This chapter introduces some of the key philosophical debates in relation to the study of creativity. It traces creativity’s etymological origins within religious and classical philosophical thought, illustrating how creativity evolved from being seen as the preserve of the divine, to being vested in special humans who acted as a celestial conduit. It discusses how the distinction between imitation and creation intensifies in the Enlightenment period and how the question of value becomes key to distinguishing between the derivative and the original. The chapter ends by discussing Kant’s attempts to answer the question of value through this theory of transcendence.