Self-centeredness – not a bad thing

August 28th, 2007 Fred McVittie Posted in Boundary, Centre, Evolution, Self |

That we all have a ’self’ is an obviousness barely worth rehearsing, and presumably, the development of a self-concept was a valuable trait at some point in our evolutionary history. The self-concept may have evolved to allow us to feel positive and negative emotions beyond the simple pleasure/pain responses of the body. Even in the absence of complex reasoning skills or even of consciousness, feeling a sense of ownership or love for one’s body would allow the possessor of this trait to act in ways which supported the preservation and health of that body. It is not beyond the bounds of possibility that the common feeling that we are, or have, a ’self’, usually located within but definitely attached to, the body, finds its origins in such an adaptation.

If this (or something like it) is the case, then it is only by habit and history that our concept of self is identified with the skin you (and I) are in. The self-concept could, and possibly should, be a movable feast, capable of distribution and extension away from its corporeal birthplace, and it may be that such movement of the boundaries and location of the self is already taking place. Empathy, altruism, and compassion for others involve the recognition of (part of) one’s self in another person.

We are used to thinking of self-centeredness as a bad thing, and presumably it would be if the location of the self was fixed and bounded by the body. But if the self is motile, then placing my-self-that-is-you at the centre of the universe is no bad thing. An even grander ambition would be to place my-self-that-is-the-universe at the centre.