https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XaXaNzKdpF8
I found this to be an interesting watch and wanted to share it, I feel personally very optimistic about this project even if it is slow going, it is too important to not happen and I felt that in the State Senator's Answers
I very much am enjoying this roundtable with Brandon Taylor, A. Natasha Joukovsky, and Trevor Cribben Merrill and it has very few views so I thought I would share it in case something else finds interesting/helpful!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lx1Ifof5-5s
They are discussing: Deceit, Desire, and the Novel by René Girard which is a foundational work of literary criticism that introduces his mimetic theory, arguing that human desire is not spontaneous but is instead imitative, modeled on the desires of others (mediators).
A useful definition for myself: Mimetic theory, developed by René Girard, proposes that human desire is not autonomous but imitated from others (mimetic desire), leading to competition, conflict, and societal scapegoating to restore order. It argues we want what others want, creating triangular relationships between subject, mediator, and object.