Mimesis

Part of speech: noun

Pronunciation: /mɪˈmiːsɪs/

Definitions

1. The imitation of the real world in art, literature, or performance is explored through various forms of representation and expression
2. This term refers to the replication or representation of reality or nature in artistic and literary works, reflecting or imitating the world around us
3. It embodies the concept of reproducing reality or nature through artistic means, signifying how creation reflects the external world

Etymology: Plato and Aristotle made "mimesis" one of the great words of Western philosophy, but in its earliest sense it was closer to acting or miming than to art criticism. The Greek noun comes from "mimeisthai," meaning "to imitate," which in turn derives from "mimos," a mime: a performer who acted out scenes through gesture and movement, often in comic skits. The word thus began with the physical business of pretending to be someone else on stage. From that base, Greek writers extended "mimesis" to any representation of the world, whether in painting, poetry or dance. Plato famously worried that such imitation was a copy of a copy, twice removed from truth, while Aristotle argued in his "Poetics" that imitating human action was a natural and pleasurable human impulse. Both uses drew on the same root, so the philosophical debate grew directly out of the stage performer's art.

Synonyms: imitation, representation