Is Human Nature Inherently Good Or Evil

“Is Human Nature Inherently Good or Evil?”

Innocence; as defined by Merriam-Webster.com, is the freedom from guilt or sin through being unacquainted with evil. “When we are first born, we are yet to be influenced by the corruptness of the world”, as stated in Tom Stafford’s article “Are We Naturally Good or Bad” (1). Also stated in the same article is that “Babies are humans with the absolute minimum of cultural influence.” If we are born so pure, then what factors lead some people into becoming the monsters that society grows to fear? Which supports claim: We are born good, but factors such as family, society and technology, all interfere with our natural design. Family has a huge impact on who you become. They are the people from whom we first learn about love and life. We are impacted, positively and negatively, by the beliefs, attitudes, values and behaviors of those in our families. According to the Harvard Family Research Project, “The level and quality of family involvement has a direct link to healthy early childhood development. The family plays a significant role in how a child's personality, attitudes and behaviors are formed” (1.) The values and practices of parents and siblings directly impact the learning and emotional development of the children in a family. For instance, if a child was born into a family of Ku Klux Klan members, then the child would have been conditioned to hate Jews, African Americans and Catholics. Those children would see people getting lynched and beaten from the time they are born, so they become desensitized to these images, making it easier for them to act out these terrible crimes without feeling bad about it when they become adults. Children soak up information like a sponge, they mimic what they see and/or hear. One clear example is Ted Bundy, the American serial killer who, “as a child… would watch his own father torture animals (Bell 1).” Eventually Bundy did the same and further went on to being convicted of two murders and suspected of at least another forty. Because Bundy was “influenced by someone he looked up to (Bell 1)”, he mimicked his father’s actions and eventually became one of the most notorious serial killers in American history. In today’s schools, bullying is not an occasional occurrence but rather an everyday reality where children learn early that being sensitive, respectful, and kind earns them no respect. Jessie Klein, author of the book The Bully Society, makes the claim that “the rise of school shootings across America, and childhood aggression more broadly, are the consequences of a society that actually promotes aggressive and competitive behavior (Klein1).” With the constant need to “fit in”, students will do anything to make themselves seem popular or cool, sometimes even resulting in school shootings, fights and theft. In the novel Frankenstein, written by Mary Shelley, one of the Shelley’s topics addressed is the conflict of how society can affect someone and their personality. Frankenstein is about the scientist Victor Frankenstein, who creates a grotesque creature (a monster) in a scientific experiment. Later through the novel, through the monster’s story, we begin to understand that he is not “evil” in the way that Victor describes him, but instead it was his social surrounding that made him act violently. Society shuns the Creature in every situation because of his appearance. The creature even gets rejected by his creator’s brother, William Frankenstein. As he wanders in the woods, he sees a boy, William, whom he wishes to befriend. In disgust, the boy “placed his hands before his eyes and uttered a shrill scream” (Shelley 122). Yet another rejection proves to the creature that people see him as a monster, not a kind, ordinary person, and because of this, his nature is shaped by the response of the humans around him. Throughout the years technology has helped improve the way society lives but, it seems to be that lately it is having a negative effect on some. According to the Media Violence Research Center, “In 2010, nearly 300 million video games were sold in the United States. Six of the top ten best-selling video games included violence, with four of the games carrying a “Mature” rating recommended for people of age 17 or older.” Such things as shooting, stabbing and killing are glorified in these games. Along with video games, television can be just as influential. With more channels, less supervision, and an increasing supply of violence on mainstream TV, the opportunity for a child to be exposed to these horrific acts of violence has never been greater. In the novella The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, written by Robert Louis Stevenson, one of the Stevenson’s topics addressed is the conflict of good versus evil. Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde is a story about the good and evil that exist in all men. In this book, the battle between good and evil rages within the individual, Dr. Jekyll. Since Hyde seems to be taking over Jekyll in the story, it proves that evil is stronger than good. “My evil, kept awake by ambition, was alert and swift to seize the occasion; and the thing that was projected was Edward Hyde. (Chapter 10).” In the first chapter we learn how Mr. Hyde trampled a young girl, later on it is discovered that Hyde, mercilessly beat Sir Danvers Carew to death. Even worse, we find at the conclusion of the novella that Hyde enjoyed committing these acts of violence, and afterwards felt a rush of excitement and satisfaction. With the scene it proves that the potion that Jekyll took not just released his inner monster, Hyde, but showed the true depravity and pure evil of Jekyll’s inner personality.
Whether it is the nurturing of our family or the violence presented in video games, we are being influenced in some way or another. We are not all-of-a-sudden born and have the mentality, “I’m going to grow up and become evil.” It is an individual’s responsibility to decide whether to be corrupted by the influences of this cruel world or triumph over evil and live the life of a pure and moral person.

Work Cited
Bell, Rachel. “Ted Bundy”. Crime Library. TrueTv.com
Harvard Family Research Project. “Family Involvement In Early Childhood Education”. Harvard Family Research Project Harvard Graduate School of Education. 2006. 1.
Klein, Jessie. “The Bully Society”. Books. March 2012. NYU Press.
Shelley, Mary. Frankenstein. New York: Signet Classics, 2000.
Stafford, Tom. “Are We Naturally Good Or Bad?”. BBC-Future. 14 January 2013. 1. BBC.com
Stevenson, Robert. “The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde.” New York; John W. Lovell Company, 1886.Print.
"Video Game Violence Research." MediaViolence.org. N.p., n.d. Web. 16 May 2013.