Where is the line?

Nothing is original. Whatever we may call original is just composed of more fragmented earlier works. Did Nabakov mean to steal the story of Lolita from Lichberg? Probably not. Our subconscious creates seemingly original ideas from everything we absorb. It is simply inevitable. Therefore, we as a society must accept that this will happen, and be open to sharing work with others. If all artists alienate their bodies of work, no more art can flourish. Art is a collaborative project of all humanity, and we must borrow from each other to produce the best work. Not to say we can just steal other people's works and repackage them as our own. Lines must be drawn. A balance must be reached. We cannot mimic other art, but break it apart, tinker with it, re-appropriate it into something with our unique sensibilities. That is as close to originality as we can get.