CFP for publication or other deadlineAugust 31, 2026
Mimesis and the Mimetic (Re-)Turn
Trópos invites papers on contemporary mimesis and imitation across philosophy, literary theory, feminism, posthumanism, neuroscience, and new materialism.
mimetic (re-)turn
Mimesis, one of the oldest concepts in literary theory, has recently received renewed attention across the humanities, social sciences, and neurosciences. The issue approaches humans as an imitative species, or homo mimeticus, and seeks to move the study of imitation beyond traditional accounts of aesthetic realism and mimetic desire.
The special issue aims to engage critically and creatively with contemporary approaches to mimesis, particularly its relational, embodied, plastic, contagious, resonant, and mirroring dimensions.
Topics of Interest
The editors welcome contributions to new mimetic studies across disciplines and theoretical traditions, including:
Modernist mimesis: phantom egos, homo duplex, and crowd behavior
Mimicry, interculturality, and decolonization
Postmodernist mimesis: pastiche, intertextuality, and simulation
Mimesis in postcritique and affect theory: identification, apprehension, and attunement
(New) fascist mimesis: myth, disinformation, and post-truth
Mimetic posthumanism: hypermimesis, AI simulations, and homo mimeticus 2.0
Post-poststructuralist mimesis: Derrida, Irigaray, Lacoue-Labarthe, Nancy, and Lawtoo
Mimicry after Critical Theory: Benjamin, Adorno, Fromm, and Jameson
Hermeneutics and mimesis: Heidegger, Gadamer, and Vattimo
New materialist mimesis: contagion, influx and efflux, entangled humanism, and “flesh”
Gendered mimesis and mimetic inclinations: Irigaray, Butler, Cavarero, and Ahmed
Mimetic resonance and Hartmut Rosa
Imitation and neuroscience: mirror neurons, plasticity, and epigenetic mimesis
Mimesis and literary selfhood: life writing, autofiction, relating narratives, and autotheory
Suggestive mimesis: the mimetic unconscious, hypnosis, empathy, and influence
Biomimicry and metamorphosis beyond human/nonhuman mimesis
The issue is particularly interested in contemporary conceptual forms of mimesis that illuminate its two dimensions as a vibrant affect capable both of generating life-negating pathologies and producing life-affirmative patho-logies.
Submission Guidelines
Maximum length: 7,500 words, including footnotes
Abstract: 200 words, in English
Keywords: 5–6
Languages: English preferred; French, Italian, and Spanish also accepted
Citation style: Chicago Style, including footnotes and bibliography
Author information: Submit a separate sheet containing the author's name, affiliation, email address, and a short 50–60 word biography
The special issue seeks to deepen and extend the interdisciplinary field of mimetic studies, encouraging contributions explicitly positioned within this emerging field and engaging with its philosophical, literary, political, feminist, materialist, posthumanist, and scientific dimensions.