Quotes about imitation often emphasize the act of copying or replicating something that already exists. These quotes often remind us that imitation can be seen as a form of flattery or as a means to learn and grow. They suggest that imitation is a common human behavior and can be a way to understand and appreciate the work or ideas of others.
Imitation, if it is not forgery, is a fine thing. It stems from a generous impulse, and a realistic sense of what can and cannot be done. — James Fenton
Imitation is not just the sincerest form of flattery - it's the sincerest form of learning. — George Bernard Shaw
Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery that mediocrity can pay to greatness. — Oscar Wilde
Imitation is for shirkers, like-minded-ness for the comfort lovers, unifying for the creators. — Mary Parker Follett
To refrain from imitation is the best revenge. — Marcus Aurelius
I've been imitated so well I've heard people copy my mistakes. — Jimi Hendrix
Gender is a kind of imitation for which there is no original; in fact, it is a kind of imitation that produces the very notion of the original as an effect and consequence of the imitation itself. — Judith Butler
Imitate until you emulate; match and surpass those who launched you. It's the highest form of thankfulness. — Mark Victor Hansen
Many of our daily habits are imitations of people we admire. — James Clear
The picture is the imitation and converted reality of the goods, in short, an indirect substitute for reality. — Herbert Bayer
Those who do not want to imitate anything, produce nothing. — Salvador Dali
Life doesn't imitate art, it imitates bad television. — Woody Allen
Do something wonderful, people may imitate it.
A good composer does not imitate; he steals. — Igor Stravinsky
Those who do not want to imitate anything, produce nothing.
Child Imitation Quotes
No one should ever imitate the style of another because, with regard to art, he will be called a nephew and not a child of nature. — Leonardo da Vinci
A child hasn't a grown-up person's appetite for affection. A little of it goes a long way with them; and they like a good imitation of it better than the real thing, as every nurse knows. — George Bernard Shaw
It is the nurse that the child first hears, and her words that he will first attempt to imitate. — Quintilian
I didn't just grow up in one environment, so it was easy for me, as a child, just to imitate and just be all these different people. — Clifton Collins, Jr.
No child is bad from the beginning, they only imitate their atmosphere. — Prince
No Imitation Quotes
I have good pronunciation no matter what language I speak. Maybe it’s because my specialties are rapping and imitating others — G-Dragon
I see other black women imitate my style, which is no style at all, but just letting our hair be itself. They call it the Afro Look. — Miriam Makeba
There is no true joy and compassion except through the difficult emotions - all we get without the experience of fear, anger, and sadness are cheap imitations of joy and compassion - pleasantness and sentimentality. — Gabrielle Roth
Humility is the only virtue that no devil can imitate. If pride made demons out of angels, there is no doubt that humility could make angels out of demons. — John Climacus
How many murders are committed in Gauteng, or in the Western Cape, in a month? A week? A day? An hour? But of course we are not allowed to know for sure. In close and direct imitation of his apartheid models, Selebi ensures that no statistics about crime may be published regularly in the press. — Thabo Mbeki
Be yourself; no base imitator of another, but your best self. There is something which you can do better than another. Listen to the inward voice and bravely obey that. Do the things at which you are great, not what you were never made for. — Ralph Waldo Emerson
Unlike any other visual image, a photograph is not a rendering, an imitation or an interpretation of its subject, but actually a trace of it. No painting or drawing, however naturalist, belongs to its subject in the way that a photograph does. — John Berger
One learns about painting by looking at and imitating other painters. I can't stress enough how important it is, if you are interested at all in painting, to look and to look a great deal at painting. There is no other way to find out about painting. — Frank Stella
I did not come into contact with any Muslim before I embraced Islam. I read the Qur'an first and realized no person is perfect, Islam is perfect, and if we imitate the conduct of the Holy Prophet... we will be successful. — Cat Stevens
Imitation Of Christ Quotes
One way for attaining Bhakti is by repeating the name of God a number of times. Mantras have effect: the mere repetition of words.... To obtain Bhakti, seek the company of holy men who have Bhakti, and read books like the Gita and the Imitation of Christ; always think of the attributes of God. — Swami Vivekananda
When we appeal to the throne of grace we do so through Mary, honoring God by honoring His Mother, imitating Him by exalting her, touching the most responsive chord in the sacred heart of Christ with the sweet name of Mary. — Robert Bellarmine
This is the rule of most perfect Christianity, its most exact definition, its highest point, namely, the seeking of the common good ... for nothing can so make a person an imitator of Christ as caring for neighbors. — Saint John Chrysostom
People talk about imitating Christ, and imitate Him in the little trifling formal things, such as washing the feet, saying His prayer, and so on; but if anyone attempts the real imitation of Him, there are no bounds to the outcry with which the presumption of that person is condemned. — Florence Nightingale
For godliness is not the consequence of your capacity to imitate God, but the consequence of His capacity to reproduce Himself in you; not self-righteousness, but Christ-righteousness; the righteousness which is by faith — W. Ian Thomas
We must imitate Christ's life and his ways if we are to be truly enlightened and set free from the darkness of our own hearts. Let it be the most important thing we do, then, to reflect on the life of Jesus Christ. — Thomas a Kempis
The idea of the Bodhisattva is the one who out of his realization of transcendence participates in the world. The imitation of Christ is joyful participation in the sorrows of the world. — Joseph Campbell
If we suffer persecution and affliction in a right manner, we attain a larger measure of conformity to Christ, by a due improvement of one of these occasions, than we could have done merely by imitating his mercy, in abundance of good works. — John Wesley
What is impossible to me as an imitator of Christ, becomes perfectly natural as a participant of Christ. It is Only when Christ nullifies the force of my inherent "self' life," and communicates to me a Divine life, that Christian living in its true sense, is at all possible for me. — F. Huegel
In Boston terms I was everyone and no one, with no social investment, no social insecurity, sort of Imitation of Christ in one hand and The Education of Henry Adams in the other, and because I was part of nothing I could observe everything without having anything personal invested in the findings. — William Monahan
Imitating Others Quotes
There are players that try to imitate others, but at free-kick time it is a personal thing. Every person has their own technique and routine when they stand over the ball and I have mine, I am not trying to copy anyone. — Neymar
If I am walking with two other men, each of them will serve as my teacher. I will pick out the good points of the one and imitate them, and the bad points of the other and correct them in myself. — Confucius
So it just goes to show you that it was always the Hells Angels first. They were the originals and all other clubs try and imitate what the Hells Angels have already done. — Chuck Zito
Men are created different; they lose their social freedom and their individual autonomy in seeking to become like each other. — David Riesman
Socrates became a trendsetter. Other philosophers, including Plato and Aristotle and Gus, quickly followed suit, dropping their last names too. And, for centuries after that there would be countless imitators including oltaire, Michelangelo, and, much later, Cher. — Demetri Martin
When people are free to do as they please, they usually imitate each other. — Eric Hoffer
It’s not good enough to imitate the models proposed for us that are answers to circumstances other than our own. It isn’t even enough to discover who we are. We have to invent ourselves. — Rosario Castellanos
The original writer is not he who refrains from imitating others, but he who can be imitated by none. — François-René de Chateaubriand
It is not so much the example of others we imitate as the reflection of ourselves in their eyes and the echo of ourselves in their words. — Eric Hoffer
The whole commerce between master and slave is a perpetual exercise of the most boisterous passions, the most unremitting despotism on the one part, and degrading submissions on the other. Our children see this, and learn to imitate it. — Thomas Jefferson
Trust yourself. Think for yourself. Act for yourself. Speak for yourself. Be yourself. Imitation is suicide. — Marva Collins
Do you know why people like violence? It is because it feels good. Humans find violence deeply satisfying. But remove the satisfaction, and the act becomes hollow. — Alan Turing
I am a missionary, heart and soul. God had an only Son, and He was a missionary and a physician. I am a poor, poor imitation of Him, or wish to be. In this service I hope to live; in it I wish to die! — David Livingstone
Blessed is he who has learned to admire but not envy, to follow but not imitate, to praise but not flatter, and to lead but not manipulate. — William Arthur Ward
Man is an idiot. He doesn't know how to do anything without copying, without imitating, without plagiarizing, without aping. It might even have been that man invented generation by coitus after seeing the grasshopper copulate. — Augusto Roa Bastos
The first thing about the angels that we ought to imitate, is their consciousness of the Presence of God. — John Vianney
Back in the day, music imitated life. Now it's the opposite way around: life is imitating music. It's like whatever the rappers say, people think that that's how we're supposed to be; but back then, we kind of looked at the streets, and we made music for that. — Rakim
You feel touched by a movie in a good or bad way or you have a strong reaction to something that's totally artificial, to an imitation of life. But that imitation of life that you see on the screen can affect you almost as if it was real. — Gaspar Noe
Art imitates life and, sometimes, life imitates art. It's a weird combination of elements. — Bruce Willis
The Cube is an imitation of life itself - or even an improvement on life. — Erno Rubik
Of what use were the arts if they were only the reproduction and the imitation of life? — Alfred de Vigny
Well, I'm going up and up and up - and nobody's going to pull me down! — Lana Turner
When life is rosy, we may slide by with knowing about Jesus, with imitating him and quoting him and speaking of him. But only in suffering will we know Jesus. — Joni Eareckson Tada
There is a certain way of being human that is my way. I am called upon to live my life in this way, and not in imitation of anyone else's life. But this notion gives a new importance to being true to myself. If I am not, I miss the point of my life; I miss what being human is for me. — Charles Taylor
[My works are] an imitation of my own past and present and of my own creative vitality as I experience them in one particular instant of my emotional and imaginative life. . . — Barbara Hepworth
A return to first principles in a republic is sometimes caused by the simple virtues of one man. His good example has such an influence that the good men strive to imitate him, and the wicked are ashamed to lead a life so contrary to his example. — Niccolo Machiavelli
Whenever we show others the goodness of God, whenever we follow our Teacher by imitating His posture of humble and ready service, our actions are sacred and ministerial. To be called into the priesthood, as all of us are, is to be called to a life of presence, of kindness. — Rachel Held Evans
Copy Imitate Quotes
I don’t want to be a copy of anyone else. — Kylian Mbappe
When a competitor starts copying your features, you can pretty much write them off completely, as it means they ran out of innovative ideas. — Cliff Lerner
Immature poets imitate; mature poets steal; bad poets deface what they take, and good poets make it into something better, or at least something different. — T. S. Eliot
Refrain from doing ill; for one all powerful reason, lest our children should copy our misdeeds; we are all too prone to imitate whatever is base and depraved. — Juvenal
Nature, who permits no two leaves to be exactly alike, has given a still greater diversity to human minds. Imitation, then, is a double murder; for it deprives both copy and original of their primitive existence. — Madame de Stael
If you can't imitate him, don't copy him. — Yogi Berra
Why should I copy this owl, this sea urchin? Why should I try to imitate nature? I might just as well try to trace a perfect circle. — Pablo Picasso
Copying or imitation is the highest form of flattery. — Tito Sotto
A painter may be an abandoned mimic; at school he copies his teachers, which is only right, but he copies in turn every artist in town, which is not. He may do you that honour. — Walter J. Phillips
Never Imitate Quotes
It is better to fail in originality, than to succeed in imitation. He who has never failed somewhere, that man can not be great. Failure is the true test of greatness. — Herman Melville
Beauty in art is truth bathed in an impression received from nature. I am struck upon seeing a certain place. While I strive for conscientious imitation, I yet never for an instant lose the emotion that has taken hold of me. — Jean-Baptiste Camille Corot
My advice to any budding artist is never to be satisfied with imitating others. This is but a means to an end. A serious artist will work with intensity to discover themselves, their own personal vision. I believe this is a fundamental aspect of the creative path. — Michael Kenna
The pictures present an improvised view of life as normal. Life is shown as we think we see it but in fact never do. The pictures imitate life to find a way out. — David Salle
A disciple...can never imitate his guide's steps. You have your own way of living your life, of dealing with problems, and of winning. Teaching is only demonstrating that it is possible. Learning is making it possible for yourself. — Paulo Coelho
I wasn't actually trained by my mother, she said she never taught me but she was a great singer herself and I can't remember when I didn't listen to her sing and imitate her. — Joan Sutherland
What goes on in abstract art is the proclaiming of aesthetic principles... It is in our own time that we have become aware of pure aesthetic considerations. Art never can be imitation. — Hans Hofmann
Don't Imitate Quotes
Work hard and figure out how to be useful and don't try to imitate anybody else's success. Figure out how to do it for yourself with yourself. — Harrison Ford
We don't choose our earliest habits, we imitate them. — James Clear
I don't have to be an imitation of a white woman that Hollywood sort of hoped I'd become. I'm me, and I'm like nobody else. — Lena Horne
I don't find any direct statements in life. My poetry imitates or reproduces the way knowledge or awareness come to me, which is by fits and starts and by indirection. I don't think poetry arranged in neat patterns would reflect that situation. My poetry is disjunct, but then so is life. — John Ashbery
I don't think you can recreate anything from the past. You can not do it. If you're going to go out and imitate a Motown sound, you can't do it, it's impossible because of the studios and players involved and the atmosphere. — Elton John
The four laws of learning are: the first is demonstration of what you want. The second is the criticism of the demonstration. The third is the imitation of the correct model, and the fourth is repetition, over and over until it becomes habit where is you don't think about it. — John Wooden
I don't want life to imitate art. I want life to be art. — Carrie Fisher
The real champions in life are so humble and gracious. They just continue doing what they do without all the posturing. If you've got the real thing, you don't have to flaunt a loud imitation. — Denis Waitley
I don't know what will become of this piece. Our brave critics will no doubt charge me with imitating Ravel's Bolero. Too bad - this is how I hear war. — Dmitri Shostakovich
Don't try to imitate other coaches. Be your own person with your own style and do your own thing. — Hubie Brown
Imitation Flattery Quotes
Listening, not imitation, may be the sincerest form of flattery. — Joyce Brothers
Imitation is flattery, and The Hills Have Eyes is a classic. — Michael Berryman
I believe that love--not imitation--is the sincerest form of flattery. Your imitator thinks that you can be duplicated; your lover knows you can't. — Marilyn vos Savant
Imitation is the highest form of flattery, but clones kind of get it wrong because we are promoting individuality and being proud of being yourself. — Brian Molko
Healing of the physical without the change in the mental and spiritual aspects brings little real help to the individual in the end. How true, because the mind and the body imprint and imitate each other. What we think, we become. What we become, we think. It's an insidious process that can predispose us to illness or it can lead us to health. — Edgar Cayce
Wise men profit more from fools than fools from wise men; for the wise men shun the mistakes of fools, but fools do not imitate the successes of the wise. — Cato The Elder
In imitating the exemplary acts of a god or of a mythic hero, or simply by recounting their adventures, the man of an archaic society detaches himself from profane time and magically re-enters the Great Time, the sacred time. — Mircea Eliade
I consider lace to be one of the prettiest imitations ever made of the fantasy of nature; lace always evokes for me those incomparable designs which the branches and leaves of trees embroider across the sky, and I do not think that any invention of the human spirit could have a more graceful or precise origin. — Coco Chanel
Children generally follow the example of their parents, but imitate their faults more surely than their virtues. — Icelandic Proverbs
Chaplin made me laugh and cry without saying a word. I had an instinct. I was touched by the soul of Chaplin - Mime is not an imitator but a creator. — Marcel Marceau
They saw it was working. And then they said, 'Okay, now we are going to do the same thing.' I think, really, they underestimate the difficulty. They underestimate the time required to make it successful. And my guess is that they will have a very tough time. — Bernard Arnault
I'm not a star. I'll never be a Frank Sinatra or Elvis Presley or a Ray Charles. I'm just an imitator, man. I'm doing a very bad imitation on the bass of Jerry Jemmott, Bernard Odum, Jimmy Fielder, Jimmy Blanton, Igor Stravinsky, Jimi Hendrix, John Coltrane, James Brown, Charlie Parker... the cats, man. I'm just backing up the cats. — Jaco Pastorius
The function of education is to help you from childhood not to imitate anybody, but be yourself all the time. — Jiddu Krishnamurti
Tis' better to live your own life imperfectly than to imitate someone else's perfectly. — Elizabeth Gilbert
I consider lace to be one of the prettiest imitations ever made of the fantasy of nature — Coco Chanel
In Conclusion
Some quotes about imitation caution against blindly copying others, highlighting the importance of finding one's own unique voice and style. They encourage individuals to be original and authentic, rather than simply imitating what others have done. These quotes remind us that true innovation and creativity come from within, and that we should strive to be true to ourselves rather than imitating someone else's path.
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Citation
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