The Role Of Nature And Nurture In The Works Of Jean-Jack Rousseau

Improved Essays
When deciding on not only a topic and ethic philosophers I struggled to find opinions I whole heartedly agreed with. Fortunately, for this assignment I get to dissect the positive and negative sides to their philosophies. Nature versus nurture is an unsettled debate often discussed from early childhood educators, lawyer’s offices, to psychologist clinics. As our text states innate traits are ones we are born with, and as we develop, the environment we grow in influences new characteristics as we mature. Are we born exactly as we are supposed to turn out to be or are we indeed sponges, ready to soak up all that this world has to offer? Furthermore, within that answer where are bound ethically according to our own belief system and the beliefs of others? …show more content…
Rousseau goes on to state that before society allows the many negative influences to permeate in us and corrupt us, our noble nature shines through. His philosophy fosters the notion that al humans are born kind and basically good by nature but that the choices made in our cultures, governments, and history makers changes those basic innate characteristics. Rousseau believed that human who remained more solitary stay good, happy, healthy and free, thus stating reinforcing the idea that the more anyone is put out into the “real” world, the more unhappy, cynical, hateful and mistrusting. That in of itself, make someone like me, a future teacher even more invested in why children behave the way they do and this knowledge pushes me to work even harder to provide as many positive influences in the children I

Related Documents

  • Improved Essays

    "Nature means them to think, to will, to love cultivate their minds as well as their persons; she [Nature] puts these weapons in their hands to make up for their lack of strength and to enable them to direct the strength of men. They should learn many things, but only such things as suitable." Rousseau was not only remarkable because he believed that a child's education should be focused on his/her interests, but also because he believed that women need to learn more than simply domestic…

    • 460 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    modern society) he is robbed of this goodness at a very early age. Rousseau begins his meditation on education by acknowledging that, “nature provides for the child's growth in her own fashion, and this should never be thwarted” (Emile 6). The educational program, therefore, is focused upon protecting and reinforcing the child’s natural and compassionate state of being. This will be done by assigning a teacher to every child.…

    • 1042 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Nature versus nurture is an ongoing debate concerning the inner apparatuses of individuals minds that in the opinions of many, will never be fully resolved. Are…

    • 1073 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Are people the way they are because of their genes (nature), or because of how they were brought up (nurture)? Multiple sources provide insight that points towards humans being nurtured as opposed to being nature. One source is Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein which is about Dr. Victor Frankenstein and how he creates a creature who is nurtured by society through multiple events. He obtains multiple traits throughout the story. The next source is “The Nature vs. Nurture Debate” which discusses both topics in detail.…

    • 997 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    One of his best known quotes states that, “Man is born free, and he is everywhere in chains” (The Social Contract). In his Discourse on the Sciences and the Arts, Rousseau answers the question “Has the restoration of the sciences and the arts contributed to the purification of mores or to their corruption?” (Discourse on the Sciences and the Arts). He goes on to argue that the pursuit of science desensitized people to their natural, good state, and instead caused them to become slaves to meaningless burdens. Rousseau believed man was born inherently good, but by being introduced into society and the sciences, people become greedy and prideful.…

    • 1257 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Improved Essays

    In Frankenstein, Mary Shelley examines the question of nature verses nurture. In doing so, Shelley raises the question of whether or not Victor's creation is evil by nature or evil as a consequence of society. Focusing on Shelley's account of the creature through the lens of Rousseau's Discourse on Inequality indicates that man is, by nature good, and that it is society that turns him into an evil monster. In his Discourse on Inequality, Rousseau lays out his characteristics of 'natural man'.…

    • 1211 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Decent Essays

    Jean-Jacques Rousseau born on June 28, 1712 in Geneva, Switzerland is a philosopher, composer and a writer of the 18th century. His political philosophy inspired the Age of Enlightenment in France and across the Europe. He said he is going to challenge social fabric of the 18th century and will stand up for the people. He considered all people to be good and wise; which led him to work for the benefit of them. He also, argued that the government’s priority should be to protect freedom, equality and justice for all even though the majority rules…

    • 96 Words
    • 1 Pages
    Decent Essays
  • Superior Essays

    Rousseau believes that humans are born innocent but are later corrupted by society. “Although, in this state, he deprives himself of some advantages which he got from nature, he gains in return others so great” (Rousseau). Rousseau believes that men are born equal but through the influence of society men “deprives himself of some advantages” that they are born with. Rousseau uses the words such as “advantages” to inform the reader about the features that mankind is born with but society removes it. The tone Rousseau uses is pro mankind but only to an extent.…

    • 1567 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Improved Essays

    The nature vs nurture debate is a classic debate in psychology. It is one of the oldest arguments in the psychology community, and has in fact existed longer than the twenty-one years I 've been alive. Since first introduced by Francis Galton in 1869, it has evolved as an even more controversial topic. There are those who believe that nature has the biggest influence on one’s behavior, while others argue that nurture does.…

    • 828 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    He argues that as people grow older, they move further away from their natural goodness. Education should preserve what is good within people, however, in order for that to occur it must be aligned with nature. Rousseau believes that society corrupts education, causing people better before they receive any education. He sees society as superficial, and in order for education to preserve the natural goodness of children, education must be independent from society. Education should be separate from society and not interfere with the natural physical and psychological development of a child (Murphy, 2006, p. 174).…

    • 1052 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    What Is Nature Or Nurture

    • 1156 Words
    • 5 Pages

    Felisha Ell Psychology 30 Ms. MacPherson Sept. 26, 2017 Nature vs Nurture There has been a question that has been the target of much debate for centuries; does nature or nurture have a greater influence on us humans? Nature is what we have inherited through our genes and it is something that (sometimes) cannot be changed. Nurture is the aspect of how people are raised and the experiences we face that shape us into who we personality-wise.…

    • 1156 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    Because it doesn’t matter how much we complain about poor management of the state’ dealings and/or regulations imposed to us. There are no excuses for resisting power because it is the only thing between us and what we most want to avoid, the State of Nature. John Locke had a different approach as to the kind of place the State of Nature is, and consequently his argument concerning the Social Contract and the relationship between men and authority varies. According to Locke, the State of Nature is the natural condition of mankind.…

    • 1284 Words
    • 6 Pages
    • 3 Works Cited
    Superior Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Sociology – Unit 2 Assignment Unit 2 Assignment is worth 50 points Assignment - Chapters Three and Four Part I - Discuss the "nature versus nurture" argument and provide support for each aspect of the controversy. “Nature versus nurture” is a concept within psychology whereby the extend of which aspects of behavior is inherited or acquired. Human behavior is largely influenced bu both of these factors when it comes to behavior. There are characteristics that we inherit and others that we develop, depending on or environment and experiences.…

    • 637 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    Advocates of the “nature” side argue that individuals are molded fundamentally by hereditary qualities and biology. The “nurture” side contends that our natural impacts and socialization are the most imperative variables in deciding who we are and how we behave. Learned conduct is the result of life encounters, nurture rather than nature. A procured conduct is a sort of quality which cannot be passed on hereditarily; language, religion, and the capacity to read and write are all learned behaviors. Sociologists usually come to the conclusion that a baby’s intellect at birth is like a clear page and all future encounters will influence how the child learns how to act.…

    • 1007 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Improved Essays

    The Social Contract Author: Jean-Jacques Rousseau (1762) Introduction His books were a blue print on how Rousseau wanted to know the reasons of why the people gave up their natural liberty over the state of nature. How the political standpoint became such an impact in people’s lives. One of the things he did state in his book that stuck out to me was that, “Man is born free, and everywhere he is in chains.”…

    • 900 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays

Related Topics