What is selfishness? Selfishness is defined as one's devotion only to oneself. Someone who is selfish has too much concern with his own welfare or interests. They have little or no concern for others. A young child might act selfishly with their possessions such as toys. They might be extremely protective of a particular toy; and they will refuse to allow someone else to play with it. This has been an explanation of the course that selfishness takes. In the book Silas Marner, George Eliot displays the evils of selfishness through her ch ....