A leading cognitive scientist argues that a deep sense of good and evil is bred in the bone. From John Locke to Sigmund Freud, philosophers and psychologists have long believed that we begin life as blank moral slates. Many of us take for granted that babies are born selfish and that it is the role of societyâ??and especially parentsâ??to transform them from little sociopaths into civilized beings. In Just Babies, Paul Bloom argues that humans are in fact hardwired with a sense of morality. Drawing on groundbreaking research at Yale, Bloom demonstrates that, even before they can speak or walk, babies judge the goodness and badness of othersâ?? actions; feel empathy and compassion; act to soothe those in distress; and have a rudimentary sense of justice.
Still, this innate morality is limited, sometimes tragically. We are naturally hostile to strangers, prone to parochialism and bigotry. Bringing together insights from psychology, behavioral economics, evolutionary biology, and philosophy, Bloom explores how we have come to surpass these limitations. Along the way, he examines the morality of chimpanzees, violent psychopaths, religious extremists, and Ivy League professors, and explores our often puzzling moral feelings about sex, politics, religion, and race.
In his analysis of the morality of children and adults, Bloom rejects the fashionable view that our moral decisions are driven mainly by gut feelings and unconscious biases. Just as reason has driven our great scientific discoveries, he argues, it is reason and deliberation that makes possible our moral discoveries, such as the wrongness of slavery. Ultimately, it is through our imagination, our compassion, and our uniquely human capacity for rational thought that we can transcend the primitive sense of morality we were born with, becoming more than just babies.
Paul Bloom has a gift for bringing abstract ideas to life, moving seamlessly from Darwin, Herodotus, and Adam Smith to The Princess Bride, Hannibal Lecter, and Louis C.K. Vivid, witty, and intellectually probing, Just Babies offers a radical new perspective on our moral li… (más)
Very nice discussion about the origins of morality, what parts are instinctual and what parts are learned. Bloom is a great writer and this is an interesting subject. ( )
Really 3.5 stars. Some very interesting research that has some interesting potential consequences. But that's just the first 1/2 of the book. Then there is a general discussion of the origins of morality at all age levels, which while OK, was not the premise of the book. A premise that may not really be paid off at all. At least on one level, it reads like there are some morals that are 'baked' into each of us, but offers a fairly hand-wavey explanation as to how. Except it can't be supernatural. Which is OK, but seemingly just a decision on the part of the author and not necessarily supportable. Still worth the read. ( )
There are a few interesting anecdotes here and Bloom is a fairly engaging writer, but I am left shaking my head at the conceit of psychology, our most dubious of all the "sciences." Stripping out all the sections that suggest that one study "shows" a given theory right or wrong, one is left with a few pages of Bloom's insights on life and parenting. Thanks? ( )
I am ashamed to admit that I received this as an Early Reviewer and am just now reviewing it. There are several good reviews already posted, so I'll keep it short and sweet. To summarize, the author takes on the the question of nature vs. nurture. Are babies born moral or is morality learned? The author explains the results of several studies done on both babies and adults to answer that question. You'll have to read the book to learn the author's conclusion. To be honest, I was a little disappointed that he didn't focus more time on discussing the studies on babies. But all in all, the book should be of interest to those interested in psychology and morality. ( )
I found this book to be interesting. The author makes several good points, but often jumps to conclusions that he has no facts to support. It is very difficult to determine what babies are thinking, given that they are unable to speak, so to assume that we can determine those things is a little ambitious to say the least. The title is slightly misleading, as this book isn't as much about good and evil as it is about how we form our moral compasses and whether this is inherent or learned. Either way, it makes some truly interesting points and is worth a read if you are interested in psychology.
A leading cognitive scientist argues that a deep sense of good and evil is bred in the bone. From John Locke to Sigmund Freud, philosophers and psychologists have long believed that we begin life as blank moral slates. Many of us take for granted that babies are born selfish and that it is the role of societyâ??and especially parentsâ??to transform them from little sociopaths into civilized beings. In Just Babies, Paul Bloom argues that humans are in fact hardwired with a sense of morality. Drawing on groundbreaking research at Yale, Bloom demonstrates that, even before they can speak or walk, babies judge the goodness and badness of othersâ?? actions; feel empathy and compassion; act to soothe those in distress; and have a rudimentary sense of justice.
Still, this innate morality is limited, sometimes tragically. We are naturally hostile to strangers, prone to parochialism and bigotry. Bringing together insights from psychology, behavioral economics, evolutionary biology, and philosophy, Bloom explores how we have come to surpass these limitations. Along the way, he examines the morality of chimpanzees, violent psychopaths, religious extremists, and Ivy League professors, and explores our often puzzling moral feelings about sex, politics, religion, and race.
In his analysis of the morality of children and adults, Bloom rejects the fashionable view that our moral decisions are driven mainly by gut feelings and unconscious biases. Just as reason has driven our great scientific discoveries, he argues, it is reason and deliberation that makes possible our moral discoveries, such as the wrongness of slavery. Ultimately, it is through our imagination, our compassion, and our uniquely human capacity for rational thought that we can transcend the primitive sense of morality we were born with, becoming more than just babies.
Paul Bloom has a gift for bringing abstract ideas to life, moving seamlessly from Darwin, Herodotus, and Adam Smith to The Princess Bride, Hannibal Lecter, and Louis C.K. Vivid, witty, and intellectually probing, Just Babies offers a radical new perspective on our moral li
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