"There is not less wit nor less invention in applying rightly a thought one finds in a book, than in being the first author of that thought"

This quote by Pierre Bayle talks to the idea that creativity and intelligence are not entirely found in the act of developing something brand-new, but also in the act of taking an existing idea and applying it in a brand-new and significant way. Bayle is suggesting that it takes simply as much wit and innovation to take a concept from a book and use it in a brand-new context as it does to come up with the concept in the first place. He is stressing the importance of having the ability to recognize and utilize existing concepts in a brand-new and innovative way. This quote speaks with the concept that imagination is not practically creating something brand-new, but likewise about being able to recognize and use existing concepts in a new and meaningful method. It is a reminder that creativity is not practically creating something new, however likewise about being able to acknowledge and use existing concepts in a new and imaginative method. Bayle's quote is a pointer that imagination is not practically coming up with something brand-new, but likewise about being able to acknowledge and utilize existing ideas in a new and significant method.