Human actions?

Question

are always for self gain, no matter what.

is there any way round this hypothesis? i think not?

(slapping yourself now IS for self-gain, as you are attempting to prove to yourself that you can break this hypothesis)

Answer 1

I agree with you , I think that all actions are for self gain. even giving to charity may be done just to make yourself feel better. But i suppose the only time an action is without self gain, is where there is no ego involved and no regard for one self. and that's practically impossible.

I think that a completely selfless act is when the person knows that the cons outweigh the pros (including the state of righteousness and ego afterwards), and yet still goes through with it, for someone Else's gain. so true there is always going to be SOME self gain, but when looking at the action's consequences it cannot be said that the action was ENTIRELY for self development.

Its also because we learn from every action we do. so there is gain found in everything, including the actions of others. Many people acted to teach others without regard of how they were perceived afterwards e.g. Gandhi could be considered selfless.

Answer 2

saving someone even if you may die is not for self gain.  you gain nothing, you loose your life and you arn't there for the respect that comes with saveing lives.

Answer 3

sounds like you put the "S" in selfish.

Answer 4

I think it depends more on your interpretation of self-gain, surely basic human instinct is more related to enabling us to survive but not always at the expense of others.  Self gain is more about how one can profit from a situation, preferably /generally at someone else's expense, a more selfish aspect of the human psyche but not necessarily morally bereft.

I suppose if you view gaining pleasure from altruistic acts as self gain then yes your hypothesis may well be correct as you interpret it, but would it withstand rigorous testing as a theory? Difficult and I'm not sure how you could prove it to it's ultimate conclusion, but certainly an interesting idea and makes you think.