Cynicism vs Altruism

I've been thinking about my own personal view of the world, and in most ways, I am cynical about human beings. I've always been altruistic in the sense that I am always kind, respectful, and selfless when all is said and done... however... I'm not afraid to admit that maybe deep down (or not so deep down) I do it for recognition. i.e. "You're so nice!" or "More people should be like you!"

Anyway, my question to OT is this: Does your overall view of human behavior, or your own at least, lean toward cynicism or altruism? Or another belief?

Discuss? Or not.

Altruism. Just like it's more natural for some to be pessimistic, it's more natural for me to be optimistic. I know I may be wrong sometimes and I'm not blind to reality or anything, but I just lean towards being more altruistic. I think that ideally you need a bit of both.

I don't know, but I'm very cynical nowadays.

Altruism. Just like it's more natural for some to be pessimistic, it's more natural for me to be optimistic. I know I may be wrong sometimes and I'm not blind to reality or anything, but I just lean towards being more altruistic. I think that ideally you need a bit of both.

Suzy_Q_Kazoo

considering the fact that everything good in my life is falling apart i guess i got to go with cynicism .

Uhh, the philosophical opposite of Altruism is Egoism, and the Cynicism you refer to (which is basically Pessimism with a few extra rules) is best contrasted with Optimism.

As a matter of fact, I'm BOTH cynical and altruistic. I have a relatively jaded view of human society, its idiosyncracies and its quirky constructs. At the same time, I have a lot of empathy and sympathy for the less fortunate.

I consider myself both.