Citing Sources - Reviews

College Policy on Citing Sources

It is necessary for you to give proper credit to all of the resources you use in your research papers. Plagiarism is a violation of Dickinson's Student Code of Conduct, and is a specific form of cheating defined in the code as follows:

1) To plagiarize is to use without proper citation or acknowledgment the words, ideas, or work of another. Whenever one relies on someone else for phraseology, even for only two or three words, one must acknowledge indebtedness by using quotation marks and giving the source, either in the text or in a footnote.

2) When one borrows facts which are not matters of general knowledge, including all statistics and translations, one must indicate one's indebtedness in the text or footnote. When one borrows an idea or the logic of an argument, one must acknowledge indebtedness either in a footnote or in the text. When in doubt, footnote. (Academic Standards Committee, November, 1965)

You should include appropriate citations in all of your research. Your professor will direct you as to what style he or she prefers; the English Department usually prefers the MLA Style.

How to Cite

Different professors may ask you to provide citations in different formats. The library has resources for any citation format you may require.

Reference Books

These reference books are available on the main level of the library and cannot be checked out.

Call Number
Title
REF LB2369 .G53 2003
MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers
PE1408 .H26 2000
A Pocket Style Manual
REF Z253 .U69 1993 The Chicago Manual of Style


Web Sites

The following web sites are continually updated.

MLA (Modern Language Association)
The "official" site, includes regular updates.

Citation Styles (MLA, APA, Chicago, CBE)
An all purpose web site from Bedford/St. Martin's publishers. It is contained in Online: a Reference Guide to Using Internet Sources.

Using Modern Language Association (MLA) Format
Excellent website created by the Purdue University's Online Writing Lab (OWL).

Writing with Sources
Gordon Harvey's Expository Writing Program at Harvard University.

 

Plagiarism

The following web site will help you understand what plagiarism is.

What is Plagiarism?
Georgetown University defines plagiarism, paraphrasing, and copyright. How to cite web resources, and what to do if someone helps you with your research.