As original as Isaac Newton may have been, even he recognized “if I have seen further it is by standing on the shoulders of giants.” Ironically, he probably developed this idea based off of the thoughts of someone before him. Newton accurately describes the way our culture progresses; we build on the ideas of others. This idea of rehashing is further explained in Malcolm Gladwell 's article “Something Borrowed;” he urges his audience to stop pretending “that these chains of influence and evolution do not exist, and that a writer’s words have a virgin birth”(12). Gladwell further argues that as long as one transforms someone’s ideas—similar to what Newton did—it is not considered plagiarism (11). However, unlike the acknowledgment Newton gave
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Although it would be ideal to transform the works of others— as Gladwell explains— without giving them credit, due to the way our society works, we must acknowledge the works of others and give credit to those who deserve …show more content…
Someone who plagiarizes or breaks the copyright laws not only destroys their own academic and professional reputation but they can sometimes have to face legal repercussions. Some may argue that the consequences that come with illegal borrowing are too extreme and should be altered a little. However, I would argue that although they can sometimes be a little extreme, they are necessary in order for people to understand the unlawfulness of illegal borrowing. If we do allow people to be relieved from their actions we should be prepared for these actions to increase significantly. Just like the example I previously mentioned with LimeWire; people were given a just law and they abused their rights. Once someone gets a taste of plagiarism or illegal borrowing, it can quickly and disturbingly become a terrible habit. Yes, the destruction of the plagiarizers academic and professional reputation might be enough of a consequence, but that is only dealing with the plagiarizer. What about the victim who was robbed of their ideas? I truly believe that the victim will not be satisfied with having the reputation of the plagiarizer be destroyed; I believe that they will want some compensation in return. Moreover, universities should consider looking over their repercussions to their policies or at least consider giving their students more rights to patents the students created. According to many
Although it would be ideal to transform the works of others— as Gladwell explains— without giving them credit, due to the way our society works, we must acknowledge the works of others and give credit to those who deserve …show more content…
Someone who plagiarizes or breaks the copyright laws not only destroys their own academic and professional reputation but they can sometimes have to face legal repercussions. Some may argue that the consequences that come with illegal borrowing are too extreme and should be altered a little. However, I would argue that although they can sometimes be a little extreme, they are necessary in order for people to understand the unlawfulness of illegal borrowing. If we do allow people to be relieved from their actions we should be prepared for these actions to increase significantly. Just like the example I previously mentioned with LimeWire; people were given a just law and they abused their rights. Once someone gets a taste of plagiarism or illegal borrowing, it can quickly and disturbingly become a terrible habit. Yes, the destruction of the plagiarizers academic and professional reputation might be enough of a consequence, but that is only dealing with the plagiarizer. What about the victim who was robbed of their ideas? I truly believe that the victim will not be satisfied with having the reputation of the plagiarizer be destroyed; I believe that they will want some compensation in return. Moreover, universities should consider looking over their repercussions to their policies or at least consider giving their students more rights to patents the students created. According to many