Mimesis and Anti-Memesis All At Once
September 28, 2011There’s long been a philosophical question of whether art is more likely to imitate life (mimesis) or life is more likely to imitate art (anti-mimesis). I’ve stumbled upon an illustration that solves the debate for me: the answer is both.
In this scene from The Baby’s Catalogue by Janet and Allan Ahlberg, a young girl brings her heavy-lidded father coffee in the morning. When I saw this, I thought, ‘Hey! That’s me and my daughter Santoline! Art is imitating my life!’ But then, as the days passed, I instinctively switched to anti-mimetic mode and lolled in bed a little longer, awaiting my coffee-bearing loin fruit, all guilt wiped away by the fact that this sort of sloth was acceptable according to popular children’s literature.
Now, if I am ever chided for my indolence, I need only quote from Oscar Wilde’s famous anti-mimetic essay The Decay of Lying: ”the self-conscious aim of Life is to find expression … Art offers it certain beautiful forms through which it may realize that energy.” You see honey, I’m not a lazy oaf; I’m simply realizing my artistic expression.
← Learning to Watch Sports Odd Kudos From Afar →
Quite nicely put, really. I just discovered again how damn interesting the concept of mimesis is. Thanks for the example.
Johanna