Definitions of the Term: Volunteer

A volunteer refers to a person who readily accepts to perform an underlying task without necessarily being asked to perform it. Volunteers possess the will to serve others without the mindset of benefiting from them. There are a variety of synonyms, which are used interchangeably with the term volunteer. While some people will decide to term them merely as altruist as a way of defining the term volunteer, others call them Good Samaritans. All in all, these two references are somehow complex in nature and also quite new too altogether since many people are considered to be not familiar with this term as compared to other synonyms, like the bleeding heart. For example, a volunteer can be a patron in the sense that he or she chooses to help the needy without necessarily asking for anything. The deeds which these Patrons undertake are never calculated in nature so that they, in turn, discern that they are going to benefit by performing these tasks: they are just drawn to undertake the activity at hand by the call for humanity which advocates for helping others without ceasing. Other people will chose to refer to volunteers as humanitarians. The aforementioned humanitarians are expected to assist in whatever way possible, that is, to the best of there capabilities. Personally, I refer to these people as goodhearted persons. There is a wide variety of words that can be used interchangeably to define the term: volunteer. The choice of a particular term solely depends on its demographic region as well as the familiarity of the activity in relation to the people. For instance, in the society, the term volunteer was originally used to denote persons who would offer to perform tasks for the benefit of the whole society. This was entirely because of their respective talents depicted while conducting certain tasks altogether and were regarded by the same society to be very important persons. Nowadays, volunteers are considered t

On the contrary, we can also use antonyms to define the term: volunteer. The use of antonyms requires that the opposite statements are provided as a way of defining the term under consideration. This might quite be confusing to so many people. In this case then, volunteers are people who are not opportunistic, that is to say, they never take time to figure out ways through which they can exploit others while they(needy people) call for there much-needed help or rather assistance. Volunteers are persons who are not calculative when performing tasks which require there immediate attention as they do not assume of using there help in gaining anything. They do not undertake tasks which will led to them being suspected in there levels of integrity or rather credibility.

Through the use of denotation technique, a volunteer means a person who does a job and does not get paid for it. Schools might need volunteers to assist the children to deal with few things so that children, in turn, can get acquainted and conversant with the normal school events in general. By applying the same technique, the term may also be taken to mean a person who offers to perform a task without any application of force for doing it. For instance, after an event has been conducted, a student can offer to help clear up the place. It might also mean a person who joins the armed forces without being compelled to do so. Such a person usually has the will to defend their country from foreign intrusion. They actually pledge their loyalty to their respective countries. Furthermore, by suggesting a job to someone when they are not placed in a better position to conduct or rather take it up, does not qualify the person to possess the will of conducting the matter at hand and thus be termed as a volunteer altogether. It should be noted that these people do not go unmentioned in there respective societies as they hardly go wrong.

We can also define the term “volunteer” by using the negation technique. Some people define volunteers through their respective inabilities so that they are defined as people who undertake tasks without the need for recognition at all. (652words)

In comparison with analogous situations, a volunteer can be implied to mean machine analogy. Human beings use machines to make work easier. They do so without seeking the consent of the machine itself. The machine has no way to complain, ask for money, motivation and neither is it forced to do the job. This is an analogy which implies to the most unfamiliar situations which many people face. The flow of rivers into lakes and oceans is also analogous to a volunteer. Without water from rivers, lakes and oceans will dry. The oceans and lakes do not demand water from these rivers yet they get sufficient waters altogether. Due to the nature of the landscape, rivers have a way of filling the oceans and lakes to ensure their continued survival.

By using further examples, a volunteer is not necessarily a celebrity; we can find volunteers in almost every aspect of life so that the mere simple individuals in a community are regarded as volunteers. This means both celebrities and normal citizens have a chance to be regarded as celebrities altogether. For instance, we all know of the famous and talented singer, Madonna, who recently traveled to Africa and specifically, Malawi, where she not only adopted an orphan but also went further to donate money for school and other social amenities construction altogether (The Guardian, 2012). This gesture from her stipulates that volunteers are persons who possess the heart to help others without necessarily asking for anything. They are never driven by any external force or rather influence to do so but rather act to satisfy the internal urge which they possess. It is also true to indicate that to be a volunteer, a person does not necessarily have to donate material matter; the patronage or charitable act can as well be in form of services. The media, not a while, ago indicated that celebrities such as George Clooney and Angelina Jolie were providing humanitarian services to the affected regions of Darfur and the whole of Africa in general. While Angelina was and still is the UN peace ambassador to Africa, on the other hand, George Clooney acts as a relief personnel in Darfur, the two celebrities are doing it tremendously as volunteers. Likewise, there are stories of mere persons without any form of money or expertise deciding to play the patronage phenomenon. These people either embark on assisting charitable organizations reach there relief-aid objectives or just act as goodhearted ambassadors to the same (Zilma, 2012).

The issue of whether a person needs to be rich to be a volunteer is therefore notwithstanding at all, since different people have different capabilities and abilities for which they can deploy to act in good faith. These abilities are sometimes in form of talents which are deployed to a somewhat useful happening altogether. The issue of whether one has to be rich to be a volunteer does not therefore hold water as the ability to volunteer is not measured by the amount of wealth or in any case money which a person possess. It is an in-born obsession and some analysts have argued that people who possess definite character traits are very likely to volunteer in activities than those who lack these skills. It is therefore wise to indicate that for a person to be termed as a volunteer, one need not to possess material power at all. It is only the will that is required in this case.

In yet another example, we can argue that policemen are mandated to protect the citizens at whatever the cost. This responsibility attributed to policemen is never taken to mean that they can therefore engage themselves in situations for which they risk there lives. For instance, in case of a kidnapping incident, it is not required that the policeman embark on the rescuing mission alone, certain procedures have to be followed to the latter to prevent further losses. But in case the policeman feels brave and humane enough, there is a likelihood that he will act on his or her internal instincts and undertake the task at hand irrespective of the risk involved. He or she will risk all he has for the sake of the kidnapped and in case he succeeds he or she will be termed as a hero altogether. The responsibility instigated upon policemen and women is never meant to endanger their respective life but because they possess the calling for the job; they perform it fully and to their heart’s satisfaction. They get satisfied by engaging in helping people out irrespective of the risk involved.

It is therefore wise to conclude that anybody can be a volunteer in his or her own way. This is well reflected by the ability-differences existing within human beings. Both the rich and the poor are placed at better position to help others. And thus, it is not necessarily true that for one to be a volunteer he or she needs to be a celebrity. In fact, celebrities receive so much attention when they play as volunteers. They are accredited so much for performing little things yet there are many other people who volunteer in superior tasks but never get the recognition they deserve.