Nietzsche’s Eye on Envy
“What doesn’t kill you makes you stronger” — you must have heard these lines somewhere or in some random motivational song. Well, these lines are originally written by the German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche. He is considered as one of the most influential philosophers of all time who openly hated Christianity and alcohol for one reason that they both gave temporary relief from the inner grief we all take with ourselves.
Nietzsche also focussed more on owning up the feeling of envy rather than hiding it- contrary to common Christian belief to suppress and hide it. here, we will see what he has to say about envy.
What is envy?
Envy, according to Merriam Webster is “painful or resentful awareness of an advantage enjoyed by another joined with a desire to possess the same advantage”. It means that the kind of ‘jealousy’ we have inside us when we see someone living a life we have always dreamed of.
Envy is one of the seven greatest sins of Christianity and the religion takes envy for a hideous thing. According to the religion it is bad to have some sourness for another person, be it for any reason. Morally speaking, it sounds quite alright, but if you see ENVY from the eyes of Nietzsche, you will have a holistic look at it- the more fulfilling one. After all, philosophy is about finding meaning in every aspect of life, be it positive, negative, or grey areas.
The difference between envy and jealousy
Before diving into the realms of envy, it is important to take it as a single word with a distinct meaning. Some people take envy coterminous to jealousy. But, in the eyes of philosophy, these two words are totally different.
Jealousy
Jealousy is when you have a beloved and you see your beloved getting friendly with another guy- that you think is potentially dangerous for your relationship (you think he/she might take your place). The feeling you get is jealousy because as soon as the person goes out of your life, you are good and the person won’t bother you as long as he/she is out of your life.
Envy
Envy is something deeper. Taking the same case of you and your beloved, and the third person, this time, even if the third person goes out of your life and stops bothering you literally- you will still get affected by the person’s achievements and triumphs. You feel as if the person is better than you and that’s why you get a feeling of envy.
What does Nietzsche say about envy?
According to Nietzsche, envy is nothing to be ashamed of because it is inherently inside us. There are quite a lot of people who envy others a lot but show just the opposite saying, “I don’t envy anyone”. This is because society thinks of envy as an evil’s manifestation. It is something that should always remain inside concealed in a veil of happy feelings to put up in an exhibition of ‘ideal humanity’.
According to him, envy is an indication of ‘how you want your life to be’. We almost always envy those who are living a life or following the principles we have always dreamed to live and follow. It is an indication that there is a lot more to achieve yet. What matters more than envy itself is the way an individual deals with envy.
Envy gives us a better insight into ‘who we really are’ and ‘who we aspire to become’. Therefore, instead of burying the feeling thinking of it as a ‘sin’ we should learn to tame it and use it constructively for self-development and self-fulfillment.
Own up to your envy
Owning up to the negative emotions inside us is a must. These emotions can either yield the good human we all aspire to be or the bitter human we don’t. disowned envy emits ‘sulfurous odors’ according to Nietzsche.
It is true that we don’t always get what we want in our lives, but we must, at all costs, struggle enough to find our true potential, value it, and when failure comes we should be able to face it with dignity.
It is true that if there were no envy, a few people would never have succeeded.
