The Cool Pose and Various Approaches to Life Rooted in Class, Race, Gender, Age, etc. [HW #34]

Life is like a game of cards. The hand that is dealt you represents determinism; the way you play it is free will.

— Jawaharlal Nehru

Even with our free will, there are a limited amount of combination that we can play the cards by. And there would be, of course, an inclination towards one specific combination for every person. The factors that determine the direction of the push is either innate or influenced, or both. I argue that it's both. And rather than being nature versus nurture, it's nature and nurture.

In class, we've been hearing a lot about how the environment we are in shapes our maps- how it always depends on the situations we're put into. This is undoubtedly true. We mentioned on several occasions that people with different ethnic background in different living conditions will have different maps, and different ideas for cool. One example, that Andy S. used over and over, would be the "black kid who lives in a housing project and buys Prada shoes rather than saving for college." This character values looking "fresh" or "dope" over success ("success" according to mainstream society). The scene in where this character placed in encourages him/her to act a certain way- interact with certain props. The stage, and the supporting cast play just as much of a role as the script.

Moving away from the dominant perspective of the class, I think that there are other factors- factors that are more innate. I'm not saying that our biological structure defines our personalities, but it does contribute.

In 1979, two men named Jim Springer and Jim Lewis were reunited after a separation of 39 years. They were twins, separated less than five weeks after birth, who were brought up by two different families about 50 miles from one another. When they were finally reunited, they found spectacular similarities between themselves; both were married twice, first to a woman named Linda, then divorced, and then remarried to another woman named Betty. They each had children, both including sons named James Allan. Both drank Miller Lite, drove Chevrolets, chain-smoked Salems, and hated baseball. Both had served as sheriff’s deputies in their Ohio counties. (Gardiner)

The way that we are constructed, whether as humans, animals, or as individuals, influences the way that we act. Although, it may not be as great of an influence as our surroundings. There are things that we are more inclined to doing because of the conveniences based on our biological structure. Some people have body types that are more capable for certain activities. Therefore, the person will have more of an urge to pursue that activity (e.g. tall people and basketball, trees and providing oxygen, etc.). Even though people are brought up in different environments, there are inborn factors that push you towards certain perceptions of cool and paths (...although, in the example above, those two people might've had similar living conditions even if they were 50 miles apart). Everything is cool to at least one person. To whom specifically varies depends on both the person's nature and nurture.