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Envy
A QUESTIONABLE QUALITY
» Thursday 22 July 2010 | 5 pm
» Bohemian Café, 524 Bernard Avenue, Kelowna
An informal afternoon hour showcasing ideas
and people in the Okanagan creative economy. Join us as expert observers Mark Pigott and James Bell explore facets of an all too human attitude with a long history, and look into what it means for the modern world.
» $2 at the door. Refreshments are available at a modest cost.
» Seating is limited, please reserve yours HERE
Expert Observers Examine the Meaning of the Human Condition
Envy, the unpleasant emotion that can arise when we compare unfavorably with others, is a common experience for most people regardless of culture. Its nature is exemplified by the many publicized crimes and intergroup conflicts attributed to it; the countless literary tales of assassination, murder, and sabotage provoked by it; its generative role in many Biblical events; its presence in two of the 10 commandments in the Old Testament; and by psychoanalytic claims that it is a destructive, life-denying instinct characterized by rage.
Envy is often characterized by an assortment of pernicious tendencies, such as a willingness to sacrifice one's own outcomes in order to simply diminish the envied person's relative advantage, a desire to destroy good things if the alternative is that others have them, or a feeling of malicious joy when the envied person suffers or when an envied group fails, even if the suffering is undeserved.
Envy is a frequent theme of philosophers who focus on the motivation for people's desire for social equality, and in fictional attempts to imagine utopian societies free of discord caused by inequalities. Nietzsche argued that envy is the prime cause for the egalitarian morality inherent in Christianity in which the strong are brought down by the weak. Ayn Rand, the ultraconservative philosopher, struck a similar chord with an especially vigorous denunciation of envy, which she claimed dominated the latter part of the 20th century. In this "age of envy," the impulse to begrudge the advantages and heroic strength of the few led to "hatred of the good for being good".
It can be argued that envy is the foundational explanation for the pan-cultural norms that are used to maintain social stability, in spite of the unfortunate stifling of creativity.
On Thursday, July 22th at 5 pm the ongoing weekly Okanagan Institute Express series at the Bohemian Café, Kelowna presents Envy: A Questionable Quality. Join us as expert observers Mark Pigott and James Bell explore facets of an all too human attitude with a long history, and look into what it means for the modern world.
 Mark Pigott attended the University of Western Ontario as an undergraduate and later the Ivey School of Business.
He began a 30-year career in marketing communications and brand strategy in New Zealand, working with worldwide advertising firms such as McCann-Erickson, BBDO and Ogilvy & Mather, as President Western Canada operations. During his tenure, Mark has counselled many of Canada's leading brands (Shell Canada, TELUS, Canadian Airlines, CP Ltd., Vancity) and a wide variety of not for profit organizations). His passion is seeking elusive strategic insights and articulating complex points of view with clarity and unvarnished candor. The Advertising Industry honored Mark with a lifetime achievement award in 1999 for his many contributions. In 1999, Mark founded Brand Insights Group, a strategic consulting discipline, specializing in guiding firms to higher levels of strategic alignment, employee enagagement and brand development.
 James Bell is a mid-life specialist as well as a relationship and transitional counselor. He is also the writer of numerous articles, as well as the author of the book Bridge Over Troubled Water - a study focusing on the spiritual aspirations of the Baby Boomer generation. For the past twelve years, Jim has been in private practice in Kelowna, working with individuals and couples grappling with the fundamental questions of what it means to be alive and how to live life with a high level of personal authenticity. Unique among other counseling systems, Jim's approach to the therapeutic process is one that affirms the importance of spirituality and philosophy in the understanding of the human psyche. He is a guide to those who strive to integrate the psychological and the spiritual side of human existence and to live in a balanced and harmonious way.
FOR MORE INFORMATION AND TO REGISTER ONLINE CLICK HERE
Envy: A Questionable Quality takes place at the Bohemian Café, Kelowna. This marks the 147th event the Okanagan Institute has held since the Express series got underway in July 2007.
Express is directed, convened and hosted by Doug Hodgkinson, Karen Close, Edward McLean, Neil McKay and Jan Kennett. It has played host to many Okanagan luminaries, including former deputy secretary general of Amnesty International Derek Evans, artists Lee Claremont and Gary Pearson, BC Book Award nominee Don Gayton, CBC Literary prize winner poet Harold Rhenisch, distinguished editor and author Jim Taylor, poet laureate and professor John Lent, creative entrepreneur Nikos Theodosakis, animator and filmmaker Jim Cliffe, community activist Don Elzer, dancer David LaHay, architect Jim Meiklejohn, culinary artist and writer Heidi Noble, broadcaster Marion Barschel and many others from a wide range of creative fields.
The Okanagan Institute is a group of creative professionals that has gathered around the goal of providing events, publications and services of interest to enquiring minds in the Okanagan. We partner with individuals, organizations, institutions and businesses to achieve optimal creative and social impact.
Our mission is to ignite cultural transformation, catalyze collaborative action, build networks and foster sustainable creative enterprises. We invite the participation by all members of the creative community.
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