Influence of Nature and Nurture in Bessie Head’s A Woman alone and the Cardinals

Influence of Nature and Nurture in Bessie Head’s A Woman alone and the Cardinals.

ABSTRACT

The influence of nature and nurture is a long-standing concern in developmental psychology as well as in literature. It is like the question of the egg and the hen: which one comes first?

This dissertation, in a bid to understand better the influence of nature and nurture, undertakes a study of Bessie Head’s A Woman Alone and The Cardinals— novels that are autobiographical as well as fictional.

It is interesting to note that after a detailed study of the characters in the two novels concerned, it is obvious that Bessie Head’s message is that NURTURE is the dominant or primary factor in shaping human behaviours in life; NATURE is therefore secondary.

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INTRODUCTION

This study examines nature and nurture (environment) as they shape personalities of Bessie Head’s characters and even herself (the author). Nature and nurture are important in understanding the mental state of Head’s characters.

Nature according to the Shorter Oxford English Dictionary refers to the essential qualities of a thing; the inherent and inseparable combination of properties essentially pertaining to anything and giving it, its fundamental character.

It is also defined as the inherent power or force by which the physical and mental activities of man are sustained. It is the sum of qualities and attributes which make a person what he is. In other words, nature shapes the personalities of individual, the natural or real aspects of a person, place, or thing.

The qualities with which people are born (including genetic make-up, stable personality traits, animal instincts, etc).The aforementioned attributes contribute a lot in making us what we are.

Mcclearn (1993) echoes the same thought when he refers to nature as our genetic gift, which gives us physical traits such as hair colour, and form of the body (33).

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REFERENCES

Aristotle. The Nicomachean Ethics. New York: Oxford Word’s Classics, 1998 print.

Bouchard, T. J Genetic Influence on Human Psychological Traits: A Survey Current Direction in Psychological Science. New York; Cambridge up, 2004. Print.

Cambridge Advanced Learner’s Dictionary. New York: Cambridge up, 2^nd Ed, 2005.Print.

Cullinan, Patrick. Imaginative Trespassers. Johannesburg: Wits University Press and Africa World Press Inc, 2005. Print.

Dostoevsky, Fyodor. Notes from Underground. England: Penguin Books, 2003. Print. Eilder, Arlene “Review: Bessie Head: New Considerations, Continuing questions.

Eilersen, Gillian Stead. Thunder behind Her Ears. Claremont: David Philip Publishers,Print.

StudentsandScholarship Team.