The passage clarifies that the use of the term 'invidious' is not meant to express approval or disapproval of the phenomena it describes. Instead, it is employed in a technical sense to denote a comparison of individuals for the purpose of assessing and ranking them based on their relative worth or value, particularly in an aesthetic or moral context. This process aims to determine the degrees of self-satisfaction and approval that individuals can legitimately hold for themselves and be viewed by others. In short, an invidious comparison involves evaluating individuals in terms of their worth or value.