ENG 2100: Writing 1 with Jay Thompson

Wedad Mourtada, Week 15 Reading Responses

  1. After reading Ede’s methods for quoting directly, paraphrasing, or summarizing, I realized that I don’t always have to quote the authors’ exact words. I tried paraphrasing and summarizing for one of my paragraphs, and it just sounded more natural than quoting. However, I know that quoting is still important when I want to present something intriguing. Paraphrasing or summarizing such evidence would take away from the importance of the original texts, and my essay wouldn’t be as strong. I plan to summarize a little at the end of each paragraph, but knowing I can paraphrase some ideas from my sources is good because I know it would make my writing a little more sophisticated. Ede mentioned that it wouldn’t interrupt my writing flow, and I think that’s important. Also, some parts are too long to quote from, so as long as I summarize correctly, I think I’d be able to present two texts properly and compare or contrast their central arguments. 
  2. Lunsford and Ruszkiewicz say that academic integrity is when you give an author credit when using their ideas in your writing. This can be giving credits for ideas or even the writing style. They explain that it’s an ethical issue when they bring up an example of how people will applaud you for giving credit to an author. Academic integrity is an ethical issue because when you copy someone else’s ideas, you’re not acknowledging the work that they did. This downplays the authors’ effort. Some may believe copying someone’s ideas and not giving them credit will make their writing stronger. However, it’s the complete opposite. One can face serious consequences from plagiarizing, and there are many benefits to citing your sources. It strengthens your ethos, which makes your essay stronger. Lunsford and Ruszkiewicz also mention that people will applaud you for giving the authors credit because it shows that you know enough about the topic. You can accidentally plagiarize without even realizing it, so remember where you got your information from.