Beyond Nature vs Nurture: The Evolution of Understanding Human Development By Shaherzad Chawdree Edited By Sanaa Imami Nature vs Nurture? People’s opinions on the extent to which the environment or hereditary has influenced them has remained a topic of discussion in various fields. Are prodigies naturally gifted themselves, or is it because they were raised in an encouraging environment? Do serial killers naturally lack empathy, or were they neglected in their childhood? Some may even prescribe characteristic traits to certain races, claiming that others are more naturally gifted because of their race. As we know now, nature and nurture are not alternatives to each other. There is no strict binary which one must choose from—in fact, they are intertwined. However, it took many years to settle on this position. Starting from the 19th century, scientists attempted to biologize human nature. Sir Francis Galton, cousin of Charles Darwin, began the discussion of nature vs nurture, claiming that character traits were the result of hereditary factors. Building upon Darwinian theories of natural selection, Galton made bold claims that one could improve mankind by selectively breeding. His claims can be summed up in his unpublished book Kantsaywhere. The citizens of Kantsaywhere must
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take a genetic test that segregates them into different colonies depending on their genetic potential. If one is deemed to have inferior genetic material, they are forced into celibacy. Those who have superior genetic material are encouraged to intermarry. This theory of selective breeding would be named eugenics.
connections that come with one’s family standing can be responsible for their success in a given field. The majority of Galton’s analysis lacked a biological understanding of inheritance and rather relied upon sociological studies that could easily be clouded by prejudice.
Galton’s theory was heavily rooted in class. Coming from a wealthy family, Galton failed to divorce the ideas between hereditary and the privilege that is inherited from family-lineage. He disregards the advantages of one’s social and economic standing, claiming that talent is genetically inherited. In his book, Hereditary Genius, he analyzes families with different professions, studying the likelihood that the successor/offspring would be successful in the same profession as their ancestors. From his findings, he concludes that “talent is transmitted by inheritance in a very remarkable degree…that whole families of persons of talent are more common than those in which one member only is possessed of it” (“Hereditary Talent” 157). Galton dismisses that the resources and
Eugenics would be later used to promote a racial hierarchy, which is of no surprise given Galton’s own stance on race. He repeatedly emphasized in his works that Europeans are mentally and morally superior to other “lower races”. His theory of eugenics would only be further abused in its attempt to attribute large groups of people with negative characteristics. This can most notably be seen in Nazi Germany with the forced sterilizations of hundreds. Galton and his predecessors were firm in their stance that nature was mainly responsible for human development and personality traits. On the other extreme end, one can
