Thursday, January 26, 2012
Nature vs. Nurture
Earlier today we had a discussion about the affects of nature vs. nurture. Agree or disagree with the following statement: "We are what society makes us." Post a response on the blog explaining your response. Keep in mind the struggles of the creature and the ambition of Frankenstein. Nos vemos on Monday!
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I agree with the statement "We are what society makes us" because Society's behavior influences people's attitudes and feelings. In Frankenstein, the cottagers discriminated the creature and even hit him which triggered the emotions of being furious, sad, and state of being unwanted in which that resulted in him burning down their cottage. He decides to go to Geneva because his creator is there, and plans for revenge because he feels that his creator abandoned him. The way the cottagers acted towards the creature made him act, feel, and think that way. The way society treats people or view them as a person makes them more aware of their feelings and how they should act. If people spread rumors about you, you learn how to deal with it even if in the beginning you didn't know how to. Not only knowing how to deal with it, but it makes you a stronger person. You, also, learn to trust them less than the trust you have had for them in the beginning, if even any. In a different situation, such as, if someone told you to do something, and you did it, that shows something about you, either good or bad depending on what you did that the person told you to do. So, somewhat in there, Society influences you. I don't know if that got confusing, but i hope you got the point.
ReplyDeleteI agree with you Monica because the people around us influences us to be what we are. They change us in a good or bad way depending on the person.
DeleteDo you believe that we are born with a personality and emotional characteristics or our personalities develop over time? Or both?
DeleteI believe our personalities develop over time, depending on what we go through or see.
DeleteOkay that makes sense, but i have a question. How would one explain personality disorders such as Autism and Bipolar Disorder found in young children? I'm just curious to know what you guys think
DeleteI'm surprised you're reading this, I mean look at how long it is. The read is well worth the time. While society has a strong role in shaping someone's life, I strongly disagree that it is solely society that makes us who we are. I don't believe that we are all just blank canvases that are painted by society. Our natural personality and character affects how we take the punches of society. Our natural personality and character even affects how society acts towards us. Society on a high school level tells us that Blow-outs and Bump-its are beautiful, and that Lil' Wayne and Tyga are musical da Vincis. Now, if your character is one that wishes to be with others and conform to social norms, then you would follow the blind herd. If your character is one that seeks to be individual and chooses to question the norms of society, then you would naturally hate these teen culture fads. If your natural personality tells you not to do everything that Simon says, then Simon will get mad and punch you in the face. He might even kick you out of the game: the game of being socially accepted. I know you're probably thinking, "WELL GEE WIZ MR. ARISTOTLE, HOW IS THIS RELATED TO FRANKENSTEIN!" I am not saying that society had absolutely no role in his ultimate being, but his natural personality allowed this. Very early in the Creature's life, he showed signs of curiosity, close observance, and wanting to find his place the world. He found beauty in the sights and sounds of nature, even trying to imitate songs of the birds. When he failed, he felt "frightened" at his harsh voice and silenced himself. It is his natural curiosity, close observance, and need to belong that caused him to hate society, because he learned that he could never fit in to society. Had his natural personality given him a passive and apathetic attitude, he simply wouldn't care. When i describe how nature affects your being, I also mean your physical appearance and properties. His monstrous looks caused him to be abhorred by society. In conclusion, it is Frankenstein's natural personality that decides how he reacts to what society throws at him: if he had gone through the same social situation, but had a different personality, the outcome would be extremely distant... that is, if this different personality even brought him to the same situations. THE END.
ReplyDeleteI thought I would just share this interesting link to a personality test based on the Myers-Briggs theory.. I'm an ENTJ
Deletehttp://similarminds.com/jung.html
This is amazing. I got ENFJ from Myer-Briggs theory.
DeleteJorelle you should write a book about nature vs. nurture :P But in all seriousness, I would have to agree with you in that society is not the ONLY thing that creates us or is the basis of who we become.
DeleteI was looking for a "Like" button but I didn't find one. Thanks. You should take the test and see what personality type you get!
DeleteThat is an awsome website I recieved ESTP.
DeleteOh yeah i understand what you mean when you state that society doesnt control you to the fullest.(Well something like that im to lazy to go back and read)
Ok Jorelle, I can't believe I did this, but yes I did the survey and I am a......ESFJ, meaning
Deletethe Most sociable of all types. Nurturer of harmony. Outstanding host or hostesses. 12.3% of total population. interesting but be careful! Sometimes surveys are bias or slightly manipulated. Overall fun to take though! Also, keep in mind that the way you answer the questions may vary depending on how you feel on that particular day or your current state of mind...
I disagree with the statement: "We are what society makes us.". I do believe, however, that society does have partial influence on the way we are. Sometimes we see people doing things that are wrong or they do something to you and you tell yourself you don't ever want to be like them. Maybe you see someone doing something very nice and you want to be like them. In a way our personalities take time to develop, because as you go through things and experiences you do change sometimes. In the beginning the creature thought he was just like everyone else but as he went through experiences he figured out he was different and his personality began to change.
ReplyDelete"We are what society makes us," excludes our parent's nourishment. When we are born all we know is our parent's love or neglect. Later on, we experience the outside world for what it really is. As we witness it all, we grow and our personality gets influenced optionally, and our parent's nourishment is there also. Our parent's nourishment is what makes us either do wrong or right. Like in Frankenstein the monster saw that no matter what he did, society rejected him, and he was ready to violently reject society back, but he met with Frankenstein and asked him to hear him out. He told Frankenstein that he'd be good if Frankenstein owned him. Frankenstein had beat nature, but now had to deal with nurture. Society only "makes us" if we let it. Parents and society both influence you optionally but parents are the first you listen to and they are the ones that "make you" first.
ReplyDeleteI agree that society only "makes" someone if that person allows it to. A person's personality does not have to be affected by society at all. Their personality can be based on how they were nurtured, and not on how society directed it.
DeleteI do not agree with that statement. A person's personality/characteristic does not have to be influinced by society at all. A person's personality can be based solely on how they were nurtured. They could have had a happy childhood and lived in a terrible society, but they would still be a nice and caring person. There could also be a persosn who had the worst childhood and lived in the greatest society ever, but that person would still be one of FBI's most wanted. Society does not necessarily "make" anyone. Unless that person allows society to "make" them. For example, if Frankenstein had nurtured the creature, then he would have been happy and would not have cared what society thought of him because someone loved him and accepted him for who he was.
ReplyDeleteI can definitely understand your point of view but I would say that society still has a role in a person's personality. How would you explain when a person commits suicide because they were criticised on their apperance? I mean that person could have been a happy-go-lucky person, so to speak, but yet they become so extremely affected by society.
DeleteI like the point you made Amairani because it applies to Victor Frankenstein. He had a great and caring childhood, but after William and Justine died, he mentioned that when he saw happy people all around him, he felt like society was mocking his misery
DeleteGreat point! Two people from the same "hood" and family can come out completely different. HMMM...I guess the truth to all this is what makes all the difference is having an extraordinary psychology! We are all free to choose. Remember....life isn't so much about what happens to us, rather how we respond to what happens to us!
DeleteI would agree with that statement slightly. A person can be affected by society although they grew up in a loving and caring household simply because society is very critical and judgemental towards people. You have people who have commited suicide because they let society take them over and they've allowed other people's opinion to decide their fate. So in a way I suppose that society only affects a person if the person allows themselves to be stomped on by people rather than brushing off what people have to say. In Frankenstein the monster states that "misery made him fiend" and so because of this he acts out when people fear him and judge him but who's to say that IF Frankenstein did show affection for him that the monster wouldn't still have done those malicious thngs that he did?
ReplyDeleteI like the question you finished with, it really makes me think.
Delete"So in a way I suppose that society only affects a person if the person allows themselves to be stomped on by people rather than brushing off what people have to say."
DeleteI strongly agree with you Selena on this sentence because yes society will affect us but only if we allow it to. Not every person will think the same about society's actions or take it the same way.
(Boring Version)
ReplyDeleteThe prompt above ask us whether or not that society makes us who we are. I agree with this statement since not all the time that society changes you. This occurs to only a small portion of the world. This basically changes people as they face the real world in life where no one cares about who you are and where you came from. You build up the type of person you are to create the person that will be likeable to your peers around you. When your personality changes people always react and say “WOW, This is the real you.” Tying in the prompt with Frankenstein, the creature throughout the story was an unlike type of character since his physical features and intelligence were way off of peoples interpretation of a “Scary monster.” The creature that was educated understood why people looked at him with depression. Since the creature was outcasted so he raged as society abhorred him. This shows that society changes you.
(Fun Version)
Buenos Dias Mr. Gonzales! Nature vs. Nurture have different roles in society(Obviously). Nature is like when like,like,like uhh when GANGSTERS ASK "WHERE YOU FROM", or "WHERE YOU AT BRUH." These questions apply to nature because nature relies on the environment you were raised in, but in some circumstances it doesn't necessarily happen. For example lets say you were raised in an area where bad influences came from probably you might gain those bad habits. NURTURE! Nurture is the way you were brought up to life. The way you were taken care of and disciplined. Nurture is just the way you were taught and treated as a child. Even though you were nurtured with affection and discipline that doesn’t mean your nature will stay at the state of being kind and respectful. Your attitude/nature changes as you face society. The prompt above “We are what society makes us” to be honest this prompt can't be justified in any way. I say that because society MAY or MAY NOT CHANGE US IN ANY WAY. Where I use to live, I lived in one of the bad places where people are very abusive, and very “satan” like. That experience hardly changed me SO I WOULDNT THINK THAT SOCIETY MAKES US WHO YOU ARE, but some cases it may change you in a good or even bad way so ASDFSOURHQNWR. OKAY! Towards Frankenstein his nature changed throughout the story since he was taught to read and comprehend. At first his nature was full of curiosity and a hard understanding of the world which made him have no idea where he was and who he was. As the story progresses Frankensteins nature starts to change slowly since he was educated and he sought for the truth of his creation which angered him since he was abandoned at the moment he was awoken. Society changed him since he was disgusted from RANDOM PEOPLE and they tried to kill which angered him deeply about his physical appearances.
-Love Rashed.
P.S. You guys like my cupcake language?
I strongly agree with the statement "we are what society makes us" for various amount of reasons. For example, I have two cousins that both have the same parents and both came out to be different. One of my cousins is 13 and the other one is 14. My 14 year old cousin is really into school and doesn't get in trouble. My other cousin that is 13 years old is a really big trouble maker. As you can see even though they both came from the same roots they both are different. Society has had a different impact on both of them.
ReplyDeleteWait are you saying they are different because of the different experiences with society? Wouldn't they face similar social problems since they are near the same age?
DeleteYes they are facing different experiences with society and they should be facing similar social problems but the younger one has different friends and a different attitude.
DeleteI don't agree that society is what makes us. Society can affect who we are but society doesn't necessarily make who we are. Many people turn out with different personilities even if they grew up in a similar society. It depends how a person reacts to the way they see society. Society can influence how a person acts but it doesn't inluence everybody. For instance if you grew up in a bad society your views of society can change but it doesn't mean it changes how your personality is. I think the statement "we are what society makes us" is partially right but it isn't entirely true.
ReplyDeleteI agree with the statement "we are what society makes us", but nurture still has an impact on the person we become. We are taught right from wrong from our parents and up to a certain age we are shaped how our parents want us to be like. But once we find out what the outside world is like we become influenced by others' judgement,so we feel we need to change to be accepted into society.
ReplyDeleteI agree when you mention that nurture has a role in a single person. I have a question like what if you were an orphan and you didn't have guidance from your parents?
DeleteSociety can be influence people but make them who they are. I don't agree with the statment, I am a totally different person to what you guys see or think, as an example. Everyone has their own special interest in what they strive for to succeed. We grew up on what people did but soon change our mind to what we see and feel. Nature is what has made us today in my oopinion, our five senses we were born with.
ReplyDeleteI Would agree to that statement. Fom the beginning your parents start shaping you in the way they seem best(NURTURE), but somehow those nurturing skills are influenced by society because if a parent sees a nother parent succeed with their child they try and copy them and the results are different.When you grow up and see society for yourself you try to fit in by using different slang words,clothes,hair, and some times a whole new appereance.So I think that society even affects nurture.How this relates to Frankestein??? There isnt 8 foot monsters walking around, which means we would be surprised to see one especially if he cant communicate.I think that Frankenstein was scared that society wouldnt take his creation for a simple human and he was even frightened himself on his appereance, but hey you cant judge a book by its cover.
ReplyDeleteI agree on the statement "We are what society makes us". Society influences you with good and bad ideas which leads to the person you become. For example there are many teenagers being influence by other teens in using drugs but some teens aren't easily influence. I'm one of those teens that aren't easily influences with those bad habits and been drug free for 16 years already.I don't get the point of using drugs and I see a lot of teens using it but still doesn't effect me on wanting to use drugs. Everyone will take society's actions differently but it does contributes to the person we are. Society effects each person in one way or another but it's really up to the person how to take it.
ReplyDeleteAlthough society has a powerful effect upon us on a personal level, it all boils down to our own nature. My parents have 6 children; me being the oldest. We all are different from each other, despite sharing everything together. We spent most of our lives growing up "in the hood". What was expected of us turned out to be nearly the opposite despite our surroundings; we never fell into the trap of being manipulated and used to do bad things. Most of the other kids around us had a sort of guiltless sense while I myself couldn't find it in me to harm or take anything from anyone. Now I see the difference in genetic control over our basic person. However, our nurturing has the power to manipulate it greatly with varying success, as I observed from other family members. You can go to hell and back and come out a reasonable human being, but you can also live with anything you desire and be a vile and self-centered person. An example of this as we've all read is between Victor Frankenstein and his nameless creation. Vic lived a fantastic early life which even I envy, for being fictional. Somehow though, he ends up shunning, fearing, and damning his own creation and not showing an ounce of respect or mercy for him who wants to be loved. His creation, on the other hand, has experienced nothing but pain and torment from the moment he took his first breath and he is the one we're convinced to be the actual voice of reason? Perhaps when our experiences are at their greatest they can get, we become the opposite.
ReplyDeleteI would say that we are what society makes us because from an early age our parents influence the way we behave throughout our lives. With their influence we also choose certain friends. Depending on what friends we pick we choose to do certain actions that will either take us somewhere good or lead us to do bad things. Since the creature had no one to guide him when he was born he didn’t realize he was different from the rest of humanity and thought that people would accept him just the way he was. He chose to become close to the cottagers but they completely rejected him and this made him feel anger and eventually led to the murder of William.
ReplyDelete