PHIL 2550 Lecture Notes - Lecture 12: Egotism, Supererogation, Virtue Ethics
7 Mar 2017
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People often do good things for others, but are their motives selfish, or genuinely altruistic. Two theories about moral action: egoism (acts are done selfishly, altruism (acts are done non-selfishly) According to this fable, everyone would use it selfishly because people are selfish at their core. As a normative theory it is best to do what satisfies your own desires and interests regardless of the consequences for others. It is very difficult to believe egoist are everywhere but maybe this is the case. But we are discussing egoism/altruism from a psychological perspective (descriptive). Tends to concern acts that go beyond our moral duties, or obligations. Altruism tends to refer to the supererogatory acts (those acts that are morally praiseworthy, but not morally obligated) ex. running into a burning building to save a stranger. Tends to confound theories of decision-making (and some evolutionary theories) that rely on. Thus, traditionally, philosophical altruism appears strange and seems to require some sort of explanation.
