mimesis

from WordNet (r) 3.0 (2006)

mimesis
    n 1: the imitative representation of nature and human behavior
         in art and literature
    2: any disease that shows symptoms characteristic of another
       disease
    3: the representation of another person's words in a speech

from The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48

Mimesis \Mi*me"sis\, n. [NL., fr. Gr. ? imitation.] (Rhet. &
   Biol.)
   Imitation; mimicry.
   [1913 Webster]