“Is it less altruistic to support charities that we sympathise with/relate to, as opposed to supporting all charities within our means?” Thank you, Arjun Sambhi, for another head-scratcher! Altruism speaks to our motives, rather than specifically the things we do. We act from altruism when two things happen at once: firstly, when we are motivated […]
Is it less altruistic to support charities that we relate to? Read More
Hello, SE! Thank you so much for your question. It is a question that umbrellas a set of questions which have dogged me for years: Do I have a moral duty to give to charity? If I do, then how much, and to whom?* What role ought the State occupy in such charitable endeavours? And
Is charity pointless? Read More
Thanks, Miguel Pineda, for this intriguing question! Before we can think about how morality and altruism are related, we first need to get clear on what we mean by ‘morality’ and ‘altruism’. Moral philosophers, like the rest of us, generally agree at least roughly about what moral norms require. Don’t kill, don’t lie, don’t steal
Is morality just altruism? Read More
