Abstract

This chapter investigates the various scripts of invidia, the Latin term from which English “envy” is ultimately derived, though the Latin term is of much wider application. A system or “taxonomy” of scripts is described, and it is shown how the emotion — a form of distress felt when you see another person enjoy some sort of good — ranges from sheer malice to righteous indignation depending on whether or not the person experiencing the emotion is applying some principle of right or fairness. The chapter then shows how the different forms of the script commonly interacted in Roman social life.