Envy (nonfiction)

Cain killing Abel, painting by Bartolomeo Manfredi, c. 1600.

Envy (from Latin invidia) is an emotion which "occurs when a person lacks another's superior quality, achievement, or possession and either desires it or wishes that the other lacked it".

Envy is one of the Seven deadly sins of the Catholic Church. In the Book of Genesis envy is said to be the motivation behind Cain murdering his brother, Abel, as Cain envied Abel because God favored Abel's sacrifice over Cain's.

Bertrand Russell said that envy was one of the most potent causes of unhappiness. Not only is the envious person rendered unhappy by his or her envy, but that person also wishes to inflict misfortune on others.

In the News

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  Portable envy storage device wins Product of the Year award.

Fiction cross-reference

• Portable envy

Nonfiction cross-reference

• Bertrand Russell (nonfiction)

External links:

• Envy @ Wikipedia