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The Cyclical Nature of Violence in American Immigration History Explained
Paroxysm
French philosopher René Girard’s Violence and the Sacred and other works are required and recommended reading for anyone struggling with the cyclical nature of human violence in general. In this difficult-to-follow book, Girard guides us through his Mimetic Theory, which provides an interesting origin story or theory of human paroxysm (spontaneous acts of violence).
“Human beings are driven by mimetic desire, constantly imitating the desires of others and getting caught up in a cycle of rivalry.” — R.G.
“Violence arises from the mimetic desire, as we imitate the violent actions of others to assert our own power.” — R.G.
“The scapegoat mechanism is a way for societies to temporarily alleviate the tension and rivalry caused by mimetic desire.” — R.G.
Girard’s Mimetic Theory argues that society, whether a group of two or three primal individuals or a civilization of hundreds of thousands of citizens with structured governing bodies, experiences a crisis, and, in light of this crisis, they imitate one another in that collective anxiety. One of the mediums utilized by the collective mind to “alleviate” itself of this social anxiety is by singling out an individual or a group and dispersing the blame for the…
