Guided Response: Please review several classmates’ posts and respond to at least two classmates’ initial posts. Each response must be to a student whose post consists of an opposing argument to yours. That is, if you are assigned to argue in favor of altruism, you must respond to one student who argued in favor of egoism and one who argued in favor of “somewhere in the middle of altruism and egoism.” Your responses should challenge your classmates’ arguments using the research you found to support your argument. Continue to monitor the discussion forum until 5:00 p.m. MST on Day 7 of the week and respond to anyone who replies to your initial post.

Egoism is the idea of being selfish and always putting your own needs first without regard for the needs of others. Someone who is a complete egoist does not care at all about other people, but only about their own goals, interests, and their own benefit. Psychological Egoism is not a moral theory, but aims to be a psychological theory about human motivation. Are humans capable of achieving pure altruism? Altruism is a selfless concern for those around us and doing things out of the goodness of our hearts rather than expecting to gain from it. Nowadays, if you watch the news, it’s all about murders, robbers, and hate filled human beings, that it’s almost impossible to believe that Altruism really exists in the world we live today. I’d like to debate that Altruism really does exist and egoism doesn’t rule the world like people claim. I was reading an article written by JUDITH LICHTENBERG (2010) asking if Altruism still existed in the world. She then gave examples such as: The Virginia Tech professor who blocked the doorway to shield his students from the bullets that were flying from the shooters gun or on the New York City subway platform where bystanders jumped on the tracks to save him from getting hit by the train. Did any of these individuals have anything to gain from saving these people from being hurt? I say absolutely not. “One reason people deny that altruism exists is that, looking inward, they doubt the purity of their own motives. We know that even when we appear to act unselfishly, other reasons for our behavior often rear their heads: the prospect of a future favor, the boost to reputation, or simply the good feeling that comes from appearing to act unselfishly” (Lichtenburg, 2010). I just don’t believe that Altruism isn’t real. When people are stepping in front of bullets, they get nothing from it. However, a part of me does believe that the motivation behind altruistic acts can lie somewhere between Altruism and Egoism. “Batson assumes that altruism is motivation to benefit another as means to reduce one’s own distress caused by witnessing the other’s distress. The idea that acting to reduce another’s distress might be motivated by desire to reduce vicarious personal distress has a long

history in Western thought” (Dibou, 2012). I do believe culture has a hand in Altruism. I read about how Christians believe the crucifixion of Jesus to be an Altruistic act which inspires others of the same faith to also act out of the goodness of their own heart and not for selfish reasons. To finish up my debate, I do absolutely believe that Altruism exists. Maybe it doesn’t happen with everyone and not every day. However, I believe people do things out of the kindness of their heart and it’s inspiring!