Star Trek uses contrast to get its point across. One of the biggest points it makes is the idea of altruism and self-interest (Ciulla, Chapter 6). Khan is portrayed as leading with self-interest as his guide, while Spock leads with more of an altruism feel. Altruism is defined as sacrificing your interest/wellbeing for those of the group (Kanungo & Mendonca). He is a Vulcan, who uses logic to guide his life. Due to this fact he does not weigh self-interest as heavily as humans, which was one of the strongest criticisms of altruism. The good for the majority is what confirms his decisions. There are two examples of this in the movie. When Kirk was stuck underground trying to find Genesis, Spock exaggerated the amount of time that would be needed to repair the ship. This was shocking because it could be considered a lie; however, Spock decided that since Khan could hear the conversation, it was better to exaggerate so that the ship could survive. The largest altruism action he took was when he sacrificed himself so that the ship could gain enough power to escape. This is the ultimate sacrifice and is very selfless. Khan on the other hand made the decision to follow Kirk into the NOVA, knowing that their shields would be disabled. By doing this he put his need for revenge over …show more content…
Kirk was the prominent displayer of this trait. He had an aura about him that drew people to him. He had legitimate power due to his ranking and also had factual knowledge. He also demonstrated referent power, because people looked up to him. Saavik and Clark Terrell are both examples of people who admire him. Clark even went as far as killing himself in order to save Kirk. To sacrifice oneself for another definitely stems from admiration. Khan on the other hand is resented by his followers. This is shown when the only talking follower says “we can’t go in there, our shields won’t work” and Khan pushes him
personality trait is often shared with many other leaders who decided to take their own path and
Altruism is selfless acts like someone willingly sacrificing their life for their child’s. When people show acts of altruism it is usually because they feel empathy for the person. They have feelings that reflect on how that person is feeling in the situation. We sacrifice ourselves for strangers in need to help reduce our personal distress of seeing them in need. Another reason is experiencing the feelings of the person in need. If a person sees someone having car trouble they will want to help because they remember having car trouble with no one around to help. They are sacrificing their wellbeing by pulling over to help, they could be putting themselves in a bad situation if the person is a criminal.
these traits presented in their roles, regardless of being thought of as an evil character or not.
The idea that a person can be purely good and altruistic does not exist due to society’s acceptance and embrace of the selfishness and greed of human beings. People these days are some of the most selfish beings to ever exist but they are not ashamed of their actions because of how the world around them welcomes their self-centered nature with open arms. Selfishness comes is many ways, shapes, and forms. Many businesses need to utilize the greed of mankind in order to make money and prosper; “Greed-for lack of a better word-is good. Greed is right. Greed works” (Wall Street). Even politicians use their greed to run campaigns for themselves in order to win the hearts of Americans. As well as fulfill their ultimate selfish goal to be the man
According to Merriam-Webster dictionary, altruism is defined as an “unselfish regard for or devotion to the welfare of others”. In simpler terms, altruism is unconditional kindness. Altruistic behavior has been a controversial and obscure subject among biologists, including Charles Darwin, who was one of the first to try and explain this phenomenon. “To explain the evolution of altruism, Charles Darwin suggested that natural selection could act on groups as well as individuals--an idea known as group selection”(Schwartz). Group selection, which was based off of Darwin’s theory of natural selection, was the theory that an individual organism would sacrifice itself (seemingly selflessly) for the good of the entire population, hoping that its actions would save the group from annihilation and therefore allow for the continuation of the group’s gene flow into its descendants. Darwin explained that groups with members “ready to give aid to each other and sacrifice themselves for the com...
Altruism regards the individual life as something one may be required to sacrifice for the sake of
still selfish in nature; to look at an even broader term, his motives are nationalistic which is the
This paper shows that altruism is a very complex issue and much more information could be introduced, following this would allow a greater look at the complexity of other views such as the religious or the philosophical side. Garrett Hardin’s ‘lifeboat ethics’ is a perfect example and proof of this paper, showing that we would rather let others gets killed instead of trying to help a
For someone who believes in psychological egoism, i t is difficult to find an action that would be acknowledged as purely altruistic. In practice, altruism, is the performance of duties to others with no view to any sort of personal...
First of all, there is a term closely followed with self-interest as we mention, “collective interest” or “altruism”, which means that, “Looking out for other’s welfare.” (Hospers, 39) Analogously, it is totally opposite from the idea of self-interest. Common sense always recognizes that the collective is more important than the individual. A country, which is formed by plenty people, so is more significant than a person. Collective interest has bigger influence than self-interest to the society, as the founder of utilitarianism Jeremy Bentham stated, “Personal pleasure and pain are dependent on the general happiness and prosperity of the whole community.” (Fagothey, 63) and “The greatest happiness of the greatest number.” (Fagothey, 63) As if people only are allowed to serve the community rather individual. However, I strongly disagree with it and believe they forget a truth that the whole unity consists of many small parts.
As a role model, the followers would be able to connect, trust and have confidence in the leader and would want to emulate them. The concept of idealized influence or charisma shows that leaders are also individuals who are “admired, respected and trusted” (Bass, Avolio, Jung & Bernson, 2003).
Before a case can be made for the causes of altruism, altruism itself must first be defined. Most leading psychologists agree that the definition of altruism is “a motivational state with the ultimate goal of increasing another’s welfare.” (Batson, 1981). The only way for a person to be truly altruistic is if their intent is to help the community before themselves. However, the only thing humans can see is the actions themselves, and so, selfish intent may seem the same as altruistic intent. Alas, the only way that altruism can be judged is if the intent is obvious. Through that, we must conclude that only certain intents can be defined as altruistic, and as intent stemming from nature benefits the group while other intent benefits yourself, only actions caused by nature are truly altruistic.
Throughout history, there have been leaders who are considered as admirable due to positive influences over other individuals. For example, in my opinion, Abraham Lincoln was able to influence the masses of people because he chose to think and behave differently from other leaders before him. When a person is considered as a leader, there are several responsibilities and qualities that will attract others to follow after the teachings that are demonstrated. Leadership can be described as the process for “guiding individuals, groups, and entire organizations in establishing goals and sustaining action to support goals (Shockley-Zalabak, 2015, p. 220). Additionally, each leader will usually have a distinctive
...et, M, Dobbins, G, Rush, M & Russell, J 1995, ‘Expert power, referent power, and charisma: Toward the resolution of a theoretical debate’, Journal of Business and Psychology, vol. 10, no. 2, pp.178-179
Is based on perception and how people perceive a leader and how well the person is able to communicate and inspire others will greatly affect how successful they can become. For example, a principal in a school has to have a certain amount of charisma, being able to communicate to the staff, parents, and student to about the vision of school. Much like a politician, the principal has to exude confidence in their vision but also must open up to others so that can align themselves with their followers. The principal can reward their followers by mentoring, training, and sharing leadership roles so that their followers can grow and becomes administrators