Selfishness
"The reasons why man needs a moral code will tell you that the purpose of morality is to define man's proper values and interests, that concern with his own interests is the essence of a moral existence,
- and that man must be the beneficiary of his own moral actions."
~ Above found at Ayn Rand Lexicon - Selfishness
Selflessness
"Isn't that the root of every despicable action? Not selfishness, but precisely the absence of a self. Look at them. The man who cheats and lies, but preserves a respectable front. He knows himself to be dishonest, but others think he's honest and he derives his self-respect from that, second-hand.
- The man who takes credit for an achievement which is not his own.
He knows himself to be mediocre, but he's great in the eyes of others. The frustrated wretch who professes love for the inferior and clings to those less endowed, in order to establish his own superiority by comparison."
~ Above found at Ayn Rand Lexicon - Selflessness