Sense of Selfishness: John Willoughby

“He is the worst kind of villain.” — Elinor, Sense and Sensibility

“Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility, count others more significant than yourselves. Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others.” — Philippians 2:3-4

There is a concept in theatre that no one, not even the villain, thinks themselves to be the villain. Extremely rare is the person who admits that they had bad intentions. We obfuscate, we defend, and we excuse our bad behavior, but we do not often acknowledge the evil we do. In fact, we often hide behind the ideal perception of ourselves that we put forth for others. John Willoughby is no exception.

Willoughby is a great example of the devastating effects of selfishness. He appears in a heroic manner by sweeping the injured Marianne off her feet—literally. He is sophisticated and charming and handsome by all standards of the day. Marianne, of course, falls helplessly in love with him. This happens despite the warnings from her sensible sister Elinor who senses that beneath the charming surface there is more than meets the eye. While he charms Marianne, he inevitably breaks her heart when he abandons her for another. Elinor soon learns from Colonel Brandon that Willoughby is not without other victims of his selfish ways. Willoughby, unlike Colonel Brandon, elevates his own sense of ease and comfort above all else. Marrying only for money to satisfy his significant debts, Willoughby soon finds himself miserable and the victim of his own selfishness.

Out of all the human beings who have lived, there is only one who has practiced true selflessness: Jesus. The Greek word kenosis denotes an emptying of self. Jesus purposedly laid aside his privilege and rights to take on humanity to restore humankind to relationship with God. Jesus practiced perfect selflessness by taking on a humiliating public execution. Further along in Philippians 2, Paul writes further about the example of Jesus that he mentions in the verses above. God could have chosen to redeem us in any number of ways, but He chose to empty Himself and take on human flesh, entering into time, dying in our place, and rising again. May the Lord Jesus be our example of how to love and respect others by practicing selflessness.