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A review by catbooking
The Blank Slate: The Modern Denial of Human Nature by Steven Pinker
Did not finish book.
The first section was really fascinating, the one describing how the brain wires itself during development. But then it felt like the book took a turn into name-calling where the author named specific scientists he disagreed with and trashed their theories. Now, I am not saying the theories did not deserve to be trashed, but it really felt like I was stepping into some big drama I knew nothing about and was expected to pick sides.
I made it through that section, hoping to leave the what felt like petty disagreements behind, and then stumbled face first into two comments by the author that were plainly false. I am not saying I am being entirely unbiased here, but I felt that the author was simplifying some theories that have a LOT of background to them, and in his simplification getting things very wrong. Considering he criticized other scientists for doing the same thing previously, I found it to be a bit dubious.
This is where I took a break from listening to the book, intending to push through until the end. But then I thought that the more sensitive topics, like gender and politics, are still in the future pages and now I don't feel like I could trust the author to not have an agenda behind his words.
So I feel like I am going to have to quit here, leaving the possibility that I might come back to it later open.
I made it through that section, hoping to leave the what felt like petty disagreements behind, and then stumbled face first into two comments by the author that were plainly false. I am not saying I am being entirely unbiased here, but I felt that the author was simplifying some theories that have a LOT of background to them, and in his simplification getting things very wrong. Considering he criticized other scientists for doing the same thing previously, I found it to be a bit dubious.
This is where I took a break from listening to the book, intending to push through until the end. But then I thought that the more sensitive topics, like gender and politics, are still in the future pages and now I don't feel like I could trust the author to not have an agenda behind his words.
So I feel like I am going to have to quit here, leaving the possibility that I might come back to it later open.