Scapegoating in American Beauty – by Eric Buys
In the article Scapegoating in American Beauty Eric Buys reflects on the role mimetic desire plays in the life of Frank Fitts. Fitts, a closeted colonel in the United States Marine Corps desires acceptance and recognition which he feels is not possible if he is openly gay. Yearning to express who he truly is, he […]
External Mediation
When a person imitates the desires of someone separated by time or space or social sphere and there is little chance of the person ever coming into contact with their model. In external mediation, the model mediates desire from outside, or external to, the world of the subject. Also called Celebristan.
Prohibitions and Taboos
Taboos are a proscribed set of actions, events, and phenomena that society deems unacceptable. These sorts of actions, such as incest, are unanimously acknowledged and avoided because they signal a fundamental threat to relationships, as well as the possibility of violence. In mimetic theory, taboos and prohibitions play a reconciling and pacifying role in the […]