Aneeta Sundararaj and her Plagiarism in Rhyme
by Suzan Abrams
Aneeta Sundararaj Plagiarises Pearl S. Buck stories in Malaysian Fiction.While in Kuala Lumpur, a few months ago, I discovered the plagiarism and since then of quite a few more stories as well, that went undetected for years. The subject in question had sought much publicity for the stolen stories passed off on the web, as her own published work. She would also have made money from purchases of a book of collected short stories that include the copied stories. Later, she was also dismissed from an American online portal once the editor suspected she had plagiarized articles.
“Where goes the thief at sundown
Where goes the thief at sunrise
She steals at will, one woman’s thrill
Another’s tarnished gold of old
Becomes her brassy theft all bold.”
– suzan abrams -
Update: Aneeta Sundararaj continues with her deception to the Malaysian public with her book of stolen Pearl S.Buck stories still sold in the bookshops. The American short stories are old and out-of-print. Unless you truly are widely read, you’re unlikely ever to know. Unfortunately for the Malaysian plagiarist, I did.
My Questions:
a) Were the many bloggers who praised the legendary dead author’s stories made aware that the stories were not original but tampered with; and that they were in reality praising someone else?
b) Was the Malaysian public who purchased this book of stories made aware that the stories were stolen from a dead author unable to defend herself in any way?
c) Was anything ever checked up on, investigated or looked into?
d) Were monies in the form of royalties from the stolen stories received without question?
e) Are the two other authors whose writings stand alongside this stolen property namely Saradha Narayanan and A. Jessie Michael and its editor Craig Cormick aware of Pearl S. Buck’s original versions? Are the publishers, printers and distributors aware that the book contains someone else’s copyright? Are they aware that if Pearl S. Buck’s estate sues for copyright infringement, that they could be in trouble?
f) Are the reporters who interviewed these writers aware that Aneeta Sundararaj plagiarized her stories and that she had lied in her interviews and subjected her stories to deception and are they aware that this subject has come to light?
g) Are her other blog followers who by their pin-drop silence appear to protect and shield her crime party to the plagiarism?
h) Is plagiarism in Malaysia easy to get away with after all since this woman has so easily got away with her crime?
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Every morning,this Malaysian plagiarist – or otherwise, someone very closely connected to her - anxiously checks my site for what more revelations there may be. No doubt, the fact that I finally own the original versions here in Dublin, may make for a chilled cuppa.
W.J. Elvin III 10:14 pm on March 30, 2009 Permalink |
Thanks very much for pointing out the Pearl S. Buck problem, I will make note of it on my literary fraud blog and have a further look, possibly a column on another site as well. I’ve seen where a few academics these days are saying there’s no such thing as plagiarism, I guess they’re of the “we’re all one” school of thought or something, all writing is derivative and emerges from the great cultural consciousness sort of thing. They of course didn’t do the work so easy for them to say. Plagiarism is theft, it’s that simple. Authors of the past are at the mercy of predators like this one, as are, it often turns out, many living authors as well. Really glad you noticed this situation and brought it to public attention.
Yusuf 12:55 am on September 26, 2010 Permalink |
There has been many instances of plagiarism in Malaysia – I brought one to light earlier this year regarding a young girl who had been encouraged to produce a book of her short stories but had stolen some of them from the Chicken Soup series