Abram: Fear of Mimetic Violence -- Mimetic Theory and Literary Study

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Date Posted: 10:40:02 04/14/08 Mon
Author: Kiernan
Subject: Abram: Fear of Mimetic Violence

As Abram approaches Egypt, a fear of mimetic violence begins to overwhelm him. He fears that the Egyptian officials, appropriating his love for his beautiful wife, Sarah, will kill him out of rivalry: "When the Egyptians see you and say, 'She's his wife,' they will kill me while you they will let live." (Genesis 12:12, Alter). Abram fears (though perhaps not explicitly/consciously) that, as an outsider, his death will be used to calm the mimetic violence in the community. So he lies in order to save his life. Yet this results only in contagion spreading throughout the community: "The Lord afflicted Pharoah and his household with terrible plagues because of Sarai the wife of Abram" (Genesis 12:17). Because Abram is not killed, the community has no relief from the spreading of contagious violence. Miraculously (in a sense), this story does not end with violence. It does end, however, with expulsion: "Now here is your wife. Take her and get out!" (Genesis 12:19). Pharoah calms the mimetic crisis with expulsion, not with killing, making Abram into the sacrificial victim which he feared becoming.

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