In Christian dogma, pride (or vanity) is excessive belief in one's own abilities, that interferes with the individual's recognition of the grace of God. It has been called the sin from which all others arise. Pride is listed as one of the seven deadly sins, as superbia..
Pride is also condemned in Hinduism. Ravana, an evil king who was killed by Rama, avatar of Vishnu, exhibited deadly sins of pride and lust.
In English, the term "pride" also has a more positive sense referring to self-respect, a refusal to be humiliated (such as in Lesbian and Gay pride) as well as joy in one's accomplishments. In this sense, "pride" is among the most-quoted themes of political and societal discourse of English-speaking nations, especially of the USA. This stands in some contrast to that nation's general image of itself as a mostly Christian society.
Secondary pride is a little-known but often felt variant of pride. The pride you feel for what your ancestors, your children, your country or your football team have done is classified as secondary pride.
Some languages distinguish between the two senses of pride; in French, self-respect is fierté and vanity is orgueuil.
Arrogance is the act of obtaining rights or advantages, including merely rhetorical advantages, through violence or threats of violence, or through verbal violence. Arrogance is as much an aspect of aggression as it is of pretension, which is unwarranted pride. An arrogant person is not merely unjustifiably confident in their own ability and value, but one actively seeking to cow or belittle other "lesser" people in order to achieve their ends.
Pride also refers to a family group of lions. In late medieval literary circles, a stylish wordgame was made of inventing new collective nouns, to add to the already rich store the English language had, which was partly based on aristocratic hunting jargon. Some did not pass the test of time: "an exaltation of larks." But a "pride of lions" passed into the genuine language.
See also:
Last updated: 05-17-2005 10:23:35
