Descartes Group: John Locke

Out of Spinoza, Descartes, and Locke I feel that my ideas coincide the most with Locke's philosophy. I believe that at birth humans are more or less a "blank slate" and it is the information they receive through others, the world, and society that shapes their opinions, beliefs, and notions. Simply, it is their experiences as coded by sensation as well as the reflection on such experiences that fills the mind with ideas. Even when an individual attains ideas by reading, it is the visual input that is processed by sensory neurons in order for that information to reach the mind. I do not believe that everyone is born with innate ideas because one's ideas can vary greatly as a function of location, culture, history, environment, upbringing, education, etc. For example, some people would like to believe that the wrongness of killing another human being is a "universal truth." There are some cannibalistic cultures that do exist however, that are not necessarily bothered by the murder of another human being. Similarly, most of those that commit homicide or genocide clearly do not view murder as being wrong.

Contrary to Descartes, I do not believe that "God" is an innate idea. There are numerous religions in today's world and some people choose not to take any religion at all. If an idea such as "God" or some higher being is innate, then how come non-religious people have not succumbed to this innate truth? Another example of the world's influence (or lack thereof) is "L'enfant sauvage:" a boy who lived in the wilderness for what seems to be his whole life until Itard comes across him. Without the influences of society, parents, and education this individual did not act or think like "normal" human beings. Moreover, this boy did not have innate notions that were considered "normal" of European citizens. Even at birth we are taking in countless stimuli that begin to shape who we are as individuals. From what our parents teach us to the media we are exposed to, everything has an effect on our beliefs and opinions. For many people there is a point where the ability to reason for oneself is reached, so outside influences can be questioned. Nevertheless, the environment we live in can often have an unconsciou influence that may be difficult to question because one does not even realize the occurrance of this process. In these cases ideas may seem to be inherent or "natural," but they are really inserted into our minds by oustide forces. Perhaps that is why so many individuals like Descartes believed in innate truths because the influence of other factors can be impossible to notice.