The pleasurable feeling that some feature of oneself deserves admiration; a pleasing consciousness of distinction in some respect or other. The object of pride may be something one has done, or almost any other feature of oneself, including one’s family, group, school, country, etc. Pride need not go along with a demand for the admiration of others: the feeling that such admiration would be deserved can be enough to satisfy pride. When the object is appropriate, the pleasure not excessive, and the demand on others muted, we can talk of proper pride, but unfortunately these conditions are not always met. The pleasure may have some fanciful or inappropriate source, and it may consort with arrogance towards others who are deemed to lack the distinction. So although the classical tradition, and especially Aristotle, make ample room for proper pride, in the Christian tradition pride is the chief of the Seven Deadly Sins, and the radix omnium malorum or root of all evil. The thought here is that any case of sin or succumbing to temptation is a way of setting oneself above God’s rule, and this can only be an exercise of excessive pride. However, in Paradise Lost, his poetic drama of the Fall, Milton has Satan exploit Eve’s vanity rather than her pride. See also amour propre, conceit, great-souled man, self-esteem.