Jealousy is defined as an envious or bitter attitude. Many people experience it every day, but not many stop to actually analyze it and consider the effects of it on their outlooks on life. Hence, jealousy starts out as a small ¡°nagging¡± feeling, but as it grow. The most common impression of jealousy is a negative one. That idea is because jealousy is a complex emotion that can be detrimental in many ways. Jealousy can hurt one if it is taken too seriously. Often, jealousy is casually shrugged off. However, if it persists, jealousy can break a person down. Jealousy can even cause negative results such as making a person hurt someone else.
A multifaceted emotion, jealousy is also potentially favorable. Jealousy can cause one to strive to be better. One can be motivated by the need to become better. Envy for someone else can be a good thing. Therefore, jealousy is also a positive emotion.
Finally, jealousy can be a neutral and ineffective emotion. Many people who experience jealousy choose to live with it and not do anything about it. These people are not affected by jealousy, positively or negatively. They simply ignore the emotion and continue to live on with their lives. In this case, jealousy is neither harmful nor helpful.
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