To be human

What does it mean to be created in the image of God?  Tolkien was a huge proponent of what he called 'subcreators,' and I think he was on to something, as does this article.  Creativity and imagination are unique to mankind, yes elephants can paint, birds can weave nests, and dolphins play, but they do not create works with lasting or any meaning, much like modern art and literature.  Are we becoming less than human by saying our own works likewise only have the meaning the observer would give them?  Is that why we so boldly embrace the concept that animals are people and people are animals, for there is hardly a difference between them?  C.S. Lewis wrote of this very concept in his essay, 'Men Without Chests,' and modern society might do well to listen.