A First Swipe at Frogs and Pickup Artists

Part 2 of the great treatise on the Modern Malaise.

This is the second installment of our big take on the Modern Malaise, the pandemic that’s been spawning all kinds of creatures, from vitalists to incels to pickup artists. Catch up on Part One, where Virgil and I laid out a profile of the Frog Twitter in broad strokes.

Here we introduce René Girard’s mimetic theory to set down a basic preliminary explanation of why such underground phenomena would arise. We then delve into how they manifest in the “sexual market.” Enjoy the read and let us know what you think!

- George Boreas

The Modern Rise of Internal Mediation

George: Virgil, last time you mentioned many things about Frog Twitter that made me think of René Girard. I think that we might as well start with some preliminary interpretations using Girard’s mimetic theory now, before we dedicate whole sessions to it later on.

Let’s start somewhat tangentially, with …