What is Originality.... Isn't everything just something bigger or better?

Think of someone or something that inspires you,something that motivates you or influences you in some way or another. Why does it influence you? Why do you want to be more like that person per say or have your paper, or painting, or music or what have you resemble or be inspired by that person or style, etc.?  Do you think media ever changes your life? We discussed in class one time if anyone had ever watched a movie or such that literally changed their life. However I think that the movie doesn’t change, rather it influences you to make a change for yourself, because ultimately that movie didn’t make you choose to do something, that was your own will power. It simply just gave you the idea or inspiration you might say.

Originality: the ability to think independently and creatively.

Frankfurt claims we have no originality in our days. Nothing is new or independent, rather everything is duplicated or simply adjusted with a slight twist. But is that slight twist originality? Or would that slight twist be the same as something as simple as when we paraphrase a paragraph from a source we found and want to include in our "own" paper. Is inspiration originality, or is it simply taking someone elses idea and expanding on it ourselves, adding our “own”, “unique” “twists” making it original? But if all we are doing is repeating, mimicking all of the original, where exactly is the starting line drawn where the origin of the originality resides?

We all were those kids who have that one person, that one hero we looked up to for one reason or another. Everybody starts out with influences and inspirations in their life. I wouldn’t doubt all great singers did covers before they started to create their own originals. Aren’t we all those same kids just grown up as authors, directors, painters, doctors, architects etc. that has had those previous people who were or are still our inspirations? And so, are we not all just bigger or better versions (or attempts to be) of our inspirations. All of the great originals most likely had inspirations along their way to become original. Michelangelo painted the Sistine Chapel, remarkable piece of art, but is it truly original? I mean really they are just paintings of angels and or have connections within it that are derived from stories, from history. SO really isn’t the painting just a bigger, better version of a story, just in a different form? Is different considered originality? If so, then isn’t that slight twist count as our originality too?  And so where is the origin of it all? After all aren’t airplanes just an inspiration from the birds and aren’t we as humans just better versions of apes? Or if we came from Adam are we better versions of the first man, but isn’t that left for God to decide?

But after all they are just inspirations and all they do is simply influence our life. We were the ones who “chose” to make the change. It was you inside your own mind who decided to paint that stroke, play that note, capture that scene, operate and save that person’s life, teach and make a difference in that child’s life, etc. Isn’t that the beauty of life that we get to independently make our own choices? So aren’t all of our added twists, all of our choses original? Aren’t our lives in themselves original enough? But as cliche or unoriginal as is sounds it only matters if you are happy, cause believe it or not life is short.