Tabula rasa

“Tabula Rasa” is part of John Locke’s philosophy and is a Latin principle of understanding that the nature of humans is a blank slate. John Locke is “one of the most important political theorist of the enlightenment, [and] a founding figure of the school of philosophy known as empiricism” (Locke 125). As an Empiricist he holds that “knowledge derives from experience rather than from pure reason” (Short). “John Locke viewed human nature as not inherently self-interested or aggressive, [but…

In John Locke’s Essay Concerning Human Understanding, Locke addresses a wide variety of topics such as the concept of ideas and knowledge within his essays. In the second book of his essays (chapter eight), Locke discusses the distinction between primary and secondary qualities. The passage selected will examine the distinction behind the primary and secondary qualities as well as provide a clear example on how these qualities work and their distinctions. In the second book of his essays, Locke…

individual, but simply the accumulation of “facts” derived from sensory experience” (Connolly). He refused to believe Plato's and Descartes prior notions when it came to innate ideas and knowledge (Uzgalis). Locke also believed that we are all born as “tabula rasa”, or blank slates, where people have the potential to know things, but nothing is set in stone. According to Locke, humans from birth acquire knowledge through experience of the world, instead of innately (“John Locke”). He also…

The term evil is incredibly subjective, and yet something universally known to exist. The topic has prevailed priority interest in religion, science and morality: where it comes from, how it’s cultivated, how it's destroyed. There is a looming mystery to evilness, an obvious existence, but latent foundation. East of Eden written by John Steinbeck follows the peoples of the Salinas Valley in California and their chaotic web of moral code. The book projects a multitude of biblical references and…

Learning approach / behaviourist approach In the learning approach they believe that all behaviour is learnt from the environment after birth, that everyone born is born with a ‘Tabula Rasa’ and Latin phrase meaning ‘blank slate’. All the behaviour and knowledge all then comes from associations and interactions with people around us and environment we are bought up in which is learnt from observation and others around us modelling behaviour. New types of behaviours which are formed from…

Two philosophers that have heavily influenced the world of philosophy as we now know it, René Descartes and John Locke, have not always agreed on the same beliefs. In fact, they almost always argued on what each other felt was true except for the unlikely agreement on a few things. This brings me to one particular argument dealing with the issue on innate ideas. Descartes side of the argument believes that we born with ideas (innate ideas) and Locke believes our ideas come from experience and…

Criminological theories have traditionally focused on explaining crime rates and criminal behavior separately with their own notions, assumptions, and scopes of criminality (Heidt & Wheeldon, 2015). However, integrated theories propose the combination of macro and micro theories to explain the causes of crime. Macro theories such as social disorganization try to explain the criminal act and crime rate with the characteristics of the neighborhood. On the other hand, Micro theories explain the…

cultural history (Kelly). Westerners had a common notion that Africans who were enslaved lost all their cultural ties and tradition due to the traumatic experiences during the transatlantic voyage; this idea was coined by Robert Park and is called tabula rasa. It is considers a “blank slate” a loss of heritage, culture and beliefs for the slaves. Comparatively, there is a prevailing ideology that enslaved…

This paper seeks to investigate the complex ways the epistolary novel informs notions of the self, specifically in regard to Samuel Richardson’s Pamela. To do so, it is imperative to evaluate the forms’ impact on the story it tells. The notions of immediacy and intimacy inherent in the letter form are emphasized here. Locke’s theory of the blank self can be used to explain the creation of Pamela. Finally, Rousseau’s ideas about the creation of the self through reading explore the novel’s…

Locke argued against the belief that human beings are born with certain ideas already in their minds. He claimed that, on the contrary, the mind is a tabula rasa (blank slate) until experience begins to “write” on it 34. Jan Vermeer Dutch painter renowned for his use of light (1632-1675) 35. Johann Sebastian Bach (21 March 1685 in Eisenach – 28 July 1750 in Leipzig) was a German composer and organist. He…