Notes... bibliography ... it all seems like a huge hassle, but citing sources is very important. For one thing, your research paper grew out of the ideas of others. Citing your sources is like showing your paper's family tree: your bibliography highlights those who came before you, whose ideas helped shape your own. Acknowledging your debt to other thinkers is an essential part of scholarship.
Citing sources is also important because it allows the reader to follow in your steps along the road you took toward formulating your ideas. Any reader who has a question about one of your sources should be able to do consult it herself. Your bibliography points the way.
And finally, you must cite your sources because you do not want to claim someone else's work as your own, even unintentionally. Doing so is called plagiarism and it is a serious academic offense. Read Chapter Seven: From Research to Writing to learn more about how to avoid plagiarism and integrate others' ideas into your own work skillfully and responsibly.
