Pinker on Denial of Human Nature

Environmental & Science Education, STEM, Biological Evolution, Behavior, Brain, Science & Society

Ed Hessler

In this Life of the Mind presentation (12 m 01 s), cognitive psychologist Steven Pinker discusses "his most controversial book, The Blank Slate: The Modern Denial of Human Nature (2003) the fabric of which is human nature's moral, political and emotional colourings.

"He also touches on the numerous aspects of human nature including fear, morality, and finding meaning in life."

For a sense of some of the controversy, read this response by Pinker to reviewer evolutionary biologist H. Allen Orr about in the New York Review of Books. The link to the book at the top also provides a brief peek inside.