Question 2

[alexsprecker]

I think that nurture is far more important in development than nature, because even if people are naturally bad, if nurtured well people will go away from their naturally bad ways, than if nurtured bad and without care.

[brennapayne]

I agree with how influential nurture can be in shaping a personality, however, I feel that, to some extent, you have to let nature take its course. Without this aspect of nature and independence-connecting to essential question one- we are not responsible for our own decisions and behaviors because someone else is doing all the thinking.  I can see this occurring a bit in Bonnie.  She feels uncomfortable making her own decisions and prefers to rely on others, which could have been a result of her being coddled too much as a child.  It could even be caused by her husband-due to his somewhat dominant nature- controlling too much of her life. His doubt in her capability to run her own life is shown by him feeling compelled to handle the will and the insurance company himself because "Bonnie wouldn't be able to carry on an operation like this..."

[sethfrost]

I think that both are important. People need to experience both so that they know how to take care of themselves and be independent but, on the other hand, people need to know how to act by themselves without being irrational and overly violent and irresponsible. Our environment shapes the way we think and act, which contributes to nature vs. nurture; rougher environments tend to be more "nature" oriented and people are more independent and do what it takes t o survive; while safer environments tend to be more "nurture" oriented and people learn how to live with a sense of morality.

[natalieneace]

• To what extent are we “products of our environment”?
  
• I think that we are complete products of our environment because whatever we are around day by day affects how we view the world and everyone in it. For example, we live in Fort Thomas. A secluded, everybody-knows-everybody town just like Holcomb. And the murder of the Clutter family directly connects to the murder of Mr.McCafferty in 2007. People in Holcomb Kansas thought the Clutter family was a model one and always there to help the other townspeople for example when Nancy “felt it her duty to be available when younger girls came to her wanting help with their cooking, their sewing, or their music lessons-or, as often happened, to confide”. This directly relates to people’s thoughts of the McCafferty family. They both were “normal” families in the eyes of the rest of the World.
  
• A product of our environment can affect a person’s morals and values. Like the simple people of Holcomb they most likely had a good sense of morality and didn’t see a justification for the taking of any life. This can be well assumed as similar with the people of Fort Thomas. However, both cities were victims of murderous crimes with the death of the Clutter family in 1959 and the death of Robert McCafferty in 2007. On WCPO.com a report was conducted in which Campbell County Commonwealth Attorney Michelle Snodgrass said, “‘In a situation like this, taking another person's life should always be a last resort. There were too many choices that were available to Cheryl McCafferty and she didn't take those choices that were available to her. All I can say is there was one victim of this crime and that victim was Robert McCafferty. It was not Cheryl McCafferty’ said Snodgrass. ‘Robert McCafferty did not need to die. I've said that from the beginning. There was no justification for his killing’”. The most similar rush of feelings came that encompassed horror, sadness, and an innate belief that it couldn’t happen here. But it did.
  

[sophicalhoun]

Going back, I think that inherent nature and the expected qualities, as well as potential, greatly affect the behaviours of an individual. This is an evident truth within the text, seemingly incorporated into the opening pages, even going so far as to manipulate the unexpected nature of the violent murder of the Clutter family to illustrate and emphasize this point.

[beckyhopee]

I think that both nature and nurture are important. Yes, the way that someone is brought up can influence the rest of their life. The way that they were nurtured. Say, if they were to be brought up in a bad home environment they might be like them as well. But, they might not want to be, and they'd want to be different. Same with being brought up in a nice home with a loving family, and people who were always there for you. That doesn't mean that you're going to be a loving person like those who brought you up. They could naturally be a 'bad' person and you couldn't change that. So, in a way I agree with Brenna in how "nature should take its course" but nurture does have a big effect on how you could end up.

[sethfrost]

I think that people are always responsible for their actions;and that our environment shapes us to form our own sense of morality which we use to justify our own actions. I agree with Natalie that we are complete products of our environment, which, as we have read, may not always be a good thing. People respond to different scenarios in different ways because no one is exactly the same and we are not all raised the same way and people do not justify their actions in the same ways. Our environment may mold and form us to fit in to survive, but within our environment, we make our own choices, we make our own future, we decide what our lives will be and how we will live them, and we are the only ones who can be held accountable. For each action there is an effect on our identity and the impact of the action on our identity depends on the size and importance of that action. The choices that we make decide our fate and they all alter who we truly are.

[alexsprecker]

To brennapayne points nature is very important, but think about where we would be if none of us were nurtured? If we only let nature control us and we were never nurtured the world would be in chaos, no one would be safe anywhere, we need nurture in order for society to function correctly.

[mayao]

Both nature and nuture have a great impact on an individuals behavior, choices and lifestyle. Both influence our decisions on our personal beliefs of what's right and wrong.
The environment impacts our decisions because without the opinions of our peers then we wouldn't know anything outside of what we were taught by our parents through their nuture. Also, we make decisions that are influenced by wanting to be socially accepted. Furthermore, the environment someone grows up in such as school or town affects their personal values and decisions. Which greatly impact their future lifestyle whether it's similar or different to their childhood. So I agree with Seth that the environment molds us but we still make our own decisions.
However, nuture greatly impacts someone's behavior, choices, and lifestyle also. The way someone is taught, their relationship with their parents, their access to resources and opportunities all affects the individual's future behavior, lifestyle and choices. No one grows up the same. Every persons response to situations through life is different. If someone isn't introduced or hasn't experienced something due to their lack of nuture then it will influence their behavior and connection to others. Such as someone who has been abused or neglected, those individuals lack the nuture that others have had. But I believe that no matter what environment you grew up in or how you were raised, it's your choice on what decisions to make or what lifestyle you want to live even if you have lived through the worst. Nature and nuture both affect an individual but the individual has the ability to choose how much of the environment and their childhood will affect their future decisions and lifestyle.

[mayao]

I agree with alex about what he said to brennapayne, we can't just allow nature to control us. Because both nature and nurture are important for individuals to know what's right and wrong in order to avoid chaos.

[graciefettig]

To the extent that nature or nurture is more important, and acknowledging that both are valued, I believe that nurture is far more important. How can one be born "evil"? Or how can you say someone is "bad"? If you take the time to think about the kids who you believe are bad, have you seen there home life? They could be lacking much of the nurturance and attention they need. When kids are young, many choose to throw tantrums as a mean of gaining some attention from their parent(s). Children who lack the attention they need, which is gained from nurturance, tend to misbehave because that is the only way they can gain a form of attention. When kids grow up in a healthy family, full of guidance, love, and nurturance, they tend to have had more life experiences and gather a more in-depth understanding of their moral values. Nature does not teach one right and wrong, that comes with nurturance. Nature doesn't teach how to ride a bike, how to deal with others, or how to excel in life. All of those things are treasured, however, would not be relevant without nurturance. I believe we are born with certain tendencies that promote bad actions, such as temper issues.

[natalieneace]

I agree with you Gracie in the fact that nature doesn't teach you how to ride and bike and deal with temper issues but nurture doesn't teach you anything if you live a scarred childhood. In a child’s life that has been based solely on nature, nurturance is irrelevant to them. Nature teaches you how to survive in this complicated and corrupt world. Without nature running you through trials and tribulations, it's hard to understand how to cope with them if you’re strictly nurtured. Parents have to at some point let their kids fall and make mistakes. That’s nature. The curiosity and sin spray-paint that has been covering youth for decades is hard to constantly be removing so eventually it just stays. The slipups of the world should only be cleaned up by the mess maker but that’s not the way it is anymore. Parents coddle their children like china-dolls but when real crisis happens to kids without this pampering, they don’t cry about it like the china-doll child would. They work past it and continue to attempt at a better life. A better life is almost unreachable since deprivation is all they know.

[sarahhoffmann88]

I believe that both nature and nurture are important, however, I think that nurture plays a larger part in the way we build ourselves as we grow. I agree with that we all start out as an individual human being and there is no one in the world like us, but as we are raised in a specific environment, and encounter different situations, we can see how they start to mold us into who we are. For example, Bonnie might be the enclosed, introverted person she is because she has gone through a situation of being sick where she feels no one else knows her pain. This might be the reason she seems to stay quiet and is often found in her room. I agree with Gracie in the fact that a child cannot be born evil or good. There is no set of chromosomes that make up our DNA to tell us how to behave throughout our life. I believe that the nurture we are developed through as a child, is a base for the decision we make in our future.

[sarahhoffmann88]

I also agree with Natalie's point that we are a product of our environment. Nature is a part of us in the aspect that our genetics create our eye color, hair color, and our height, but our personality, behavior, and choices are 100% influenced by our environment. For example, Nancy was raised in a warm environment, as seen by the personalities or both Herbert and Bonnie, and therefore, as Natalie pointed out, she was willing to promote herself as someone younger girls were able to and talk to. If she were to have been raised in a secluded family that did not socialize within their town, she might not have been as compelled to offer her assistance.

[lukewormald]

I believe that in early development nurture has a more significant effect on personality and the conscience because that is when we are dependent on the care of another and will mimic their actions. Nature can have an effect on personality though and this is mostly from genetics. Various disorders can affect how a person reacts to certain stimuli such as schizophrenia and various other mental/personality disorders.