Humans are inherently selfish. They are born selfish, and they remain selfish for a majority of their lives. And, I too, have struggled with this reality – that sometimes you have to push for something if you really want it, no matter how immoral or unjust it might be.
People tend to look down on capitalism because they see it as a promotion of selfishness. I would have to disagree because I see the people that are successful in society ARE contributing something to the world in return for their economic profits. This includes Steve Job’s contributions to the world, not to mention the countless donations entrepreneurs give on a daily basis. And though companies largely donate to charities due to their desire to heighten their PR, this is better than them not donating at all. I do truly believe if we lived in a world where our paychecks weren’t so massively taxed more people would feel a desire to do their part to help out in the world. So, I don’t see economic selfishness as that bad, although Scrooge was kind of malicious in his intents to hoard all his money.
When I am referring to selfishness, I largely remain centered on the idea that some people push for happiness so far, that they are willing to destroy everything in their path to attain it. This posts a startling contrast to “pushovers”, or those who are very keen on the idea that they have to make everyone around them happy, thus turning themselves into a “selfless” person. This in the end proves itself unrealistic, for they too are trying to heighten their likability by appeasing everybody around them. Sadly, if one turns into a people pleaser there is no realistic way for them to make EVERYBODY around them happy.
But I venture sadly off topic. People need to realize that their personal happiness needs to supersede everyone else’s. Obviously this would never really justify homewrecking or killing, but at the same time due to the inherently selfish elements of human nature, people should push for their own happiness. Obviously, you can still care about people in the process, but as long as you learn to care about yourself, you will start to care more about your surroundings and the people you value most in your life. Selfishness is the reason why people would most likely in a disaster rush to save their loved ones, or their personal family members over a stranger. Selfishness is a human flaw, and something I really need to work on. Even though some things might prove to my benefit to act upon, I know in the long run what will secure my happiness – and seeing people suffering is not one of those things.
At the same time, selflessness can lead to one’s downfall, as most clearly exhibited by Jay Gatsby’s pursuit of Daisy, which inevitably led to his death.
