Ermeneutica e violenza. Sul fondamento naturalistico-sacrificale della violenza in Gianni Vattimo

According to Gianni Vattimo, there is a constitutive link — within and of Western culture — between Christianity, hermeneutics and the reduction of violence. In this paper, we will attempt to develop this thesis on the basis of Vattimo’s discussion with René Girard, particularly with regard to Girard’s mimetic-sacrificial theory of natural religions. For Girard, the sacrificial mechanism is a natural fact that Christianity has uncovered, whereas for Vattimo, Christianity has not only revealed it, but also attempted to change it. This change is embedded in the very form of Christianity as a “religion of the book.” The book represents a “cultural” form, which in itself entails a weakening of natural, potentially conflictual relationships, in particular a weakening of the mimetic relationship in the interpretative relationship.