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Purple Light

In the US, approximately 46 murders, 4,800 robberies, and 24,660 identity thefts occur daily. These crimes are all committed for the purpose of fulfilling one self's own desires. Yet even worse, these terrible and inhumane acts account for only a tiny fraction of all the wrongdoings humans or, at a smaller scale, Americans commit to benefit themselves. With this concrete evidence, it is almost impossible to dispute Wallace's claim that "there is no experience... you were not at the absolute center" (Wallace paragraph 14)!

But what about volunteering at soup kitchens, or helping a friend out with homework, or even telling the truth? Those are true acts of altruism that cannot be tainted!

But what if they can be?

I'm not saying that every virtuous act is feigned with selfishness, nor am I trying to be a cynic. I am just truly curious as to whether or not us humans are able to distinguish our genuine intentions. Helping the homeless could be because you feel compassion for the needy, but could it be to rid yourself of some kind of guilt? Helping out with homework could be to improve your friend's grade, but could it be because you feel proud to be a good-doing classmate? Telling the truth could be because of integrity, but could it be because you don't want to get caught telling a lie?

There is a gray area between good and bad intentions because of the difficulty of distinguishing between doing the right thing for the sake of following rules or for benefitting yourself. It's really not as clear as following a green light... it's like following a purple light.

Comments

  1. Sohil RamachandraSeptember 14, 2019 at 12:15 PM

    Good Job Sabrina! From reading your blog I am also curious as to if acts of kindness are truly out selflessness. I believe that when all people do good there is some selfishness that goes along with it no matter how small. I don't think there is anything wrong with it and we might not even consciously be thinking it. For example, people who volunteer at the soup kitchen do it because they want to help those less fortunate than them. However, a small reason for volunteering might be to feel better about yourself.

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  2. Alex XuSeptember 14, 2019 at 7:50 PM

    I like how you call it a purple light because things in life aren't as clear as green or red, and purple is often associated with mystery and uncertainty. (I don't think I've heard of the phrase "purple light" before - if you came up with it, that's creative, nice!) As for the forces guiding people's actions - I talk about this more in my blog post, but I believe people are inherently selfish and do things to benefit themselves according to their own utility function. Even if it seems like a "true act of altruism". Maybe one volunteers just to get volunteer hours... so it looks good on college apps (all too relatable :(). Maybe one helps out a friend just to improve their own social status. And then there are times of spontaneity, where one cannot explain their own actions - it just happens.

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  3. Ajay SureshSeptember 15, 2019 at 9:24 AM

    I liked how you thought deeper into the fact that Wallace calls people selfish and that you found examples of everyday situations were selfishness could be harvested, even in good deeds. I also like how you thought of a different explanation other than the obvious one like Wallace does in his writing such as you saying that volunteering at a soup kitchen can make you feel better about yourself. In my opinion, this is harmless and should not be looked down upon because at the end of the day, you are the one offering up your own valuable time to serve the less fortunate regardless of your reasons.

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  4. Sneha DindaSeptember 15, 2019 at 8:50 PM

    I was really intrigues with the topic you chose for your blog. I remember thinking along the same lines once. I wondered if we as humans every really do anything truly selflessly. Even in most selfless actions, one could always find some personal motivation. Yet, I'd like to believe that there are still people who are truly selfless. I also really liked how you compared finding truly good intentions as following the purple light

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  5. Shreya RudagiSeptember 25, 2019 at 11:38 AM

    Wow Sabrina! I really like this new perspective to the truth. It really made me think about how we perceive our actions and how we intend them to be vs. how they could be different to someone else on a another level. Its really interesting how you mentioned that a deed could be bad or good, both can apply to the situation based on the scenario. I really liked this its very interesting! We don't often things about the other side of pros and cons to the deed we do.

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