The beginning of institutions
At the beginning of human communities there is a mystery surrounding how our ancestors created human societies and religions. Some theories focus on how human groupings aid survival for individual human families. Others focused on how a larger brain allowed the ability to understand the intentions of others, and hence group coordination. With a larger brain and the ability to reflect, early humans could reflect on their place in human society, mortality, and the meaning of life. Being able to benefit from shared knowledge, made humanity flourish. Yet despite the benefits of increased group living, humans have always had a sense of danger that came with the price of living in groups. One theory in particular, by the social science philosopher René Girard, clarified the reflective part of the mind that allows for humans to learn from others. He called it mimetics, or the ability to imitate.
For René, social institutions and religions were born out of necessity from violent origins, to help direct the intentions of all members of the group towards an imitated harmony. The disharmony that regularly occurred was motivated by power differences in the human groups and how it allowed for unequal consumption of resources. These benefits of status and consumption constantly tested the group harmony, motivated by envy and competition amongst its members. There was a need to create social institutions to monitor unfair power dynamics and to met out justice. These were the seeds of our religions and our modern justice system that we take for granted.
On a negative note, some of these institutions involved factionalism, bigotry, and war. Coming from an odd mixture of Sigmund Freud’s ideas in Totem and Taboo, and Christian influences, René carved out a middle path that modernizes biblical interpretation and helps us see our unconscious imitation, envy, politics and violence. By illuminating our human tendency to escalate war to the point where civilizations end, René was able to take our past and make it relevant for all future generations. The test for every generation is to succeed in creating happiness for its members without destroying it with those very same efforts.
Triangular desire based on role models (Metaphysical desire)
Happiness is an abstract term, and is mocked in our jaded modern world. It means different things to different people, but for Girard, happiness that people are generally looking for is something very specific. One of the ways to understand human desire is to look closer at the influence of role models. When we are children, our parents are our role models. The world is a confusing place, and other than parents, our desires are based on seeing role models in the community react to objects. Their preferences for one object or another become a guide. A parent savouring an object and then sharing it with us, is a perfect example of how our typical attitude, that the characteristics of an object are what attract us to them, is in fact backwards. We learn about objects from our role models often before we actually engage with the object. Hence, desire for an object is mediated by role models.
Much like advertising, there is a promise of happiness suggested by the reaction of role models to these objects. From an early age we are conditioned to look to others (surrogate parents) who have status and authority to suggest what we should like, and in turn we become conditioned to abandon ourselves, and imitate the being of others.
This being-in-savouring becomes a marker for all of us on how to be. Like pictures, our brain freezes the moment of savouring that we vicariously observe our role model enjoying. In turn, the role model will also increase their desire for the object if they find that imitators are watching with envy. Like a triangle, each object includes a subject, and a role model. Each role model suggests to the subject whether the object should be valued more or less. Role models also have their role models, so these triangles can spread throughout society.
The farther away the subject is from the role model (external mediation), and the more plentiful the object is in society, the less rivalry and conflict. A modern example would be consumer society, celebrity advertising, and mass production. On the other hand, the closer the accessibility of the role model (internal mediation) and the more rare the object is, the more likely there will be conflict. The role model is addicted to the attention, and confirmation of their status for possessing the object, and the imitator is in desperate need to be in that position.
Cult psychology: https://rumble.com/v1gvih9-cult-psychology.html
Suggestions to imitate
The intensity of our desire for an object increases when we feel it is a scarce object and someone else will get it if we don’t pounce on it right away. Just like modern sales techniques, most of us are conditioned to “act now before it’s too late.” Right at the beginning of our lives, we are fighting with our siblings over dwindling food in our fridge, or fighting over toys we don’t want to share. When objects are left with us on their own merits, there is desire, but the recommendation of others, demonstrated by how much interest they invest in the object, increases the intensity of how we feel about the object. For example, if you watch a movie with your family and you are the only one who likes it, their dislike of the movie will naturally affect your opinion of it and vice versa. This is also true of movie critics that you respect. Experts replace our parents over time, and the worship of parents can then transfer to the worship of experts. This is the typical kind of religious attitude that most people have, but they don’t believe it is worship. They call it fandom. Experts then become the ideal example of how we should imitate to get our needs met.
Beyond Totem and Taboo
Girard takes this envy and goes beyond Freud in Totem and Taboo. [See: https://rumble.com/v1gsmvn-totem-and-taboo-sigmund-freud.html] Children can envy their parents and want to replace them, like in Freud’s Oedipus Complex theory, but this triangle can manifest in any area where the subject is convinced that there is someone worth imitating and something worth savouring. A recipe for desire includes: A role model that the subject respects, suggestions communicated by signs of savouring and basking emanating from the role model, deadlines for action and enough skill to imitate.
Chasing an illusion
Objects of desire can include people as well, like romantic partners. The qualities of the object, and the qualities of the romantic partner do matter, but competition has a way of motivating insecurity based on fears of scarcity, and the attention moves away from those objective qualities to jealousy of the possessor, and envy of the person who lacks. As Girard explains so well, in Deceit, Desire, & the Novel, the objective qualities of an object or person are often quite boring when the mystery is gone. The conquest is more thrilling because the desire was actually metaphysical.
Girard says, “the desiring subject, when he takes possession of the object, finds that he is grasping at a void. The subject discovers that possession of the object has not changed his being…The greater the apparent ‘virtue’ of the object the more terrible is the disappointment, thus disappointment deepens as the mediator draws closer to the hero.” Girard is aware of the illusion most of us have of achieving a permanent intensely felt desire that never fades. He says, “everyone in the universe of internal mediation heaves on a chain of desire and dreams of a retirement he will enjoy, not out of the world, but in a world he has finally conquered, a world possessed and still desirable.”
Scandal and Conflict
“If any two men desire the same thing which nevertheless they cannot both enjoy, they become enemies and in the way to their end…endeavour to destroy or subdue one another.” – (Thomas Hobbes Leviathan, 1651).
As rivals, debate, misinterpret, insult, slander, justify their positions and make claims, the desire increases to threaten and escalate conflict. Like in Totem and Taboo, rivals are tempted by ambivalence. They would like the object or situation, if they can get away with it. Then their justifications become distorted to “righteously” act to possess the object or situation creating a scandal that triggers the conflict. In the ancient world, there was no formal justice system or mediation that we take for granted in our modern day. As people see opportunities for theft and appropriation, they all can find self-serving justifications and the conflict can spread like fire throughout the community, threatening to destroy it.
Masochism
What is often not seen in desire and conflict is the need to be someone else. In Sadomasochism, there is masochism first, when the subject is feeling envy of a mediator, and sadism next when the subject becomes a mediator. Subjects feel like the role model is a “relentless guardian of a closed garden where only the elect may enjoy eternal beatitude.” The obstacle the rival creates increases the desire, but at the same time the subject is developing self-hatred. To want to be someone else means you don’t want to be yourself. Yet unconsciously the subject is not convinced of his or her own value, because of the illusion the mediator generates. Girard says, “The indifferent person always seems to possess that radiant self-mastery which we all seek. He seems to live in a closed circuit, enjoying his own being, in a state of happiness which nothing can disturb. He is God.”
The obstacles signal to the subject the value of the object or situation sought after. The masochism arises when the subject forgets the actual properties of the object or situation and repeatedly seeks after situations of loss, precisely because the subject dealing with ever bigger obstacles, knows that those obstacles signal that they are near a deity of competence and self-sufficiency. That’s why to onlookers they may appear masochistic, or self-defeating, but the onlookers don’t see the illusion they are caught in, which makes them think they are pursuing something meaningful.
Sadism
Being the opposite of masochism, sadism still has a connection to it. René says that the masochist is, “tired of playing the part of the martyr, the desiring subject chooses to become the tormentor. The triangular conception of desire reveals the relationship of the two attitudes and their frequent alternation. The sadist plays the role of the mediator himself. All victims of metaphysical desire seek to appropriate their mediator’s being by imitating him. The sadist wants to persuade himself that he has already attained his goal; he tries to take the place of the mediator and see the world through his eyes, in the hope that the play will gradually turn into reality. [See: Stalking: https://rumble.com/v1gvhk1-stalking-world-narcissistic-abuse-awareness-day.html] The sadist’s violence is yet another effort to attain divinity. The sadist cannot achieve the illusion of being the mediator without transforming his victim into a replica of himself. At the very moment of redoubling his brutality he cannot help recognizing himself in the other who is suffering. This is the meaning of that strange ‘communion’ between the victim and his tormentor so often observed.”
René continues, “it is frequently said that the sadist persecutes because he feels he is being persecuted. This is true but it is not quite the whole truth. In order to desire to persecute we must believe that the being who persecutes us thereby attains a sphere of existence infinitely superior to our own. One cannot be a sadist unless the key to the enchanted garden appears to be in the hands of a tormentor.” This is how a victim can identify with the abuser. The victim is not completely innocent, but is in fact infected with the same desire to be a deity. There is still masochism motivating him. Yet because possession does not change the being, “the master is doomed to disillusionment and boredom.” More sadistic actions are then pursued, or the master returns to the masochistic position when chasing a new master.
This is how even sexuality can be decoupled from healthy relationships and go into an addictive bond where both master and slave want to transcend their low self-esteem and become Gods via sexual conquest. Whether the dominant partner is more sadistic and wants the object of desire to increase their self-esteem, or whether the submissive partner wants to be the desired object to increase their self-esteem, they both don’t like who they are.
Men can feel this:
Women can feel this:
It can also be felt in the workplace!:
People can flip between Sadism and Masochism:
Or maybe it’s everywhere?
Perversion Part 5: Sadomasochism: https://psychreviews.org/perversion-part-5-sadomasochism/
Solidarity and scapegoating
Now, not everyone resorts to sadomasochistic rituals to find release, but there is another method. The constant emptiness, disappointment, and resentment the community feels over the endless rivalry starts to search for an outlet. As the community starts to fall apart with scandals, the downside of not having a trusting community becomes important. As individuals in the community rival among themselves, they find common enemies to rally around and vent their frustrations towards. As rivals start becoming allies, they more and more agree on a common enemy that will ultimately reunite the entire community. This scapegoat is usually somebody or a group that chooses not to retaliate or cannot retaliate. As the distorted justifications find currency in the community, a biased judgement falls on the scapegoat and he or she is brutally killed, or banished. All the bigoted biases finally come out in an overt way because the solidarity protects people from their embarrassing views. The majority oppresses the minority as seen throughout history.
Radiohead – Burn the Witch: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yI2oS2hoL0k
The Myth of the Sacred and Propaganda
The relief in the community over the death of the common enemy is celebrated. For a period of time there is cohesion and cooperation in the community, that is until imitation, envy and scandals break out again. Then a new scapegoat has to be found. As the justifications for the murder become forgotten, change and develop over time, there is a celebration of the scapegoat for being the reason for the harmony of the community. Those past justifications for the brutality become myths, and the celebrations turn into rituals that mimic the destruction of the scapegoat. Eventually these myths develop into religious rituals that become harder to decipher as they disguise the past brutality further.
These myths and religions communicate to community members what their form of harmony is supposed to look like, and what they should imitate. Like political propaganda, there is a chilling message contained in these myths. When reading René Girard, myths take on a new perspective. For example, myths where a stranger who appears to the community, or a character with a special talent is revered by the community may disguise the original abuse. What is not contained in these myths are the original envy, jealousy and murder. People who are talented, stand out, and especially if they do not or cannot retaliate are perfect targets for the community. Their talents threaten the hierarchy of the community, and their inability to retaliate make these scapegoats an easy target to rally the community around.
Awareness and revelation
To avoid apocalyptic scenarios of the future, Girard hints at solutions, though unpopular ones. Converting to Christianity Girard saw that imitating humans (deviated transcendency) was inferior to imitating Jesus (vertical transcendency), and he felt that Judeo-Christian texts were aware of these self-serving myths and by demystifying them, the cycle of violence loses its underlying motivation. By dropping human worship, the objects and people still retain their objective value and character, but the sadomasochistic distortion of wanting to be a deity is released. By following the Ten Commandments, and by withdrawing from escalating conflict, the Christian avoids needing a scapegoat to find harmony in society. If we worry about Christian superstition, Christian hypocrisy, Christian factionalism and violence and reject it, we still have to watch ourselves that we are not thinking we are atheist, but all the while unconsciously worshiping experts. Any Christian who uses their religion to bolster their self-esteem against others is still trying to be a deity and ironically, they end up not benefiting from their religion. An atheist who understands the dangers of human worship can benefit from the knowledge without being Christian.
Cult psychology: https://rumble.com/v1gvih9-cult-psychology.html
Seeing these dynamics in domestic violence situations, toxic friendships, and abusive employment situations, shows that any institution can have this sadomasochistic dynamic. The challenge for a modern society that moves beyond Christianity is to not fall back into the cycle of imitation, envy, justification, conflict, scapegoating, and myth, regardless of where a person identifies.
Radiohead – Man of War: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DXP1KdZX4io
YouTube: Violence and the sacred – René Girard
Violent Origins – Walter Burkert, René Girard, and Jonathan Z. Smith: https://www.isbns.net/isbn/9780804715188/
Deceit, Desire, & the Novel – René Girard: https://www.isbns.net/isbn/9780801818301/
Violence and the sacred – René Girard: https://www.isbns.net/isbn/9780801822186/
Things hidden since the foundation of the world – René Girard: https://www.isbns.net/isbn/9781474268431/
Genesis of Desire – Jean-Michel Oughourlian: https://www.isbns.net/isbn/9780870138768/
Reading the Bible with René Girard – Michael Hardin, Steven E. Berry, Scott Cowdell: https://www.isbns.net/isbn/9781514777510/
Savoring: A New Model of Positive Experience – Fred B. Bryant, Joseph Veroff: https://www.isbns.net/isbn/9780805851205/
Totem and Taboo – Sigmund Freud: https://psychreviews.org/totem-taboo-sigmund-freud-envy-part-2/
On Narcissism – Sigmund Freud: https://psychreviews.org/on-narcissism-sigmund-freud/
Do Narcissists Truly Hate? – Sam Vaknin: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nllxk6n6XuA
Hobbes, T., (1651). Leviathan, (pp. 76). McMaster University Archive of the History of Economic Thought. Retrieved from http://socserv2.socsci.mcmaster.ca/econ/ugcm/3ll3/hobbes/Leviathan.pdf
Philosophy: https://psychreviews.org/category/philosophy03/