PsychologyMemory
George Harrison plagiarised a hit without knowing it.
In 1976 a US court ruled that George Harrison had copied 'He's So Fine' when he wrote 'My Sweet Lord' — subconsciously. The verdict described a memory surfacing without its source attached, a phenomenon called cryptomnesia that has also caught novelists and scientists who 'invent' things they once read.
Step by step
- In 1976 a court ruled 'My Sweet Lord' copied 'He's So Fine' — subconsciously.
- Harrison had heard the tune years before and didn't know he was remembering it.
- Cryptomnesia — memory minus its source tag — also catches novelists and scientists.
Source
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