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ENVY: A Theory of Social Behaviour
This classic study is one of the few books to explore extensively the many facets of envy―“a drive which lies at the core of man’s life as a social being.” Ranging widely over literature, philosophy, psychology, and the social sciences, Professor Schoeck― a distinguished sociologist and anthropologist―elucidates both the constructive and destructive consequences of envy in social life. Perhaps most important, he demonstrates that not only the impetus toward a totalitarian regime but also the egalitarian impulse in democratic societies are alike in being rooted in envy.
453 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1966
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April 11, 2014
About the Author: Helmut Schoeck was born in Graz, Austria in 1922. He was a sociologist at Johannes Gutenberg University in Mainz. He published this book in 1966.
Overview: This is a book about envy, an important subject which has generally been neglected by academics. The author criticizes researchers in the social sciences of having paid too little attention to envy. In particular, envy as a motivation for crime.
Black Magic, Witchcraft, and Sorcery: Envy plays a major role in many primitive cultures. Envious people suspect successful people of having achieved their success by practicing sorcery. People who are envied fear that the envious ones will practice black magic against them to hurt them. If something bad happens by chance to the envied person, they will believe that their misfortune was caused by the black magic of the envier. During the European Middle Ages, envy was involved in witchcraft in two ways:
• Envious people were perceived as witches who performed black magic against those they envied
• People who were envied were persecuted as witches, so they could be looted
Evil Eye: When you see someone looking at you with envy, it seems like their face, and in particular, their eyes, are radiating evil. Evil eye in other languages:
• mal de ojo (Spanish)
• nazar lagna (Urdu)
Divine Envy: Superstitious people feared that the gods would punish them for being too wealthy. Nemesis was a Greek god that punished the arrogant and greedy.
Ostracism: In Ancient Greece, citizens who received too much good fortune were often ostracized: sent away from the city for ten years. Herodotus tells a tale of the most honorable man in Athens, Aristides, being ostracized for it.
Ingratitude and Resentment: Acts of generosity are often responded to not with gratitude, but with ingratitude. Ingratitude and resentment toward the benefactor is actually the rule.
Schadenfreude: Envy, which is pain at the good fortune of others, has a converse, schadenfreude, which is joy at the misfortunes of others.
Vandalism: Envy is the motive behind vandalism. If I cannot have a nice school, house or car, then I will damage yours so you cannot enjoy it.
Dealing with Envy: People who fear being envied often respond by hiding what they have. Envy retards progress towards civilization in two ways:
• Innovators are persecuted by the envious
• Envious revolutionaries tear down (vandalize) successful societies. The author suggests that Lee Harvey Oswald killed President John F. Kennedy out of envy.
Social Justice: Social justice is a polite term for envy. When the hard life of the poor had largely been ameliorated, to keep the movement for social justice alive, the leaders turned to pandering to envy. The progressive income tax was a way to appeal to the envy of the lower classes. The rich were willing to appease the envious by giving them some of their wealth, so they wouldn’t take it all.
Sidney and Beatrice Webb: Sidney and Beatrice Webb were leaders of the Fabian Society and the British Labour Party during the early and mid twentieth century. They admitted to themselves that they were unable to figure out how to make Britain more egalitarian by gradualism and democracy. In fact, Sidney once told his wife Beatrice that he hoped their Labour Party would lose the election, because they had no plan for dealing with unemployment.
What Others Have Written About Envy
• Herman Melville’s novel Billy Budd was about envy, the envy John Claggart had for Billy Budd’s innocence, his lack of malice or envy in himself.
• Arthur Koestler envied those rich people who could enjoy spending their wealth on themselves without feeling guilty.
• The American sociologist David Riesman wrote that the other-directed man is a conformist, because he does not want to stand out and be envied.
Privacy: In primitive societies, it is difficult for the individual to spend personal time alone. There is a fear of what they might be up to. The Israeli kibbutzim also opposed personal privacy, because people who spent time alone were seen as hoarding their time to themselves, instead of sharing it with others.
Causal Delusion: The envious person perceives the fact that the envied person possesses wealth or privilege as being the cause that prevents the envious person from obtaining it.
Overview: This is a book about envy, an important subject which has generally been neglected by academics. The author criticizes researchers in the social sciences of having paid too little attention to envy. In particular, envy as a motivation for crime.
Black Magic, Witchcraft, and Sorcery: Envy plays a major role in many primitive cultures. Envious people suspect successful people of having achieved their success by practicing sorcery. People who are envied fear that the envious ones will practice black magic against them to hurt them. If something bad happens by chance to the envied person, they will believe that their misfortune was caused by the black magic of the envier. During the European Middle Ages, envy was involved in witchcraft in two ways:
• Envious people were perceived as witches who performed black magic against those they envied
• People who were envied were persecuted as witches, so they could be looted
Evil Eye: When you see someone looking at you with envy, it seems like their face, and in particular, their eyes, are radiating evil. Evil eye in other languages:
• mal de ojo (Spanish)
• nazar lagna (Urdu)
Divine Envy: Superstitious people feared that the gods would punish them for being too wealthy. Nemesis was a Greek god that punished the arrogant and greedy.
Ostracism: In Ancient Greece, citizens who received too much good fortune were often ostracized: sent away from the city for ten years. Herodotus tells a tale of the most honorable man in Athens, Aristides, being ostracized for it.
Ingratitude and Resentment: Acts of generosity are often responded to not with gratitude, but with ingratitude. Ingratitude and resentment toward the benefactor is actually the rule.
Schadenfreude: Envy, which is pain at the good fortune of others, has a converse, schadenfreude, which is joy at the misfortunes of others.
Vandalism: Envy is the motive behind vandalism. If I cannot have a nice school, house or car, then I will damage yours so you cannot enjoy it.
Dealing with Envy: People who fear being envied often respond by hiding what they have. Envy retards progress towards civilization in two ways:
• Innovators are persecuted by the envious
• Envious revolutionaries tear down (vandalize) successful societies. The author suggests that Lee Harvey Oswald killed President John F. Kennedy out of envy.
Social Justice: Social justice is a polite term for envy. When the hard life of the poor had largely been ameliorated, to keep the movement for social justice alive, the leaders turned to pandering to envy. The progressive income tax was a way to appeal to the envy of the lower classes. The rich were willing to appease the envious by giving them some of their wealth, so they wouldn’t take it all.
Sidney and Beatrice Webb: Sidney and Beatrice Webb were leaders of the Fabian Society and the British Labour Party during the early and mid twentieth century. They admitted to themselves that they were unable to figure out how to make Britain more egalitarian by gradualism and democracy. In fact, Sidney once told his wife Beatrice that he hoped their Labour Party would lose the election, because they had no plan for dealing with unemployment.
What Others Have Written About Envy
• Herman Melville’s novel Billy Budd was about envy, the envy John Claggart had for Billy Budd’s innocence, his lack of malice or envy in himself.
• Arthur Koestler envied those rich people who could enjoy spending their wealth on themselves without feeling guilty.
• The American sociologist David Riesman wrote that the other-directed man is a conformist, because he does not want to stand out and be envied.
Privacy: In primitive societies, it is difficult for the individual to spend personal time alone. There is a fear of what they might be up to. The Israeli kibbutzim also opposed personal privacy, because people who spent time alone were seen as hoarding their time to themselves, instead of sharing it with others.
Causal Delusion: The envious person perceives the fact that the envied person possesses wealth or privilege as being the cause that prevents the envious person from obtaining it.
December 5, 2021
Maybe I’ve already read quite a bit on the topic already, but fifty some odd pages in, and I’m already wondering if this is some sort of tortuous translation from the original German or something.
While the subject is fascinating and worthy of deep consideration, I find this book frustratingly, needlessly poorly written. The sentence structures are generally multiple compound— usually with multiple tangents thrown in— and each sentence is given the overworked task of relaying far too much information that could much more succinctly and clearly be conveyed by a much simpler, straightforward writing style.
I’m not asking for dumbed down, popularized and simplified content. I’m just asking for clear, concise prose and I’m not getting it here. I’m not kidding when I say I had to check to see if it was not some sort of poor translation.
It’s frustrating enough that I almost want to throw the book down when I realize what I went through in one paragraph to grasp the same concepts that others have managed to easily convey with equal or greater rigor in clear, precise English, and with so much less fanfare and so much more economically.
We’ve all had books we’ve had to slog through, and some of them are good enough that we still want more when we’ve finished with them. I’m hoping that’s the case here, otherwise I’m going to have to start skimming for major concepts and instead wish this book had a better editor.
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Dec 5th: okay, finishing today. And while the readability has improved further into the book, it was a slog that I found to be somewhat unnecessary. If anyone wants to get the gist of what the last 300 pages of this thing is conveying, here they are:
1. Though many writers, psychologists, and philosophers have touched upon the topic, all of them have been loathe to openly refer to Envy as an open topic for discussion, even as they dance around it. This is posited as due to the nature of envy as a covert, shameful and wholly negative emotion.
2. As such a taboo topic, more historical focus has been on the fear of being envied as a universal human reflex.
3. Envy is a basic part of human nature and will never be eradicated. All attempts to make a society totally egalitarian only exacerbate envy, as people will always find something to be envious towards others about.
4. Society and its controls are only possible through envy and its effect on those controls.
5. The narcissism of small differences is a thing. People have the most envy towards those they consider their relative peers or equals. Much of this comes from the feeling of relative deprivation. People have extreme envy and anger if they feel that their entitlement towards what others have but they lack for no good apparent has been thwarted.
The book hammers these points home time and again. I think it could’ve been more succinct, however.
While the subject is fascinating and worthy of deep consideration, I find this book frustratingly, needlessly poorly written. The sentence structures are generally multiple compound— usually with multiple tangents thrown in— and each sentence is given the overworked task of relaying far too much information that could much more succinctly and clearly be conveyed by a much simpler, straightforward writing style.
I’m not asking for dumbed down, popularized and simplified content. I’m just asking for clear, concise prose and I’m not getting it here. I’m not kidding when I say I had to check to see if it was not some sort of poor translation.
It’s frustrating enough that I almost want to throw the book down when I realize what I went through in one paragraph to grasp the same concepts that others have managed to easily convey with equal or greater rigor in clear, precise English, and with so much less fanfare and so much more economically.
We’ve all had books we’ve had to slog through, and some of them are good enough that we still want more when we’ve finished with them. I’m hoping that’s the case here, otherwise I’m going to have to start skimming for major concepts and instead wish this book had a better editor.
————————————————————————-
Dec 5th: okay, finishing today. And while the readability has improved further into the book, it was a slog that I found to be somewhat unnecessary. If anyone wants to get the gist of what the last 300 pages of this thing is conveying, here they are:
1. Though many writers, psychologists, and philosophers have touched upon the topic, all of them have been loathe to openly refer to Envy as an open topic for discussion, even as they dance around it. This is posited as due to the nature of envy as a covert, shameful and wholly negative emotion.
2. As such a taboo topic, more historical focus has been on the fear of being envied as a universal human reflex.
3. Envy is a basic part of human nature and will never be eradicated. All attempts to make a society totally egalitarian only exacerbate envy, as people will always find something to be envious towards others about.
4. Society and its controls are only possible through envy and its effect on those controls.
5. The narcissism of small differences is a thing. People have the most envy towards those they consider their relative peers or equals. Much of this comes from the feeling of relative deprivation. People have extreme envy and anger if they feel that their entitlement towards what others have but they lack for no good apparent has been thwarted.
The book hammers these points home time and again. I think it could’ve been more succinct, however.
April 23, 2023
Subsequent to the fall of Adam and Eve in Eden, the first recorded sin is Cain's murder of his brother Abel--murder born out of envy.
Envy is a fundamental element of human existence, but one largely ignored in history, philosophy, psychology, and the social sciences, and--according to the author--to the detriment of understanding human behavior.
Schoeck traces a wide swath, from observations of primitive tribes, to a survey of the ancient and medieval worlds, down to a detailed understanding of the egalitarian impulses driving the modern west.
He argues that envy spurs innovation (in the desire to "out-do" one's neighbor) but, if left uncontrolled, actually inhibits the same (in that a culture's demand for equality prevents anyone from "standing out" too ostentatiously); and that only a delicate balance between the two enables civilizational progress.
Our ability to comprehend human behavior and prescribe solutions to social problems is frustrated by our meager understanding of envy and its significant impact on human behavior. Schoek's book is a very good start towards curing this malady.
Recommended.
Envy is a fundamental element of human existence, but one largely ignored in history, philosophy, psychology, and the social sciences, and--according to the author--to the detriment of understanding human behavior.
Schoeck traces a wide swath, from observations of primitive tribes, to a survey of the ancient and medieval worlds, down to a detailed understanding of the egalitarian impulses driving the modern west.
He argues that envy spurs innovation (in the desire to "out-do" one's neighbor) but, if left uncontrolled, actually inhibits the same (in that a culture's demand for equality prevents anyone from "standing out" too ostentatiously); and that only a delicate balance between the two enables civilizational progress.
Our ability to comprehend human behavior and prescribe solutions to social problems is frustrated by our meager understanding of envy and its significant impact on human behavior. Schoek's book is a very good start towards curing this malady.
Recommended.
March 1, 2021
عنف الانتقام
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لدى «إريك فروم» القليل من الجديد ليقدمه بخلاف "نظرية الإحباط" المتعلقة بالحسد. إنه يرى العداء المبني على الغيرة والحسد مشابهًا للسلوك العدواني للحيوانات والأطفال والبالغين العصابيين ؛ الحسد والغيرة شكلان خاصان من الإحباط ، أي رغبة محبطة أو مرفوضة.
وفقًا لفروم ، الحسد ناتج عن حقيقة أن "أ" لا يفشل في الحصول على ما يريد فحسب ، بل إن "ب" حصل ذلك . يستشهد بقصص الكتاب المقدس (قايين ويوسف) على أنها "نسخ كلاسيكية" من الحسد والغيرة.
بعد مناقشة موجزة لغاية هاتين الحالتين العاطفيتين ، يقدم فروم مفهوم "العنف الانتقامي". يوجد هذا بشكل رئيسي بين العاجزين (بطبيعة الحال ، ليس فقط في حالات العجز الجنسي) وبين المصابين بالشلل. ويقال إن تدمير الثقة بالنفس لدى هؤلاء الناس لم ينتج عنه سوى رد فعل واحد : "العين بالعين".
يفسر فروم بشكل صحيح العنف الانتقامي ، كما نواجهه اليوم ، وخاصة في الولايات المتحدة وفي مجموعات سكانية معينة ، كنتيجة لتجربة الضعف ، وهو محق أيضًا في التأكيد على أن الرجال الذين يعيشون حياة كاملة ومنتجة نادراً ما يلجأون إلى الانتقام ، حتى لو تعرضوا للإساءة أو خيبة الأمل. الأمر الأكثر إثارة للتساؤل هو اعتقاده أنه من الممكن ، من خلال سؤال ساذج ، أن ينشئ علاقة مباشرة بين الحاجة الاقتصادية ، والمواقف المكتئبة ، ودرجة مثل هذه المشاعر الانتقامية بين الطبقات الدنيا في البلدان الصناعية ، على سبيل المثال. يتذكر فروم هنا قومية الطبقة الوسطى الدنيا. وهو يشير في هذا الصدد إلى آليات الانتقام المكثفة والتي غالبًا ما تكون مؤسسية بالكامل بين الشعوب البدائية ، والتي يمكن تفسيرها من ناحية من خلال المفهوم الفرويدي للعنف .
من هذا ، ينتقل فروم إلى "العنف التعويضي" ، وهو نشاط بديل لما هو منتج ، وبالتالي هو نفسه نتيجة للعجز الجنسي. السادي ، المخرب المتعمد ، يمكن تفسيره بهذه المصطلحات.
ينظر فروم إلى اللذة السادية في التدمير كبديل للنشاط الإيجابي ، سواء تم إنكاره أو لم يتمكن الشخص من تحقيقه ، على أنه النتيجة الضرورية "لحياة معطلة". ومع ذلك ، فإن هذا لا يفسر لماذا أصبح الكثير من الناس على مر التاريخ مشهورين ممن كانوا معاقين أو مشلولين بشكل لا يمكن إنكاره ، ولم يتخذوا طريق العنف التعويضي بل اختاروا بدلاً من ذلك الوسائل المتاحة لتحقيق الإنجاز الإيجابي ، وهي عائقهم الأصلي في كثير من الأحيان!!
إن معدل الجريمة المنخفض للغاية ، الذي لوحظ غالبًا خلال سنوات ما بعد الحرب في ألمانيا الغربية ، بين اللاجئين وأطفالهم - وهم مجموعة محرومة بلا شك ولم يستطع أعضاؤها أن يلاحظوا الكثير من الاختلافات ليكون لديهم سببًا للحسد - يبدو أنه قدم لنا احتمالية الفرضية التالية: إن جريمة الحسد - وهو مفهوم يشمل معظم جرائم الأحداث والتخريب في الولايات المتحدة - ستحدث بشكل رئيسي في تلك المجتمعات التي تعتبر عقيدتها الرسمية ، التي تُتلى باستمرار في المدرسة ، على المنابر : المساواة.
كلما قلت قدرة الفرد على تفسير الاختلاف المرئي بينه وبين جاره بشكل واقعي ، زادت احتمالية أن تفقد أنواع معينة من الناس ضبط النفس وأن تلجأ إلى الجريمة بدافع الحسد. على النقيض من ذلك ، كان كل لاجئ على دراية بأن سبب حرمانه الحالي غير مرتبط تمامًا ببيئته الجديدة حيث تم طرده مع ملايين آخرين من وطنه. مثل هذه المشاعر العدوانية التي قد تكون موجودة ، كانت موجهة في الغالب ضد القوى والأشخاص الذين ليس لديهم صلة تذكر بالرفاهية النسبية للبيئة الجديدة.
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Helmut Schoeck
Envy
Translated By #Maher_Razouk
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لدى «إريك فروم» القليل من الجديد ليقدمه بخلاف "نظرية الإحباط" المتعلقة بالحسد. إنه يرى العداء المبني على الغيرة والحسد مشابهًا للسلوك العدواني للحيوانات والأطفال والبالغين العصابيين ؛ الحسد والغيرة شكلان خاصان من الإحباط ، أي رغبة محبطة أو مرفوضة.
وفقًا لفروم ، الحسد ناتج عن حقيقة أن "أ" لا يفشل في الحصول على ما يريد فحسب ، بل إن "ب" حصل ذلك . يستشهد بقصص الكتاب المقدس (قايين ويوسف) على أنها "نسخ كلاسيكية" من الحسد والغيرة.
بعد مناقشة موجزة لغاية هاتين الحالتين العاطفيتين ، يقدم فروم مفهوم "العنف الانتقامي". يوجد هذا بشكل رئيسي بين العاجزين (بطبيعة الحال ، ليس فقط في حالات العجز الجنسي) وبين المصابين بالشلل. ويقال إن تدمير الثقة بالنفس لدى هؤلاء الناس لم ينتج عنه سوى رد فعل واحد : "العين بالعين".
يفسر فروم بشكل صحيح العنف الانتقامي ، كما نواجهه اليوم ، وخاصة في الولايات المتحدة وفي مجموعات سكانية معينة ، كنتيجة لتجربة الضعف ، وهو محق أيضًا في التأكيد على أن الرجال الذين يعيشون حياة كاملة ومنتجة نادراً ما يلجأون إلى الانتقام ، حتى لو تعرضوا للإساءة أو خيبة الأمل. الأمر الأكثر إثارة للتساؤل هو اعتقاده أنه من الممكن ، من خلال سؤال ساذج ، أن ينشئ علاقة مباشرة بين الحاجة الاقتصادية ، والمواقف المكتئبة ، ودرجة مثل هذه المشاعر الانتقامية بين الطبقات الدنيا في البلدان الصناعية ، على سبيل المثال. يتذكر فروم هنا قومية الطبقة الوسطى الدنيا. وهو يشير في هذا الصدد إلى آليات الانتقام المكثفة والتي غالبًا ما تكون مؤسسية بالكامل بين الشعوب البدائية ، والتي يمكن تفسيرها من ناحية من خلال المفهوم الفرويدي للعنف .
من هذا ، ينتقل فروم إلى "العنف التعويضي" ، وهو نشاط بديل لما هو منتج ، وبالتالي هو نفسه نتيجة للعجز الجنسي. السادي ، المخرب المتعمد ، يمكن تفسيره بهذه المصطلحات.
ينظر فروم إلى اللذة السادية في التدمير كبديل للنشاط الإيجابي ، سواء تم إنكاره أو لم يتمكن الشخص من تحقيقه ، على أنه النتيجة الضرورية "لحياة معطلة". ومع ذلك ، فإن هذا لا يفسر لماذا أصبح الكثير من الناس على مر التاريخ مشهورين ممن كانوا معاقين أو مشلولين بشكل لا يمكن إنكاره ، ولم يتخذوا طريق العنف التعويضي بل اختاروا بدلاً من ذلك الوسائل المتاحة لتحقيق الإنجاز الإيجابي ، وهي عائقهم الأصلي في كثير من الأحيان!!
إن معدل الجريمة المنخفض للغاية ، الذي لوحظ غالبًا خلال سنوات ما بعد الحرب في ألمانيا الغربية ، بين اللاجئين وأطفالهم - وهم مجموعة محرومة بلا شك ولم يستطع أعضاؤها أن يلاحظوا الكثير من الاختلافات ليكون لديهم سببًا للحسد - يبدو أنه قدم لنا احتمالية الفرضية التالية: إن جريمة الحسد - وهو مفهوم يشمل معظم جرائم الأحداث والتخريب في الولايات المتحدة - ستحدث بشكل رئيسي في تلك المجتمعات التي تعتبر عقيدتها الرسمية ، التي تُتلى باستمرار في المدرسة ، على المنابر : المساواة.
كلما قلت قدرة الفرد على تفسير الاختلاف المرئي بينه وبين جاره بشكل واقعي ، زادت احتمالية أن تفقد أنواع معينة من الناس ضبط النفس وأن تلجأ إلى الجريمة بدافع الحسد. على النقيض من ذلك ، كان كل لاجئ على دراية بأن سبب حرمانه الحالي غير مرتبط تمامًا ببيئته الجديدة حيث تم طرده مع ملايين آخرين من وطنه. مثل هذه المشاعر العدوانية التي قد تكون موجودة ، كانت موجهة في الغالب ضد القوى والأشخاص الذين ليس لديهم صلة تذكر بالرفاهية النسبية للبيئة الجديدة.
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Helmut Schoeck
Envy
Translated By #Maher_Razouk
August 21, 2012
This book gives plenty to think about in human society. It is sociological rather than philosophical, so it spends more time describing society and the impact of envy than it does saying what the response of society should be to envy. He does give a fairly balanced view of envy as both a boon and bane for society. His arguments on envy as the driving force of most progressivism and the foolishness of efforts to build a Utopia without envy are well worth the read. His last sentence demonstrates his thesis well: "The time has surely come when we should stop behaving as though the envious man was the main criterion for economic and social policy."
August 10, 2014
A thorough treatment of the envy, though I have issues with some of his conclusions.
July 19, 2013
Along with Weber's Protestant Spirit the best sociology book I've ever read. In fact it's psychology, philosophy, anthropology... It's a masterpiece covering all the phenomenology on Envy.
January 13, 2026
This book was difficult to read. Not only was the the language clunky, the subject matter is dark and the writer conservative and should I say unpleasant seeming. Sure this book was first published in 1966, but the writer was a racist and prejudiced, using the N-word and primitive people- who he seem to despise. He didn't seem to like USA back then weirdly, either.
I made billions of notes, going: not this again! He thought USA too consensus keeping, a country where envy. doesn't let people develop to their biggest potential.
The writer has apparently no capability of empathy. The only reason for people to want equality and human rights, is because of the fear of envy of others. If they claim otherwise, they are lying, basically. This is a very sociopathic way of life. And he keeps repeating throughout the book that there is no point of trying to have an egalitarian country, because envy will never be eradicated anyway. Again, as if that is the only motive for everyone- fear of envy.
There is quite a bit about the the envy of Greek god towards men, which did not speak to me.
Interesting things the author mentions: people are envious always to somebody closer by, such as a neighbor, never a millionaire. Envy is a dark force, but will always exist. If everything else is materially equal, then envious can be envious of the other person's time or privacy. The envious oriented, will always find a 'legitimate' reason for his envy. Envy is considered shameful, and not talked about, or written plainly hardly ever. I Found this probably accurate: 'As people have always realized, however, the envier has little interest in the transfer of anything of value from the other's possession to his own. He would like to see the other person robbed, dispossessed, stripped, humiliated or hurt, but he practically never conjures up a detailed mental picture of how a transfer of the other's possession to himself might occur.'
I found he was prejudiced about tribal life and not seeing that envy is easily found in the western culture as well. I'm glad I'm done with this.
OH- to stay mentally insane, read Kurt Vonnegut's last book at the same time.
I made billions of notes, going: not this again! He thought USA too consensus keeping, a country where envy. doesn't let people develop to their biggest potential.
The writer has apparently no capability of empathy. The only reason for people to want equality and human rights, is because of the fear of envy of others. If they claim otherwise, they are lying, basically. This is a very sociopathic way of life. And he keeps repeating throughout the book that there is no point of trying to have an egalitarian country, because envy will never be eradicated anyway. Again, as if that is the only motive for everyone- fear of envy.
There is quite a bit about the the envy of Greek god towards men, which did not speak to me.
Interesting things the author mentions: people are envious always to somebody closer by, such as a neighbor, never a millionaire. Envy is a dark force, but will always exist. If everything else is materially equal, then envious can be envious of the other person's time or privacy. The envious oriented, will always find a 'legitimate' reason for his envy. Envy is considered shameful, and not talked about, or written plainly hardly ever. I Found this probably accurate: 'As people have always realized, however, the envier has little interest in the transfer of anything of value from the other's possession to his own. He would like to see the other person robbed, dispossessed, stripped, humiliated or hurt, but he practically never conjures up a detailed mental picture of how a transfer of the other's possession to himself might occur.'
I found he was prejudiced about tribal life and not seeing that envy is easily found in the western culture as well. I'm glad I'm done with this.
OH- to stay mentally insane, read Kurt Vonnegut's last book at the same time.
August 20, 2021
I will rate this book with 4 stars because I enjoyed the inhibition-free author's analysis on envy but also because I feel I have significantly enriched my knowledge on a poorly-discussed behavioral topic. The author certainly offered me new and really interesting insights and "de-demonized" envy through multiple lines of evidence. He supports that envie is an inevitable human behavior and he even dares to demonstrate its "bright" side. However, the book did not answer all my questions.
The book is focused mainly (if not exclusively) on the sociological and historical aspects of envy. I was looking for a more psychology-oriented approach but clearly that was not the author's objective. Also, I found the reading a bit hard to follow, especially in the 2nd half of the book, because of the special terminology being used and because of unnecessary repetitions. Finally, being written in the sixties, the book is certainly not up-to-date concerning society's challenges. But this was expected. In a "modern" book I would expect to read more about envy and its correlation with social media.
Even though not complete, I surely recommend this book to anyone who is particularly interested in digging in the theory of envy.
The book is focused mainly (if not exclusively) on the sociological and historical aspects of envy. I was looking for a more psychology-oriented approach but clearly that was not the author's objective. Also, I found the reading a bit hard to follow, especially in the 2nd half of the book, because of the special terminology being used and because of unnecessary repetitions. Finally, being written in the sixties, the book is certainly not up-to-date concerning society's challenges. But this was expected. In a "modern" book I would expect to read more about envy and its correlation with social media.
Even though not complete, I surely recommend this book to anyone who is particularly interested in digging in the theory of envy.
September 3, 2024
An interesting take on why people behave the way that they do. The application of old anthropological studies to modern problems is striking. How many modern movements that style themselves as revolutions for the good of the world are actually driven primarily by envy? How many people who claim to want good for the disenfranchised truly thirst for the blood of the successful?
The book itself is filled with studies that I had never heard of before, and would have been well worth the read even without the overarching theme of envy. The ubiquity of the "evil eye" is interesting, and the role that envy had in keeping many tribal societies from advancing is surprising to me. My only critique would be that this is dense reading, and not to be entered into lightly.
The book itself is filled with studies that I had never heard of before, and would have been well worth the read even without the overarching theme of envy. The ubiquity of the "evil eye" is interesting, and the role that envy had in keeping many tribal societies from advancing is surprising to me. My only critique would be that this is dense reading, and not to be entered into lightly.
May 28, 2023
Austrian-German sociologist Helmut Schoeck does a very deep dive into the concept / emotion Envy (as well as its derivatives Jealousy, Schadenfreude, and Resentment), a universal human characteristic that is ubiquitous in all societies and cultures (and even mythologies). Destructive consequences no doubt arise out of this inborn trait in the form of tension, discord, and violence. It would be myopic, however, to view Envy as purely negative as such can also be a driving force behind innovation, competition, and progress (in terms of both economic and social advancement). Extremely detailed and complex, but easy to get lost in the weeds without a philosophy background.
Read
February 25, 2025DNF, hence the lack of rating. The book started off somewhat ponderously, which could be due to the translation. But ultimately I think that it is due to the fact that he tries to fit in the concept of Envy in just about everything. It seems that his argument about Envy is rooted in his ideological position regarding equality and the welfare state. I found out that this was something written against the New Left, and their movements during the 1960s. It’s not an issue but the problem for me is that his book feels like he has an ideological position and is in need of justification, which he then selects examples to rationalise that position. Hence it makes for really difficult to read.
August 9, 2024
Bardzo niewygodna książka, bo przecież w obiegowej opinii zawiść zawsze bierze się z czegoś i jest oparta na jakimś niedostatku, a tutaj autor odwraca pojęcie i okazuje się, że zawiść po prostu jest i my się z nią po prostu mierzymy społecznie ( mamy nawet na nią sposoby: kościół, przesady, wierzenia) i osoba zawistna zostanie zawistna nawet, jeśli będzie żyła w utopijnych, szklarnianych warunkach.
Ogromny plus za językowe rozróżnienie zazdrości, resentymentu i zawiści w różnych kulturach i językach i dlaczego kulturowo zawiść wypieramy i co nam to robi.
Ogromny plus za językowe rozróżnienie zazdrości, resentymentu i zawiści w różnych kulturach i językach i dlaczego kulturowo zawiść wypieramy i co nam to robi.
June 27, 2020
Here is a wonderful quote from wiki:
Shoeck also argued that as envy was a natural part of human evolution and could not be suppressed, it was important to channel the emotion.
He also suggested that socialism and democracy were put forward as ideas by members of society who were not able "to deal with their own envy".
Shoeck also argued that as envy was a natural part of human evolution and could not be suppressed, it was important to channel the emotion.
He also suggested that socialism and democracy were put forward as ideas by members of society who were not able "to deal with their own envy".
Read
January 28, 2021Interesting insight to human behavior.
July 13, 2021
Well researched, provocative and eye opening. Love it!
November 13, 2021
He should keep his political opinions out of a Book like this (even if I tend to agree with them), but a really good and interesting book nonetheless
Want to read
May 24, 2023Douglas murray rec “some of you may be familiar with the work of”
August 30, 2023
OK book on the sociology of envy
January 22, 2024
Helps to explain the ugly -- pogroms, socialism, rot in the modern British middle class -- and the beautiful -- enormous entrepreneurial energy unleashed in early XX c. USA.
June 26, 2025
The scariest book I've read in a long time.
December 1, 2019
Neoconservative etymology and values. Social criticism is sin and consumption is virtue. Directly claims progressive taxation, antitrust laws, monasticism and genocide are all just the result of a pathology diagnosable in the psychoanalytic tradition. Wants to claim it prevents economic growth and also claim Asian values are heavily infected with envy and conformism but you've seen more impressive growth there than in most of the West (even if the West's degenerate by the authors standards you still see different attitudes which are more individualist and generally accepting of inequality and diversity). The interpretation of William Jennings Bryan, populism and social ostracism is also weak. This is way to reductionist and dealing with very conflatable subjects e.g. conformism, anti-privacy measures and such aren't just issues originating in envy. Envy exists and is important and definitely does play a role in all kinds of decisions but it's mostly the haves wanting the have nots getting any privileges they "had to work for" today. You can invoke feelings of popular envy more easily from perceived freeloaders than established wealth.
This is all just moralism. Many people have gotten ahead by means of sabotage and have gotten much pleasure out of it at the same time.
Envy has never made anyone rich.—Envy cuts its own throat.—Envy will eat nothing but its own heart.—Envy envies itself.—Envy brings suffering to the envious man.—Envy devours its own master.—Envy is its own scourge.—Envy flogs itself.—Envy makes life bitter.—The envious man injures no one so much as himself.
This is all just moralism. Many people have gotten ahead by means of sabotage and have gotten much pleasure out of it at the same time.
July 5, 2014
This is the most complete discussion of the phenomena of envy, its rise, its place in history, the difficulties it has caused and more. It is nearly enough to know that 7 of the 10 Commandments condemn envy because of its ruinous nature and its universality. However, anyone who takes the time to read this book will finish it far more aware of the difficulties caused by envy. It starts in birth and is almost always present to some degree. Worse, politicians are quite prone to appeal to envy as a means of gaining power. The pursuit of 'justic' is often fueled by the appeals to envy, a very sad but persistent condition of mankind.
January 14, 2013
An amazing book, a must read for anyone who wants to understand humans, society and especially for those pretending to change the world 'in better'!
Envy as encrypted in our human nature, both negative and positive but essentially for living in society.
The impossibility to have a perfect equal society and the danger of letting the envious rule; and not least a crude and clear image of the modern society!
Envy as encrypted in our human nature, both negative and positive but essentially for living in society.
The impossibility to have a perfect equal society and the danger of letting the envious rule; and not least a crude and clear image of the modern society!
March 22, 2022
Ta książka może ci się nie spodobać. Dlaczego? Ponieważ demaskuje całe nasze społeczeństwo. Całą ludzkość. Odkrywa, jak ważną rolę w naszym życiu pełni tytułowa zawiść.
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W wielu miejscach książka Helmuta Schoecka cię zaskoczy, czasami też zasmuci. Być może momentami nawet się wściekniesz. Ale na pewno nauczysz się czegoś pożytecznego. Czegoś, co pozwoli ci zmienić swoje życie na lepsze.
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W wielu miejscach książka Helmuta Schoecka cię zaskoczy, czasami też zasmuci. Być może momentami nawet się wściekniesz. Ale na pewno nauczysz się czegoś pożytecznego. Czegoś, co pozwoli ci zmienić swoje życie na lepsze.
June 23, 2013
A thought-provoking and in-depth study of a vastly neglected topic.
August 4, 2014
Read long and it was great.
August 1, 2014
Meticulous, careful, learned. I had long thought I needed to read this classic, and am glad I finally did. A mix of psychology, sociology, politics, anthropology, this book is dense but worth it.
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