Looking for a Scapegoat and Finding Oneself: Kieślowski’s Decalogue and Mimetic Theory
In this chapter I offer an interpretation of Krzysztof Kieślowski’s Decalogue, focusing on the films Decalogue One and Decalogue Ten. The series of films goes beyond just eschewing easy answers to the difficult moral questions that humans face, in that it represents in a variety of ways the moment w...
| Main Author: | |
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| Format: | Electronic Article |
| Language: | English |
| Check availability: | HBZ Gateway |
| Interlibrary Loan: | Interlibrary Loan for the Fachinformationsdienste (Specialized Information Services in Germany) |
| Published: |
2019
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| In: |
Mimetic theory and film
Year: 2019, Pages: 83-96 |
| Standardized Subjects / Keyword chains: | B
Mimesis
B Scapegoat / Scapegoat theory B Girard, René 1923-2015 |
| Online Access: |
Volltext (lizenzpflichtig) |
| Summary: | In this chapter I offer an interpretation of Krzysztof Kieślowski’s Decalogue, focusing on the films Decalogue One and Decalogue Ten. The series of films goes beyond just eschewing easy answers to the difficult moral questions that humans face, in that it represents in a variety of ways the moment when ordinary human beings encounter a depth of reality that is often characterized as holy. As a series, it interrogates our usually clear distinctions between good and evil, innocent and guilty, not to do away with them, but to ground them more deeply in reality—a reality that is ultimately mysterious. My approach to the film series through mimetic theory is not new, nor is it surprising. Kieślowski’s cowriter, Krzysztof Piesiewicz, once remarked that “the base of my reflections are the books of René Girard.” In personal correspondence he wrote that as regards René Girard’s influence, he, Piesiewicz, was particularly interested “in the concept/notion of the ‘scapegoat.’” Even without this direct influence, one would expect that a work of this magnitude, which has been acclaimed for its ability to reveal the human condition, could be approached profitably using the analytical tools that mimetic theory provides. Beyond this there is that elusive sense that if Decalogue deals profoundly with these culturally embedded, religious/ethical commandments, mimetic theory is also dealing with them and the mutual illumination of the two approaches may succeed in shedding more light on each other as well as on the ten “Words” themselves.... |
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| ISBN: | 9781501334863 |
| Contains: | Enthalten in: Mimetic theory and film
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| Persistent identifiers: | DOI: 10.5040/9781501334863.0009 |
