The Blank Slate: The Modern Denial of Human Nature

by Johnstone Family Professor of Psychology Steven Pi (Author)

• New

  Illustrated
  2003

  $22.13

• Used

  Hardcover
  2002

  $4.49

  In this title, Steven Pinker makes explicit the argument which has been a backdrop to his previous books and many other popular science titles. He argues that much of our social commentary, conventional wisdom, and academic orthodoxy is wrongly rooted in the doctrines of the noble savage (civilisation is the source of human corruption) and the blank slate (the mind has no innate structure; all thoughts and feelings seep into our heads from surrounding culture). He explores the impact of these notions on our attitudes to sexuality, ideology, political correctness and the arts, and insists that we need to be more honest about human nature.

• New

  Paperback
  2003

  $16.11

  From bestselling author Stephen Pinker, The Blank Slate: The Modern Denial of Human Nature shatters the myths surrounding human behaviour and 'nature versus nurture'. Recently many people have assumed that we are shaped by our environment: a blank slate waiting to be inscribed by upbringing and culture, with innate abilities playing little part. The Blank Slate shows that this view denies the heart of our being: human nature. Violence is not just a product of society; male and female minds are different; the genes we give our children shape the more than our parenting practices. To acknowledge our nature, Pinker shows, is not to condone inequality, but to understand the very foundations of humanity. Magnificent and timely . ( Sunday Telegraph ). A passionate defence of the enduring power of human nature ...both life-affirming and deeply satisfying . (Tim Lott, Daily Telegraph Books of the Year). Brilliant ...enjoyable, informative, clear, humane . ( New Scientist ). Steven Pinker is a best-selling author and Professor of Psychology and Director of the Center for cognitive Neuroscience at MIT. Pinker has been awarded research prizes from the National Academy of Sciences and the American Psychological Association, graduate and undergraduate teaching prizes from MIT, and book prizes from the American Psychological Association, the Linguistics Society of America and the Los Angeles Times . He is the author of How the Mind Works , The Blank Slate , The Better Angels of Our Nature , and The Language Instinct .