Mr. Norton Summary

Philanthropic actions are often too focused on serving the philanthropist, rather than those philanthropized. Mr. Norton is one of the school's original founders, and describes the school as his "work" and his "destiny." Though Mr. Norton may appear to be benevolent, his motives are less pure than they seem. Norton’s case is similar to the white man’s burden in that he feels vastly superior to black men, and donates to feel important. He explains his motives for helping the school in that “[The Founder] had tens of thousands of lives dependent upon his ideas and upon his action. What he did affected your whole race. In a way, he had the power of a king, or in a sense, of a god" (45). His mention of "tens of thousands of lives" depending on the Founder shows that his intention for philanthropy is having as many people as possible depend on him.
In this way, he can feel like a “god.” This is also why it is not enough for him to simply help the students at the school, he expects something out of them. He tells the narrator, "You are important because if you fail I have failed by one individual, one defective cog" (45).
Mr. Norton says he doesn’t want to fail the individual, yet he does not even know the narrator’s name and describes him as a “cog.” …show more content…
Lauren Kascak, who has participated in multiple international health brigades, is one of many former voluntourists who regret their participation. Looking back at a photograph of her trip to Ghana, she realizes that she "does not know [the childrens'] names, they do not know [her] name." The photo was not about the Ghanese children or the struggles of life in Ghana, the photo was about Kascak showing others how selfless she was. Like Norton who wanted to feel like a "god" by having people depend on him, This girl realized that she was making herself "the hero/star in a story about 'suffering Africa,'" "doing important work among those who are so poor, so vulnerable, and so