What Is Nature Vs. Nurture Essay

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Malcolm Gladwell once stated, “Our first impressions are generated by our experiences and our environment, which means that we can change our first impressions…by changing the experiences that comprise those impressions.”, which is an insightful thought in regards to the debate nature vs. nurture. For decades, scientists and philosophers have done research and talked about this argument. The controversy is centered around the idea that our personality, behavior, intelligence, and feelings are either environmentally earned or genetically inherited. Nature vs. nurture has been considered one of the most highly controversial topics in the world of philosophy around the idea of human development. Discussions focus on whether we are innate creatures …show more content…

nurture has been a highly discussed topic for many years, and specifically a hot topic for philosophers. The focus, how far are human behaviors, ideas, and feelings, innate and how far are they all learned? As far back as the 17th century, the French philosopher Renè Descartes set out views which held that we all, as individual human beings, possess certain in-born ideas that influence our approach to the world. On the other hand, the British philosophers Thomas Hobbes and John Locke, emphasized the role of experience as fully contributing to behavioral development. Locke set out the case that the human mind at birth is a complete, but receptive, blank slate. He believed that experience was what imprints knowledge. Other philosophers, such as Plato and Aristotle were two people that had different views on the issue. Plato believed that knowledge and behavior were due to innate factors, but environmental factors still played a role in the equation. Whereas, Aristotle believed in the thought of, “tabula rasa,” which means blank slate. This thought can conclude that everyone is born mindless and you gain your own unique knowledge and behavior from your experiences. For example, things such as, personality, intelligence, sexuality, attitude and habits are all created new. Many philosophers have looked at this debate and voiced their opinions, some raising more questions about the

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