The Blank Slate: The Modern Denial of Human Nature

The Blank Slate is the theory that all children are born with minds like empty pages ready to be written on, and only experience will imprint them with the traits they will eventually acquire. Personality, intelligence, morality, and everything else that combines to make a person unique: none of this is innate, it all has to be learnt. Steven Pinker describes how this idea permeates all areas of modern western thought and policy-making. He explains how this thinking is flawed, and why there is a huge resistance to even discussing nature versus nurture.

To anybody who has any contact with those diagnosed with an autistic spectrum disorder, the theory of the Blank Slate is clearly absurd. This is the kind of thinking that led to autism being blamed on "refrigerator mothers" by the likes of Bruno Bettleheim. Although Pinker only mentions autism very briefly in this book, he puts the boot very firmly into the ideas on human nature that were behind Bettleheim's theories. Parents of children with ASD often feel extremely guilty and responsible for the condition of their children. A better understanding of the role of genes in our development can help to put these feelings in their place, and that is just what the author achieves.

Steven Pinker explains the Blank Slate's origins in philosophy, and some of its implications such as beliefs about the soul and the denial that some people have natural talents and weaknesses. Many people fear that giving up this doctrine will mean that our morality will collapse, women's rights will suffer, and Nazism, along with all manner of other discrimination, will be justified. The author argues that this should not be the case because there are much sounder foundations for our customs and laws than an outdated belief about the lack of influence of our genes. People will continue to do good and punish lawbreakers because it is largely in their evolutionary interests. A sophisticated, scientific understanding of human nature can enhance that, rather than leading to a breakdown of society.

In chapter 19, "Children", Pinker discusses the effects of being raised in a certain family versus the effects of genes and other effects that come into play. Parents don't make an awful lot of difference to the way their children turn out according to the author, and this is both liberating and disheartening. But parenting is a relationship between people as well as a matter of educating, and the author emphasises this as well as the importance of being kind to your children.

The Blank Slate covers a wide range of subjects, from science and postmodernism to criminal justice, feminism and much more. It's an intensive, erudite read that's very wide in scope, yet written in a way that can be understood by non-scientists. Human nature is something that involves everyone, and the implications of this book for many areas, not just autism, are vast. But they have a special poignancy for anyone who has been affected by the belief that the symptoms of autism can be cured through education. The Blank Slate is very enlightening, a worthwhile reality check for parents and teachers alike, and a compelling book.