. Many students struggle with remembering all of the technicalities …show more content…
Most importantly, the use of MLA style can protect writers from accusations of plagiarism, which is the purposeful or accidental uncredited use of source material by other writers” (https://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/747/01/). By stating this, the authors of the Purdue website make the point that using MLA in writing serves to provide legitimate sources that confirm the arguments that the author makes in their particular paper. The OWL also cautions against plagiarism, something that haunts many students. When something is not cited correctly, either in MLA format or otherwise, the writing is stolen from its original author. By illegally pilfering writing that does not belong to the original writer, a student can completely jeopardize his school career. However, it is entirely possible to accidentally plagiarize; in fact, it is rather simple to quote someone from a particular website or any other place and forget to cite the quote. Although the act of plagiarism is completely innocent, and the author committed the act accidentally, all students must take care to proofread their papers in order to make sure they do not accidentally …show more content…
If the site has been published by a legitimate corporation, such as the New York Times or the American Psychological Association, there is a good chance that the writing is accurate and that there will be no misconstrued information. However, if the post is written by a site such as US Weekly or Buzzfeed, although there may be a great deal of truth in the statements that are made, the article cannot be taken as highly credible. When writing a research paper, I typically try to either find specific articles on databases such as JSTOR, or I try to only use websites that end in .org or .edu, because I know that they have been published by legitimate educational departments or by legitimate

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