Nature vs. Nurture, Lodge, Nature Always Wins

The quote that is the title of this blog entry comes from the movie "Wedding Crashers." Maybe you have seen it, but one of the story lines running through it is about a young couple who come from very wealthy and successful families. The father of the girl talks about the two "great family traditions" one day. Christopher Walken's character makes a quip during a football game that the man's "nature" will always prevail. It got me thinking, which is it? Are we ingrained with certain attributes passed on by our parents in our genes that determine who we are going to be? Or is it rather a question of family, societal and social influenced?
After considering this for some time I would have to say my answer is YES. Are we influenced by the way we have naturally developed? Yes. And are we influenced greatly by the way we were brought up and the friends we hang out with? Yes. I believe that there is no one reason we are the way we are, but rather a diverse myriad of influences including inherit genetics and socialization.
The nature side of the debate would say that we interact with the world based solely on our genetic make-up. Gene's are turned on and off based on our environment. This leads to a belief that we are pre-programmed to turn out a certain way. While this is true in some ways, our development is affected in so many ways that it can hardly be boiled down to just genetics. My physical characteristics ARE genetically determined, however who I am deep down is not naturally made by a complex system of chromosomes but rather a delicate dance between the factors that influence my life inside and outside my body.
Some things that put pressure on my personality as I develop are my family, friends and the mass media. There are many theories of how children develop, however it is clear that we are influenced by our upbringing. We learn about the world and how to interact with it from our parents. Children are growing up under the supervision of a 42 inch screen displaying messages they will believe and incorporate into their lives.
We engage with the world based on the physical and mental capacities we are born with. At the same time, we are changed by the many factors that influence us in the environments through which we develop. The question of nature vs. nurture is a complex debate and in my opinion one that is not black and white but rather a rainbow.