We explain what arrogance is, its relationship with pride, selfishness and the attitudes it causes. Also, everyday examples.
What is arrogance?
Arrogance is the attitude of someone who considers himself better than he really is, or who considers others below himself. Arrogance is a concept very close to narcissism, arrogance and egocentrism, without actually meaning exactly the same thing. Arrogance is traditionally seen as synonymous of vanity, and as the opposite of modesty.
Within tradition from values religious inherited from Christianity, vanity (that is, self-infatuation) is one of the deadly sins, since it pushes the human being to think that he does not need God, and that he is enough with himself. For this reason, in the West arrogance is regarded as a defect of the personality.
On the other hand, in some cases the psychology understands arrogance as a compensation mechanism for ego, due to an inflated or unduly heightened self-perception. That is, the arrogant person constantly tries to prove to himself that he lives up to his outrageous expectations, being able in the process to look down on or even hurt others.
Attitudes of arrogance are considered arrogance, conceit, petulance and boastfulness. An arrogant person, therefore, is one who is not willing to consider the opinions of others, believing himself to be an expert on all issues, and who, without knowing them, tends to look down on them.
Examples of arrogance
Attitudes such as the following can be expected from an arrogant person, which serve as an example:
- Treat those who are not present with contempt. Arrogant people poorly tolerate the success of others, since they interpret it as a confrontation, as that they have "lost a battle" or have lost something of their own value. At its core, it's about insecurity. And they usually express it when others are not present to defend themselves.
- Boast of your own and not listen to others. It is a typically arrogant attitude to think that one's own is unique and unrepeatable, and that therefore it has not happened to anyone else, no one understands it or no one can really give an opinion on it, which often places arrogant people in a position of long-suffering superiority: "It's more complicated than that, but it doesn't matter, I know it's not easy to understand."
- They are patronizing or patronizing. When an arrogant person is forced to acknowledge something to another, he will usually do so in such a way that the praise itself includes a tacit or explicit recognition of the inferiority of the other. This turns, for example, a congratulation into a disability statement: "I'm glad you managed to do it, those things are always difficult when you are starting out."
Arrogance and pride
A proud man never gives his arm to twist.
Although arrogance and pride tend to go together, they are not necessarily synonymous terms. As we have already seen, arrogant are those who think themselves better than others, and who tend to overvalue their own. On the other hand, arrogant is someone who never gives his arm to twist, that is, pride is an excessive form of pride.
Seen this way, they have to do with different capital sins, according to Christian tradition: self-infatuation and the feeling of superiority, although the line that separates them tends to be thin.
A proud person is one who would never "lower himself" to ask for forgiveness, or to ask for help, or to any attitude that he considers unworthy or below his level. On the other hand, an arrogant person may well swallow his pride and do it, although the most common is that the arrogant are arrogant, and vice versa.