Desire and mimetic rivalry in Unamuno’s Abel Sánchez: an interpretation from Girard

Abstract

This article analyses and interprets Unamuno’s novel Abel Sánchez (1917) from the perspective of René Girard’s mimetic theory, in dialogue with other theoretical contributions. Girard’s interdisciplinary thinking allows us to understand, from an integrative conceptual framework, the personality and tragic evolution of Joaquín: the envious antagonist, whose desire and action are pure mimetic reactions to the desire and action of Abel: his model, mediator and rival. Based on the universality of mimetic desire and the conflicting rivalry proposed by Girard, it is argued that Joaquín’s envious desire and agony, although extreme, are essential representations of the human condition. Therefore, the reader empathizes not only with his suffering, but also with the universal nature of his conflicting desire, which reveals a tragic facet inherent to the human being.