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Gravity affects every aspect of our physical being, but there's a psychological force just as powerful -- yet almost nobody has heard of it. It's responsible for bringing groups of people together and pulling them apart, making certain goals attractive to some and not to others, and fueling cycles of anxiety and conflict. In Wanting, Luke Burgis draws on the work of French polymath Ren Girard to bring this hidden force to light and reveals how it shapes our lives and societies. According to Girard, humans don't desire anything independently. Human desire is mimetic -- we imitate what other people want. This affects the way we choose partners, friends, careers, clothes, and vacation destinations. Mimetic desire is responsible for the formation of our very identities.