2013, No. 2 (5), Genealogies of Culture

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Henryk Mamzer
René Girard’s Mimetic Rivalry: Oxymoron or Hybrid Attitude

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Keywords: René Girard, mimesis, hybridisation, mimetic rivalry, coexistence of opposites

Abstract:
Mimetic rivalry is, contrary to appearances, not an oxymoron, as it would seem from the perspective of a modern researcher, but a hybrid attitude. Mimesis, meaning imitation, or identification of the imitator with the imitated, remains closely connected with the so-called mimesis of appropriation, which according to Girard transforms itself into pure antagonism. The resulting agonistic attitude (rivalry, competition) becomes a source of violence on the one hand, and a source of improvement or even self-creation on the other. It expresses a way of thinking characteristic of societies with magical culture, manifesting itself in an antinomy of concepts, opposing attitudes coming together to create one whole. The problem can be most clearly illustrated by the identity of opposites, known in the world of ancient concepts, especially in ancient Greece. Heraclitus’ unity of opposites is particularly relevant here; it contains two opposing attitudes, whose hybridism meant a violation of long-established moral, ethical, and religious – i.e. cultural – norms, creating an opposition towards everything that is positive, effective. It ensured a sense of balance, stability, and security within the cultural community.

About Author:
MAMZER HENRYK – archaeologist; Associate Professor at the Polish Academy of Sciences; director of the Centre for Prehistoric and Medieval Studies in the Institute of Archaeology and Ethnology, Polish Academy of Sciences, Poznań Branch.