Altruism is doing something at a cost or risk. But I wonder if you can still obtain altruism if you think about the act or risk that you are about to take on. I think that the answer is yes. I think that even if you are aware that there is a risk, if you chose to take it, than you are being altruistic.
Heroism however, I think often involves less thinking. I think that Heroic acts are altruistic acts that are done on impulse, and of course often involve greater risk. For example, pushing someone out of the way of an on coming car is heroic because there was no time to think about doing it, and the risk of being injured was high. But it doesn't always have to be physical risk that is possible. For example, if a friend, or stranger needed a large sum of money for a life saving surgery, and you write them a check, right then and there, no questions asked, emptying your bank account, or even putting a large dent in it, then that is heroic. I think. What do you think?
While I'd agree that heroism is often unconsidered and immediate, I also think that there are certain considered acts which still qualify as heroic. For example, someone might think for quite a while before deciding to donate a vital internal organ to a neighbor's child, but that would not remove the heroism of the act.
ReplyDeleteOn a closely related note, is there a point at which heroism becomes stupidity? If a person pushes someone else out of the way of a train and is hit themself, when they could have simply shouted to alert the potential victim (who could have gotten out of the way in time), was that person being a hero or being a fool? I think that in this case we could say they were being both. They probably did not consider the possibility of saving the person in a less dangerous manner, so their actions were heroic, but ultimately unnecessary. Their death would be a waste, but that would not decrease the heroism of the actions leading up to it.
P.S. I also posted this on my blog if you'd rather read it there.