There have been many cases of what are termed feral children. Many of these are simply stories, but more recent cases have provided concrete substance to the way children develop. The case of the young girl named Genie is the most carefully documented and well studied instance of what happens to a child who does not experience adequate contact with other people during infancy and childhood. Genie was locked in a room alone for nearly 13 years and never developed language skills the way most children do. Obviously, part of this case is due to severe parental neglect, but the other question is whether abilities like language are innate. Fundamentally, this case is about nature versus nurture and whether