Book Club Potluck - Deceit, Desire, and the Novel

Lisa will host our discussion of Deceit, Desire, and the Novel: Self and Other in Literary Structure by René Girard. Lisa suggested this book.

Deceit, Desire, and the Novel (1965) by René Girard argues that desire is not spontaneous but mimetic, meaning we desire what others desire, a concept he calls "triangular desire". The novel's "deceit" lies in the protagonist pretending their desire is their own, while the "truth" of the novel reveals this mediated, rivalrous structure, seen in works by Cervantes, Stendhal, Flaubert, Proust, and Dostoevsky. This theory explains the rivalry and conflict in literature and life, extending to advertising and propaganda.
Core Concepts

• Mimetic Desire:
  We don't desire objects for their intrinsic value, but because a "mediator" (another person) desires them.
• Triangular Desire:
  The structure is a triangle: Subject (protagonist) -> Mediator (model) -> Object.
• The Novel's Deceit:
  The protagonist's illusion that their desire is original and self-generated.
• The Novel's Truth:
  The narrative exposes this illusion, revealing the mediator and the resulting rivalry.

Key Examples in the Book

• Cervantes: Don Quixote
• Stendhal: The Red and the Black (Mathilde and Sorel)
• Flaubert: Madame Bovary (Emma Bovary)
• Proust: In Search of Lost Time
• Dostoevsky: The Brothers Karamazov

Broader Implications

• Girard's theory extends beyond literature to explain modern phenomena like fashion, advertising, and propaganda, where desire is manufactured through imitation.

To go with Girard's book, Lisa reading an article by Peter Thiel that addresses Girard's ideas. The title of the article is "The Straussian Moment," and you can find it here.

Lisa owns cats, and while they will be shut away during the event, you should be aware if you have a severe cat allergy.

If you would like to host one of our events and you have a book in mind, please let me, Karl Kiefer, or Mark Hopkins know, and we will create a Meetup event for your book, assuming your suggested title qualifies as a book on philosophy in our view, and assuming that we deem you to be qualified to host. Our criteria are somewhat vague, but let's just say that we are not interested in books on the supernatural. We are interested in books that you might find in a syllabus for a college philosophy course. We are also focused on finding hosts who have demonstrated ability to direct philosophical conversation. You can always email me at camkruger@gmail.com if you have questions and/or suggestions.

As always, it's essential that everyone who comes to the meeting reads the book in its entirety and brings something for the potluck.

Happy reading!