Selfishness, Bad or Good?

             When someone calls another person selfish, it is usually taken in a negative sense. But why? Is it truly bad to be concerned with yourself before anyone else? If I'm crossing the street with my friend and I see a car coming at us, would I be wrong to save myself and jump out of the way rather then pushing my friend out of the way and getting hit by the car myself? Why should I value another life over mine? Who would protect me better than I can protect myself? Fortunately, I'm not alone in believing that selfishness is not a bad thing. Ayn Rand believes in the Objectivist ethics as well. The Objectivist ethics says that the actor must always be the beneficiary of his action. It holds that man must act for his own rational self-interest. After all who will value your life better than yourself?
             The Objectivist ethics is often misunderstood. It is widely believed that Moral Cannibalism comes from the Objectivist ethics. Moral Cannibalism says that the only way one can advance oneself is by injury to another. Ayn Rand believes in the contrary, he holds that the Objectivist ethics says that human good does not require human sacrifices and can't be achieved by the sacrifices of anyone. Ayn Rand explains that if a person who follows the Objectivist ethics wants a commodity from another person, that person will go about getting it is through trade. He will not kill to get it, he will simply offer something that would be of equal value to the holder of the commodity he is interested in. In today's world, if I want a car I am not going to walk into a car dealership, kill every sales person and drive out with a car. Conversely, I will enter the dealership and offer money as a trade for the car. That's how I can attain what I want, using the Objectivist ethics, Moral Cannibalism is not even thought of. Obviously, it is the best method of getting something you want, we do it
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Selfishness, Bad or Good?. (1969, December 31). In MegaEssays.com. Retrieved 00:16, April 27, 2024, from https://www.megaessays.com/viewpaper/91720.html