<P> The modern idea of the theory , however , is attributed mostly to John Locke 's expression of the idea in Essay Concerning Human Understanding ( he uses the term `` white paper '' in Book II , Chap . I , 2 ) . In Locke 's philosophy , tabula rasa was the theory that at birth the ( human ) mind is a `` blank slate '' without rules for processing data , and that data is added and rules for processing are formed solely by one 's sensory experiences . The notion is central to Lockean empiricism . As understood by Locke , tabula rasa meant that the mind of the individual was born blank , and it also emphasized the freedom of individuals to author their own soul . Individuals are free to define the content of their character -- but basic identity as a member of the human species can not be altered . This presumption of a free , self - authored mind combined with an immutable human nature leads to the Lockean doctrine of `` natural '' rights . Locke 's idea of tabula rasa is frequently compared with Thomas Hobbes 's viewpoint of human nature , in which humans are endowed with inherent mental content -- particularly with selfishness . </P>
<P> The modern idea of the theory , however , is attributed mostly to John Locke 's expression of the idea in Essay Concerning Human Understanding ( he uses the term `` white paper '' in Book II , Chap . I , 2 ) . In Locke 's philosophy , tabula rasa was the theory that at birth the ( human ) mind is a `` blank slate '' without rules for processing data , and that data is added and rules for processing are formed solely by one 's sensory experiences . The notion is central to Lockean empiricism . As understood by Locke , tabula rasa meant that the mind of the individual was born blank , and it also emphasized the freedom of individuals to author their own soul . Individuals are free to define the content of their character -- but basic identity as a member of the human species can not be altered . This presumption of a free , self - authored mind combined with an immutable human nature leads to the Lockean doctrine of `` natural '' rights . Locke 's idea of tabula rasa is frequently compared with Thomas Hobbes 's viewpoint of human nature , in which humans are endowed with inherent mental content -- particularly with selfishness . </P>
who argued that we are born with intellectual blank slates
who argued that we are born with intellectual blank slates
John Locke
John Locke