Rooted in the idea that humans learn by imitation, René Girard's concept of mimetic desire is that humans also imitate each other's desires. People look to others to understand what they should desire. This can lead to conflict with the people they are imitating, because they become rivals for the objects (or resources or relationships) they are competing for. Mediation is the process in which the imitated (or the mediator, as Girard describes them) influences the imitator. In external mediation, the imitated person is completely separated from the imitator. In this scenario, the imitator and the imitated do not become rivals because they are never competing for the same object. Think celebrity influencer promoting skincare products vs. fan purchasing because they want to imitate the celebrity. In internal mediation, the imitated person and the imitator inhabit the same environment. In this scenario, it is possible for the imitator and the imitated to become rivals because they could end up competing for the same object. Think older brother vs younger brother. Younger brother wants to imitate the older brother out of admiration, they both desire the same Yeezy sneaker at the local store, there's only one pair left, they become rivals. But they don't necessarily have to become rivals, if they are not competing for the same object. Perhaps the younger brother wants to imitate the older brother out of admiration, but purchases some new Nike drop instead. They don't become rivals. Simplistic, but you get the gist. In metaphysical desire, mimetic desire grows so that the imitator desires to become the mediator, or the imitated. They want to be the celebrity influencer promoting the skincare product. Left unchecked, metaphysical desire can grow into destructive obsession. The desire to be that celebrity influencer can never be satisfied. Citations Andrade, Gabriel. “René Girard (1923—2015).” _The Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy, ISSN 2161-0002_, https://iep.utm.edu/girard/. Lehr, Julan. "What Shopify and Amazon Can Learn from Mimetic Theory." *Julian.digital*, 23 Dec. 2020, https://julian.digital/2020/05/28/what-shopify-and-amazon-can-learn-from-mimetic-theory/. ---- Created: July 29, 2021 Last Modified: July 29, 2021