Pride: A Weird Heat Companion

Pride has the distinction of being the only deadly sin that can also be an admirable quality. Of course, it can easily be taken too far. It may not necessarily be admirable to aggressively and boastfully display pride. It is nice, though, to take pride in hard work. Therefore, it is the only deadly sin with a nugget of goodness. This discrepancy is hard to unpack.

Let’s look at a few of the other prime sins. Nothing positive can come from a little bit of wrath; severe anger quickly sets a person down a destructive path. Overt greediness leads to one taking more than they deserve. So too does gluttony, in addition to making one obese and unpleasant. Pride, on the other hand, has some advantages (in moderation). This is what makes pride so complex.

Few statements are more rewarding to hear than, “I’m proud of you.” It is a warm and comforting sentence. It means you have done something good, something worthwhile. When others have pride in something you have done, it means they happily associate with you or your accomplishments.

It is a combination of self-pride and that expressed by others that drives the creative process. Pride is a major part of expression. If an artist or creator did not feel pride at least once over the course of the creation, the project would never be complete. And if there was not a sense of pride at this completion, the person would never begin something new. It is a prime motivator.

It starts to fall apart when pride leads to arrogance and conceit. As good as it is for others to have pride in you, this can quickly lead to an over-inflated ego. Too much pride is at the root of any instance of a God complex. It is easy for pride to infect a person and make them think they are better than others.

Essentially, the opposite of pride is humility. Even a hint of pride should be accompanied by a healthy dose of humility. Possessing a humble nature can counteract pride and turn it into a strength. It can prevent a person from feeling more important unnecessarily than others.

So pride is good--to a point. The difference, then, seems to be a bit of self-pride is good if effort merits the feeling. Similarly, when people feel proud of someone, this is validated when work has been done to deserve that pride. It’s when pride leads to an over-inflated ego that it begins to be a problem.