Selfish Nature Of Man: Being Selfish To Survive

Many are unaware of the true nature of man, whether it is good or evil. These three qualities: selfish, egocentric, and instinct, can all describe certain aspects of one thing. Mankind. To soon be discovered, the true nature of man is evil because man is selfish. Others may argue that the true nature of man is altruistic or good because we cooperate with others but that is only because cooperation is a learned trait. In the song Sympathy For The Devil by The Rolling Stones, they sing, “Use all your well-known politesse” (Jagger). This means that politesse, which is polite nature, is learned and not inherent. From the time we are born throughout our childhood we are taught, say please and thank you, say you are welcome, hold the door for others. These are taught to us, they do not just come naturally. The article, A Game of cards states, “He is both good and evil, both altruistic and selfish.”(Cousins). 

That being said, selfishness is to evil as altruism is too good. Everyone has selfishness in them whether they believe it or not. From the time individuals are born, they have selfish characteristics. According to Merriam-Webster selfishness is defined as “concerned excessively or exclusively with oneself: seeking or concentrating on one's own advantage, pleasure, or well-being without regard for others”(Selfish) All of what you do for your benefit or to make yourself feel better is selfish whether you realize it or not. For example, holding the door for someone is selfish. One may wonder; how is that selfish? To explain, People hold the door for others to feel better about themselves, and what is part of the definition of selfishness? Concentrating on your own pleasure. Everything we do is selfish, from holding the door to sleep. As shown the selfishness that is rooted in mankind is what makes them evil.One aspect contributing to the evil in mankind is the egocentric parts of people more specifically, egocentrism in children. Between the ages of 2-6 is when children begin to experience egocentrism, “during this stage, we also expect children to display egocentrism, which means that the child is not able to take the perspective of others. A child at this stage thinks that everyone sees, thinks, and feels just as they do.” (Spielman 296). 

During this time in a child's life, they see from their perspective only, not thinking of how others may feel about or view specific topics. For example, in the novel Lord of the Flies, there are times when Jack is only thinking of his point of view “ 'Kill the pig. Cut her throat. Spill her blood.'... 'Look! We’ve killed a pig—we stole upon them—we got in a circle—'... '“We got in a circle—” “We crept up—” “The pig squealed—” ”'...Ralph spoke. '“You let the fire go out.”'...'“We can light the fire again”'….'“I cut the pig’s throat,' said Jack, proudly”(Golding 96-97). At this point in the book, all Jack is flustered and even repeating himself. All he is thinking about is the pig, consequently, he says that the boys can relight the fire. This shows the egocentric parts of him. At this point, all he is thinking about is how he killed the pig and is not taking the time to perceive Ralph’s point of view and how he may feel. With selfishness, individuals make choices without regard for others, and at this point, Jack is only thinking about himself and what he did.The instinct of man is to survive no matter what it takes. How does man survive? 

By putting themselves or their well being first. As defined previously, selfishness is when you put your well being first. When people are babies all they think about is themselves. They think of eating, sleeping, and being clean. When babies are hungry, they cry. When they are tired, they cry. When they need to be changed, they cry. In all of these situations, babies think about themselves and how to survive. Mankind will do the same; whatever it takes to survive. According to The Meaning and Origin of The Expression: Survival of the fittest, it describes part of the survival of the fittest as “The 'fittest' referred to here are those animals which are the most suited to their environment, that is, those which are best fitted to survive.”(The Meaning and Origin). In this article, Mankind can be compared to animals and the ones that are best suited to their environment survive. 

In order for them to be the best fit, they must do whatever it takes to survive. This can be shown in the book when Jack’s lot steals Piggy’s glasses, “ 'There’s something moving outside.'... a yard or so away from the back of the shelter, a stick cracked … Then there was a vicious snarling in the mouth of the shelter… A fist withdrew and came back like a piston, so that the whole shelter exploded into light… 'That was Jack and his hunters,' said Ralph bitterly… The chief led then, trotting steadily, exulting in his achievement. He was a chief now in truth... From his left hand dangled Piggy’s broken glasses”. (Golding 239-242) In this situation, Jack and his tribe were doing whatever it took to survive. The boys required Piggy’s glasses to survive because they needed a fire to cook their meat. Without the fire, they would be forced to find a new source of food, therefore, defeating the purpose of Jack’s tribe. It is our natural instinct to survive. With the boys and Piggy's glasses, this shows that individuals will do whatever it takes to survive even if it is wrong. What the boys did to survive was selfish considering they stole from others. To survive, humans act on their selfish nature. This selfishness is what makes them evil no matter what. Many are unaware of the true nature of man, whether it's good or evil. Mankind can be described by three things Selfishness, Egocentric, and Instinct. As shown, the true nature of man is evil. In today's society, some people carry out good deeds but are still evil. This is because of the selfish choices they chose. Selfishness is to evil as altruistic is too good. That being said, selfishness is what makes people evil.