SOC 101 Lecture Notes - Lecture 7: George Herbert Mead, Feral Child, Symbolic Interactionism
Document Summary
Biology vs social experience (nature v nurture, heredity vs environment) But babies do not have instincts that will make them social beings. Social interaction key to becoming a social being. People don"t become fully human in the way we understand what human is, without social interaction. Did the social isolation have some effect on her capacity for mental progress? i. Feral children: bring about the primal difference between humans and animals. These cases point to the crucial role of social experience in personality development. We don"t become human simply because we have the genetic makeup of human beings. These cases show that human beings can overcome the effects of isolation up to a point. We live in an environment full of symbols a) Certain gestures: we associate with specific actions/desires b. c. Interactions between people involve an exchange of symbols (ex. We know and understand statuses, roles, and norms by learning the meanings of symbols used in everyday social life.
