The main difference between envy and greed is that envy is desiring what someone else has, while greed is desiring something insatiably.
Envy and greed are two of the seven deadly sins. Both envy and greed are characterized by insatiable desires. Envy is a feeling of discontent, longing or resentful covetousness towards someone else’s traits, possessions, abilities or status. Greed, on the other hand, is a selfish, excessive desire for something, more than that is needed or deserved.
Key Areas Covered
1. What is Envy
– Definition, Nature, Characteristics
2. What is Greed
– Definition, Nature, Characteristics
3. What are the Similarities Between Envy and Greed
– Outline of Common Features
4. What is the Difference Between Envy and Greed
– Comparison of Key Differences
Key Terms
Envy, Greed, Jealous, Selfish
What is Envy
Envy is a feeling of discontent, longing or resentful covetousness towards someone else’s traits, possessions, or luck. It is one of the seven deadly sins. Moreover, psychologists identify two types of envy as malicious envy and benign envy. Malicious envy is a negative emotion that ruins a person, and his/her mind causes him or her to blindly want the person he/she envies to suffer. Benign envy, on the other hand, is a positive emotion that motivates a person to be as good as the person he/she envies.
Malicious envy is similar to jealousy since both feel discontent towards others’ possessions, abilities, status, etc. Moreover, the difference between envy and jealousy is that a person feeling envious also feels the desire something and covet it. Bertrand Russell states that envy is one of the most potent causes of unhappiness. He also said that a person who envies another might wish to inflict misfortune on them, in forms of emotional abuse and violent acts.
What is Greed
Greed is an intense and selfish desire for something, especially wealth, power, or food. Like greed, it is characterized by an insatiable desire. It is usually an uncontrolled longing. Greed can also persuade a person to commit immoral acts and go against his conscience.
Furthermore, a greedy person may choose the easiest way to fulfil his desires, and he won’t care about the consequences of the depraved and corrupt actions he might perform to reach his goal. Therefore, greed can cause a person to deprive others of their possessions, to disturb and destruct the lives of others in order to gain the things he or she desires. At the same time, greed is also like a bottomless pit; it can never be satisfied. The more you achieve, and the more you gain, the more you’ll want. Moreover, we usually associate greed with other negative qualities such as selfishness, malice, and vanity.
Similarities Between Envy and Greed
- Greed and envy are two of the deadly sins.
- Moreover, both are characterized by an insatiable desire.
Difference Between Envy and Greed
Definition
Envy is a feeling of discontent, longing or resentful covetousness towards someone else’s traits, possessions, abilities, fortune or status, while greed is an intense and selfish desire for something, especially wealth, power, or food.
Desire
Envy is desiring what someone else has while greed is desiring something insatiably.
Nature
Envy happens when you want what someone else has and compare yourself relative to others while greed happens when you want more of something insatiably regardless of what others have.
Conclusion
Envy is a feeling of discontent, longing or resentful covetousness towards someone else’s traits, possessions, abilities or status. Greed, on the other hand, is a selfish, excessive desire for something, more than that is needed or deserved. Therefore, the main difference between envy and greed is that envy is desiring what someone else has, while greed is desiring something insatiably.
Reference:
1. “Greed.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 8 May 2020, Available here.
2. “Envy.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 27 Apr. 2020, Available here.
Image Courtesy:
1. “Greed” By liz west (CC BY 2.0) via Flickr
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