 Bertrand Russell Quotes 366 |
Hatred, envy, and contempt blind men to their own interests; on the other hand, sympathy and pity prompt actions useful to others, even if no advantage to self is expected. Generous emotions are more likely than calculated selfishness to lead to the very actions which calculated selfishness would recommend if the calculation were correct, but so long as men’s hearts are cold they are likely to remain blind to the fact that co-operation is usually more advantageous to both parties than competition
Source: Bertrand Russell: Human Society in Ethics and Politics, (1954), chapter 8：Ethical Controversy
More info.:https://russell-j.com/cool/47T-0811.htm
* a brief comment: original text in Japanese, translated with DeepL.com (free version)
> When controlled by strong emotions, we cannot see what we would see if we were calm. Strong assertive people are often controlled by strong emotions and tend to be overly certain that "this is the only way" or "this is right.