Question…

March 1, 2009 in Me with View Comments

“Is imitation the most sincere form of flattery?”

For the longest time I have heard this statement, and for a long time I have just let it go. But lately I have realized that this statement is stupid. Imitation bothers me. I do agree that there is no new idea under the sun, but there has to be some sort of 6 degrees of seperation.

About Kyle Reed: A connector looking to connect everyone. You usually can find him sitting in his parents basement reading blogs, books, or typing his own "about page" If you really want to know what Kyle is about, ask him what this whole mentormeproject.com is...you will get to know who Kyle is pretty quickly. No seriously, ask me, kyle@thoughtsaboutnothing.com Also you can follow me on twitter @kylelreed. Everyone is doing it, well at least 627 people are right now.


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  • Grandpa, what kind of question is this? Is this a loaded question? Are you trying to trap me? Or is it just a general question?
    I try to imitate Christ as much as a depraved man can.

    I do need to do a little follow up on this.
    Sometimes there are things that you do that you don't want people to copy. I do see what you are saying Josh on the deconstruction thing, and agree. But I am taking this to the most practical of things (clothing, lifestyle, music) stuff like that. Sometimes it feels good to see someone copy you, and other times it is very annoying.
    And don't leave me comments about how I think people are copying me, but really I am just a big loser.
  • granpa
    Are you trying to be an imitator of Christ?
  • O
    I think this statement is pretty much spot on. It does not imply that imitation is not bothersome. And it doesn't say anything about imitation not being straight stealing. It just says that if someone else copies your work they like what you did, or they think you've got a great idea.
  • Joshua Long
    This idea does seem to be true in art. Even the most revolutionary artists (see Bosch, van Gogh, Picasso, Duchamp, Dali', Beethoven, Leadbelly, Walt Whitman, etc.) began by emulating other artists they loved and over time discovered a unique angle. I guess that is the thing. You can't just imitate...you must also build upon what you emulate. In fact, cubism and surrealism and the dada movement seem to be about deconstruction as a means of imitation. This includes deconstruction of forebearers as well as deconstruction of nature. Who are you imitating?
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