The Story of Success, is Malcom Gladwell's convincing attempt to challenge the way success has classically been viewed. Gladwell's context, voice and identification of his audience help him adequately impart his message. In chapters three and four, titled "The Trouble with Geniuses" Gladwell recounts highly intellectual people's stories of success or lack thereof. He explains in a clear and straight-forward manner how they got there. It is through his writing style that Gladwell gains the confidence of his readers and effectively presents his case.
Gladwell's purpose in writing "The Trouble with Geniuses" is to convince his audience that a genius, a form of an outlier, is just as dependent on circumstance as anyone else. Gladwell suggests …show more content…
He uses a logical approach, drawing readers in without much imagery; he simply states the facts. By jumping from one case to the next, Gladwell builds interest, further engaging his readers. Gladwell's casual writing style gets reader comfortable with him and able to trust him. His tone is confident and well-assured. He considers himself a spokesperson for society, and makes assumptions for his readers. For example, "If I had magical powers and offered to raise your IQ by 30 points, you'd say yes—right? You'd assume that would help you get further ahead in the world" (Gladwell 76) and "Terman didn't understand what a real outlier was, and that's a mistake we continue to make to this day" (Gladwell 77). Gladwell's diction convinces his audience to reason with him. Through making a statement, rather than relating his personal opinion, Gladwell gets readers to agree with …show more content…
I believe it is a logical argument, and I appreciate the way he presents his ideas. Furthermore, I have heard of the idea of a threshold before, but in regards to money. CNBC's news article titled "Money Can Buy Happiness, but only to a Point" explains research done by David Clingingsmith, an economist from Case Western University. The article describes how income can affect a family's overall well-being, up to a threshold of $200,000. After that point the amount of money a family makes per year has no significant effect on their mental or emotional health. With the memory of this additional research in mind, I found Gladwell's take on geniuses easy to agree with. The tone used throughout "The Trouble with Geniuses" keeps Gladwell's audience engaged. Using assumptions, challenges and empathy, Gladwell pulls his readers in. He describes each scene in a matter-of-fact manner, clarifying emotions and details until his message is obvious. In truth, it is not brains that make the man. It is the environment he was raised in, and whether or not it cultivated the sense of entitlement necessary for a genius to leave his impact on the
Gladwell's purpose in writing "The Trouble with Geniuses" is to convince his audience that a genius, a form of an outlier, is just as dependent on circumstance as anyone else. Gladwell suggests …show more content…
He uses a logical approach, drawing readers in without much imagery; he simply states the facts. By jumping from one case to the next, Gladwell builds interest, further engaging his readers. Gladwell's casual writing style gets reader comfortable with him and able to trust him. His tone is confident and well-assured. He considers himself a spokesperson for society, and makes assumptions for his readers. For example, "If I had magical powers and offered to raise your IQ by 30 points, you'd say yes—right? You'd assume that would help you get further ahead in the world" (Gladwell 76) and "Terman didn't understand what a real outlier was, and that's a mistake we continue to make to this day" (Gladwell 77). Gladwell's diction convinces his audience to reason with him. Through making a statement, rather than relating his personal opinion, Gladwell gets readers to agree with …show more content…
I believe it is a logical argument, and I appreciate the way he presents his ideas. Furthermore, I have heard of the idea of a threshold before, but in regards to money. CNBC's news article titled "Money Can Buy Happiness, but only to a Point" explains research done by David Clingingsmith, an economist from Case Western University. The article describes how income can affect a family's overall well-being, up to a threshold of $200,000. After that point the amount of money a family makes per year has no significant effect on their mental or emotional health. With the memory of this additional research in mind, I found Gladwell's take on geniuses easy to agree with. The tone used throughout "The Trouble with Geniuses" keeps Gladwell's audience engaged. Using assumptions, challenges and empathy, Gladwell pulls his readers in. He describes each scene in a matter-of-fact manner, clarifying emotions and details until his message is obvious. In truth, it is not brains that make the man. It is the environment he was raised in, and whether or not it cultivated the sense of entitlement necessary for a genius to leave his impact on the