Jealousy is an inevitable sentiment in any relationship. It’s funny when your friends get jealous if they see you close to other people. It’s cute when your boyfriend is jealous when you talk too much about this cool guy who happens to be a friend. But when jealousy turns into possessiveness, it’s time to see red.
There is a very thin line between being possessive and being
jealous. Many a times, it is not apparent
that the line has been crossed.
Possessiveness sometimes translates to having the desire to control the other
person’s action and the need to dominate. Often it is the result of deep-rooted
chauvinism .
Possessiveness is something I cannot tolerate. No one can control my actions, no matter how
much he or she loves me. Possessiveness is not a sign of love. It’s a sign of a
desire to own someone. In a romantic relationship, one partner may show a
desire to decide what their partner wears, a desire to know where their
partner is going, who he or she is meeting; there is a need to know what their
partner is doing at every minute. In extreme cases, there is a desire to
dictate what one’s partner should do; all the time.
In many cases both partners are possessive. In most
cases(here I am citing straight relationships) the male is possessive about his
partner. His partner may not have male associates, friends; his partner may not
decide what to wear or where to go on her own. In such cases of extreme possessiveness
violence is also involved. Obviously, such relationships are unhealthy.
In cases of parent-child relationships if parents are too possessive
of their children; it will hinder their personal growth as an individual. After
a certain age it is necessary for children to learn to make their own decisions.
If they are not allowed to do so, it
will lead to clingyness and unhealthy dependency. Such dependency will again deter
the person from being able to move on and learn to live if and when their
parents expire. Such people fail to have
normal relationships with other people. They also may need counseling or
psychological help.
Jealousy on the other hand, does not do much harm. Unless
ofcourse it’s envy. The green eyed monster. Though envy is a synonym of
jealousy, it is a more intense emotion. Envy. So many things have been written
about envy. So many poems and plays are based on this emotion. Woman are said
to have mastered the art of being envious. A very stereotypical view, I must
add. It’s a lot of things. Resent. Spite. Even hatred. Jealousy seems, less complicated, less harmful.
Semantics define jealousy as the base emotion which may give birth to possessiveness and envy. Its like a river with two distributaries.
It's fascinating that one emotion can imply so many different things. They have different undertones at different times they are used. Emotions are complicated, ain't they? And language is an amazing thing.
Pretty true, there is indeed a thin line between jealousy and possessiveness and it is often crossed and often involuntarily too... I can't say much in this topic because I am not the right person to talk about it. I made my share of mistakes...
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