Dean Winchester of Supernatural (played by Jensen Ackles) is definitely one of the most selfless people we know. At least when it comes to television. He keeps going when everyone else has given up, keeps the faith when hope is lost...you get the gist.
Some of the most selfless things he's ever done have been for his brother Sam (Jared Padalecki), whom he's looked after his whole life. Dean's done all kinds of selfless things for the world and its people, sacrificing an "apple pie life" to do so. So, we've come up with a list of Dean's 10 most selfless things that he's ever done.
Promises To Pray For Layla
Dean's not necessarily a big believer in God or angels like Sam is. Even when Dean eventually meets God, he's still wary. Praying isn't something that Dean usually does, but meeting Layla in Season 1, who is dying, changes that for him (if only for that episode).
Layla's acceptance of her fate, and Dean's guilt over having to stop the Reaper before Layla could be healed, probably contributed to Dean's promise to pray for her, but he put aside his own beliefs in favor of her well-being, which is a big deal.
Apologizes To Jo
In a Season 7 episode, Dean gets the chance to give Jo the goodbye he never really had back in Season 5, telling her that she "deserved better." The two had a chemistry that was never acted upon due to the fact that it always seemed to have bad timing, but they were always good friends.
Dean's not one for "chick-flick moments", so him having that moment with Jo was a special moment as it was him being selfless by letting his guard down and being honest with her, a moment Supernatural fans loved and hope for more of in the final season.
Willing To Give Emma A Chance
In Season 7, Dean unwittingly fathers a child with an Amazon, resulting in a surprise daughter named Emma. As is custom, Amazons must kill their fathers to become part of the tribe, and Emma is sent to Dean's motel room to do so. Dean, who usually doesn't give monsters a chance to talk, listens to her and is clearly conflicted, seemingly leaning more on the side of letting Emma go.
Emma may have been good, she may have been bad, we'll never know. Sam shot her before Dean could make a real decision, but the fact that he was inclined to overlook Emma's Amazon heritage and let her go was significant. Dean will do anything for family (including selflessly overlooking their major flaws), even if they have demon blood in them (like Sam) or is born a monster like Emma.
Left His Dream Life
Okay, so a djinn trying to kill Dean put him in a fantasy world where Dean was never a hunter, he had a girlfriend, his mother was still alive and his relationship with Sam was tense, but it was still a better life than the one Dean had in reality.
Dean was happy in this fantasy world where he was a mechanic and he had just about everything he ever wanted. It meant happiness and a normal life, even if it was fabricated, it still felt real. You could visibly see the struggle Dean had as he returned to his real life for the greater good of saving people and being there for Sam. Not everyone can break out of the djinn's fantasy life, but Dean put aside his own needs and desires to do what was right.
Kept The Peace
Sam and John always butted heads, leaving Dean to play mediator. It's not an easy job, especially since Sam and John's relationship became even more strained as Sam got older, to the point of Sam taking off for college and leaving his family behind. Dean appears bitter about it from time to time.
Yet for the most part, he tried to tend to both Sam and John equally, offering mutual ground and opting to de-escalate conflicts between them, ignoring his own feelings on the subject to do so. A perfect example of this in action is in the Season 1 episode "Dead Man's Blood", when John and Sam have a heated confrontation in the middle of the road with Dean having to break them up.
Gave Lisa And Ben A New Life
When Sam was possessed by Lucifer and then went to the Cage in Season 5, Dean was again left alone and went to be with Lisa and her son, Ben. Dean was filled with grief but still managed to become a part of their family and achieve some level of happiness and normalcy after a lifetime of hunting.
Still, after an unfortunate incident, Dean asks Castiel to erase their memories so they won't him. It's one of the hardest things he's ever had to do, but he does it so they can be safe from the supernatural and to allow them a life of peace.
Saving People...The Family Business
How many times has Dean put his life on the line to help others? More than we can count. He's faced countless monsters and supernatural beings from angels to God Himself all in the name of saving lives. Dean's saved many, many people...most of whom he didn't even know, simply because it was the right thing to do.
Dean's an amazing human being for doing all those things, and he never really gets a thank-you most of the time, though he never does expect anything back.
Raised Sam
While their father John was hunting and dedicated to tracking down the supernatural thing that killed his beloved wife, it often left Sam and Dean alone. John frequently put the idea in Dean's head that Sam was his responsibility, but Dean's the kind of kid that would've looked after Sam without John's insistence, which is exactly what Dean did.
Dean took care of Sam when he was sick, made sure he was safe and fed, and pretty much became the only parent Sam ever knew. He even tried to give Sam a good Christmas in their childhood, despite John not showing up. Dean sacrificed his own childhood to do all this, but he never complained.
Sold His Soul
At the end of Season 2, Dean sold his soul to get Sam back after he was killed for the first time. In a way, it could be argued that this act was selfish as Dean couldn't stand being the only member of his family left and because he felt responsible for Sam, but in the bigger picture it's selfless because he saves Sam's life and is willing to suffer Hell for eternity to do it.
Dean never complains about this impending doom either. In fact, he's more concerned with how Sam's handling it. We all know how this turns out, but the fact that Dean was willing to go to such great lengths for Sam was pretty selfless on his part.
Always Taking Care Of Others
Bottom line, this is who Dean is. Not what he does, it's just who Dean is at his core. He cares for everyone else so much he'll put them above himself, no question. It varies from person to person, but people like Sam, Bobby, Jody, Charlie and the like rank highly on Dean's list, and he's always checking on them, whether it be their physical or mental health...or both.
He'll disregard his own feelings most of the time to ensure everyone else is safe and cared for, which is irable and one of the many reasons why we love Dean.