Is there such thing as a truly selfless act?

[Azdgari]

[quote="Juliette"]Maybe not, but I see that as a good thing.
We're all sticking to what we believe even though someone else disagrees with us.

With this particular topic, I don't think anyone will be swayed from one side to the other, you know? So I don't think we ever will get anywhere debating it. I just think it's interesting to see what other people think, and to try to see their side, while trying to show them mine.

That way, if nothing else, we can both walk away with insight into how other people think about it. Ya feel me?
I understand why you think about it the way you do, but I respectfully disagree with your opinion. =)[/quote]

*rolls eyes*

Gosh, making me log alllll the way back in so I can give you a pride point. Well said.

[Carl]

haha thanks

[Azerane]

I completely understand how things could simply go around and around with this discussion, because I've discussed it before in classes.

I think what it comes down to is perception. Yes there can be selfless acts if you're not thinking of yourself, sometimes we do just react to something to benefit another person. Sure if you analyse it you can always come up with a selfish reason as to why a person would have done anything, but on the spur of the moment, a person is not often thinking of themselves and this I would class as selfless. It's when you start analysing the situation and breaking it down that it can be seen that any act thought to be done selflessly actually wasn't. Yet of course, circumstances differ, people's minds process things differently, so it's all very subjective, and again, it comes down to how that act is perceived.

[SlayerOfLight]

ineteresting subject. in my opinion, something is only selfless when truly concerned about others. If you are helping other people only to earn a specefic title, or to be called a ''saint'', then the truth seems obvious that it wasn't done so because of selfness. You can even do righteous things in order to manipulate or corrupt others.

My conclusion: good deeds and heroic acts don't make us selfness. Only our heart does.

[BlitzRogue]

Okay, I know this topic is kinda old now, and I haven't been here in forever (o hai gais), but I just wanted to share my $0.02 on the matter.

From what I've read thus far, the major argument of those saying that there is no such thing as a selfless act seems to be that, even if you don't specifically think about an act before committing it, you could still be thinking sub-consciously about the positive effects of an action and therefore tarnish any possibility of that act being considered truly "selfless".

What I would say to that is: do you have any proof that that is actually the case? Because if not, then you're making a massive assumption about the way our sub-conscious impacts our conscious decisions.

The soldier who smothered a grenade with his own body was pretty much the dictionary definition of selflessness. Being more concerned with others than with yourself. They were more concerned with saving the lives of the other soldiers in the area than with keeping themselves alive, which is a direct denial of our natural inclination towards survival. That is selflessness.

In case you hadn't guessed, I'm of the opinion that selflessness is very much within the realm of possibility. Which is saying something, considering I also feel very strongly that the human race as a whole is very selfish. But when you actually get down to individuals, it's very hard to deny the possibility. Not without some solid evidence that our sub-conscious actually can and does automatically default to our own personal gain in situations like that, I feel that there's really very little debate.

[StarlightLioness]

I voted Yes. I do think that there are completely selfless acts.

I have chosen to check the box for "Organ Donor" on my driver's license. I don't expect any "fame" or praise for that. I simply want my organs to help others live if I die. There is a saying that I saw once - "Why take your organs to Heaven, when Heaven knows we need them here?" That's exactly how I feel about it. Once I die, I won't need my organs. Why let them rot in the ground if they can be used to save another life?

Every so often, I clean my house and collect piles of things that I no longer want or need. If I can't resell the item on Amazon, I donate it to my local thrift store, which works along with a charity. I'd much rather see the charity try to make some money off the item rather than toss it in the garbage pail. So I will go out of my way to box up the items and drive them over to the thrift store. Again, I don't expect anything in return. (Although it *is* always nice to clear some space in my closets and bookshelves.) But again, I could opt to walk thirty feet to the garbage pail...but I don't.

[Woeler]

Yes there is. Doctor killing a patient who does not want to live anymore but can not get euthanasia (e.g. Huntingtons disease) with an overdose of morfine (can not be traced in autopsy). The doctor is even risking his medical license. He has absolutely NOTHING to gain from this act. This does happen btw.

[FlipMode]

Yeah but even then, is there not something in his brain that tells him that was the right thing to do? For all our advancements and researches in human genetics, the mind and process of thought still remains a very ambiguous subject. And if we are doing something on that kind of level because we believe it is the right ting to do, is it really still all that selfless?

And lets not forget the people who believe in karma, doing good deeds because they believe that the world will treat them well in return. I mean sure if you are friendly to someone, they are going to be friendly with you.... But is that the real reason why we do so? Just because they will respect us in return. Respect and love is a basic human desire, correct? If this is the case, selfless acts may in fact be done in order to help us achieve that desire. We want to be the ones doing the right thing, because it makes us feel better about ourselves as a person and that is where any selfless act "could" have a hint of selfishness to it.

That homeless guy on the streets of Brighton... He is there every time I go into town, in the exact same place, begging passers by for any spare change. If I give him some change, it will make me feel good about myself, and could be considered selfless, but its not fixed his problems at all, and all that has happened is I feel like my good deed for the day has been done. (Course I dont give him any money, because chances are I would see said money being carried to the nearest pub, but still, examples sake =P)

[Azdgari]

I mean, we come back to the same impasse... whether or not we do the right thing because it is the right thing or because it releases some tiny pocket of endorphins into our brains seems to be the question. The something in our brain is almost certainly cultural, for the most part. I find your arguments about karma and respect interesting but sort of peripheral. I think the real issue at hand is whether doing things for others can be done without thinking of oneself in the process. For example, do I let a guy merge in front of me because I'm being nice or because it makes me feel like I'm being nice?

[DGFone]

Yes there is such a thing. Seeing as selfless is when you don't think about yourself and what you can gain from an action influences you a whole 0%, these things do happen.

The problem is what happens when the person survives and then thinks about it. But as for the time during the action itself? Happens all the time. Just because you unintentionally benefited from an action in the future doesn't mean that you were thinking about how it can help you while you were acting.

So yes, you can even earn a billion dollars after a truly selfless act.