The Muck of Ages

Lady Gaga’s “Born This Way” and Biological Determinism

Reading a really great article that argues that Lady Gaga’s message that we were “Born This Way” is unhealthy, because it promotes the idea of Biological Determinism.

To quote,

“Biological determinism”, quite simply, is the notion that our biology is the primary factor determining differences between individual human beings. In short, we were “born this way” – racial, gender, sexual, and religious differences are innate and immutable. This is in contrast to the view that our consciousness is socially determined and constructed by our environments and the systems of power inwhich we are raised.

I agree with the author entirely. What’s dangerous about the idea that we were “born this way” is to me, the idea that we are therefore unchangeable. A debate I had years ago with a good friend still haunts me - he said, “some people are just born bad”. We were arguing about socialism, and his assumptions led to the idea that since all the bad things in the world stem from bad people who are just born bad, and cannot be changed, there’s no way for us to live in a peaceful, healthy and productive society (at least not without the coercion that exists under Capitalism).

If we were in fact, “born this way”, there’s no reason to fight for change. There’s no reason to try to educate or rehabilitate anyone. No reason to protest. No reason to nurture or care for. No reason to push for a better society.

I recognize, as the author does, that biological determinism is a convenient argument for some political groups (namely LGBTQA - or is it QUILTBAG now?), and has been used as a defense in the past. But the problem with this argument is that it’s a cop out. Saying “I was born gay, I can’t help it, stop hating on me” is a defense that gives power to the idea that being gay is somehow wrong.

Now, to be fair, we don’t yet know what factors “cause” a particular sexual preference, but I think the ideas that “I am this way because of my unique life experiences” and “I am this way because I chose to be” are far more powerful. These ideas celebrate individuality and apologize to no one.

Disclaimer: By the way, I don’t believe that we aren’t affected by our biology. I believe, because I’ve done a lot of reading about it lately, that we’re the outcome of a constant interaction between our genes and our environment that’s been going on since conception and continues to go on until death. It’s called Gene Environment Interaction (some people use “gxe” I think).