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Introduction about nature vs nurture
Introduction about nature vs nurture
Introduction about nature vs nurture
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Humans have always had the tendency to act in evil ways. It can range from small acts of misbehavior to larger acts of criminal intent. The reason people can be evil has been endlessly deliberated and refuted, but there have been very few definitive arguments. One of the many topics of discussion include whether evil is hereditary or environment. This asks whether the behavior is basic instinct, or molded by each individual’s upbringing and external social factors. Thanks to philosophical theories and psychological methods we can approach the question of nature vs. nurture from an array of different angles. Natural state of man has been one of the major themes in political philosophy for centuries. Thomas Hobbes, a 17th century English philosopher, and John Locke, a 16th century English philosopher, had differing opinions when it came to the natural state of man. Locke believed that human behavior is solely influenced on nature. “Let us then suppose the mind to be, as we say, white paper void of all characters, without ideas. How comes it to be furnished? ... To this I answer, in one word, from EXPERIENCE” (Herrnstein 311). When Locke refers to the human mind as, “white paper void of all characters,” he is referring to a newborn person with no exposure to the environment. He then goes on and says that it must be “furnished” with “experience.” What Locke ultimately means is that humans are born with a blank slate of a mind; we learn and develop through ideas and experiences. Rousseau, on the other hand, is a believer that human development is due to individual’s genetic factors. This means that human trait and behavior is more or less developed the moment of birth. Although traits may be determined at birth, environment can sti... ... middle of paper ... ...ntly believe that it is a combination of both nature and nurture, as illustrated by Psychologist Jerome Kagan’s quote: “Genes and family may determine the foundation of the house, but time and place determine its form” (Wozniak 37). There will never be an end to the debate over nature and nurture. Having examined different philosophers and studies it is clear that there are legitimate arguments for both sides. Locke believed that we furnish our minds with experience; Hobbes thought that human trait and behavior are determined at birth, and finally Bouchard concluded that it is a mixture of the two. It is this writer’s conclusion that neither nature nor nurture causes the evil tendencies, for it is a combination of the two that truly shapes a mankind. There are no rules. Who we become due to our nature and our nurture can only be decided on a case-by-case basis.