Editing Altruism (section)

===Anthropology===
{{expand section|date=July 2023}}
{{See also|Alms|Altruism (ethics)}}
[[Marcel Mauss]]'s essay ''[[The Gift (essay)|The Gift]]'' contains a passage called "Note on alms". This note describes the evolution of the notion of alms (and by extension of altruism) from the notion of sacrifice. In it, he writes:

{{blockquote|Alms are the fruits of a moral notion of the gift and of fortune on the one hand, and of a notion of sacrifice, on the other. Generosity is an obligation, because Nemesis avenges the poor and the gods for the superabundance of happiness and wealth of certain people who should rid themselves of it. This is the ancient morality of the gift, which has become a principle of justice. The gods and the spirits accept that the share of wealth and happiness that has been offered to them and had been hitherto destroyed in useless sacrifices should serve the poor and children.}}