hubris

Look up hubris in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

Hubris ( /ˈhjuːbrɪs/), also hybris, means extreme pride or arrogance. Hubris often indicates a loss of contact with reality and an overestimation of one's own competence or capabilities, especially when the person exhibiting it is in a position of power.

The adjective form of hubris is "hubristic".

Ancient Greek origin

In ancient Greek, hubris (Ancient Greek ὕβρις) referred to actions that shamed and humiliated the victim for the pleasure or gratification of the abuser.^[1] The term had a strong sexual connotation, and the shame reflected on the perpetrator as well. It was most evident in the public and private actions of the powerful and rich. The word was also used to describe actions of those who challenged the gods or their laws, especially in Greek tragedy, resulting in the protagonist's fall.

Hubris, though not specifically defined, was a legal term and was considered a crime in classical Athens.^[2] It was also considered the greatest crime of ancient Greek society.^[3] The category of acts constituting hubris for the ancient Greeks apparently broadened from the original specific reference to mutilation of a corpse, or a humiliation of a defeated foe, or irreverent "outrageous treatment" in general. It often resulted in fatal retribution or Nemesis. Atë, ancient Greek for "ruin, folly, delusion," is the action performed by the hero or heroine, usually because of his or her hubris, or great pride, that leads to his or her death or downfall.

Violations of the law against hubris included what might today be termed assault and battery; sexual crimes ranging from rape of women or children to consensual but improper activity, in particular anal sex with a free man or with an unconsenting and/or under-aged boy;^[4][5][6] or the theft of public or sacred property. Two well-known cases are found in the speeches of Demosthenes, a prominent statesman and orator in ancient Greece. These two examples occurred when first, Midias punched Demosthenes in the face in the theatre (Against Midias), and second when (in Against Conon) a defendant allegedly assaulted a man and crowed over the victim. Yet another example of hubris appears in Aeschines "Against Timarchus," where the defendant, Timarchus, is accused of breaking the law of hubris by submitting himself to prostitution and anal intercourse. Aeschines brought this suit against Timarchus to bar him from the rights of political office and his case succeeded.^[7]

One example of hubris occurs in Sophocles's Antigone when Creon refuses to bury Polynices.^[8] Another example is in the tragedy Agamemnon, by Aeschylus.^{[citation needed]} Agamemnon initially rejects the hubris of walking on the fine purple tapestry, an act suggested by Clytemnestra, in hopes of bringing his ruin. This act may be seen as a desecration of a divinely woven tapestry, as a general flouting of the strictures imposed by the gods, or simply as an act of extreme pride and lack of humility before the gods, tempting them to retribution. One other example is that of Oedipus. In Sophocles' Oedipus Rex, while on the road to Thebes, Oedipus meets King Laius of Thebes who is unknown to him as his biological father. Oedipus kills King Laius in a dispute over which of them has the right of way, thereby fulfilling the prophecy that Oedipus is destined to murder his own father. Icarus' flying too close to the sun, despite his father's warning, has been interpreted by ancient authors as hubris, leading to swift retribution. In the Odyssey, the behaviour of Penelope's suitors is called hubris by Homer, possibly still in a broader meaning than was later applied. The blinding and mocking of Polyphemos called down the nemesis of Poseidon upon Odysseus; Poseidon already bore Odysseus a grudge for not giving him a sacrifice when Poseidon prevented the Greeks from being discovered inside the Trojan Horse. Specifically, Odysseus' telling Polyphemos his true name after having already escaped was an act of hubris.

Hubris against the gods is often attributed as a character flaw of the heroes in Greek tragedy, and the cause of the "nemesis," or destruction, which befalls these characters. Herodotus made it clear in a passage,^[9]

However, this represents only a small proportion of occurrences of hubris in Greek literature, and, for the most part, hubris refers to infractions by mortals against other mortals. Therefore, it is now generally agreed that the Greeks did not generally think of hubris as a religious matter, still less that it was normally punished by the gods.

Aristotle defined hubris as shaming the victim, not because anything that happened to you or might happen to you, but merely for your own gratification.^[2] Hubris is not the requital of past injuries—that is revenge. As for the pleasure in hubris, its cause is this: men think that by ill-treating others they make their own superiority the greater.

Crucial to this definition are the ancient Greek concepts of honor (τιμή, timē) and shame (αἰδώς, aidōs). The concept of honor (τιμή, timē) included not only the exaltation of the one receiving honor, but also the shaming of the one overcome by the act of hubris. This concept of honor is akin to a zero-sum game. Rush Rehm simplifies this definition to the contemporary concept of "insolence, contempt, and excessive violence."

Modern use

In its modern use, hubris denotes overconfident pride and arrogance; it is often associated with a lack of humility, though not always with the lack of knowledge. An accusation of hubris often implies that suffering or punishment will follow, similar to the occasional pairing of hubris and nemesis in Greek society. The proverb "pride goes before a fall" (from the biblical Book of Proverbs, 16:18) is thought to summate the modern use of hubris. It is also referred to as "pride that blinds", as it often causes one accused of hubris to act in foolish ways that belie common sense. In other words, the modern definition may be thought of as, "that pride that comes just before the fall". More recently, in his two-volume biography of Adolf Hitler, historian Ian Kershaw uses both 'hubris' and 'nemesis' as titles. The first volume, 'Hubris',^[10] describes Hitler's early life and rise to power. The second, 'Nemesis',^[11] gives details of Hitler's role in the Second World War, and concludes with his fall and suicide in 1945.

Examples of hubris are often found in fiction, most famously in Paradise Lost, John Milton's depiction of the biblical Lucifer. Victor in Mary Shelley's Frankenstein manifests hubris in his attempt to become a great scientist by causing life through technological means, but eventually regrets this previous desire. Marlowe's play Doctor Faustus portrays the eponymous character as a scholar whose arrogance and pride compel him to sign a deal with the devil, and retain his haughtiness until his death and damnation, despite the fact that he could have easily repented had he chosen to do so.

The downfall of the former Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi has, among other things, been attributed to his hubris by the international media.^[12] The mix of over confidence, condescension and pride might have skewed his perception of the Italian economic predicament in 2011, which ultimately led to his ousting.

The term has also been applied to the attitudes of some corporations and governments toward the natural environment that lead them to ignore the dangers of global warming, oil spills, etc. In the wake of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, journalist Naomi Klein uncovered that "the initial exploration plan that BP submitted to the [US] federal government for the ill-fated Deepwater Horizon well reads like a Greek tragedy about human hubris. The phrase 'little risk' appears five times."^[13]

See also

• Beot
• Groupthink
• Narcissism
• Nemesis
• Victory disease
• Self-love

Notes

References

Look up hubris in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

• Cairns, Douglas L. "Hybris, Dishonour, and Thinking Big." Journal of Hellenic Studies 116 (1996) 1-32.
• Fisher, Nick (1992). Hybris: a study in the values of honour and shame in Ancient Greece. Warminster, UK: Aris & Phillips.  A book-length discussion of the meaning and implications of hybristic behavior in ancient Greece.
• MacDowell, Douglas. "Hybris in Athens." Greece and Rome 23 (1976) 14-31.
• Owen, David (2007) The Hubris Syndrome: Bush, Blair and the Intoxication of Power Politico's, Methuen Publishing Ltd.
• http://edition.cnn.com/2011/11/10/opinion/italy-berlusconi-marco-vicenzino/index.html?iref=allsearch

 This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). Encyclopædia Britannica (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press.