In our discussion on altruism in class, the act of holding doors for others was brought up. I had never really thought anything of it, except I obviously knew that to let the door slam in the face of the person behind you is generally considered rather rude. Nevertheless, it was concluded that the reason why individuals do it is because they expect others to do it for them in return. This makes perfect sense, in that we are engaging in an "altruistic" act in order to benefit ourselves further down the line. America is such an individualistic country compared to many of the Asian nations, though. So, if we put such stress on personal blame and doing things independently, why do we have such strict moral rules as to often wait a minute for the person behind you to catch up and walk through the door you are holding?
All of this also reminds me of the concept of chivalry. For some reason, over time an expectation has developed that men should always be very kind and respectful to women, and do such things as hold doors for them, and pull out a chair for them when they sit down. Obviously, many claim that "chivalry is dead," and men do these things no longer, but how did the expectation for them to do it develop in the first place? As with many instances in history, it seems just as likely that men's and women's positions could have easily been switched in regards to chivalry. But, history took its course, and things are what they are. Needless to say, ever since our class discussions, I have chuckled to myself as I see the person ahead of me rush to hold the door open as I approach!
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