Plagiarism Plagiarism has been present in society for longer than one might like to think. But what is even more upsetting is the fact that it is a recurring problem in innumerable school systems across the country. By definition, plagiarism is the “unacknowledged and inappropriate use of ideas and wording of another writer†and can be considered “a grave violation of academic integrity†(http://www.usc.edu/dept/LAS/writing/tools/plagiarism.html). This may seem slightly harsh, but it is indeed true. However, to put in layman’s terms, an act of fraud or deception is committed when someone plagiarizes, either from a textbook or the internet. And, as with every mistake, consequences arise that affect the individual greatly. The general public conveys plagiarism to be “the capital intellectual crime†and in addition, is most often used by students and professors whose “undetected plagiarisms disrupt the system of student and scholarly evaluation†(http://www.law.uchicago.edu/news/posner-r-plagiarism.html).
