Pride

A pessimist will say that pride is a show up to seek attention, optimists will respond that pride is self-love and a review of success (Austen 6). It’s not coincidental that the middle letter in the word is ‘I’. The person who coined the term did so intentionally to transfix the word to its meaning. The feeling of self-actualization standing tall wherever and whenever situations arise defines pride.  Pride is, therefore, the hallucinated preoccupation with self that unfortunately is consequential.

One sure way to establish whether self-love preoccupies one is through motive evaluation (Young 8). Take knowledge pursuit as an example. When one is working hard in school because that’s what the parents want them to do doesn’t reach cut off point for pride. That is obedient to parents. Studying hard so that one become a teacher and pass on the knowledge to future kids and assist them in growth does not also qualify as an act of pride. But if one studies hard for the sole purpose of amassing knowledge for oneself, to show off to colleagues that he knows more than everyone else hit the mark, the focus is upon oneself and for his or her glory. That is pride. If this is the case, the individual is not only suffering from pride, he or she is also setting himself up to be entirely consumed by the pride itself (Young 15).

Pride could also be defined as standards that one has for him or herself. One perceives the rest as lacking in opinion and has no help whatsoever to him. One can forgo medication for instance due to lack of money, but the next person is willing and able to help. He or she perceives such an act as an abuse to his dignity seeking help from a ‘second rate’ individual. He rather stays sick. That is an exaggerated pride (Young 12).

In biblical parallels, pride is defined as a vice and an utmost evil. Reflecting on the story of Adam and Eve in Christian teaching, the serpent provoked a feeling of envy in human’s heart questioning the intentions of God in forbidding Adam from eating a particular fruit. Satan Concluded that God is selfish to deny man such an opportunity to level Him. Feelings that man will level God have the mighty strength and even overtake God propagated eating of the fruit resulted in the genesis of sin (Austen 15).

 After long years of toil and eventually remarkable achievements are resultant then an automated self-love is felt. Selective meals, change of walking style, social gatherings and so on. Disassociating with the former friends due to financial achievement and selecting who to talk or share with depictive of a politician defines pride as egocentrism.  A politician when hunting for votes will stoop as low as having lunch in low-end eateries just to show he understands local problems but leave until he achieves his goals, bodyguards all over (Young 18).

On a positive connotation, pride is defined as humility and contentment towards individuals’ or another person’s actions or a group achievement and is full of praise for success within a group and a justified sense of belonging.  A Higher opinion of one’s country, for example, connotes a national pride among the people in the country. Reciting a country’s national anthem in such events like World Cup or Olympics, for instance, breed pride of achievement in the hearts of the Nationals (Austen 22).

Pride, in conclusion, revolves around me, myself and I respective of the social-cultural setting implied. It is just the use of adjectives that differ, but a closer scrutiny reveals pride to be defined as the loyalty to none other than self (Austen 31).