Many of us have experienced it at some point or another - maybe in your schoolwork or on projects/ideas that you have. It might be subtle, or it might be bold. Either way, it's a slap in the face to know how hard you worked and watch others take (or try to take) credit for a piece or concept you know was yours to begin with.
And miss me with that, “Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery.” Let me tell you why it isn't.
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The person who is copying you...
1. Lacks skill.
People who copy other people's work do it because they know they can not create it themselves. They don't have the talent or ability to generate a work that can even hold a candle to yours, so they attempt (and usually fail) to recreate your work and alter it slightly enough so that they can claim it as theirs.
2. Is unoriginal.
But what's worse is that they likely don't care that they are. All they want is to further themselves in an area they wouldn't have otherwise had they not stolen your idea/work. This could apply to how students copy one another in school, or how people can use your concepts and call them their own for many disciplines such as dance, art, music, or writing.
3. Doesn't pay attention to quality.
When people tell others we should be flattered that a person liked our work so much they chose to copy it, it's actually more of an insult than anything else. Plagiarists aren't looking for the best possible work; they search and copy works that are slightly above mediocre so that they can get away with stealing from it and calling it their own.
There is a big difference between someone taking your work because they wanted people to see them as being just as talented as you are at your discipline, and stealing it simply because it was convenient and good enough to pass off as their own.
I am so avidly against accepting when others try and take credit for works that are not theirs. The famous saying just absolves the thief of their misdeeds and forces victims to feel like they have to feel honored that their work was "good enough" to be stolen, but that is not the case. We don't tell people who get their home robbed that they should feel happy people thought their belongings were nice enough for them to steal, so why do the same with the ones who get their work stolen in disciplines such as writing or art? The work feels personally connected to us and when it gets stolen or copied, watching someone else try and take credit for it hurts.
In all, I feel deeply for people affected by plagiarists and hope the tone of the discussion will change to fight against telling victims to feel honored they were special enough to be stolen from. There is no solace in the fact that your work was stolen.
Be original. Come up with your own ideas. Basically: stop stealin'.
