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In the past few months, I've observed that there is actually a thing like general envy for the rich. They tend to be blamed for the slightest bad events that is connected to them in anyway even if it is completely out of context or insignificantly related.

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    Are you looking for "resentment"? (But note that the rich resent the poor probably even more than the poor resent the rich.)
    – Hot Licks
    Commented Apr 9, 2018 at 12:01
  • The rich resent the poor? Would like to see data on that. Still trying to analyze the situation but usually, it seems they have no problems by default until the name of any rich person/organization pops into the news, and then they become irrational and instantly condemning. This is a behavior which I think is responsible for a lot of triving conspiracies amongst others.
    – Chibueze Opata
    Commented Apr 9, 2018 at 13:15
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    "General envy for the rich?" Actually that's a pretty big assumption that opens up many reasonable questions from several points of view. Sociologists would have something to say about this claim in terms of social norms (en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Social_norm). Economists such as Thomas Piketty, whose 2013 book Capital in the 21st Century was a best-seller for months, would view that claim through the corrosive lens of trends in wealth and income inequality. In other words, finding a single, all-purpose word for general envy for the rich is not a simple task.
    – user57832
    Commented Apr 9, 2018 at 13:35
  • It's actually very interesting. It actually seems higher in areas with higher wealth inequalities. And what's funny is the more I read, the more it seems like an accepted norm. In fact, the definition of grudge from Google provides "she resented the fact that I had children" as an example. Suggesting that envy which may be apparently what is behind it all is completely normal. It seems to be a difficult topic. Maybe survival instinct is the real word I'm looking for.
    – Chibueze Opata
    Commented Apr 9, 2018 at 15:20
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    If you do not insist on a single word, please make that clear. If you do insist then no, there isn't. "Plutophobia" would be a great start and I'd suggest "plutinvidia" but that's first invented and then pompous… Beneath which, adding "general" could complicate it out of useful recognition…
    – Robbie Goodwin
    Commented Apr 22, 2018 at 17:02

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There's a difference between envy (wanting to be like someone or have what they have) and blaming someone for something.

Going with the second - and completely opposite to the first - "Plutophobia" has been used to describe a fear of wealthy people, though the term is more general than that, and can also relate to a fear of wealth itself.

However, it's probably not the word you're looking for, since a sufferer of plutophobia might blame and try to avoid the wealthy but would have no feelings of envy for anyone rich.

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    I agree - envy of something is different than blaming that something for your ills. One may be envious of something AND blame that same something for your troubles, but those are separate emotions.
    – mike65535
    Commented May 9, 2018 at 12:33

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