Martin 1 Joe Martin Professor Pope PSY 150-IN3 28 March 2013 The Forbidden Experiment For centuries, humanity

has been fascinated by the idea of wild or feral children; children who are abandoned at a very early age and have to fend for themselves in the wild. However, newborns and infants are obviously very needy and cannot survive on their own. For this reason, they usually attach themselves to or are taken in by another species to receive necessary care. The Roman Empire was supposedly founded by twin brothers Romulus and Remus. The myth states that after they were cast down the Tiber by their mother, Rhea, the brothers were eventually taken by a she-wolf and fed by her until they were adopted by a shepherd and his wife (Trueman). Tarzan of the Apes is a novel, originally written by Edgar Rice Burroughs, in which a boy (Tarzan) is raised by apes, but is mysteriously able to teach himself the English language (Rush). These stories are obviously fictional, but what would actually occur if these people were raised by another species? Being raised by quadrupeds and mimicking them, would they ever be able to become bipedal, or do they retain an awkward posture forever? Could they really ever perform on the same intellectual level as other humans, or would they forever be accustomed to their primal thought process? How would isolation affect their social ability with other humans? Most importantly, if they couldnt teach themselves a language like Tarzan, would they even be able to communicate with other human beings, never having any education at all? Unfortunately, children have been cast away by their parents or abused and neglected in such ways that mimic a

Martin 2 complete isolation from all other humans. Such case studies have formed the foundation for debates about psycholinguistics, and child development and learning. On November 4, 1970, Los Angeles authorities discovered possibly one of the most horrific cases of child abuse to date in the suburb of Arcadia. A thirteen year old girl, nicknamed Genie by the various psychologists studying and helping her, was discovered to have been raised in complete isolation for at least ten years. Believing she was mentally retarded at birth, her father locked her in her room, binding her to a potty-chair during the day and her crib at night. She received little to no human contact during the day and upon her discovery, authorities described her as infantile as she was extremely weak, could not talk, and was even wearing diapers as a teenager (Everywhere Psychology). As Genie began treatment and rehabilitation, she became the subject of a new topic of debate in psycholinguistics, influencing and causing debate between people such as Noam Chomsky and Eric Lenneburg. In 1957 with the release of his new book, Syntactic Structures, Noam Chomsky discussed his theory about language acquisition that would arouse debate for years to come. Chomsky believes that language is not something entirely new to a human that needs to be learned upon arrival in this world, but something that everyone is born with. He believes that the skill to use language is pre-programed somewhere in our DNA (Miskimon). It is obviously very difficult to test this theory. It was especially difficult to test it on Genie because there were indications that she was beaten for making noise, which caused her to remain entirely silent (Everywhere Psychology). However, a more recent, disturbing abuse case that occurred in Austria may confirm this theory. In 2008, Austrian police made a shocking discovery that 72 year old Josef Fritzl had imprisoned one of his five daughters, Elisabeth, in a concrete labyrinth beneath his familys

Martin 3 home when she was just eighteen years old and repeatedly raped her for more than twenty years. He had fathered seven children with her (one of which died shortly after birth). He was able to convince everyone that his daughter had run away to join a cult and that she had left three of her children on her parents doorstep at night, because she didnt want to take care of them herself. As those three lived with Fritzl and his wife upstairs, the other three children were raised by Elisabeth in the small cellar room where she lived for twenty-four years (Notramiras). Upon discovery, authorities noticed many abnormalities in the underground family. Because of the low ceilings in their environment, everyone seemed to slouch, except for their five year old, who was still crawling. Police also noted that the children could speak some German, but had extreme difficulty in doing so. However, it was observed that they communicated with each other by using a series of growling and cooing noises (James). Looking back at Chomskys theory, we are hard-wired to learn language. It seems as if these children were unable to learn a known, mainstream language, but despite their isolation, were able to communicate verbally. Eric Lenneburg is very well known in the field of linguistics, especially in the development of his Critical Period hypothesis. At one point in his career, he spent time at the Childrens Hospital in Boston, purposely picking out children who had extreme language disabilities and studying them. At this hospital, Lenneburg observed one child who was born deaf (from deaf parents), but was able to babble and another child who was unable to speak, but could understand complex instructions (Neisser). From his years of research, Lenneburg began to see a correlation between age and language acquisition, and stated that people are born with the ability to learn language (as Chomsky believed), but they must do so before a certain deadline (Critical Period Hypothesis). When Genie was first admitted to the Childrens Hospital, Susan Curtiss, who had just graduated

Martin 4 from college with a degree in Linguistics at the time, set out to rehabilitate her and disprove Lenneburgs hypothesis. Many argued, however, that Genie would not recover and that there is a high possibility she could have been mentally retarded from birth. Dr. Jay Shurley, a psychologist studying Genie, monitored her sleep activity and found that she had an extremely high number of sleep spindles, which is characteristic in people with mental retardation (Everywhere Psychology). Curtiss disagreed. In her assessment, she saw that Genies mental age increased by one year, each year after she was found. However, Lenneburgs hypothesis held true when Genies progress dwindled. She had the capacity to learn words, but was not able to use grammar (Everywhere Psychology). Unfortunately, there is no way of proving that she was retarded from birth or that she could learn language, as funding was cut from the Genie project and she ended up moving around to different foster homes. (Everywhere Psychology). Both Chomsky and Lenneburg developed their ideas based on genetics. In their eyes, Genie and the Fritzl children all have (or had) a chance at learning language. However, behaviorists believe that humans (and other animals) can only learn through observation and experience (Behaviorism). Examining feral child stories confirms the validity of their beliefs. For example, psychologists determined that, on her arrival to Childrens Hospital, Genie was most likely beaten for making any noise (Everywhere Psychology). Later on in her life, as testing and rehabilitation were beginning to conclude, Genie was sent to a series of foster homes. At one of them, she experienced abuse again. It was discovered that she was beaten for vomiting. After this incident, she coped with the abuse as she did before her discovery in 1970. She remained completely silent, making sure to keep her mouth closed (Everywhere Psychology). Chomsky and Lenneburgs theories expressed that Genie had a chance at learning language, but in reality,

Martin 5 because she was punished for making noise or simply opening her mouth, she refused to learn it herself. In 1797, a boy, estimated to be about twelve years old, walked out of the woods into the town of Aveyron in France. This boy was naked, covered in scars, and considered a savage. Based on his appearance, his food preference, and his inability to speak, the townspeople concluded that he had grown up in the wild (Victor of Aveyron). People in the 1800s were just as curious about Victor and his recovery as the people of the United States were with Genie in the 70s. In fact, a scientific debate was occurring at the time of his discovery about what makes us human. Experiments involving isolation of a human were discussed, but they were considered too cruel to perform, and dubbed forbidden experiments (Everywhere Psychology). Victor was immediately examined by many scientists, who, like Genie, made their own conclusions about him. His case, being the first of its kind, was recorded extensively and shows several connections to Genie and the behavioral side of psychology. Shortly after his discovery, biology professor Pierre Joseph Bonnaterre examined Victor, removing his clothes and leading him outside into the snow. Rather than showing discomfort or running inside to warm up, Victor was overjoyed and played in the cold. Dr. David Rigler and his wife, Marilyn, were the first foster parents to Genie. Mrs. Rigler told a similar story, saying that she would sometimes allow Genie to run her own bath and shower water. Unlike most people, Genie would make it as cold as possible (Everywhere Psychology). This indifference to cold temperatures most likely stems from experience. Children are normally bundled up by their parents during the colder months of the year so they dont catch a cold, but are still warm during the hot spring and summer months. Therefore, most people have adjusted to warm temperatures and have better experiences when they are warm, and dislike cold ones.

Martin 6 Unfortunately, the end to Victor and Genies stories are also the same. Victors main doctor, Dr. Jean Marc Gespard Itard, gave up after rigorous training. Victor and Genie could both read words and phrases, but when speaking, could not use grammar properly (Everywhere Psychology). By the end of Itards experiments, Victor could only say lait, which means milk, and Oh Dieu, which means Oh, God (Victor of Aveyron). Like Genie, many people considered Victor to have been retarded from birth. At this point in history, it was common for parents to abandon children who were considered retarded (Everywhere Psychology). Both Chomsky and Lenneburgs theories seem to be legitimate and may be true in children with more normal upbringings, but in these extreme cases of abuse and neglect, it seems as though behavior takes over and nullifies them. However, the critical period theory does seem to hold true, when not applied to linguistics. For example, Victor was living in the wild during his critical period. Instead of going to school and church, or learning things from a family, he spent his critical period developing his own preferences. Even when given the small luxuries we have in normal society, like clothing, hot meals, shelter, etc., Victor continued wanting to run around naked in the snow. When Genie was in her critical period, she was beaten for making noise and, as a result, stopped making noise. She was influenced by violence in the same way when she was abused in foster care. What she learned in her critical period influenced her behavior later in her life. It is difficult to make a conclusion about the Fritzl children, but the older ones (Kirstin, 19 in 2008 and Stefan, 17 in 2008) will most likely have difficulty learning their native German language and continue to communicate in growling and cooing noises. The youngest Fritzl, Felix (age 5 in 2008), will probably have a better chance at learning language and learning to walk since he is still in his critical period.

Martin 7 The critical period influences more than just language. It influences our physical ability and where we learn activities such as bipedal walking. It influences our thought process and preferences, whether it is reading and acquiring knowledge, or savagely running naked in the snow. It influences our social abilities, determining whether or not we can voice opinions, thoughts, or needs. Most importantly, it influences our ability to communicate, either through a commonly used language like English, German, or even Sign Language, or with a series of growls and coos. The critical period doesnt only affect a persons learning ability, but their social ability and impulses. These forbidden experiments could not accurately verify the cognitive process of each participant, but looking beyond the possibility of mental retardation, we easily see the implementation of behavioral reaction.

Martin 8 References (2010).Behaviorism. Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy. Retrieved from: http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/behaviorism/ Critical Period Hypothesis. Davids English Teaching World. Retrieved from: http://www.eltworld.net/pdf/ARTICLE%20-%20Critical%20Period%20Hypothesis.pdf Everywhere Psychology. (2012, August 29). Genie: Secret of the Wild Child. March 23, 2013. Retrieved from: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hmdycJQi4QA James, S.D. (2008). Grim Fate Awaits children Held In Cellar. ABC News. Retrieved from: http://abcnews.go.com/Health/t/story?id=4758945&page=1 Miskimon, R. (2010). Chomskys Theory on Language Development in Children. Retrived from: http://www.livestrong.com/article/224250-chomskys-theory-on-languagedevelopment-in-children/ Neisser, U. Tapper, D. Gibson E. Eric H. Lenneburg. Cornell University Faculty Memorial Statement. Retrieved from: http://ecommons.library.cornell.edu/bitstream/1813/17927/2/Lenneberg_Eric_H_1975.pd f Notramiras. (2009, March 22). The Secrets of The Austrian Cellar - Josef Fritzl. March 23, 2013. Retrieved from: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B68CWiBd4Ag

Rush, J. (2000). Tarzan of the Apes. Masterplots II: American Fiction Series, Revised Edition, 13. Trueman, C. (2013). Romulus and Remus. History Learning Site. Retrieved from: http://www.historylearningsite.co.uk/romulus_and_remus.htm

Martin 9 Victor of Aveyron. French Entre. Retrieved from: http://www.frenchentree.com/tarnaveyron-tourism-leisure/displayarticle.asp?id=19520