From the author: The article is a psychoanalytic interpretation of such a familiar feeling as envy. This is a slightly shortened version of an article published in the journal Forum of Aggression. T.1 – Izhevsk: ERGO, 2011. No one is as prone to envy as self-deprecating people. Spinoza B. In the dictionary of the Russian language Ozhegova S.I. we read that envy is defined as “a feeling of annoyance caused by the well-being and success of another” (3, p. 184). The very definition of this feeling already indicates that for it to arise, another is needed and this other must have something so valuable that the subject himself does not, has not, and perhaps never will have. Although envy is to some extent familiar to all of us, it is quite difficult to talk about, let alone admit to, this feeling. What closes or protects the feeling of envy from ourselves? It seems that, first of all, this is one’s own insolvency, and after that there is shame that someone else besides you will find out about this inconsistency, which is sometimes completely impossible to admit, because... this can lead to mental failure. In extreme cases, this can be an extremely painful affect, and in order to cope with it it is necessary to “push” it out, and for this it is sometimes necessary to destroy either the good that the other person or himself has. Which can ultimately lead to a very vivid and powerful manifestation of destruction and aggressiveness. Historically, envy accompanies humanity throughout its existence. Turning to the Bible, you can see that close attention is paid to this topic here too. Cain killed his younger brother Abel when he saw that the sacrifice he made was not accepted by God, and the sacrifice of his brother, the best animal from his own herd, was appreciated. Israel, Joseph's father, loved him more and singled him out from all his sons, thus causing the envy and hatred of his brothers, who sold him into slavery. Joseph would later perform many miracles in Egypt, and his brothers would turn to him for help and be forgiven. Envy, one way or another, will accompany Christ throughout his entire journey. In order to somehow tame this feeling, it is recognized as one of the mortal sins prohibited by the Ten Commandments: “You shall not covet your neighbor’s house; You shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, nor his male servant, nor his maidservant, nor his ox, nor his donkey, nor anything that is your neighbor’s” (Exodus 20:17). Envy can awaken both towards material values ​​and absolutely immaterial things, such as success, talent, intelligence, intelligence, beauty, etc. A person wants to possess what he does not have, but always belongs to another. Thus, in this context, we are always talking about a certain lack, about the alienation of one’s own desire - the other has what is so necessary for me to feel the fullness of life and happiness. To what extent is it possible to fill this gap? And is it even possible? We are talking here not simply about the absence of something valuable or some object, but actually about the simple ability of another to well-being. Or, more broadly speaking, we are talking about a way of existence, where at the core there is some defect that undermines possible relationships of love and being itself as such. Which immediately refers to the subject’s narcissism, to a certain flaw in the latter’s narcissistic structure. In its extreme expressions, envy manifests itself in people with pronounced narcissistic problems. One of the defining symptoms of narcissistic personality disorder according to DSM-IV (1994) (Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, developed by the American Psychiatric Association) is “feelings of envy of others or the belief that others are envious of one” (4, p. .34). Feelings of envy can begin to manifest themselves at very early stages of an individual's development, starting with the mother-child relationship. Perhaps, if the child finds himself in a situation of absolute helplessness without properparental support, he will compare himself with other children and begin to envy them. If the mother has pronounced narcissistic traits, then she herself will exhibit duality in the manifestation of envy. Namely: on the one hand, she can admire her own child, and on the other, such narcissistic states of the child’s helplessness will increase her self-esteem as a mother. Thus, the nascent own envy will be intensified by the envy of the parents. Behind envy there is a certain fantasy that is aimed at a “good” object (this could be the desire to possess something) or to harm or destroy this object of desire. The "good" object is thus attacked destructively for its "goodness" in a desperate attempt to protect itself from the inability to bear its own defectiveness. And here, of course, we are no longer talking about the real, real need to possess this or that value that another has, but only about the ability to cope with this internal destruction, which is associated with a painful feeling of one’s own inferiority and vulnerability, expressed in a feeling of hatred, or causing harm, or, already in adulthood, contempt for those features in the object that aroused envy. Envy will thus always be associated with an attack on a “good” object; this is a kind of focus on establishing hostile aggressive relationships with those who evoke desire and love, i.e., perhaps, the very sources of life. Melanie Klein, the famous British school psychoanalyst, writes in her work Envy and Gratitude: “There are very strong psychological reasons why envy figures among the “seven deadly sins.” I would even suggest that it is unconsciously felt as the greatest sin, since it spoils and damages the good object, which is the source of life,” she further quotes Chaucer: “Undoubtedly, envy is the worst of sins; since other sins are sins against one virtue, while envy is against all virtues and against everything good” (1, p. 28). This statement correlates with Freud's concept of duality of drives. As is known, in 1920, in his work “Beyond the Pleasure Principle,” Freud (6), introducing new terminology, distinguishes two main drives: Eros and the death drive. Eros, as Freud writes, seeks to unite first individuals, later families, then tribes, peoples, nations (5), i.e. the purpose of Eros is to establish and maintain relationships or connections necessary for life. To achieve its goals, Eros needs the cooperation of the Other. This is what used to be called life itself, which Freud restores as a term and identifies with love. To live means to love, to love means to live. But there is also their opposite - death. Freud says that some part of this drive towards death or destruction is directed towards the outside world through the muscular system and is transformed into a drive towards destruction. And it is precisely this last point that connects envy with the death drive. Envy and the death drive attack Eros and the objects corresponding to it, which are libidinal. But at the same time, in a state of envy, a fusion of these drives, Eros and the drive to death occurs, because destructiveness is directed precisely at the object that awakens need and, as a consequence, love. This is an object that is libidinally colored and represents a certain value, because... envy will always be correlated with the identification of the subject: I desire what I do not have, but another has. This other or object as such is hated for this possession and the very ability to have this possession, but at the same time it is also the satisfaction of this need. Therefore, on the one hand, there is recognition of the need and, as a consequence, a focus on the object, which, in essence, is a reflection of the attraction to life, and on the other hand, an attack on the object and, 1995.