Avarice Definition: We explain what avarice is, various examples, and its differences with covetousness. We also explain the other deadly sins.
What is avarice?
Avarice is the uncontrollable and inordinate desire to accumulate goods, riches, or valuables beyond the minimum necessities of survival, with the sole intention of hoarding them for oneself. It is, therefore, considered a form of selfishness, more or less equivalent to greed.
Greed can be understood from a secular and psychological perspective, or from a religious and cultural perspective, but in both cases the term has a negative connotation linked to the insatiable desire to possess, something that was already present in its origins, given that it comes from the Latin avere, “to desire” or “to crave.” Must Read About Agricultural Sector Once.
In fact, in psychology, greed is the inability to control or limit the formation of desires, even when the underlying needs that motivate them are already satisfied. This type of behavior leads to hoarding and accumulation, which are present in psychological disorders such as disposophobia (compulsive hoarding syndrome) or obsessive-compulsive disorder (Diogenes syndrome).
From a moral perspective, however, avarice is understood as excessive selfishness and a fault capable of engendering other evils, such as disloyalty, betrayal for personal gain, corruption, and even legally condemned actions such as theft, fraud, and assault.
Catholicism, for example, understands it as a capital vice contrary to the virtue of generosity and very similar to the mortal sin of greed. Buddhists, for their part, understand it as a mistaken connection between material wealth and happiness.
In Western tradition, avarice has often been represented as a hungry wolf or a woman shying away from the horn of plenty. In biblical imagery, it is represented under the name mammon, an Aramaic word meaning “wealth,” and was associated with King Midas of Greek mythology, whose touch turned everything to gold.
In the modern imagination, however, avarice was associated with the idea of the moneylender (often of Jewish descent, which is why it was common among anti-Semitic accusations), the usurer, and later the magnate or billionaire, whose only love lies in money, like the character Ebenezer Scrooge in A Christmas Carol (1843) by Charles Dickens (1812-1870). Must Read About Public Law Once.
Examples of Avarice
Avarice can manifest itself in many very different forms, all of which have in common the uncontrollable desire to accumulate goods or possessions, or an excessive love for them, such as:
- Refusing to help others in distress even if one has the means to do so and without great personal sacrifice.
- Hoarding goods or products that are in high demand, far beyond the satisfaction of personal needs, and regardless of whether others are left without access to them.
- Hoarding money and refusing to spend it on enjoying life, acquiring things or experiences, contenting oneself only with watching one’s fortune grow.
- Allowing others to suffer irreparable misfortune so as not to lose a small portion of what one has, even though the personal sacrifice would be insignificant compared to the harm others will suffer.
Avarice and Greed
Avarice and avarice are very similar concepts, as both relate to excessive desire and ambition. However, they are not interchangeable notions: while avarice relates to the desire to accumulate and preserve what has been accumulated, avarice, on the other hand, is understood as a form of uncontrollable ambition.
That is, avarice is an exaggerated and unsatisfiable desire for riches, which has nothing to do with sustenance or an individual’s basic needs. In other words, avarice is the love of wealth for its own sake.
Unlike avarice, which is considered a vice in the Catholic faith—albeit a serious one—avarice constitutes a capital sin or mortal sin, that is, one of the gravest sins contemplated in Christian morality. However, this distinction between avarice and avarice is often overlooked. Must Read About Social Equality Once.
Other Deadly Sins
Apart from avarice or covetousness, the seven deadly sins in Catholic doctrine are:
- Pride, understood as believing oneself to be superior to others, that is, an excessive love for oneself. This is considered the most serious of the deadly sins, as it is the original or the one that engenders all the others.
- Anger, described as an uncontrollable feeling of rage or anger, often leading to hatred and intolerance.
- Envy, understood as the uncontrollable and unhealthy desire for what others have that one lacks, be it physical, mental, emotional, or any other kind. Envious people, lacking what another has, rejoice if that person loses it, celebrating their neighbor’s misfortune as their own triumph, and sometimes even causing it themselves. Lust, understood as an uncontrollable and unsatisfying carnal desire, that is, an unstoppable sexual or erotic desire that respects no limits or obeys conscience. As described by Dante Alighieri (1265-1321) in his Divine Comedy (written between 1304 and 1321), lustful people love other people so much that they put God in second place.
- Gluttony, identified with the excessive consumption of food and drink, unrelated to the satisfaction of hunger and thirst. This is the sin of drinkers, gluttons, and also drug addicts.
- Sloth, understood as the inability to take charge of one’s own existence, that is, the neglect of obligations and responsibilities regardless of the consequences, inconsideration, and also laziness.
References
All the information we offer is supported by authoritative and up-to-date bibliographic sources, ensuring reliable content in line with our editorial principles.
- “Avarice” in the Dictionary of the Spanish Language of the Royal Spanish Academy.
- “Avarice” in the Online Catholic Encyclopedia
- “Seven Deadly Sins” in The Encyclopaedia Britannica
