Is it okay to use ideas inspired by something(s) "bad"?

[CeaselessMedik]

For instance, watching a movie/tv show I disagree with, or has subject matter I don’t care for and I get a get an idea from it,should I ignore it? What if I use the idea in, say, a written work and later on find out the idea came from something “bad”?

I’d like answers that would fly in a secular mindset. (I just come here for conaservative advice, not Catholic

 

[Viki63]

It’s hard to answer that without more specifics.
But I’d say it doesn’t matter where you get the ideas as long as the ideas themselves are all right.
Although I would recommend not subjecting yourself to “bad” TV, movies or literature. If I read 50 Shades of Gray I might get an idea or two (on how to make money writing garbage) but I think I’ll pass. There is so much good stuff out there, there’s no need to get into junk.

Oddly enough, I frequently get ideas while at mass.

Currently I"m watching a couple of series, The Last Ship and Travelers. They are both secular shows but there’s nothing bad about them.

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[Mintaka]

God can make good come from evil. So God can certainly make good come from boring and illogical.

 

[CeaselessMedik]

It’s hard to answer that without more specifics…

Right now, I want to use music theory as part of how magic works in my novel, but I keep getting images from an episode of the old Disney cartoon Darkwing Duck in which the “lock” to something involved some code whose (name removed by moderator)ut was playing a song on a keyboard. I’m thinking of using ideas it spawned, but Disney is on Life Decisions International’'s Boycott List, so I feel I should stay away.

 

[Cone]

For instance, watching a movie/tv show I disagree with, or has subject matter I don’t care for and I get a get an idea from it,should I ignore it? What if I use the idea in, say, a written work and later on find out the idea came from something “bad”?

I’d like answers that would fly in a secular mindset. (I just come here for conaservative advice, not Catholic

Taking your hypothetical to an extreme, it was at one time a controversial question whether it was acceptable to utilize medical knowledge gained from Nazi experiments on concentration camp victims.

 

[Gertabelle]

Right now, I want to use music theory as part of how magic works in my novel, but I keep getting images from an episode of the old Disney cartoon Darkwing Duck in which the “lock” to something involved some code whose (name removed by moderator)ut was playing a song on a keyboard. I’m thinking of using ideas it spawned, but Disney is on Life Decisions International’'s Boycott List, so I feel I should stay away.

Um, that’s the source of your moral dilemma? Really? Your source is so far from “bad” that I find it difficult to understand why you would even question it.

Use the idea.

 

[Ad_Orientem]

Every bad thing has at least some good in it. If you affirm the good in something bad, you are not affirming the bad. I’m not saying we should dig around in the garbage looking for good, especially when we can go to purer sources. But there is nothing wrong with affirming, for example, the genius of a criminal: not insofar as he hurts people, but insofar as he is clever. Jesus himself did this with the parable of the unjust steward.

 

[CeaselessMedik]

Is there a recommendation/guideline on what I should do with these sorts of obsessions? I get them a lot.

 

[Ad_Orientem]

If you really struggle with this, it might be a good idea to start meeting with a spiritual director. As to guidelines, I’m not a professional, but I think taking the focus off ourselves can help. Meditating on Jesus, helping other people.

 

[Viki63]

Taking your hypothetical to an extreme, it was at one time a controversial question whether it was acceptable to utilize medical knowledge gained from Nazi experiments on concentration camp victims.

Now that’s another issue. I believe it was decided that those results should be trashed because of how they were obtained. a good thing too, if correct.

Is there a recommendation/guideline on what I should do with these sorts of obsessions? I get them a lot…

As Ad Orientem says, focus on Jesus and others. Pray every day, forge ahead with your creative ideas, and ask the Lord to let you know if you go off the rails. He does say,’ you will hear a voice behind you, saying this is the way, walk in it.’ Isaiah 30:21.

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