--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I have a little theory about that, too…" description: "\"I have a little theory about that, too. It's clearly envy. It's bringing people down to your size. It's a narcissistic impulse that didn't used to exis..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/612/drew-pinsky-4091_envy_i-have-a-little-theory-about-that-too-it_1992084.png" --- # I have a little theory about that, too. It's clearly envy… ![“I have a little theory about that, too. It's clearly envy. It's bringing people down to your size. It's a narcissistic impulse that didn't used to exist, but we've become increasingly narcissistic as a society, and envy is one of those outcomes.” quote by Drew Pinsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/612/drew-pinsky-4091_envy_i-have-a-little-theory-about-that-too-it_1992084.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/612/drew-pinsky-4091_envy_i-have-a-little-theory-about-that-too-it_1992084.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/612/drew-pinsky-4091_envy_i-have-a-little-theory-about-that-too-it_1992084.png) > “I have a little theory about that, too. It's clearly envy. It's bringing people down to your size. It's a narcissistic impulse that didn't used to exist, but we've become increasingly narcissistic as a society, and envy is one of those outcomes.” [Drew Pinsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/drew-pinsky/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Envy drives people to diminish others, reflecting growing societal narcissism. **In simple terms:** Envy makes us put others down. Key Takeaway Recognize and curb envy. Themes envy narcissism social behavior Mood reflective critical Type observational analytical When to use this quote - personal relationships - workplace - social media - family gatherings Key Concepts psychology social dynamics Questions to Reflect On - How does envy affect your interactions? - What steps can reduce narcissistic tendencies? A Different Perspective Envy can also stem from insecurity, not just narcissism. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Envy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/envy/) [Envy Bringing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/envy-bringing-3459428/) [Envy Outcomes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/envy-outcomes-3459426/) [Impulse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/impulse/) [Jealousy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/jealousy/) [Littles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/littles/) [Narcissistic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/narcissistic/) [Outcomes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/outcomes/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Size](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/size/) [Size Narcissistic](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/size-narcissistic-3459427/) [Society Envy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/society-envy-3343225/) [Theory](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/theory/) [Used](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/used/) ## Related quotes > [A competitive society is a society of envy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dorothee-solle/a-competitive-society-is-a-society-of-envy/) [Dorothee Solle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dorothee-solle/) > [Compared to other people, I am not that narcissistic. Sometimes, I don't even plan all that I wear.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/varun-dhawan/compared-to-other-people-i-am-not-that-narcissistic-sometimes-i-don-t/) [Varun Dhawan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/varun-dhawan/) > [Can we come to the point where we can accept the impossible strivings that we have, the utter inability to ever fulfill our narcissistic…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francis-levy/can-we-come-to-the-point-where-we-can-accept-the-impossible-strivings/) [Francis Levy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francis-levy/) > [“I can confidently state that the greatest rescues in my life have occurred when I’ve been saved from myself.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/craig-d-lounsbrough/i-can-confidently-state-that-the-greatest-rescues-in-my-life-have/) [Craig D. Lounsbrough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/craig-d-lounsbrough/) > [“But that’s the thing about narcissists. They can try to fool you, with all their heart, but in the end, they’re just fooling themselves.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ellie-fox/but-that-s-the-thing-about-narcissists-they-can-try-to-fool-you-with/) [Ellie Fox](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ellie-fox/) > [We are to give (and take) true love without falling into the narcissistic habit of only trying to take it in.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/criss-jami/we-are-to-give-and-take-true-love-without-falling-into-the/) [Criss Jami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/criss-jami/) > [Adolescents swing from euphoric self-confidence and a kind of narcissistic strength in which they feel invulnerable and even immortal, to despair, self-emptiness, self-deprecation. At…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terri-e-apter/adolescents-swing-from-euphoric-self-confidence-and-a-kind-of/) [Terri E Apter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terri-e-apter/) > [I fell in love with Erica Kane the summer before my freshman year of high school. Like all red-blooded teen American boys, I'd come…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andy-cohen/i-fell-in-love-with-erica-kane-the-summer-before-my-freshman-year-of/) [Andy Cohen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andy-cohen/) > [The discussion of ideas as opposed to the American narcissistic obsession with what's going on with the self, that's the general thing people are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stanley-crouch/the-discussion-of-ideas-as-opposed-to-the-american-narcissistic/) [Stanley Crouch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stanley-crouch/) > [“If I’m my biggest fan, the only person in the stadium is probably me.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/craig-d-lounsbrough/if-i-m-my-biggest-fan-the-only-person-in-the-stadium-is-probably-me/) [Craig D. Lounsbrough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/craig-d-lounsbrough/) > [Jodi Melnick is hotly self-absorbed. Her onstage musicians are much too loud, and like so many narcissistic performers, she goes on much too long:…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-gottlieb/jodi-melnick-is-hotly-self-absorbed-her-onstage-musicians-are-much/) [Robert Gottlieb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-gottlieb/) > [Dan Coats, retiring senator from Indiana, a mild-mannered man, a former United States ambassador to Germany, former congressman, said of Ted Cruz he's the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-shields/dan-coats-retiring-senator-from-indiana-a-mild-mannered-man-a-former/) [Mark Shields](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-shields/) > [“Often, her mate is the child of a narcissist, already indoctrinated to regard exploitation and disregard as love. Others lured by the narcissistic aura…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elan-golomb/often-her-mate-is-the-child-of-a-narcissist-already-indoctrinated-to/) [Elan Golomb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elan-golomb/) > [Ultimately there is no power to narcissistic, self-indulgent thinking. Authentic thinking originates with an encounter with the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abraham-joshua-heschel/ultimately-there-is-no-power-to-narcissistic-self-indulgent-thinking/) [Abraham Joshua Heschel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abraham-joshua-heschel/) > [Narcissistic personality disorder (NPD) cannot be medicated. It is treatable only through therapy. The problem is therapy is rarely sought by the afflicted. It…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andy-dunn/narcissistic-personality-disorder-npd-cannot-be-medicated-it-is/) [Andy Dunn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andy-dunn/) ## More by Drew Pinsky > [An Internet 'relationship' doesn't have to be catastrophically harmful to be inappropriate. Hurtful is bad enough.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/drew-pinsky/an-internet-relationship-doesn-t-have-to-be-catastrophically-harmful/) [Drew Pinsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/drew-pinsky/) > [Trauma super charges addiction and makes it really bad. It doesn't necessarily cause it, though it can trigger it. It's not necessarily the issue…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/drew-pinsky/trauma-super-charges-addiction-and-makes-it-really-bad-it-doesn-t/) [Drew Pinsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/drew-pinsky/) > [The term 'doctor' has been so abused lately! I didn't live in a hospital for 10 years so that term could be bastardized.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/drew-pinsky/the-term-doctor-has-been-so-abused-lately-i-didn-t-live-in-a-hospital/) [Drew Pinsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/drew-pinsky/) > [Particularly women need to pay attention to what is unique to their own personal biology and emotional systems, and not deny it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/drew-pinsky/particularly-women-need-to-pay-attention-to-what-is-unique-to-their/) [Drew Pinsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/drew-pinsky/) > [Every person is highly individualized so if a person is seriously concerned, then they first need to get a medical evaluation and make sure…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/drew-pinsky/every-person-is-highly-individualized-so-if-a-person-is-seriously/) [Drew Pinsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/drew-pinsky/) > [All medicine is gradations and differences and nuances. And there's such a thing as natural recovery: people spontaneously get better. It happens.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/drew-pinsky/all-medicine-is-gradations-and-differences-and-nuances-and-there-s/) [Drew Pinsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/drew-pinsky/) > [Narcissism is not about self love. It's a clinical trait that belies a deep sense of emptiness, low self-esteem, emotional detachment, self-loathing, extreme problems…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/drew-pinsky/narcissism-is-not-about-self-love-it-s-a-clinical-trait-that-belies-a/) [Drew Pinsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/drew-pinsky/) > [Millennials really don't perceive hierarchies. They either don't perceive them or don't like them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/drew-pinsky/millennials-really-don-t-perceive-hierarchies-they-either-don-t/) [Drew Pinsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/drew-pinsky/) > [Ages 18 to 22 is such a hard transition, everyone's depressed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/drew-pinsky/ages-18-to-22-is-such-a-hard-transition-everyone-s-depressed/) [Drew Pinsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/drew-pinsky/) > [Secrets keep addicts ill and cost lives.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/drew-pinsky/secrets-keep-addicts-ill-and-cost-lives/) [Drew Pinsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/drew-pinsky/) > [You should hear all the people talking to me about Heath Ledger, and yet I'm the only person shooting his mouth off out there…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/drew-pinsky/you-should-hear-all-the-people-talking-to-me-about-heath-ledger-and/) [Drew Pinsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/drew-pinsky/) > [Treatment of alcohol addiction can take many forms.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/drew-pinsky/treatment-of-alcohol-addiction-can-take-many-forms/) [Drew Pinsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/drew-pinsky/) > [I was doing general medicine and during residency, I moonlighted at a psychiatric hospital and became very interested in the medical care of psychiatric…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/drew-pinsky/i-was-doing-general-medicine-and-during-residency-i-moonlighted-at-a/) [Drew Pinsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/drew-pinsky/) > [As a clinician, I would never want to be coercive in relation to a patient, nor do I harbor the illusion that as a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/drew-pinsky/as-a-clinician-i-would-never-want-to-be-coercive-in-relation-to-a/) [Drew Pinsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/drew-pinsky/) > [If you're experiencing symptoms such as depression, anxiety, uncontrolled use of substances, or any other behaviors that affect your functioning, please see a professional.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/drew-pinsky/if-you-re-experiencing-symptoms-such-as-depression-anxiety/) [Drew Pinsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/drew-pinsky/) [Explore all 116 Drew Pinsky quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/drew-pinsky/) ## More Envy quotes > [The vision of the left, full of envy and resentment, takes its worst toll on those at the bottom - whether black or white…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-sowell/the-vision-of-the-left-full-of-envy-and-resentment-takes-its-worst/) [Thomas Sowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-sowell/) > [“He often remembered his dad's admonition that envy was mental theft. If you coveted another man's possessions, Dad said, then you should be willing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-koontz/he-often-remembered-his-dad-s-admonition-that-envy-was-mental-theft/) [Dean Koontz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-koontz/) > [“I don't envy "busy." Busy means having a schedule, not living life. What I really covet is leisure and peace of mind. Those who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donna-lynn-hope/i-don-t-envy-busy-busy-means-having-a-schedule-not-living-life-what-i/) [Donna Lynn Hope](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donna-lynn-hope/) > [There is no sweeter sound than the crumbling of one's fellow man.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/groucho-marx/there-is-no-sweeter-sound-than-the-crumbling-of-one-s-fellow-man/) [Groucho Marx](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/groucho-marx/) > [Thinking, or more precisely identification with thinking, gives rise to and maintains the ego, which, in our Western society in particular, is out of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eckhart-tolle/thinking-or-more-precisely-identification-with-thinking-gives-rise-to/) [Eckhart Tolle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eckhart-tolle/) > [“Is it not strange that the more someone has, the less he feels he has? Envy can never be sated.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-wheeler/is-it-not-strange-that-the-more-someone-has-the-less-he-feels-he-has/) [Jeff Wheeler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-wheeler/) > [I avoid envy at all costs.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/claudia-winkleman/i-avoid-envy-at-all-costs/) [Claudia Winkleman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/claudia-winkleman/) > [Sometimes I envy painters, it is wonderful to remain in front of a bouquet of flowers a whole morning, or even longer. A photographer…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edouard-boubat/sometimes-i-envy-painters-it-is-wonderful-to-remain-in-front-of-a/) [Edouard Boubat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edouard-boubat/) > [avarice breeds envy, a worm that is always gnawing, letting the avaricious enjoy neither their own nor anyone else's good.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/st-catherine-of-siena/avarice-breeds-envy-a-worm-that-is-always-gnawing-letting-the/) [St. Catherine of Siena](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/st-catherine-of-siena/) > [“You don’t see someone flying and you begin to bite yourself for not being able to do that. You do what you can.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/israelmore-ayivor/you-don-t-see-someone-flying-and-you-begin-to-bite-yourself-for-not/) [Israelmore Ayivor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/israelmore-ayivor/) > [Knowledge forbidden? Suspicious, reasonless. Why should their Lord Envy them that? Can it be sin to know, Can it be death? And do they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-milton/knowledge-forbidden-suspicious-reasonless-why-should-their-lord-envy/) [John Milton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-milton/) > [“Who would have thought you had so many supporters?" she whispered. "Not mine, my love. Yours. I had not a one till you started…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michele-sinclair/who-would-have-thought-you-had-so-many-supporters-she-whispered-not/) [Michele Sinclair](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michele-sinclair/) > [“Treachery is always a hairy caterpillar bred of a small butterfly called envy, no matter how lofty the principles involved.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fazil-iskander/treachery-is-always-a-hairy-caterpillar-bred-of-a-small-butterfly/) [Fazil Iskander](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fazil-iskander/) > [Yes, Clay Matthews has a long, golden, Fabio-esque flowing mane that most women would chick-slap someone for. And yes, the shiny, beautiful, dark locks…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julie-foudy/yes-clay-matthews-has-a-long-golden-fabio-esque-flowing-mane-that/) [Julie Foudy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julie-foudy/) > [“I have known many true connoisseurs, with excellent tastes that range across the humanities and the culinary arts--and they never fail to have a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zadie-smith/i-have-known-many-true-connoisseurs-with-excellent-tastes-that-range/) [Zadie Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zadie-smith/) [Browse all 2,111 Envy quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/envy/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I have a little theory about that, too. It's clearly envy. It's bringing people down to your size. 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