Article Title: True Generosity Involves More Than Just Giving
Article Summary
This article basically involves the test to check whether a person is generous or not, according to the author. The author is doubtful about Bill Gates being regarded as the topper in the list of the world’s top 20 most generous people. According to the passage the idea of generosity revolves around the thoughts, motives and feelings. To qualify as a generous person, these factors must be in good shape. Generosity has not seen limelight under researches of psychology.
According to the author there are three basic tests of generosity. The first one involves donation of anything that is useful and valuable to an individual. In case if you are donating something to an individual that is actually of no value to you, then it cannot be categorised as an act of generosity according to the author. The second test is that when someone donates something it should not be based on the idea that he or she should not be doing that to get recognised by the public as an act of generosity. This can be done for achieving fame, obtain tax reductions, perks in the afterlife or appease his or her guilty consciousness. This is an act of self focus where the person will not be concerned about the benefits that the receiver obtains. So a generous person should be altruistic while making donations to qualify. This happens only through empathy. The third condition is when you become generous by giving something to someone, it should be a gift out of your own interest and not by compulsion or sense of duty which you are mandated to carry out. The author questions Bill Gates’ generosity at the end. He says that he doesn’t know if Bill is generous or not. The passage ends by suggesting that these tests aren’t the standard test for determining the generosity of a person. But these would help in looking into the hearts.
Article Link: Click here to read the full article
Words to learn from this Article:
Altruism – unselfish behaviour
Conscience – a person’s moral sense of right and wrong
Generosity- quality of being kind and generous
Philanthropy – a love for humanity
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