The Blank Slate: The Modern Denial of Human Nature

The Blank Slate: The Modern Denial of Human Nature

By: Steven Pinker  

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Average Customer Rating: 4.0 out of 5

Publisher: Penguin (Non-Classics)

Release Date: 2003-08-26

Customer Review: 4 out of 5
Excellent - The Blank Slate: The Modern Denial Of Human Nature (2002)- follows in the trail of the prior books, which established SP as 1 of the top dogs in neural science. In this review I want to focus a little bit on how well SP writes, as well as discussing his ideas. The former I want to put out there for this reason- rarely is the writing style of a science book ever approached; save for famously nebulous koans as lucid, thrilling, or enthralling. What exactly do terms like that mean, in general, & specifically related to the work at hand? That is a rhetorical question, folks.
I want to approach both of these aspects of his writing in a fairly straightforward way. After I've chronologically highlighted some of the pros & cons of the book (artistically & scientifically), then I will go back & essay some of the ideas propounded in a bit more detail & depth.
The book's major premise is laid out in the opening chapters of the book- basically it's this: The triumvirate of ideologies upon which most of current human social engineering is based is wrong. That trio is the idea of The Noble Savage (NS)- that pre-societal hunter-gatherers lived a purer life, not prone to the excesses & evils of Modernity; The Ghost In The Machine (GIM)- a variant on the Cartesian Theater idea of the mind- i.e.- that there is some indissoluble `essence' unique to animata, that is absent in inanimata. In other words, life is fundamentally different from non-life; whereas modern science reduces the differences to mere thresholds, or standards, that are arbitrary. Is a virus alive or not? Can a molecule or atom or quark be said to possess `liveness', &/or at what stage of complexity is that threshold breached? The 3rd, & to SP the most noxious of the trio (hence its titular status), The Blank Slate (BS) is the idea that human intellect & nature is infinitely malleable- i.e.- B.F. Skinner's hardest -on! The BS comes from the Latin tabula rasa & SP identifies its rise with the works of 17th Century philosopher John Locke. SP attributes the contemporary wont to see all individuals as `equal' stemming from this philosophy. All measurable differences are attributed to experience alone- i.e.- `nurture'. As I go on I'll refer back to these ideas as SP elaborates, but his general thrust is a good 1. It's ridiculous to think that the only reason I cannot play baseball as well as Major Leaguers like Barry Bonds or Alex Rodriguez is because of my experiences. Flat-out, they are great athletes. I am not. Even were I to make their dedications to their craft pale, I still could not come near to them because I am not a great natural athlete. Similarly, in the opposite direction, I am a great poet. I have alot of natural ability with words & ideas, & no doubt my dedication to this craft has led me to my current status- but I've come across 1000s of would-be `poets' who waste their lives trying to be poets, who just do not have `the gift', for lack of a better term. This is so manifest that it seems ludicrous that the idea ever got started in the 1st place. Oddly enough, though, this idea of the BS is used only selectively. Any suggestions that alcoholics are weak or fat people lazy or homosexuals perverse (perfectly reasonable hypotheses, according to the BS doctrine) are dismissed as bigotry. In effect, the BSers want their proverbial cake, & the ability to chow down, as well. SP brinks no such tendencies.

Customer Review: 5 out of 5
Nature vs. Nurture - A must read! Throughout this book, Pinker shows a thorough knowledge of a wide variety of fields, covering from neuroscience to politics to philosophy and much more. This book argues against the premise that the human brain begins as an empty tablet awaiting the experiences of life to teach it how to think and act. It's the "nature versus nurture" question revisited- but this time both sides win. You have to read the book to see what I mean.

Customer Review: 5 out of 5
This Will Change You (Nature v. Nurture) - If you are interested in considering that many people get ahead in life due to genetics moreso than previously thought then this book is for you. Culture, Environment, and Experience are weighed heavily in our reality, but "Slate" should open your perspective for sure. This book is the best of its kind.

Customer Review: 2 out of 5
What does Pinker mean? - Neuroscience increasingly helps us understand the biological basis for human perceptions and patterns of thought. Pinker writes about these new findings as part of a nature vs. nurture debate. I am interested in these arguments, but I couldn't understand Pinker's position until I got to about page 200. There is substance to this book, but I had to work hard to understand it.

Customer Review: 5 out of 5
One of the best books ever - Yeah, I dont mean to come across the wrong way but i do have a degree in philosophy and i honestly think this is one of the best books i have ever read. Even in light of Kant, Hume, Locke, (Descartes sucks), Aristotle etc... This book does NOT seem to create an original system of philosophical thinking, rather this book is a synthesis of all intellectual pursuits put together, Anthropology, psychology, neurology, philosophy, history, etc... His main thesis is determinism, which in my opinion will be the next revolution in the culture of mankind... Similar to the so called Darwinian Revolution... In a nutshell our brains, more than our environments or so called free will, control our actions...

I highly recommend this book...

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