The Urgency of Mimetic Studies: From Imitation to (New) Fascism–Girard Lecture

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Posted on November 19, 2024 by wp_8686836

In this 5^th biannual Girard lecture, organized by the Dutch Girard Society, Nidesh Lawtoo steps back to the insights that, as of 2016, lead him to use the term “(new) fascism” as a warning against Donald Trump’s anti-democratic tendencies, which culminated in an insurrection on January 6. Despite many critical warnings and fascist actions, the efficacy of the affective and infective powers of mimesis never ceases to surprise. Hence, the urgency of new mimetic studies. More information HERE.

Homo Mimeticus II: Re-Turns to Mimesis

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Posted on September 30, 2024 by wp_8686836

In this second installment of the Homo Mimeticus series (co-edited with Marina Garcia-Granero), international scholars working in philosophy, literary theory, classics, cultural studies, sociology, political theory, and the neurosciences engage creatively with the theory of homo mimeticus to further the transdisciplinary field of mimetic studies. See FREE download & BLOG.

ONLINE BOOK LAUNCH:

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HOM Videos 10: Ancient Foundations for Mimetic Studies II

Posted on January 19, 2024 by wp_8686836

In this last episode of HOM Videos, Nidesh Lawtoo returns to the place where mimetic studies begun: the Great Theatre of Dionysus in Athens. It is in fact here that mimesis was not simply represented but, rather, performed by actors on mimes endowed with the capacity to generate a mimetic, dramatic, or Dionysian pathos in the audience as well.

Rebirth of Homo Mimeticus

Posted on December 20, 2023 by wp_8686836

Nidesh Lawtoo interviewed by Asijit Datta December 2023

In this discussion on the topic of “The Art of Imitation and the Desire for Violence: The Rebirth of Homo Mimeticus,” we have tried to grasp the emerging concepts around mimesis, new age violence, and the return of the homo mimeticus.

Homo Mimeticus Book Launch and Conclusion

Posted on January 29, 2023 by wp_8686836

In this book launch of Homo Mimeticus: A New Theory of Imitation (Leuven UP, 2023, OPEN ACCESS), HOM/GM PI Nidesh Lawtoo joins forces with his team (Niki Hadikoesoemo, Marina Garcia-Granero & Giulia Rignano) to sum up the main results of the HOM project and open up the new transdisciplinary field of mimetic studies Homo Mimeticus proposes.

The Insurrection Moment: Insurrection, Conspiracy, Assault

Posted on January 29, 2023 by wp_8686836

Black Mirror and the 2020 Election: Conclusion | Psychology Today

In this HOM piece for a Theory & Event special issue on the Storming of the Capitol on January 6, Nidesh Lawtoo furthers mimetic studies by discussing the role of Dionysian intoxications, conspiracy theories, and dispossession in the company of Nietzsche, Deleuze and Black Mirror. Article available OA here

Viral Mimesis: The Patho(-)Logies of the Coronavirus (N. Lawtoo)

Posted on January 27, 2022 by wp_8686836

In this article, Nidesh Lawtoo argues that the human, all too human vulnerability to mimesis (imitation) is a central and so far underdiagnosed element internal to the Covid-19 pandemic crisis. Supplementing medical accounts of viral contagion, the chapter develops a genealogy of the concept of mimesis – from antiquity to modernity to the present – that is attentive to both its pathological and therapeutic or patho-logical properties. Read full article here.

The Mimetic Turn: HOM Final Conference, April 20-22.

Posted on November 29, 2021 by wp_8686836

The ERC-funded project Homo Mimeticus: Theory and Criticism (HOM) hosted by the Institute of Philosophy and the Faculty of Arts at KU Leuven, Belgium, is pleased to announce its final international conference titled The Mimetic Turn (April 20-22, 2022; ONLINE). Keynotes and Invited Speakers include Mikkel Borch-Jacobsen, Vittorio Gallese, Jane Bennett, William Connolly, Henry Staten, among other internationally renowned theorists and critics. Recordings here

HOM Theory: Mimetic Patho(-)logies in the Age of Covid-19 (N. Lawtoo / LMU)

Posted on July 4, 2021 by wp_8686836

In this public lecture for the LMU Doctoral Program on Mimesis Final Conference, Nidesh Lawtoo (KU Leuven) articulates the relevance of HOM Theory to account for the mimetic patho(-)logies in the Age of Covid-19: from affective contagion to viral contagion, conspiracy theories to therapeutic imitations, Lawtoo argues that rethinking mimesis beyond representation is central to account for the patho(-)logies of contagion in periods of pandemic crisis.

Posthuman Mimesis: Embodiment, Affect, Contagion (May 20-22)

Posted on November 16, 2020 by wp_8686836

The ERC Project Homo Mimeticus: Theory and Criticism is pleased to announce an international online conference on the subject of “Posthuman Mimesis.” More details including program and registration here.