The view that originality is the main force in the creative process grew out of the extended period of influence that humanism held over the arts in England and the rest of Europe. During this time, imitation of ancient authors was an accepted and even required practice. The reaction of those concerned with the excesses and questionable morality of artists who copied literally from other sources led to a considerable literature on imitation and plagiarism. It is in the middle of the eighteenth century, and first in England, that the concepts of both originality and plagiarism became significant elements in critical writings. To be unoriginal could only mean a lack of genius. This foundation of new ideas made possible much of the further development of aesthetic criticism and artistic achievement in all the arts in the nineteenth century.

Index Classifications: 1700s

Contributed by: Wendy Jeanne McHenry