Luca Luchesini

The Apocalypse of Desire: Essays on Mimesis Luca Luchesini

Publisher Marketing: This book collects the essays I wrote using mimetic theory as interpretation tool in a number of fields ranging from the genesis of morals, the nature of power, the interpretation of modern history and West-Middle East relations. I therefore decided to regroup and re-edit them into a single edition to highlight the theory power in a more systematic way than it appears in the single essay and as a tribute to Rene Girard, whose books sounded to me no less than pure revelation. The core finding of Girard is that desire is what ultimately drives human action, and this desire is literally built around nothing, or better, it has no specific and real object that can fulfill it. That is the "ontological" precondition that allows people to change and imitate each other desires and this at once amazing and scaring feedback game is the root of both the best human achievements and the worst disasters. The first two essays of the collection explore the insights that mimetic theory provides in explaining the birth and development of human nature. "The righteously mimetic Mind" delves more with the development of morals, both in early mankind and at individual level while "Power, Crowds, Violence and Desire" goes more in detail about the role of mimesis in the development of power structures. The third essay, "Desire and the West" applies mimetic theory to the interpretation of the historical changes happened in the modern era. Finally, the last essay, "Rival Brothers," applies mimetic theory to the current status of East-West relations and gives some practical example on how mimetic theory can help in everyday life.