Warren Kinston
8. April 2012 11:00
«Egoism and altruism» is a hardy perennial of philosophers and now a staple for academic psychologists. Are people basically self-interested or basically concerned for others?
Trick question. Once the issue is posed like this, any hope of understanding oneself or acting sensibly is lost.
People act in their own self-interest. They must. Some are certainly more self-centred than others. People are also capable of concern for others and demonstrate benevolence. They must. Otherwise it would be hard to live in groups. Again, there is variation amongst people in the degree of altruism. For some of you, it might be hard to live with yourself if you were irredeemably selfish.
The issue is never what academics or philosophers assert people 'are'—and which, supposedly, is what you are or what I am. The issue in real life is always about what am I going to do at this moment in this situation given who I am. The variations here are almost infinite.
Yes, we do have tendencies and styles. But we are not More...
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Warren Kinston