An exploration of pride...

Pride is an interesting thing as it is interpreted in so many different ways. To some it is a virtue held in high regard; to others it is a sin and the place from which man takes the greatest fall. Here’s what I mean:

Aristotle included pride in his Nichomachean Ethics as “greatness of soul”. In excess pride can lead to vanity. Aristotle explained that all people should have a healthy dose of pride in their personality because for him, pride relates to honour. If you are not familiar with Aristotle the thing to note here is that pride fits in as a piece of a whole system of virtues and pride is not a ruler, but must be ruled by the principal of temperance where the virtuous person takes the mean route, and not a passage of excess or deficiency – therefore pride must not be come a dominant trait.

Nietzsche saw pride as the thing that keeps us out of the grips of slavery. Pride is the acknowledgement of goodness and nobility within ourselves and this acknowledgement is what keeps human being from being subservient.

In Christian philosophy, Pride is listed as one of the seven deadly sins. Many theologians believe pride to be the worst sin because it is from pride that the other sins are birthed. It is pride (loving yourself so much that you begin to see others as other and less than) that prompted Lucifer to compete with God, and ultimately fall from heaven.

In Eastern philosophies pride is seen as a negative trait that leads to inflation of the ego. Pride inflates a person into thinking that they are special and is the root cause of all suffering pain and fear. Eastern religions urge people to let go of their pride to be more connected to their own, and their fellow soul.

In Spanish there are two words use to describe pride: Orgullo and Soberbia. Orgullo is the pride that Aristotle and Nietzsche talk about – the pride that is felt when you accomplish something or you are part of something that makes you feel good. Soberbia, in contrast, is the pride that puts the self before all else, and overrides good judgement.

Here are examples of what has been said about pride:

The good
Annon - “Pride is a personal commitment. It is an attitude which separates excellence from mediocrity.”
Paul Bryant (NFL coach)- “Show class, have pride, and display character. If you do, winning takes care of itself.”
Gary Ryan Blair (motivational speaker) “Discipline is based on pride, on meticulous attention to details, and on mutual respect and confidence. Discipline must be a habit so ingrained that it is stronger than the excitement of the goal or the fear of failure.”



The Bad
Proverb - “Pride comes before a fall”
The Bible - “When pride comes, then comes disgrace, but with humility comes wisdom”
John Ruskin (English writer) - “In general, pride is at the bottom of all great mistakes.”
Thomas Fuller (clergy) “Pride will spit in pride's face.”
Thomas Jefferson (3rd US president) - “Pride costs more than hunger, thirst and cold.”
C.S. Lewis - “A proud man is always looking down on things and people; and, of course, as long as you're looking down, you can't see something that's above you.”

What I think....
I tend to see pride as a problem. I agree with Eastern philosophies that pride commits a person to thinking that they are special and therefore better than those around them. Like in C.S. Lewis’s thought about pride, having pride is like having on blinders that keep you from seeing other greatness around you. pride is the route of all prejudice. Pride also precludes us from realizing our own faults and short comings. I do think that we should all be praised for our successes, and we should have positive thoughts about our accomplishments and our personal achievements, but this too should be governed by temperance (as Aristotle taught) and matched with Humility. We should all also have the time and space to acknowledge and reflect on our personal faults because it is this reflection the leads to personal betterment. I think it is unbridled pride that gets us into the most amount of trouble, and causes the most problems – if we all have inflated ideas of ourselves there is not enough room for us all to co-exist.

Here are the pride quotes that really resonate with me, and illustrate how I feel about pride:
Hebrew proverb - “Pride is the mask we make of our faults”
Annon - “Temper gets you into trouble. Pride keeps you there.”
Anonn - “No one ever choked to death swallowing his pride”
Most importantly…
Proverb - “It is better to lose your pride with someone you love rather than to lose that someone you love with your useless pride.” (This is for you, whether you are reading or not.)

*love*