Cheating and Plagiarism Its Not Plagiarism, I Essay Example For Students

Cheating and Plagiarism Its Not Plagiarism, I Essay ts Recycling Argumentative Persuasive Essays Its Not Plagiarism, Its Recycling What does plagiarism have to do with Shakespeare, Marlowe, Ovids Metamorphosis, Titus Andronicus, Revenge Tragedies, Adam, Eve and the apple, and The Tempest? All these and many more are the result of plagiarism. There seems to be a great discussion on whether or not Shakespeare is the true author of the plays associated with his name. The internet seems to be full of essays, discussion boards and book reviews all dealing with this particular topic and most of the people submitting them are very forceful and definitive about their positions. In just a few hours of searching I found well over a thousand pages dealing with the original source of the works of art assigned to Shakespeares name. The most disappointing part was that none of the essays I read even suggested the possibility of Shakespeare just borrowing information and topics from other playwrights and authors. They were all mainly interested in the man who actually put the words on paper. Not only did this decrease their usefulness for this particular paper but also they made it seem like the person who wrote the plays down on paper had some particular lawful ownership over them. This was not true though. During the time that Shakespeare was writing plays in England, there were no such laws deeming a play protected by copyright laws. Today, plays are usually published and distributed but in the Elizabethan era, plays were only written enough for the actors to learn their lines. When plays were put on there was usually a large audience. This audience could have included other playwrights and actors who would then remember pieces of what they saw and use them later in their own productions. How could this be copyrighted? Back then, actors were lucky if they did not get stopped by the police while performing a play why would the ideas of a playwright be protected by law? I do not think anyone even cared if the plays were used as resources for other plays. If Shakespeare used a part from one of Marlowes plays, then Marlowe could take some ideas from Shakespeare. Since most of the ideas for plays came from famous works anyway, whos to say that Shakespeares idea was even his own? Ovids Metamorphosis is one of the most referenced works in the plays we have read already in class. It was used in conjunction with the rape and mutilation of Lavinia in Titus Andronicus where, in Titus speech to his daughter in IV, 1, he asked if she was ravished and wronged, as Philomela was. (Shakespeare, 148) Philomela was raped and mutilated too in the famous story. Shakespeare could have used this simile because, undoubtedly, the audience was familiar with Ovids story and could then understand the pure horror of the situation. The Bible has been used as well. In The Revengers Tragedy, the anonymous author has Vindice talking about his mother and how she is just like all other women. He does not have a high opinion of any woman, which is apparent in the very beginning. He expresses this in II, 2 when he says, twas decreed before the world began, that women should be the hooks to catch a man. (Revengers, 120) This is using the old tale of Adam, Eve and the apple. When Eve gives Adam the apple she is setting him up to be a sinner and by this, gets him thrown out of the Garden of Eden. No one seems to be accusing the playwrights of plagiarizing these sources. When they were cited it was just a way for the playwright to add more meaning to the play for the audience. All the stories were well known to the visitors of the theatre so they would understand the references that may have been used for comedic purposes or as a sort of explanation of what has happened. .uefb522e032cc91dbee06b41358ba6b4f , .uefb522e032cc91dbee06b41358ba6b4f .postImageUrl , .uefb522e032cc91dbee06b41358ba6b4f .centered-text-area { min-height: 80px; position: relative; } .uefb522e032cc91dbee06b41358ba6b4f , .uefb522e032cc91dbee06b41358ba6b4f:hover , .uefb522e032cc91dbee06b41358ba6b4f:visited , .uefb522e032cc91dbee06b41358ba6b4f:active { border:0!important; } .uefb522e032cc91dbee06b41358ba6b4f .clearfix:after { content: ""; display: table; clear: both; } .uefb522e032cc91dbee06b41358ba6b4f { display: block; transition: background-color 250ms; webkit-transition: background-color 250ms; width: 100%; opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #95A5A6; } .uefb522e032cc91dbee06b41358ba6b4f:active , .uefb522e032cc91dbee06b41358ba6b4f:hover { opacity: 1; transition: opacity 250ms; webkit-transition: opacity 250ms; background-color: #2C3E50; } .uefb522e032cc91dbee06b41358ba6b4f .centered-text-area { width: 100%; position: relative ; } .uefb522e032cc91dbee06b41358ba6b4f .ctaText { border-bottom: 0 solid #fff; color: #2980B9; font-size: 16px; font-weight: bold; margin: 0; padding: 0; text-decoration: underline; } .uefb522e032cc91dbee06b41358ba6b4f .postTitle { color: #FFFFFF; font-size: 16px; font-weight: 600; margin: 0; padding: 0; width: 100%; } .uefb522e032cc91dbee06b41358ba6b4f .ctaButton { background-color: #7F8C8D!important; color: #2980B9; border: none; border-radius: 3px; box-shadow: none; font-size: 14px; font-weight: bold; line-height: 26px; moz-border-radius: 3px; text-align: center; text-decoration: none; text-shadow: none; width: 80px; min-height: 80px; background: url(https://artscolumbia.org/wp-content/plugins/intelly-related-posts/assets/images/simple-arrow.png)no-repeat; position: absolute; right: 0; top: 0; } .uefb522e032cc91dbee06b41358ba6b4f:hover .ctaButton { background-color: #34495E!important; } .uefb522e032cc91dbee06b41358ba6b4f .centered-text { display: table; height: 80px; padding-left : 18px; top: 0; } .uefb522e032cc91dbee06b41358ba6b4f .uefb522e032cc91dbee06b41358ba6b4f-content { display: table-cell; margin: 0; padding: 0; padding-right: 108px; position: relative; vertical-align: middle; width: 100%; } .uefb522e032cc91dbee06b41358ba6b4f:after { content: ""; display: block; clear: both; } READ: Police Brutality EssayAnother source for playwrights is history. As G. B. Harrison points out in his book, England in Shakespeares Day, the plays provide a good place for teaching history. He says: .