ARTICLE

Nature vs nurture

The following two articles present a debate be- tween Sheila Niles and Virginia Prince on the nature of the underlying causes of TVism. Sheila supports the "Nature" theory and I have supported the "Nurture" side. First let us hear what Sheila has to say.

Dear Virginia:

Or should I address you as "Pandora" in view of your invitation to controversy on page 51 of TVia #41? Anyway, here is the first "trouble" out of the box you have opened, and I hope this is not the end of a beautiful friendship!

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1) Long ago, in mid-1962, I first described to you my then half-baked idea that TVs are born and not made. Your answer was to refer me to TVia #7, where you had set forth the details of your psycho- logical and sociological reasoning which leads you to feel that TVs are "made" by the forces acting on them in their childhood. It was neat and plausible, it answered almost everything and fit most of the facts and it left me stone cold! (It is odd that we two chemists should disagree so completely, but my additional training in engineering and yours in biology seems to have biased us towards different methods of attack on problems.) The further expos- ition of your ideas in the lecture leaflet, though even more clearly and concisely expressed, did not do anything to convince me that my environment had created the transvestic urge in me; after all, quite a few other boys shared the same atmosphere, includ- ing the post war period of female emancipation, with-

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