Mimesis: How Art Can Encourage Empathy

Image by Pexels from Pixabay

By Kacy Cheslek

The theory of mimesis has been around since ancient times. According to Merriam-Webster, It goes all the way back to ancient Greece, where Plato and Aristotle defined it as imitating reality, particularly through art. This means that our books, movies, music, and other forms of art and entertainment mirror reality.

Many great thinkers have expanded upon the theory over the years, notably Erich Auerbach, who published his book Mimesis: The Representation of Reality in Western Literature in 1953. In it, Auerbach studies the theory that reality is represented in literature, ranging from ancient texts such as the Bible to modern novels by authors such as Virginia Woolf.

Since art mimics reality, we can experience reality through art in ways that we wouldn’t normally be able to in our own lives. We are also able to have these experiences safely as an audience. For example, you can read a book about soldiers in war and empathize with the characters without enduring any physical harm yourself. By having these experiences vicariously through characters, we develop a broader sense of others’ experiences and grow our ability to empathize. This is directly related to narrative empathy, one of the Arithmetic of Compassion’s important areas of interest.

Our books, movies, and TV shows can be more than just forms of entertainment. If we pay attention to these stories, we can deepen our understanding of others and society.

To read more on stories and narrative empathy, see the following:

Climbing the “Ladder of Abstraction” to Evoke Empathy / July 28, 2023

Another Brazil is Possible: A Powerful Image of Hope from the Zo'é People / Jan 14, 2022

Building Narrative Empathy Through Storytelling / April 19, 2019