“So endemic did these and other philosophers [Kierkegaard, Kant, Nietzsche, Schopenhauer, etc.] find envy… it becomes clear that one must factor in envy in considering our judgments of our own and of others’ actions. If one’s judgments are to be straight and honorable, one must be certain that they are not infected by envy. To do so one must begin by understanding the mechanics of envy: what triggers it, what sustains it, what effects it can cause.”
– Joseph Epstein, Envy, p. xxii