Nature Versus Nurture

How much of our identity is shaped by our environments? How much is intrinsic to who we are and beyond the control of external forces? These are ancient questions with complex answers. In this collection we've gathered texts that explore the issue of nature versus nurture from a variety of angles.

Publication year 1962Genre Poem, FictionThemes Society: Colonialism, Natural World: Nurture v. Nature, Society: War, Identity: Language, Society: Politics & Government, Emotions/Behavior: ConflictTags Lyric Poem, History: African , Afro-Caribbean Literature

Publication year 2013Genre Novel, FictionThemes Natural World: Nurture v. NatureTags Race / Racism, African Literature

Ifemelu, a Nigerian woman who has lived in the US for thirteen years, goes to a hair braiding salon in Trenton, New Jersey to have her hair braided in preparation for her return to Nigeria. The narrative flashes back and forth between her afternoon in the braiding salon, her childhood and adolescence in Nigeria, and her adult years in America. Ifemelu grows up in Lagos, Nigeria with a religious mother and a patient, occasionally unemployed father... Read Americanah Summary


Publication year 1690Genre Book, NonfictionThemes Natural World: Nurture v. Nature, Identity: Language, Values/Ideas: Science & Technology, Values/Ideas: Religion & Spirituality, Values/Ideas: Order & ChaosTags Philosophy, Religion / Spirituality, Education, Science / Nature, Age of Enlightenment

An Essay Concerning Human Understanding by John Locke is a study of how humans think, learn, and retain knowledge. Scholars often focus first on Locke’s philosophical treatises, but his work on epistemology complements and shapes his political thought. Born in 1632, the English philosopher ushered in the Age of Enlightenment and is considered one of the greatest Western philosophers in history. An Essay Concerning Human Understanding, first published in 1690, explores the origin and nature... Read An Essay Concerning Human Understanding Summary


Publication year 1921Genre Poem, FictionThemes Natural World: Nurture v. Nature, Natural World: Climate, Emotions/Behavior: Determination / Perseverance, Values/Ideas: BeautyTags Lyric Poem

Publication year 2012Genre Novel, FictionThemes Society: Community, Emotions/Behavior: Apathy, Emotions/Behavior: courage, Emotions/Behavior: Determination / Perseverance, Emotions/Behavior: Forgiveness, Emotions/Behavior: Gratitude, Life/Time: Childhood & Youth, Life/Time: Coming of Age, Life/Time: Midlife, Natural World: Appearance & Reality, Natural World: Environment, Natural World: Nurture v. Nature, Relationships: Family, Self Discovery, Values/Ideas: Power & Greed, Values/Ideas: Safety & DangerTags Historical Fiction, Coming of Age / Bildungsroman

Publication year 1941Genre Play, FictionThemes Values/Ideas: Loyalty & Betrayal, Natural World: Nurture v. NatureTags Play: Comedy / Satire

Arsenic and Old Lace is a three-act, farcical dark comedy by American playwright Joseph Kesselring. It made its Broadway debut in 1941 and enjoyed a successful three-year run. The play was made famous by the 1944 film adaptation directed by Frank Capra and starring Cary Grant as Mortimer Brewster. It is still commonly read and performed today. This guide correlates to the official script published by Dramatists Play Service Inc.Page numbers in your edition may... Read Arsenic and Old Lace Summary


Publication year 2000Genre Biography, NonfictionThemes Natural World: Nurture v. Nature, Values/Ideas: Trust & DoubtTags Health / Medicine

John Colapinto’s 1999 book As Nature Made Him is an expansion of his award-winning 1997 Rolling Stone article on the medical scandal surrounding David Reimer. David, raised as Brenda under the auspices of famous sexologist and child psychiatrist Dr. John Money, transitions back to a male gender identity during his teenage years. After Dr. Milton Diamond reveals the failure of Money’s theory of gender neutrality at birth, David’s story raises serious questions in the medical... Read As Nature Made Him Summary


Publication year 1970Genre Poem, FictionThemes Natural World: Nurture v. NatureTags Gender / Feminism, Social Justice

Publication year 2011Genre Autobiography / Memoir, NonfictionThemes Relationships: Family, Life/Time: Childhood & Youth, Society: Education, Natural World: Nurture v. NatureTags Parenting, Asian Literature, Allegory / Fable / Parable

Amy Chua’s memoir, Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother (2011), depicts Chua’s experience raising two American daughters according to Chinese cultural standards. Chua is a Yale law professor specializing in globalization and ethnic conflict. She is also a second-generation Chinese American, and her husband is Jewish. Chua’s strict approach is influenced by the parenting methods used by her own parents, which clash with those of her husband. Chua’s memoir was a New York Times bestseller... Read Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother Summary


Publication year 1925Genre Short Story, FictionThemes Natural World: Nurture v. Nature, Society: War, Natural World: PlaceTags Action / Adventure, Military / War

Publication year 1966Genre Poem, FictionThemes Life/Time: Childhood & Youth, Emotions/Behavior: Memory, Life/Time: Coming of Age, Natural World: Nurture v. Nature

Publication year 1959Genre Short Story, FictionThemes Relationships: Friendship, Natural World: Nurture v. Nature, Emotions/Behavior: Memory, Emotions/Behavior: Love, Emotions/Behavior: Grief, Emotions/Behavior: Hope, Values/Ideas: Literature

Publication year 1949Genre Novel, FictionThemes Values/Ideas: Good & Evil, Natural World: Appearance & Reality, Relationships: Family, Society: Class, Relationships: Siblings, Natural World: Nurture v. NatureTags Mystery / Crime Fiction, Horror / Thriller / Suspense Fiction, British Literature

Crooked House is a crime fiction novel by mystery writer Agatha Christie, and its title was inspired by the house in the nursery rhyme, “There Was a Crooked Man.” The novel was first published in the US in 1949 by Dodd, Mead, and Company, and in the UK by the Collins Crime Club in the same year. Crooked House is one of Christie’s favorites among her own work. The novel takes place in post-World War... Read Crooked House Summary


Publication year 1856Genre Poem, FictionThemes Values/Ideas: Religion & Spirituality, Society: Community, Natural World: Space & The Universe, Natural World: Nurture v. NatureTags Relationships

Publication year 2012Genre Novel, FictionThemes Natural World: Nurture v. NatureTags Mystery / Crime Fiction

Defending Jacob is a 2012 crime novel by William Landay. The main character is Andy Barber, a Massachusetts assistant district attorney, who finds his personal and professional life thrown into turmoil when his son, Jacob Barber, is accused of murdering his classmate Ben Rifkin. Andy, a resident of Newton, Massachusetts, narrates the events of the 2007 murder and trial alongside the transcripts of a 2008 grand jury investigation whose subject remains unstated until the final... Read Defending Jacob Summary


Publication year 1994Genre Book, NonfictionThemes Identity: Disability, Emotions/Behavior: Memory, Identity: Mental Health, Natural World: Nurture v. Nature, Values/Ideas: Science & TechnologyTags Psychology, Science / Nature, Philosophy, Health / Medicine

Publication year 2018Genre Graphic Novel/Book, FictionThemes Emotions/Behavior: Love, Identity: Disability, Natural World: Appearance & Reality, Natural World: Nurture v. Nature, Relationships: FamilyTags Humor, Animals, Fantasy, Action / Adventure, Children's Literature

Publication year 1987Genre Novel, FictionThemes Life/Time: Coming of Age, Emotions/Behavior: Conflict, Emotions/Behavior: courage, Emotions/Behavior: Determination / Perseverance, Emotions/Behavior: Fear, Emotions/Behavior: Grief, Emotions/Behavior: Hate & Anger, Emotions/Behavior: Memory, Emotions/Behavior: Loneliness, Emotions/Behavior: Shame & Pride, Emotions/Behavior: Revenge, Emotions/Behavior: Love, Emotions/Behavior: Gratitude, Emotions/Behavior: Hope, Life/Time: Childhood & Youth, Life/Time: Mortality & Death, Life/Time: The Past, Values/Ideas: Equality, Values/Ideas: Good & Evil, Values/Ideas: Literature, Values/Ideas: Art, Values/Ideas: Beauty, Values/Ideas: Trust & Doubt, Values/Ideas: Justice & Injustice, Values/Ideas: Loyalty & Betrayal, Values/Ideas: Safety & Danger, Values/Ideas: Truth & Lies, Values/Ideas: Win & Lose, Values/Ideas: Power & Greed, Relationships: Daughters & Sons, Relationships: Friendship, Relationships: Family, Relationships: Fathers, Relationships: Grandparents, Relationships: Mothers, Natural World: Nurture v. Nature, Natural World: Appearance & RealityTags Southern Literature, Auto/Biographical Fiction, Trauma / Abuse / Violence, Race / Racism

Ellen Foster is a work of adult fiction by US novelist Kaye Gibbons, first published by Algonquin Books in 1987. The novel was Gibbons’s debut, and it won the Sue Kaufman Prize for literature from the American Academy of Arts and Letters and a notable citation from the Ernest Hemingway Foundation. Critics praised the novel for its unsentimental outlook and the wry, distinct voice of its protagonist. Ellen, a young girl living in the American... Read Ellen Foster Summary


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Cat Bohannon
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Publication year 2023Genre Book, NonfictionThemes Identity: Femininity, Identity: Gender, Identity: Masculinity, Life/Time: The Past, Natural World: Nurture v. Nature, Relationships: FamilyTags Science / Nature, Gender / Feminism, Women's Studies (Nonfiction), Health / Medicine, Anthropology

Publication year 1974Genre Poem, FictionThemes Emotions/Behavior: Fear, Natural World: Nurture v. Nature, Natural World: AnimalsTags Lyric Poem, Free verse, Animals

Publication year 1884Genre Novella, FictionThemes Society: Class, Values/Ideas: Science & Technology, Natural World: Nurture v. Nature, Identity: GenderTags Satire, Science-Fiction / Dystopian Fiction, Classic Fiction, Fantasy, Philosophy, Class, Gender / Feminism, British Literature, Victorian Period

IntroductionIn his introduction to Flatland: a Romance of Many Dimensions (1884), British mathematician Banesh Hoffmann describes the novel as “a stirring adventure in pure mathematics” and emphasizes the fundamentally fantastical nature of the story (iii). He also says that author Edwin A. Abbott intended the novel to be instructional. Both the surreal nature of Flatland and its didactic elements are plain, but there is disagreement among scholars and readers on the question of exactly what... Read Flatland: A Romance of Many Dimensions Summary


Publication year 1818Genre Novel, FictionThemes Values/Ideas: Safety & Danger, Identity: Gender, Natural World: Nurture v. NatureTags Classic Fiction, Romanticism / Romantic Period, British Literature

First published in 1818, Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus is a novel by Mary Shelley. It is written in the tradition of Romanticism, a late 18th-century and early 19th-century movement that responded to the Enlightenment. Rejecting rationalism, Romantic literature often celebrated the power of nature and of the individual. Frankenstein is also considered a Gothic novel because of its emphasis on darkness, the sensational, and the wildness of nature.Shelley was the daughter of political philosopher... Read Frankenstein Summary


Publication year 1922Genre Poem, FictionThemes Natural World: Nurture v. Nature, Emotions/Behavior: Conflict, Emotions/Behavior: Determination / Perseverance, Emotions/Behavior: courage, Emotions/Behavior: Hope, Values/Ideas: Justice & Injustice, Values/Ideas: Win & LoseTags Lyric Poem, Existentialism, Harlem Renaissance

Publication year 1798Genre Poem, FictionThemes Life/Time: Childhood & Youth, Values/Ideas: Religion & Spirituality, Natural World: Nurture v. NatureTags Romanticism / Romantic Period

Publication year 1985Genre Novel, FictionThemes Values/Ideas: Science & Technology, Values/Ideas: Order & Chaos, Values/Ideas: Equality, Values/Ideas: Power & Greed, Values/Ideas: Fate, Values/Ideas: Safety & Danger, Society: Class, Society: Economics, Society: War, Emotions/Behavior: Hope, Emotions/Behavior: Guilt, Natural World: Nurture v. NatureTags Science-Fiction / Dystopian Fiction, Humor, Post Modernism, Trauma / Abuse / Violence, Finance / Money / Wealth, Anthropology

Galapagos is a 1985 novel by American author Kurt Vonnegut. The novel’s narrator is the long-dead Leon Trout, a ghost who watched the evolution of humanity of the course of a million years. The story explores the themes Nature Versus Nurture, Pacifism, and Regret.This guide uses an eBook version of the 1985 Dial Press edition.Content Warning: This novel depicts explicit acts of violence and refers to death by suicide.Plot SummaryLeon Trout, the story’s narrator, is... Read Galapagos Summary


Publication year 1862Genre Poem, FictionThemes Natural World: Appearance & Reality, Natural World: Environment, Natural World: Food, Natural World: Nurture v. Nature, Society: Community, Society: Education, Relationships: Siblings, Values/Ideas: Beauty, Values/Ideas: Good & Evil, Values/Ideas: Power & Greed, Values/Ideas: Safety & Danger, Values/Ideas: Truth & Lies, Values/Ideas: Trust & Doubt, Values/Ideas: Win & LoseTags Narrative / Epic Poem, Allegory / Fable / Parable

Enigmatic and strange, English poet Christina Rossetti’s “Goblin Market” has sparked multiple interpretations since its publication in 1862. The poem helped launch her career and expand the Pre-Raphaelite art movement into literature.The long narrative poem centers on Lizzie’s rescue of her sister from an enchantment cast by malicious goblins. Fairy tales and folklore inspired many Victorian writers, who felt weary about England’s increasing industrialization.Often seen as an allegory, scholars have posited that the poem’s characters... Read Goblin Market Summary


Publication year 2005Genre Novel, FictionThemes Relationships: Friendship, Natural World: Nurture v. Nature, Emotions/Behavior: Love, Values/Ideas: Good & Evil, Values/Ideas: Power & GreedTags Fantasy, Action / Adventure

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (2005) is the sixth book in the seven-part Harry Potter series penned by J. K. Rowling. The book revolves around the titular character Harry Potter, who is a wizard, and the events that take place during his sixth year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.Joanne Rowling, known by her pen name J. K. Rowling, is a British author best known for her immensely popular fantasy series, Harry Potter... Read Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince Summary


Publication year 1997Genre Novel, FictionThemes Values/Ideas: Good & Evil, Natural World: Nurture v. Nature, Society: Community, Values/Ideas: Fate, Emotions/Behavior: Love, Values/Ideas: Power & GreedTags Fantasy, Action / Adventure, Children's Literature

Publication year 2012Genre Book, NonfictionThemes Natural World: Nurture v. Nature, Identity: Mental Health, Identity: Race, Life/Time: Childhood & Youth, Life/Time: Coming of Age, Relationships: Daughters & Sons, Society: Class, Society: Education, Values/Ideas: EqualityTags Education, Psychology, Parenting

Publication year 2017Genre Book, NonfictionThemes Identity: Language, Emotions/Behavior: Determination / Perseverance, Identity: Gender, Identity: Mental Health, Self Discovery, Society: Community, Society: Education, Natural World: Nurture v. NatureTags Science / Nature, Psychology, Health / Medicine, Self Help

Publication year 1891Genre Poem, FictionThemes Natural World: Nurture v. Nature, Society: Economics, Natural World: Environment, Values/Ideas: Fate, Values/Ideas: Truth & Lies, Emotions/Behavior: Memory, Emotions/Behavior: Love, Emotions/Behavior: Determination / Perseverance, Emotions/Behavior: Nostalgia, Life/Time: Mortality & DeathTags Lyric Poem, Grief / Death, Business / Economics

Publication year 1971Genre Book, NonfictionThemes Natural World: Environment, Natural World: Animals, Natural World: Nurture v. Nature, Natural World: Place, Values/Ideas: Justice & Injustice, Emotions/Behavior: Conflict, Emotions/Behavior: ForgivenessTags Science / Nature, Animals, Anthropology

Published in 1971, In the Shadow of Man is the third and most famous book by British primatologist Dr. Jane Goodall. The work details Goodall’s groundbreaking study of chimpanzees in Tanzania’s Gombe Stream National Park and her unlikely journey from being a secretary in the UK to heading a major chimpanzee study in East Africa and becoming one of the world’s foremost primatology experts. Functioning as both a memoir and a scientific exploration of chimp... Read In the Shadow of Man Summary


Publication year 1984Genre Book, NonfictionThemes Identity: Masculinity, Natural World: Nurture v. Nature, Relationships: Fathers

Publication year 1886Genre Novel, FictionThemes Relationships: Mothers, Society: Class, Life/Time: Childhood & Youth, Relationships: Family, Natural World: Nurture v. NatureTags Classic Fiction, Children's Literature, Victorian Period, British Literature

Publication year 2015Genre Novel, FictionThemes Self Discovery, Values/Ideas: Science & Technology, Values/Ideas: Truth & Lies, Natural World: Nurture v. Nature, Natural World: Appearance & Reality, Values/Ideas: Safety & DangerTags Mystery / Crime Fiction, Action / Adventure, Horror / Thriller / Suspense Fiction, Science / Nature, Education, Technology

Publication year 2006Genre Poem, FictionThemes Life/Time: Aging, Natural World: Nurture v. NatureTags Lyric Poem

Publication year 2020Genre Novel, FictionThemes Natural World: Environment, Emotions/Behavior: Hope, Natural World: Nurture v. NatureTags Science-Fiction / Dystopian Fiction, Science / Nature

Publication year 1817Genre Poem, FictionThemes Natural World: Nurture v. Nature, Natural World: Objects, Natural World: Place, Natural World: EnvironmentTags Philosophy, Science / Nature, Romanticism / Romantic Period

Publication year 1946Genre Poem, FictionThemes Natural World: Nurture v. NatureTags Christian literature, Animals, American Literature

Publication year 2007Genre Book, NonfictionThemes Values/Ideas: Music, Natural World: Nurture v. Nature, Identity: Mental Health, Emotions/Behavior: MemoryTags Music, Science / Nature, Psychology, Health / Medicine

Publication year 2012Genre Graphic Novel/Book, NonfictionThemes Identity: Mental Health, Society: Economics, Natural World: Nurture v. NatureTags Crime / Legal, Trauma / Abuse / Violence

My Friend Dahmer is a graphic novel/memoir by American cartoonist and writer Derf Backderf, known for utilizing darkness and shading in his comic strips and graphic novels. Evolving from a 24-page cartoon created in 2002, My Friend Dahmer (2012) depicts the author’s memories of his high school friend, notorious serial killer Jeffrey Dahmer, in novelistic form—exploring the ways Dahmer himself could have been helped and his 17 murders prevented. The graphic novel was adapted into... Read My Friend Dahmer Summary


Publication year 2018Genre Novel, FictionThemes Relationships: Family, Natural World: Nurture v. Nature, Values/Ideas: BeautyTags Satire

My Sister, the Serial Killer, is a novel by Nigerian-born British writer Oyinkan Braithwaite, originally published in the U.K. in 2019. Set in Nigeria’s largest city, Lagos, this darkly satirical, structurally experimental crime story about the extremes of family bonds bears an unusually revealing and literal title, and it has been longlisted for the prestigious Booker Prize. The novel was also shortlisted for the Women’s Prize for Fiction and the 2019 Amazon Publishing Readers’ Awards... Read My Sister, the Serial Killer Summary


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Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
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Publication year 1878Genre Poem, FictionThemes Life/Time: Mortality & Death, Natural World: Nurture v. Nature

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William Blake
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Publication year 1789Genre Poem, FictionThemes Natural World: Nurture v. Nature, Values/Ideas: Religion & Spirituality, Natural World: Appearance & Reality, Natural World: AnimalsTags Romanticism / Romantic Period, Religion / Spirituality

Publication year 2022Genre Novel, FictionThemes Emotions/Behavior: Apathy, Values/Ideas: Justice & Injustice, Values/Ideas: Good & Evil, Natural World: Nurture v. NatureTags Horror / Thriller / Suspense Fiction, Mystery / Crime Fiction

Publication year 1988Genre Book, NonfictionThemes Society: Economics, Emotions/Behavior: Determination / Perseverance, Natural World: Nurture v. NatureTags Finance / Money / Wealth, Business / Economics, Self Help

Publication year 1978Genre Book, NonfictionThemes Natural World: Nurture v. NatureTags Science / Nature, Sociology, Psychology, Philosophy

Publication year 1910Genre Essay Collection, NonfictionThemes Natural World: Nurture v. Nature, Emotions/Behavior: FearTags Philosophy, Italian Literature, Ancient Rome

On the Nature of Things is a philosophical work by the Roman author Titus Lucretius Carus (whom we call “Lucretius”). It was written in the early 50s BC, in Latin. Though this is a work of science and philosophy, it is also a poem. This work provides a detailed description of Epicurean philosophy, which encompasses theories of atoms, cosmology, theology, and a wide variety of natural phenomena. It also addresses the nature of the mind... Read On The Nature Of Things Summary


Publication year 1859Genre Book, NonfictionThemes Natural World: Environment, Natural World: Animals, Natural World: Flora/plants, Natural World: Appearance & Reality, Natural World: Nurture v. Nature, Natural World: Place, Natural World: Climate, Natural World: Food, Values/Ideas: Beauty, Values/Ideas: Order & ChaosTags Science / Nature, History: World, Religion / Spirituality

Charles Darwin’s On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection, or the Preservation of Favoured Races in the Struggle for Life (published in 1859) is a seminal work in evolutionary biology of great historical and scientific importance. Darwinian thought, especially regarding evolution, is now commonly accepted as the most powerful theory in biology and the natural history of species—and the system of natural selection that this theory advanced has been applied (and misappropriated)... Read On the Origin of Species Summary


Publication year 49Genre Essay / Speech, NonfictionThemes Life/Time: The Past, Life/Time: The Future, Life/Time: Mortality & Death, Natural World: Nurture v. NatureTags Classical Period, Philosophy, Ancient Rome