Envy is defined as “a feeling of discontented or resentful longing aroused by someone else’s possessions, qualities, or luck.” It’s one of the Seven Deadly Sins according to the Catechism of the Catholic Church, and, in The Conquest of Happiness, atheist philosopher Bertrand Russell wrote that envy was one of the strongest causes of unhappiness. Sadly, marketing is all about stirring up envy to convince you that you need something you didn’t even know existed.

Commercials and advertisements a...