First, the definition of mimesis as imitation suggests a movement with creative potential. Dec 21, 1992 in his most ambitious and accomplished work to date, michael taussig undertakes a history of mimesis, the practice of imitation, and its relation to alterity, the opposition of self and other. So, what about mimetic theory and contemporary psychology. This paradox, we propose, speaks directly to the broader issue of the magic of alterity, the play of identification and othering, t h e d a r k s i d e o f e m p a t h y which lies at the heart of not only mimicry taussig 1993 but also the empathic faculty. On taussigs mimesis and alterity it is rather difficult to imagine a world without representation, without coping or portrayal. Garrels editor, mimesis and science empirical research on imitation and the mimetic theory of culture and religion, studies in violence, mimesis and culture series, michigan state university press, 2011.
As with laughter according to bergson, michael taussig argues that such traumatic alterity is met with forms of recuperative repetition, what he calls in the title of an important book, mimesis and alterity. The book moves from the nineteenthcentury invention of mimetically capacious machines, such as the camera, to the fable of colonial first contact and the. Read mimesis and alterity a particular history of the senses by michael taussig available from rakuten kobo. Taussig born 3 april 1940 in sydney is an australian anthropologist and professor at columbia university.
The signifying monkey a myth of origins, zora neale hurston and the speakerly. Mimesis and alterity ebook by michael taussig 97851853866. In this ambitious and accomplished work, taussig explores the complex and interwoven concepts of mimesis, the practice of imitation, and alterity, the opposition of self and other. In this chapter i use the concept of mimesis copying and reproduction to show that contemporary animated childrens films frequently depict race and gender as performative identities, the competent performance of which is learned through copying the childs intimate others, particularly their mothersmaternal figures and, to a lesser extent, their fathers.
Taussigs 1993 mimesis and alterity and the multiple works it inspired from different empirical and theoretical groundings e. Mimesis here should be understood not in the terms used, say, by plato, to refer to simple imitation. The original ancient greek term mimesis derives from mimeisthai, itself coming from mimos. Drawing upon such diverse sources as theories of benjamin, adorno and horckheimer, research on the cuna indians, and theories of colonialism and. Mimesis and alterity ebook by michael taussig 97816645457. Comparative studies in society and history, 46, 816844. To reproduce something is to step beyond mere imitation. Taussig michael mimesis and alterity a particular history of the senses. Skip to main content accessibility help we use cookies to distinguish you from other users and to provide you with a better experience on our websites. First of all, writing about a wecentric space and a shared manifold, gallese repeats the idea of oughourlians interdividual.
This dance of referents is mimetically processed during performance and moved into performativity. Mimesis and alterity chapters 15 taussig, pdf available 2. Well, lets read some excerpts from a highly recommended book. In his most ambitious and accomplished work to date, michael taussig undertakes a history of mimesis, the practice of imitation, and its relation to alterity, the opposition of self and other. Art, gift, and diplomacy in colonial india, 17701800 volume 46 issue 4 natasha eaton.
See also the interpretation of the film in taussig, mimesis and alterity, pp. I could not tell the story of some past event, imitate a friend or even try to describe the environs in which we moved. Here benjamin challenges the inherited view of mimesis as an essentially compromised form of imitation that. May 31, 2018 in this ambitious and accomplished work, taussig explores the complex and interwoven concepts of mimesis, the practice of imitation, and alterity, the opposition of self and other. In mimesis and alterity taussig undertakes and eccentric history of the mimetic faculty. Although he has published on medical anthropology, he is best known for his engagement with marxs idea of commodity fetishism, especially in terms of the work of walter benjamin he was awarded a guggenheim fellowship in 1998, and a berlin prize in 2007 from the. When theory turns to the operations of art or the mechanisms behind contagious social behavior, mimesis keeps resurfacing, persistently. A particular history of the senses 1993, and the devil and commodity fetishism in south america 1980. Michael taussig, mimesis and alterity film, the good earth february 15 earl derr biggers, the chinese parrot february 22 yunte huang, charlie chan march 1 huang, charlie chan film, the black camel march 8 henry david hwang, yellow face film, murder by death march 15 wayne wang, chan is missing march 29 arthur golden, memoirs of a geisha. He moves easily from the nineteenthcentury invention of mimetically capacious machines, such as the camera, backwards to the fable of colonial first contact alleged mimetic prowess of primitives, and then forward to contemporary time, when the idea of alterity is increasingly unstable. One of the achievements of michael taussigs mimesis and alterity is to rescue through a creatively idiosyncratic readingwalter benjamins 1936 work of art essay from a utopian hypothesis about the consequences of mechanical reproduction which all known evidence contradicts, in favor of a. Communication as performance and the performativity of. These works sift through the connections between colonialism and imitation, be it as the incomplete, fauxcopy mode of masquerade.
The indian work of art in the age of mechanical reproduction. Mullen, 2019 visible through the room divider on the gallerys far wall, a modestly sized photographic diptych titled herding and shaping is hung centred on the otherwise empty. It is rather difficult to imagine a world without representation, without coping or portrayal. In his most ambitious and accomplished work to date, michael taussig undertakes a history of mimesis, the practice of im. Absolutely fabulous premise the crossover between mimesis, alterity, sympathetic magic, the senses, modernity and colonialism. Mimesis and alterity on american commercial frontiers, the cultural life of intellectual properties. To imitate, copy, or mimic implies the transfer of an original to a reproduction. Although we might try to dismiss it as an antiquated aesthetic orthodoxy, a paradigm rightfully discredited by romantic theories of artistic expression, mimesis is still very much with us. Mimesis and alterity in host family space 9 as negative opinions, five parents said the program should not be prioritised above the needs of citizen students, and five others were concerned about the monetary aspect of the program.
Art, gift, and diplomacy in colonial india, 17701800 volume 46 issue 4 natasha eaton skip to main content accessibility help we use cookies to distinguish you from other users and to provide you with a better experience on our websites. Michael taussig mimesis and alterity a particulb ok. Taussig, mimesis and alterity free download as word doc. In part two of this paper, i examine this double sense of mimesis as a. Philosophy, aesthetics, acting theory by daniel larlham submitted in partial fulfillment. Sadly it is way too absorbed by its own little clever moments, which completely sucks that fabulousness out of the entire book. The mimetic imperialism of japans 1874 expedition to taiwan.
Mimesis project gutenberg selfpublishing ebooks read. The meaning in mimesis puts canonical texts of acting theory by plato, diderot, stanislavsky, brecht, and others back into conversation with their informing paradigms in philosophy and aesthetics, in order to trace the recurring impulse to theorize the actors art and the. Michael taussigs discussion of mimesis in mimesis and alterity is centered around walter benjamin and theodor adornos biologically determined model, in which mimesis is posited as an adaptive behavior prior to language that allows humans to make themselves similar to their surrounding environments through assimilation and play. One need not travel to siberia or indonesia to encounter the link between empathy and. Postcolonialism, anthropology, and the magic of mimesis huggan week 11 nov 23. Mimesis and alterity 1993 mimesis and alterity looks primarily at the way people from different cultures experience the two themes of the book how we come to adopt or assimilate anothers nature or culture mimesis, and also how we come to identifydistance ourselves withfrom it alterity. Mimesis is a term used in literary criticism and philosophy that carries a wide range of meanings, including imitatio, imitation, nonsensuous similarity, receptivity, representation, mimicry, the act of expression, the act of resembling, and the presentation of the self. Authorship, appropriation, and the law, rosemary j. Repetition as postcolonial alterity alterity signifies a different break within repetition. The book moves from the nineteenthcentury invention of mimetically capacious machines, such as the camera, to the fable of colonial first contact and the alleged mimetic power of primitives. Drawing upon such diverse sources as theories of benjamin, adorno and horckheimer, research on the cuna indians, and theories of colonialism and postcolonialism, taussig shows that the history of mimesis. Mimetic theory, embodied simulation, and social identification, which concludes the first part of the book mimesis and science.
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