Altruism Theme Analysis

NW begins with Leah unexpectedly meeting up with Shar, a woman in a headscarf who is begging for money and claims that she used to go to Brayton, the school Leah attended. Part of Leah suspects that Shar might be lying to her about the reasons why she needs money, and yet she chooses to give the money to Shar anyway. The significance of her choice reverberates throughout the rest of the novel. Michel, for example, disapproves of his wife’s choice to give away the money because he feels Shar isn’t deserving of charity. Leah, meanwhile, finds herself torn between her natural desire to help others and her desire to please her husband. This causes her to confront Shar as a thief the next time she sees her, only to regret that choice soon after.

Natalie similarly struggles with how to fit altruism into her life, both as a giver and as a receiver of it. When she meets the wealthy Frank and Frank’s mother Elena, she realizes she has an opportunity to accept their generous offer to help pay for her law school expenses. While Natalie accepts help during a difficult early stage of her career, she also sets up boundaries, as when she insists on paying for a fair share of the flat that she eventually shares with Frank. Natalie’s insistence on self-sufficiency becomes even more challenging after she takes a job at a small, poorly financed legal firm where she feels morally good about the work but doesn’t make much money. Over the course of the novel, Natalie gets worn down, gradually accepting the benefits of Frank’s wealth and working in a more lucrative area of law. In NW, Smith depicts how being altruistic is both a natural instinct but also something that can go against the grain of modern life, which can pressure people to be selfish and put their own needs first.