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thoughts on human selfishness
thoughts on human selfishness
an article on selfishness
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All humans are selfish on instinct, the will to survive being an innate trait that all humans are born with, but most people don’t give this selfishness a second thought despite having the brain power to do so. It has become so natural for people to act based on their own personal interests that someone who observes more than acts can see the consequences that come with that way of living. In my life I observe far too many people around me making selfish decisions to only benefit themselves. I can willingly admit I’m not the pinnacle of selflessness either, since selfishness is a survival mechanism that is deeply ingrained in the human DNA, but I spare people second thoughts and glances. I instill deep emotional values and strive towards being a selfless being in my daily life.
This value and goal of selflessness has impacted my relationships with other people and myself. Shortly after my father died, I developed a subconscious bond to an unselfish ideal. It has been
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Being proud of myself for helping others and receiving their approval is not selfish. I do not help in order to cause other people to hold pride in me, I help because I’ve been asked. I do not commit selfless acts because of the benefits I will receive if people see me as such. Logic and an unwillingness to believe gives others an excuse to put selflessness under a scrutiny that I do not wish to be under, so I let the general public see me as a teenager who is as selfish as the rest. Unselfish acts are put under scrutiny because humans do not believe that overriding something so basic can be possible and because being unselfish seems like a legend to them. This is a challenge to my value because it is so difficult to be selfless when others tell you that it isn’t possible. Part of committing to being selfless is having the hope that it is possible, but I haven’t lost my hope
Even forms of human beings preforming selfless acts derives from ones desire to help others, which in a way makes that person feel importance. Blessed Teresa of Calcutta, better known as Mother Teresa, devoted her life to helping those in great need. To many these acts may appear as selfless and gallant acts that are not performed by anyone with any type of ego. Yet when taking a psychological look at why she performed such acts they may appear a somewhat more for herself. Every time anyone does anything, even when for someone else, they are doing it for some type of feeling that they experience. With the holiday season approaching, there will be a specific emphasis on giving unlike any other time of the year. We give yes to show gratitude for someone we love, but also to experience the joy in seeing someone enjoy something they them self-caused. Even while being selfless humans have the unique ability to still be doing something that involves caring for them self. This outlook toward the human condition completely debunks Wolf’s claim that “when caring about yourself you are living as if you are the center of the universe.” When choosing to do anything positive or negative, for others or for yourself, you are still taking your self-interest into consideration, making it
Can being selfish ever be acceptable? Anthem by Ayn Rand and the song “I Get Out” by Lauryn Hill share a similar theme relating to selfishness. “I Get Out” expresses the theme that man should be selfish, with Hill singing of reaching a new and better life strictly for her benefit . In comparison, the theme of Anthem is that one should praise man’s ego and, again, allow themselves to be selfish. Anthem focuses on standing out from the crowd and expressing individual interests for their own sake when Equality, a young man forced into a collectivist society, finally chooses to escape to an independent land.. Both Anthem and “I Get Out” possess the similar theme that man should be selfish, based on both Hill and Equality’s knowledge of better life, their repression by leaders of their society, and the strength of their quest for freedom.
Selfishness is a common trait in the world, it’s not a hidden factor, but very well-known as being one’s self-interest. The story “Hunters in the Snow” by Tobias Wolff, discusses how each character in the story deals with different kinds of selfish ways. One character, Tub, deals with eating problems and lies about it. Frank deals with a secret life that he is hiding from his wife. Kenny is always comparing something to his liking and if he does not like it then he will complain. Self-absorption is when someone is focused on their self and only themselves. It is known to be a regular’s human’s condition, it’s something majority of human beings have. Selfishness may also kick in during survival incidents. For example, a boy and his friends
Selfishness is a disease of the soul that every person experiences several times throughout their life. To say that it has never been experienced would be hypocrisy. To say that it is a “good thing”, would be erroneous. Although as humans we like to lie to ourselves, it is no question that selfishness can make any person act like a fool. It consumes us and makes us into someone we are not. Whether it leads to getting people killed, falling in love, or buying alcohol, selfishness always leads to destruction.
Is human nature inherently selfless or selfish? Although a seemingly simple concept, the aforementioned question has long been a profoundly controversial topic. While many claim that humans are intrinsically compassionate and inclined to help those in need, others argue that people instinctively prioritize their own individual security over other people’s welfares. Nathaniel Hawthorne’s literary works, “Young Goodman Brown” and The Scarlett Letter, as well as F. Scott Fitzgerald’s renowned novel, The Great Gatsby, all reference the idea that people impulsively pursue perfection, as determined by their community’s values. While different communities establish different standards for perfection, society as whole romanticizes the idea of perfection and subsequently people strive to create the illusion of a perfect life. How an individual represents the values idealized by a given community determines his/her reputation in that community. Although people may appear to wholesomely follow the values idolized by their community, in reality, human nature is inherently flawed, making it impossible for people to achieve perfection.
If one wishes to be a psychological egoist, then one needs to explain why people do certain actions that appear to be genuine acts of altruism.
With the development of modern society, many people say that the society has become miserable, and people only care their own profit. The self-interest is becoming the object of attacking. Thereupon, when we mention self- interest, people always mix up the concept of self-interest with selfishness. As we all known, the idea of selfishness is, “Abusing others, exploiting others, using others for their own advantage – doing something to others.” (Hospers, 59) Selfish people have no ethics, morals and standards when they do anything. At the same time, what is self – interest? Self- interest can be defined as egoism, which means a person is, “looking out for your own welfare.” (Hospers, 39) The welfare people talk about is nothing more than
If a person had to choose between their life and someone else’s, they’d choose to be the ones to live. Selfishness is a terrible thing that can cause families to fight, it can cause wars, or the death of someone to spare one’s own life. Night by Elie Wiesel, shows many examples of selfishness. Sons leave their fathers to save their own lives, reluctantly feed their dying father and even kill just for a piece of bread. Humans are inherently selfish, it’s a personality trait that doesn’t care about relatives or lovers or anyone else.
For someone who believes in psychological egoism, i t is difficult to find an action that would be acknowledged as purely altruistic. In practice, altruism, is the performance of duties to others with no view to any sort of personal...
“Those who care for others… live a life , in a divine way, above others” -Anonymous. Even as small children, we are taught to treat others as we would like to be treated, but as we grow older, the world becomes more complex, and the length to which we should stretch ourselves for others becomes unclear. Some people may believe that one must always put others first, while others put other people’s worries and safety far behind their own. Throughout this year I have gathered artifacts, some support these theories, while others do not, and a rew support my own theory. I believe that the most healthy and appropriate way to approach this moral grey area is to always consider other’s needs and feelings, but you must also consider your needs and know
In the book, “Touching the Void”, climber Simson Yates was,”unable to lift his friend up and losing his own grip on the mountain ended up cutting the rope to Simpson to save himself” (Survival 9). This particular incident isn’t selfish considering they both would’ve died if Yates continued to lose strength as he pulled up the rope. Also, in the “Titanic”, Bruce Ismay, “was ruined” because he got in a lifeboat even though there, “was no longer women or children in sight” (Survival 1). This is clearly not selfish since no women or children were left to aboard the lifeboat, anyone would do the same considering the circumstances. Lastly, in the Grand Central Station incident when the lady witnessed an explosion underground and she states, “people were frozen or screaming, but nobody was moving towards the emergency exits, even as smoke began to fill the cabin. After realizing everyone around her were too paralyzed to react, she took action, crawling over several rows of people to the exit” (Survival 6 & 7). This isn’t selfish because there was no time to get people to focus on the exits, so she took action and saved herself which was just common instinct if you weren’t the people,
The idea that a person can be purely good and altruistic does not exist due to society’s acceptance and embrace of the selfishness and greed of human beings. People these days are some of the most selfish beings to ever exist but they are not ashamed of their actions because of how the world around them welcomes their self-centered nature with open arms. Selfishness comes is many ways, shapes, and forms. Many businesses need to utilize the greed of mankind in order to make money and prosper; “Greed-for lack of a better word-is good. Greed is right. Greed works” (Wall Street). Even politicians use their greed to run campaigns for themselves in order to win the hearts of Americans. As well as fulfill their ultimate selfish goal to be the man
People perpetrate seemingly selfless acts almost daily. You see it all over the news; the man who saved that woman from a burning building, the mother who sacrificed herself to protect her children from the bomb blast. But how benevolent are these actions? Are these so-called “heroes” really sacrificing themselves to help others? Until recently, it was the common belief that altruism, or selfless and unconditional kindness, was limited primarily to the human race. However, within the last century, the works of several scientists, most prominently George Price, have provided substantial evidence concluding that altruism is nothing more than a survival technique, one that can be calculated with a simple equation.
Selfishness is a term fairly notorious for its meaning. A lot of people accept that being selfish is wrong, but no one knows how this came about and why it matters. Who has the right to decide whether someone gets to be selfish or not? In his article “The unselfishness Trap”, Harry Browne says that the best way for people to be happy is when if everyone sacrifices but me. Thomas Nagel, on the other hand, argues in his article “The Objective Basis of Morality” that being concerned about others is more important. Being selfish, for many people, is evil. By definition, selfishness is to be more concerned about yourself than others, but that would essentially make every living human being a “selfish” being.
...esult, the more directly one sees their personal efforts impact someone else, the more happiness one can gain from the experience of giving. Sometimes generosity requires pushing past a feeling of reluctance because people all instinctively want to keep good things for themselves, but once one is over this feeling, they will feel satisfaction in knowing that they have made a difference in someone else’s life. However, if one lives without generosity but is not selfish, they can still have pleasure from other virtues.