Steven Pinker's critique of the blank slate thesis in human nature

¶ … humans are born with a blank slate upon which is written, as they grow, the ideas and modes of acting that they will follow as they mature. Their environment, essentially, is responsible for informing their behavior and the idea of human nature having some sort of "behavioral code" already established in the human soul or something of that sort is rejected in the concept of the blank slate thesis.

Essentially the blank slate thesis states that all knowledge is acquired through the senses, which is an argument made by many philosophers throughout the centuries (and which does not exactly speak to the idea of whether there is such a thing as "human nature" per se). However, what the blank slate thesis actually consists of is an underlying principle which states that there is such a thing as human nature (it is this which accounts for the fact that human beings gain knowledge through the sense after all -- if that is not natural then what is?). The blank slate concept of human nature is just this: that human nature is blank -- it is not born in a state of original sin, it is not fallen, and it is not in need of salvation -- all ideas that were held prior to the modern era (in the West). Pinker does not make this point, but implicit in his talk is the notion that if the blank slate thesis is anything it is meant to be a repudiation of the medieval doctrine regarding a religious framework or conception of the human soul and of human nature. Thus, the blank slate thesis of the modern era essentially rejects the medieval view of human nature, while admitting that knowledge is indeed gained the same way (through the senses). As to a concept of the soul or of "fallen" human nature (the cause of man's tendency towards corruption, according to the medievalist doctrine), it says nothing but that environments cause corruption.

Part 2: Pinker on the Blank Slate Thesis

Pinker's observations and conclusions regarding the blank slate thesis are that the blank slate thesis was adopted in the West in the modern era because it had appealing political ramifications, such as if we're all blank slates then we are all equal. Following the French Revolution and the Age of Enlightenment, the revolutionary mindset in the West was to worship liberty and equality and the idea of a "fallen" human nature, which the Western European states had rejected with the Enlightenment and the coming Romantic Era, was ill-suited to advance the idea of equality.

Pinker contends that these political fears were unfounded. Sameness does not equal fairness and when Enlightenment thinkers like Jefferson wrote that all men were created equal he did not mean that they were clones but rather that the every person ought to be treated as an individual and not prejudged based on what others within that same group or background might do. The blank slate thesis was an easy philosophical tool to support the proposition of equality, even though that proposition itself lacked proper definition and was interpreted more idealistically than it should have been. Not having a blank slate does not mean that man is doomed to be tyrannical and cruel to his fellow man; on the contrary, the mind and will of man is made of many parts and human beings can act favorably even if they are born with motives within themselves that are selfish. Selfishness can be overcome through discipline and sacrifice.

Part 4: Quotes to Use in a Week

1. On what the "blank slate" proponents believe: "The human mind is a blank slate and that all of its structure comes from socialization, culture, parenting, experience."

2. "The blank slate was an influential idea in the 20th century."

3. On what some of the "blank slate" proponents in the 20th century have said: "Man has no nature," (Jose Ortega y Gassett), "Man has no instincts" (Ashley Montagu)

4. "There are a number of reasons to doubt that the human mind is a blank slate and some of them come from just common sense."

5. "Anyone who has had more than one child knows that kids come into the world with certain temperaments and talents; it doesn't all come from the outside."

6. "Anyone who has both a child and a house pet has surely noticed that the child exposed to speech will acquire human language whereas the house pet won't."

7. "Anyone who's been in a heterosexual relationship knows that the minds of men and the minds of women are not indistinguishable."

8. "Studies of identical twins who were separated at birth and then tested in adulthood show that they have astonishing similarities."

9. On the political appeal of the blank slate thesis: "If we're all blank slates, we're all equal."

10. On the political appeal of the blank slate thesis: "If we're all blank slates, we can perfect mankind."