I believe that in intense conflict, far from becoming sharper, differences melt away.
Rene GirardRead
We are aware that globalization doesn't mean global friendship but global competition and, therefore, conflict. That doesn't mean we will all destroy each other, but it is no happy global village, either.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Globalization is often misunderstood as fostering friendship among nations, but it primarily leads to competition and potential conflict.
Rene Girard highlights the misconception that globalization inherently promotes unity and friendship across the world. Instead, he argues that it is a driver of competition between nations, which can lead to conflict. The notion of a 'happy global village' is a misleading oversimplification of the complex geopolitical realities in a globally interconnected society.
Themes
GlobalizationCompetitionConflictPhilosophyGeopolitics
In practice
Example use cases
In a debate about international relations, one might quote Girard to emphasize the competitive nature of globalization.
More from Rene Girard
All quotes →We don't even know what our desire is. We ask other people to tell us our desires. We would like our desires to come from our deepest selves, our personal depths - but if it did, it would not be desire. Desire is always for something we feel we lack.
Rene GirardRead
The protective system of scapegoats is finally destroyed by the Crucifixion narratives as they reveal Jesus' innocence and, little by little, that of all analogous victims.
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Instead of blaming victimization on the victims, the Gospels blame it on the victimizers. What the myths systematically hide, the Bible reveals.
Rene GirardRead
What I call a mimetic crisis is a situation of conflict so intense that on both sides people act the same way and talk the same way even though, or because, they are more and more hostile to each other.
Rene GirardRead
Salvation lies in imitating Christ, in other words, in imitating the 'withdrawal relationship' that links him with his Father... To listen to the Father's silence is to abandon oneself to his withdrawal, to conform to it.
Rene GirardRead
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