Examples Of Being Selfless In The Gift Of The Magi

Firefighters risk their lives in order to protect the public from fire and many other dangers. This seems like a noble selfless career but it cannot be considered truly altruistic because they are being paid for their services through monetary gain, recognition from the people they serve and many other benefits. Since they are receiving something in return it cannot be considered a truly altruistic action. If one would take a minute to think if they did not get paid to do what they do, would they continue to serve the people, risking their lives for absolutely nothing in return? The same pattern can be seen in many other “altruistic” behaviors. Parents feel like they are behaving in a selfless manner when they work and spend a huge chunk of their wages to send their children to receive an education instead of getting one themselves. While yes, this is noble of them to want their children to live a better quality of life than they did, the parents are still receiving the benefit of their own offspring being educated and therefore increasing their kids’ chances of prospering. The truly altruistic action would be to spend their lives paying for the education of kids they have never met, which have no connection to them

If you wanted to spot selflessness out you just need to look for certain things, are they quick to help with no hesitation? Doing a favor and expecting nothing in return? If yes then there are some people that come to mind when thinking of being selfless. Selflessness

What does being selfless mean to you? According to Oxford English Dictionary, selflessness is “concern more with the needs and wishes of others than with one's own.” (James Murray, “selflessness”). In our society today, not many people are likely to be selfless especially if it means putting a stranger’s well-being above their own. Many people will not even put a close friend or family member’s needs above their own. Sometimes people find the will to help someone who is in need, but that does not happen very often. Most of the time, if a person goes out of their way to help someone in need, they will expect to gain something out of it such as fame or money. Very rarely do people do things for others that involve harming their lives because then they do not gain anything from their acts. In the novel Kindred, by Octavia Butler, Dana shows her selflessness through always putting people and their needs first. She first does it with her ancestors and then even begins helping other slaves who need her help. Selflessness is an important key to everyone's personality. In our society, we often expect rewards for doing a good deed, however being selfless without getting rewarded is what really counts. When Dana saved Rufus the first time, Margret punched and beat her instead of thanking her. Dana must have been confused since she did not get thanked or rewarded by Tom and Margaret, but rather was beat and almost shot. Being selfless can also motivate more people and even yourselves.

Indeed, it’s selfish because it means that the person is not concerned about the other person’s opinion on it, despite the truth that it sounds selfless and

Such an act would certainly appear unselfish, but there are two arguments that the psychological egoist may put forward to argue that this is not the case.

Selfless- concerned more with the needs and wishes of others than with one's own, not selfish

For instance Celaena was being selfless when she went to save a young girl from four older and very drunk men who were trying to sexually assault her. That is very selfless. Celaena also gave her fighting lessons so next time she can defend herself against men like that.According to The Assassin’s Blade by Sarah J. Maas,’’Whether you stay, or go to Antica and attend the Torre Cresme, and return to save the world,’’She mused,’’You should probably learn a thing or two about defending yourself.’’ Celaena was kind enough to teach that girl how to defend herself although she did not have the

Being generous ensures success for all in a cooperative system. There is an exchange of giving and receiving within this system and as long as this is maintained, no one is placed at a disadvantageous position. Essentially,

When one sees the word selfless-service, he or she literally sees the words self and less, followed by service. Self refers to an individual (in this case, it refers to one’s own interests) and less indicates a lack of, or without. Service can be a synonym of the word volunteering or duty. Therefore, the term selfless service must literally mean the lack of the pursuit of one’s own interests for the betterment of others. There is no measurement of selfless service. No matter what the scenario or who is involved, everyone who is involved benefits from one’s selfless acts. The one who shows selflessness may benefit by receiving a “thank you,” or even just a good feeling of helping others. Of course, the ones who receive the selfless acts benefit from obvious reasons. Selfless-service can be shown by anyone and everyone, including a soldier putting his/her life on the line to save a fallen comrade, a husband and father protecting and spending time with his wife and children, someone donating his/her time by volunteering as a tutor or with the American Red Cross or some other goodwill charity, and the teamwork of two or more athletes. Those four examples provide different scales in which selfless-service can be displayed. Selfless-service can be displayed in regards to one’s nation/military, one’s family, one’s community, and any team sport.

According to Webster’s dictionary, the meaning of selfless is being concerned more with the needs and wishes of others than with one’s own. “Under the Rice Moon” is a story about a bird and sickly girl that demonstrates how one should be selfless.

Thoughtful acts are very helpful because they can help someone, they may help your outlook in public, also it may help you feel good about yourself. I’ve been helpful to a lot of people in my past. One time someone who was being bullied books fell out of there hands in the hall. It felt good helping another person. I felt very generous. Have you ever helped someone without being asked first or given anything?

Stories of love and sacrifice abound in literature. Perhaps one of the most well known stories among teens and adults is the tale of a poor, young couple struggling to find the perfect Christmas gifts for each other using their very limited means. They each manage to get what they think is the perfect gift for the other, but only accomplish this by selling a prized possession which effectively makes the new gifts impractical. This bittersweet narrative, “The Gift of the Magi” by O. Henry, illustrates the moral idea that a person, motivated by nothing but love for another, can possess a willingness to give in a self-denying way which necessitates that the reader consider that wealth be measured by something more than having money

In a world where selfish people are easier to find than selfless people, it makes it wonderful to have selfless people around. Being selfless not only benefits you, but as well as the others around you. As an example, take a moment to ponder the decision of Jonas Salk. He created an effective vaccine for polio, and was pinned between two choices.

It doesn’t just apply to single mothers, this can be applied to every type of person; whether it be wealthy men sacrificing his job for the sake of his family, a homeless woman trying to feed her dog, there is no limit. In the short story, “The Gift of Magi,” by O.Henry, Della sacrifices her most prized possession, her hair, to get a gift that will make her husband happy. In the same sense, Jim also sacrifices his most prized treasure, his gold watch that had been his father's and his grandfather's, to obtain a gift that would bring a smile to his wife’s face. Even though their sacrifices made their gifts unusable, it was in their best intentions. Knowing that, the items did not matter, all that mattered was the fact that the other was willing to sacrifice their most prized possession for a moment of joy.

I didn’t truly understand it at the time, but as I grow older and mature I am beginning to understand more and more. Also, in that same conversation, my father told me about some of the people he works with and works for, and how they give back but often only in the spotlight. They will donate money when the attention is on them, or they will do charity events when the media is involved. Looking back at it, this is a very selfish idea. When do we hit that point in our life where we are so selfish that we can not help others; is it a conscious decision or are we just not aware of our actions? I have seen this same of idea of selfishness in my own experiences. I went to a very wealthy private school, with many students coming very wealthy families. Often these families would donate money to the school, but in return they expected a plaque or they expected something to be named after them, some kind of recognition. Some people will say this is not selfish because they are giving back; however, others will say this is a selfish action because they are only giving looking for a return.