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Francine's Pilfered Paper
| "Francine's Pilfered Paper" | |
|---|---|
  | |
| Season/Series: | 11 |
| Number in season: | 8A |
| Original Airdate: |  September 5, 2007[1] December 21, 2007[2] |
| Credits | |
| Written by: | Raye Lankford |
| Storyboard by: | Jean Lacombe Ivan Tankushev Robert Yap |
| Episodes | |
| Previous "Mr. Alwaysright" |
Next "Buster Gets Real" |
| Read transcript | |
Summary[edit]
Francine copies and pastes information from a website for her entire five-page report.
Plot[edit]
In the pilgrim's times, The school bell rang in a seventeenth-century American village, signaling the start of another day for the third-graders. As they hurried to school, Arthur urged Buster to pick up the pace, warning him of Master Ratburn's wrath for tardiness. Brain echoed Arthur's concern, emphasizing the severity of the punishment. Buster, however, was distracted by a sight that tugged at his heartstrings. He pointed to something, and Brain, sensing his distress, tried to divert his attention. He suggested that Buster avoid looking at the wretched thief to preserve the enjoyment of tomorrow's Thanksgiving feast. The mention of turkey and onion garlic stew ignited Buster's enthusiasm, as he eagerly anticipated the delicious meal. Muffy expressed her sadness for their friend's predicament, suggesting that they bring her a crust of bread. Just as they were discussing the matter, Mr. Ratburn appeared before them, sternly reminding them of the egregious crime committed by Francine. He pointed to Francine, who was confined in the stocks, wearing a red "P" on her cap. Francine pleaded for mercy, insisting that she didn't know it was wrong and promising to never do it again. Pal, a small dog dressed as a pilgrim, licked Francine's face, much to her disgust.
Mr. Ratburn asks the class to write a topic based on Thanksgiving, much to everyone's disappointment, giving each student in the class a specific topic to research. Francine feels that she will not be able to handle the topic (What the Pilgrims ate), so Brain shows her that she could look up information on the Internet and gave a warning that that not all the stuff she might find is accurate.
She goes home and finds a website that she feels suits her topic. She copies the information and pastes it into a new document, complete with the title "Food For Thought". The next day she hands in the assignment early and surprises her classmates. Mr. Ratburn complemented on the neatness and timing of the assignment. Buster checks Francine to make sure she is not a robot.
The next day, while everyone is working on their assignment, Francine is watching the football game on TV. She gets called in by her sister Catherine, who tells her that she found a website that might help her with her assignment. Francine was surprised and tells her that this is her assignment, as it was the website she had copied it from. Catherine is surprised, and when Francine tells her how she composed her paper, Catherine tells her that she can't use someone else's work as her own, and explains that doing so is plagiarism. Francine is horrified to learn that she unknowingly stole someone else's work and could be suspended if she is caught, and Catherine urges her to tell Mr. Ratburn what happened. At dinner, Mr. Frensky, Francine's father, talks about "stealing" a recipe he used to make dinner. This causes Francine to feel guilty about her assignment. She asks to be excused from the dinner table, and then rides her bike to Mr. Ratburn's house.
Mr. Ratburn meets Francine at the door. He assumes that she has come over to get her assignment. He walks over to his desk and grabs a marker and marked Francine's project with A minus. He says that there was some inaccurate information regarding when yams were introduced to the pilgrims, but that the paper was excellent overall. Francine tossed and turned in her sleep, her mind racing with a vivid dream. In it, she was an adult, a celebrated author whose book, "Food for Thought," had become a sensation. Surrounded by adoring fans in a bustling bookstore, she was signing copies of her work, her agent, Muffy, beaming beside her. As they discussed her next project, a group of weary-looking individuals toiled in a nearby room, their repetitive actions echoing the monotony of plagiarism. A mysterious figure, cloaked in darkness, approached Francine, offering her a book. When she asked who it should be dedicated to, he revealed himself as the author of the article she had plagiarized, his face hidden behind a menacing mask. Accusing her of her heinous crime, he revealed the truth to the shocked crowd, exposing her as a fraud. Francine awoke with a start, her heart pounding. She glanced at Catherine, sleeping soundly beside her, then reached for the report on her desk. The dream's unsettling revelation lingered, leaving her with a newfound understanding of the gravity of plagiarism.
On Monday morning, Francine gets to class early, tells Mr. Ratburn about her accidental plagiarism and gives him a different report. In class, Mr. Ratburn was handing back the Thanksgiving assignment. He comes to Francine and says to her how original her real report was. Francine looks at the assignment and sees that she earned a B plus. Arthur asks her what was so exciting for her that she earned a B plus. She replies that it is because she turned in a paper that happens to be original, and the episode finishes.
Characters[edit]
Major[edit]
Minor[edit]
- Arthur Read
- Buster Baxter
- Muffy Crosswire
- The Brain
- Binky Barnes
- Bitzi Baxter
- Pal
- Oliver Frensky
- Catherine Frensky
- Aunt Frensky
- Article author (Francine's Pilfered Paper)
Cameo[edit]
- Maria Pappas
- George Lundgren
- Fern Walters
- Alex
- Sue Ellen Armstrong
- Jenna Morgan
- Prunella Deegan
- Helen
- Steve
- 3rd Grade Male Rat
- Grandpa Frensky
- Bubby
- Laverne Frensky
- Julie
- Mr. Morris
Mentioned[edit]
- Boris (greengrocer)
Trivia[edit]
- Beginning with this episode, in the title card when Francine bangs the gong, the sound of Arthur yelping has changed.
- During the prologue, which takes place before the first Thanksgiving, Francine is the only one who doesn't speak like a pilgrim.
- Mr. Ratburn says that the report has to be at least five pages and Buster says it must be what college is like. However, Mr. Ratburn talked to the class about another five-page report in "The Boy with His Head in the Clouds," but it didn't seem like they were bothered about how hard it was.
- This is the closest that the TV series has ever gotten to a Thanksgiving episode until An Arthur thanksgiving an Arthur thanksgiving special, though the book, Arthur's Thanksgiving, was published first.
- Moral: Don't do plagiarism from people's work.
Cultural references[edit]
- WooHoo! is a parody of Yahoo.
- In the prologue, Francine has a red letter 'P' on the front of her cap. This a reference to The Scarlet Letter, while the 'P' presumably standing for 'plagiarist/plagiarism'.
- The character who appears in Francine's dream is a parody of Erik, better known as the Phantom, from the novel/musical, The Phantom of the Opera. One of the problems Erik faces is that the opera managers, ashamed of Erik, pass off his operas as their own, angering Erik.
- In the part where Francine goes to see Mr. Ratburn at his house about her paper, he is seen and states that he is watching a Ben Kurn documentary about the history of dentistry. Ben Kurn is likely a parody of PBS filmmaker Ken Burns.
Errors[edit]
- When Francine is watching TV she is wearing socks. Then, when she goes into her and Catherine's room, she is wearing shoes.
Home Video[edit]
DVD:
Gallery[edit]
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References[edit]
