Envy

Emptiness/Envy Identity

The character driven by envy has done as the proud character has and examined the question that scares the character driven by lust. They have considered it, and come to a different conclusion than the proud character.

The envious character has concluded that we are all animals, that all of this higher self talk is nonsense.

They have abandoned the higher self in favor of physical gratification. Like the proud person, the envious person was generally picked on as a child, and cut down emotionally. The difference between them is that the proud person was generally picked on for personal attributes, while the envious person was generally taunted for lacking the right possessions. They didn’t wear the most expensive clothes, or shoes, or have the right back pack, or their father couldn’t afford to give them a proper dowry, or had to send them to the monastery rather than squire them to a knight. Thus wear proud person sees a lack of personal value; the envious person sees the problem as a lack of the right materials.

The envious character is something of a social Darwinist, believing that life is a competition and that we are measured by our toys. Like the character driven by lust, the envious character is a hedonist, but is not as friendly as the character driven by lust. They do not believe that there is enough to go around. That is the point, as far as they are concerned. Life is a test, a competition, and there are winners and losers.

Yes, this is cruel, but to the envious character it is practical. Yes, I covet my neighbor’s wife. This drive is what ensures that the species will survival. Yes, I covet my neighbor’s riches and comforts. This is what ensures that I will survive to ensure the survival of the species. If I do not achieve these things, then I will be swept aside by the laws of nature. I will be a loser.

The envious person seeks their identity externally rather than internally like the proud person. Thus they seek identity in what they have, rather than what they are. The envious person is often very pragmatic. And depending upon whether they have mastered their motivation or not, they will be either a hard worker who  takes whatever they can, but understands the need for loyalty and morality; or they will be a scoundrel who steals and cheats and lies and takes whatever they think they can hold when threatened.

The envious person wants it all. They will pick practical goods first, picking the most valuable and impressive goods after their immediate needs are addressed. The envious person sees the world as an amoral place and generally thinks that people who try to put any concrete morality into practice is misguided at best. When an envious person who chooses a friend, he or she does so because they see value in it. The envious person is loyal as long as they continue to see value.