Will and Self-Interest

According to one popular doctrine, all motivation is 'selfish', i. e. one always acts only in one's self-interest. Now, even superficial consideration reveals two of the weaknesses of such a doctrine--it is apparently refuted by the common example of a mother who would sacrifice her life for her child, and it is specious, i. e. it does not distinguish between what would benefit and what would harm the 'self'. Furthermore, deeper confusion in the doctrine is exposed by an analysis of it in terms of the model of Experience being developed here. According to that model, Will is the plastic principle of self-activation that receives determinacy from the representations of Consciousness. One such representation is the intention to acquire goods for oneself only, with consideration of others given only to their potential instrumentality to acquisition. Another such representation is to promote the goods of as many people, including oneself, as possible. Since, in itself, Will is plastic, a third representation is necessary to decide which course of action to pursue, and such a representation must evaluative. In other words, the popular 'selfishness' doctrine is a disguised normative principle, which its proponents seem either unable or unwilling to acknowledge.