(14) In order to remove such doubts, I append the
following corollary.
Corollary.- (55:15) No one envies the virtue of anyone who is not his
equal.
Proof - (55:16) Envy is a species of hatred ([xxiv] note) or
([xiii] note) pain, that is ([xi] note), a modification whereby
a man's power of activity, or endeavour towards activity, is checked.
(17) But a man does not endeavour or desire to do anything, which cannot
follow from his nature as it is given; therefore a man will not desire
any power of activity or virtue (which is the same thing) to be attributed
to him, that is appropriate to another's nature and foreign to his own;
hence his desire cannot be checked, nor he himself pained by the
contemplation of virtue in some one unlike himself, consequently he
cannot envy such an one. (55:18) But he can envy his equal, who is assumed
to have the same nature as himself. Q.E.D.
Note.- (55:19) When, therefore, as we said in the note to [lii] ,
we venerate a man, through wonder at his prudence, fortitude, &c.,
we do so, because we conceive those qualities to be peculiar to him,
and not as common to our nature; we, therefore, no more envy their
possessor, than we envy trees for being tall, or lions for being
courageous.
Prop. [LVI] There are as many kinds of pleasure, of pain, of
desire, and of every emotion compounded of these,
such as vacillations of spirit, or derived from
these, such as love, hatred, hope, fear, &c.
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