Nature vs. Nurture

Paper Summary:

What makes us who we are? The paper conveys how the diverse narratives of "Invisible Man", "Absalom, Absalom" and "Clockers" all come to the same conclusion. Although a human being may possess an ordinary or noble nature, these works show how ultimately it is the person's social environment that shapes the path of his or her life. The paper discusses how these books do not present utterly helpless visions of the human character. The paper shows how all of the protagonists have basic impulses that encourage them to become educated and to make something of their lives. The paper shows, however, how these works illustrate the extent society limits the reach of their aspirations and the way that others perceive them.

From the Paper:

"For example, the life Ralph Ellison's protagonist in Invisible Man is constrained by his society's constructs of racism and how it deems a Black man should live and act. He lives as a virtual hermit, in fear of White society, and taking comfort only in the sight of light reflected by electric illumination in his room. "I am nobody but myself," he says, believing that shutting out all other human beings is the only way to escape the fact that he is an "invisible man," as a persecuted and placeless Black man in contemporary America. (Ellison 1) Gradually, the reader comes to know his story over the course of a series of flashbacks."

Sample of Sources Used:

• Ellison, Ralph. (1995) Invisible Man. New York: Vintage.
• Faulkner, William. (1991) Absalom, Absalom. New York: Vintage Reissue.
• Price, Richard. (2001) Clockers. New York: Harper Paperbacks

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