mimetic

/mɪˈmɛt ɪk/

adjective

1 apt to imitate. 2 given to mimicry. 3 imitative.

As long as anyone could remember, abuse fed the family tree. Jim was the son of an abusive father. His father was the son of an abusive father. His father’s father? Well, the family’s collective memory didn’t go back that far. It dimmed with age, and all that anyone could remember, or would admit, was that he had two wives and that they were sisters. But no matter. Jim was expecting a son, and he feared that his genetic makeup had a mimetic intention to shape his parenting style.

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