Kelli Takes on Pinker on perfectability (Posted by Robin for Kelli--whom the U's web server hates)

The section that really grabbed my attention was when Pinker was discussing the concept of the fear of imperfectability in human nature. Specifically, the section where he explains the movement towards a perfect world, “indeed, the undeniable social progress that has taken place in the last few centuries did not occur because human nature was reprogrammed from scratch, but because human nature was mobilized against other parts.”

This explanation of reaching perfection stands out to me because it points out that it is social constructs that determine what is deemed right and ‘good’ in this world and more so that there really is no concrete answer. It is these social constructs which decide the movement society must forgo to reach the perfectibility of humankind. This can be positive in the sense that while some ignoble traits are innate as Pinker points out, our bodies and minds have been programmed to counteract those specific tendencies deemed to be negative by socialization as a means of avoiding imperfectibly. As most people have, I have spent a lot of my life differentiating between right and wrong while trying to understand why so much injustice remains in this world. I try to lead my own life by doing good and minimizing ignoble tendencies, but I have not given much thought as to the factors influencing why I believe something is right or wrong. Ultimately, although there is no perfect world, this statement gives me hope that as a society through fear of imperfectability and the history of our progression thus far, we will continue with our social progress through experience to reach a more peaceful world.

Thinking about perfectibility of human kind could lead our world to a better, more perfect, outcome. But through a blank slate method, there are some stakes in this theory. Depending on the motive of social influences deciding the direction of reaching perfectionism as a species, we as a society run the risk of running down the dark roads of eugenics or totalitarian social engineering. Depending on if a perfect human kind is defined as getting along or creating the ultimate human beings, the future would lead to completely different outcomes. If the earlier was to be true, this would regress the heightened empathy and treatment for those who are different from one another we have established over time.