MIMESIS
Mimesis is a Greek term which is often translated as
imitation and used to explain the relationship between artistic expression and
reality. Mimesis became a topic of discussion for the poets, dramatists and
philosophers right from the ages of Greeks and through the European revival of Renaissance
till the present times. The word mimesis is much beyond imitation, it
represents not only the resemblance of sound and form but that of the
metaphysical equivalence of the real and the ideal world. The concept of mimesis was interpreted by Plato
and furthered by Aristotle in the classical age. Later in the Roman period
Longinus and Horace resumed the discussions on the topic.
The Western theories
on artistic representation can be traced to the concept of mimesis introduced
by Plato, the ancient Greek philosopher. For Plato art is essentially
mimetic and it imitates something which is real. It is an illusion which is to
be distinguished from truth. The influence of this concept is evident when the
twentieth century French philosopher Jacques Derrida says that the history of
interpretation has been influenced and transformed by the concept of mimesis.
The concept recently transcends the realms of literature to that of psychology,
anthropology, educational theory, political theory etc.
PLATO
Apart
from commenting on the existing notion of mimesis Plato actually presented his
own views on mimesis through his Republic. Discussions on mimesis are
found in book two, three and ten of the Republic. For Plato all forms of
art including poetry is the mimesis of things in the physical world. Plato considered mimesis as a luxury removed
from reason and reality, rather than a necessity and treated it as secondary
and unhealthy. Plato approves stories as a tool of learning. But he is
concerned with the ethical influence of mimesis on his recipients. He believes
that artistic imitation encourages behavioral imitation. 'No
young person is to hear stories which suggest
that were he to commit the vilest of crimes, and were he to do his utmost to
punish his father’s crimes, he wouldn't be doing anything out of the ordinary,
but would simply be behaving like the first and the greatest gods.'(Republic
50)
Hence he proposes censoring of stories, so that they would not feature
violence, adultery, political usurpation, shape changing, trickery and madness.
He classifies
narration into three; simple, mimetic and mixed. In a mimetic narration the
narrator imitates the character. For Plato the mimetic narrator is an inherent
liar because he deceives the audience by pretending to be someone else. Mimetic
narration is against Plato’s idea of specialization in which each individual
performs one task according to their nature and for the wellbeing of the society.
And also imitation of inappropriate behavior contaminates the imitator. It is
because of all these reasons Plato banishes mimetic poets from his ideal
republic. Through his allegory of caves he claims that the things we perceive
to be real are actually reflections of reality which could not be comprehended
without reason. Hence artistic images are the shadows of the fake reality and
removed from truth. He compares mimesis to a mirror. What we see in the mirror
are not real, they are mere reflections. Likewise mimesis does not show
anything real but a mere reflection of the real. Even a crafts man does not
create anything new he is only trying to reflect something which already exists
and which in itself is far removed from the ultimate truth. Imitators take it
for granted that what they imitate is the real thing
For
Plato this belief of the imitators is illusory and they lack any knowledge on
what they imitate. This
imitation is the product of inspiration rather than that of intellect. Hence he says that ‘…a poet is an airy thing; winged and holy, and he is not able to make poetry until
he becomes inspired and goes out of his mind and his intellect is no longer in
him. As long as a human being has his
intellect in possession he will always lack the power to make poetry…’ (Republic
41). According to Plato representers are
‘two generations away from the throne of truth’ (Republic70). Thus he asserts
that mimesis is nowhere near to true knowledge. Imitation has a corrupting
influence over people as it appeals to our senses and leads us away from reason
and truth. Thus for him the inherent nature of representational arts is against
reason.
Plato’s dialogue on
mimesis happens in the context of his concerns on luxury, political corruption
and his discussion on the education of the guardians in his republic. The
stories which he proposes to censor are the stories of conflict in the society.
His allegory of caves appears to symbolize the political life in an
authoritarian kingdom in which the people are deceived by the reality which the
despotic rulers offer. Because of these reasons some critics claim that Plato’s
theory of mimesis is also a theory of political life.
ARISTOTLE
Poetics
is another influential text in the history of literary criticism in which we
find Aristotle’s account on mimesis. Aristotle’s version of mimesis is often
regarded as a critical response to the concept of Plato. Aristotle also
believes that all art is imitative. Yet he does not believe in blind imitation.
Unlike Plato for whom imitation is artificial, Aristotle considers imitation as
something original and creative. Aristotle
takes into consideration the medium of imitation used in different forms of art.
But for Plato imitation in every form is the same, that is, the imitation of
the real. According to Aristotle the
object of imitation is men in action. Each artist and genre represents a specific
human type and actions suitable for those types. For instance epic and tragedy
represents people as better than are while comedy depicts them as worse. Plato wanted
artistic representations to instruct people morally. He assumed that stories of
unjustifiable adultery and jealousy would set a bad model for people. It is
because of this reason that he proposed to censor stories which depicts morally
unacceptable behavior. On the other hand Aristotle feels that the moral distinctions
of poetry and life cannot be compared. Like Plato Aristotle divides the manner of
narration into three, in the first the poet speaks in his own words, in the
second he imitates the voice of the character and finally he presents the
character in action. For Plato imitation in narration is a way of concealing
one’s self and treats the selection of manner as a moral choice. For Aristotle
it is a matter of artistic choice. He prefers imitation to be more skillful
than exact. Hence a work of art is successful if it achieves its aims and
methods. Mimesis is inherent to human beings and they find delight in it. As he
says in mimesis;
‘… we delight in looking at the most detailed
images of things which in themselves we see with pain, e.g. the shapes of the
most despised wild animals even when dead. The cause of this is that learning
is most pleasant, not only for philosophers but for others likewise (but they
share in it to a small extent). For this reason they delight in seeing images,
because it comes about that they learn as they observe, and infer what each
thing is; e.g. that this person [represents] that one.’( 93)
Plato
argued that mimesis is removed from reason .But according to Aristotle mimesis
helps us to detach ourselves from the sufferings of a tragic character rather
than identifying with them. This distance enables us to learn from the
representations instead of reacting emotionally in the actual situation.
Mimesis helps us to apprehend the universal nature of humans through particular
actions. It gives insights to human nature and character. Thus it encourages
rational thought as opposed to what Plato said.
Truth is considered as the notion
which says how things should be rather than what things are or have been.
History describes things that has been and poetry the things that might
be. Aristotle finds poetic imitation
superior to that of history in case of reflecting the truth. Thus poetic
imitation becomes something which is near to truth. It is more philosophical and universal unlike
history which is particular. For him imitation is process of creation and poet
a creator. Plato believed that imitation is immoral and has a corrupting
influence on human mind. But Aristotle proposes the moralizing effect of
imitation through catharsis.
By defining tragedy as ‘a
representation of a serious, complete action which has magnitude…’Aristotle
asserts in his Poetics that a mimetic work can have its own internal
unity (95).
A whole is that which has a beginning, a
middle and a conclusion. A beginning is that which itself does not of necessity
follow something else, but after which there naturally is, or comes into being,
something else. A conclusion, conversely, is that which itself naturally
follows something else, either of necessity or for the most part, but has
nothing else after it. A middle.is that which itself naturally follows
something else, and has something else after it. (96)
This internal
unity is attained by necessity and reason. Tragedy has its beginning, middle
and end which are the logical categories and not the temporal markers. By
describing this art form as complete Aristotle asserts its independent nature
as opposed to Plato.
It
is Aristotle who makes an association of imitation to reality and suggests that
it is inherent to humans and that we find delight in imitation. And finally he
defends poetic imitation on the grounds of its cathartic effect.
HORACE
A
poet of the Roman period furthers his predecessors in the concept of imitation
by asserting that poets should imitate nature
as well as great writers. Like Plato he
yokes imitation with moral instruction. Horace believed that the primary
concern of poetry is to “instruct and delight”.
Horace’s
interpretation of literary imitation reflects the intellectual ethos of his
age. Unlike his precursors he shifts the association of imitation with nature
and the ideal to the craftsmanship of ancient great tragedians including Homer.
He gives least importance to originality unlike other critics and emphasizes on
literary tradition and imitation of ancient great. Horace advocates the infusion
of ancient literary tradition and one’s own invention, that is, a kind of
recreation. However in Ars Poetica he reduces his concept of imitation
to a technical process which either involves following ancient tradition or
inventing a new way based on the traditional principles.
LONGINUS
Longinus is a Greek author who lived during the Roman
period. Hence we can find in him a combination of Roman pragmatism and the
depth of Greek thought. Like Horace, he too advocates the emulation of ancient
masters but not on a technical level but on a spiritual level.
His concept of imitation is based on his theory on sublimity.
He talks of sublimity or imagination of the writer at three levels, the passive
reception of the sublimity of the ancient, the internalization of sublimity and
the creation of one’s own sublimity. In the first stage the imitative poet is
exposed s to the spiritual influence of his great masters. In the second stage
the poet by employing his own subjectivity and imagination and with the aid of
the internalized greatness of his past masters creates his own sublimity.
According to Horace imitative works should be placed on a
historical context where a discourse the past, present and future becomes
possible. Because of this transcendental influence poets and works of any
period cannot be indulged in themselves and their works. Literary imitation is
never unique it resonates over the ages.
MIMESIS AND MODERN
THEORY
The
concept of mimesis in art relies on the truth of human nature. Art is often
described as a product of the inherent human tendency to imitate .Plato reminds
of the inevitable connection between mimesis and human emotion, when he talks about
the influence of imitation on a child.
Most of the contemporary theorists regard mimesis as the
primary aspect of human life. In the twentieth century there was a return to
the psychology and anthropology f mimesis whose origin could be traced to the
renewed interest in the scientific and sociological theories of imitation among
the nineteenth century thinkers. They began to see imitation as a foundational human
behavior. The writings of Karl Marx and Friedrich Nietzsche are pivotal to
nineteenth century theory of mimesis as they explored the unconscious forces
that shape everyday life. Gabriel Tarde a nineteenth century psychological
theorist of mimesis considers mimesis as a fundamental life force. According to
him imitation plays an important role in the society which is equivalent to the
role of heredity in living things. Imitation becomes an unavoidable factor
wherever there is a social relation between two living things. For him nothing
is original because every invention is a product of imitation. Imitation is
socially progressive.
Though Freud disavows the influence of nineteenth century
theories of imitation, he furthered Tarde’s suggestion that imitation is an
inevitable part of human psychic life. According to Freud even our deliberate
actions are controlled by unconscious memories and desires. The aim of
psychoanalytic criticism itself is to provide some light on the ways in which
our present is governed by our repressed past. He called his therapeutic
technique of purging a patient’s painful past through hypnosis as cathartic method.
He rethinks the theories on mimesis through his notion of identification.
According to this notion selfhood and identity are not inherent; but a product
of the unconscious imitation of others. For Freud it is the earliest expression
of an emotional attachment to another person. A person’s ego assimilates itself
to another and perceives it as a role model to be imitated. Hence what we call
our character or personality is the combination of a myriad of such imitations.
Identification is in fact a radical rethinking of mimesis. Unlike ancient
theories present theories on mimesis treat it as an unconscious imitation that we
perform throughout our live. For Freud it is the identification which
determines the sexual development of a child. Though later theorists are
critical about Freud’s theory of identification, his notion that the formation
of ego depends on the mimetic relationships has become a foundational insight.
Lacan furthers Freud’s notion of identification. He is against the modern
philosophical view that the ego is autonomous and it is the stable point from
which the outside world can be analysed.Instead he highlights the ways in which
the self is constructed in relation to the world and others, in the beginning
by seeing its own image and later by the influence of language and culture.
Current theorists of gender and race depend on Freud and
Lacan for the mimetic foundations of identity. Their notion of identity as a
social construction challenges the predominant notion that identity is inherent.
The
concept of mimesis introduced by Plato and defended by Aristotle in the
classical period is echoed in the writings of Horace, Longinus, Eliot, Freud
and many other poets and philosophers till the present times. It becomes
evident that many theories from the classical era have mimesis as their
foundation stone.
WORKS SITED
Potolsky Matthew .Mimesis.
New Delhi: Routledge, 2006.
Aristotle. “Poetics.”
The Norton Anthology of Theory and Criticism.Ed.Leitch Vincent.New York:
W.W.Norton and CompanyLtd, 2001.Print.
Prasad, B. An
Introduction to English Criticism. New Delhi: Macmillan, 2013.Print.
Plato. “Republic”. The
Norton Anthology of Theory and Criticism.Ed.Leitch Vincent.New York:W.W.Norton
and Company Ltd,2001. Print.
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