Global epidemics and trends are often the targets of sociology. The associated concepts produce numerous questions, such as why and how our behavior can be manipulated, or how small things can inflate into grander phenomena. In his controversial book The Tipping Point, Malcolm Gladwell argues that the instance when a small idea or concept “tips” into a larger situation is the Tipping Point. The author offers different examples, concepts, correlations, and interpretations to identify the Tipping Point. To connect to more people, the author makes numerous sacrifices in his argument. Gladwell shows a proficient usage of pathos but does not exercise control over other crucial rhetorical devices. It is unfortunate that the existence of a Tipping …show more content…
Point is not argued more effectively. Gladwell’s disappointing use of ethical appeal, logical appeal and choice of argument structure demonstrates his inability to effectively prove his points logically. Gladwell attempts to make an ethical appeal by using external research, but fails when the research does not work to his advantage.
The author states that Mavens are people who obsessively collect information and share it with others. Paul Revere was an example of such a person, spreading knowledge of the British invasion effectively. Revere rode that night since he and other “Mavens want to help, for no other reason than because they like to help” (Gladwell 67). According to Gladwell, these benevolent individuals contribute to social epidemics since they enthusiastically spread information relating to their field. To prove his Maven, he utilizes the work of Market Maven researcher Linda Price. The research targets Market Mavens and their shopping knowledge, as seen in the endnotes of The Tipping Point. Gladwell goes on to apply the Market Maven, notably dropping the adjective, to situations that do not have to do with the economy. This is a mistake on Gladwell’s part as he cannot use this research to back his argument. An example of the use of such a Maven is when he argues that the Hush Puppies became popular due to “a fashion Maven [that] went to the East Village . . . [found] Hush Puppies at a certain thrift store . . . and told his friends” (Gladwell, 67). Gladwell’s claim that a fashion Maven began the Hush Puppies epidemic is baseless, as it uses research that does not focus on these individuals. Gladwell’s use of loosely related research actually creates an …show more content…
unintended effect. It weakens his argument because it reduces his credibility, since Gladwell uses external research and stretches the research’s findings to fit his argument. When Gladwell constructs his argument, he fails at his attempt to appeal to logic by manipulating historic evidence.
Although Gladwell is correct when he says that Paul Revere knew more people in the countryside, he forgets Paul Revere and the Sons of Liberty set up these relationships to spread an alarm. Paul Revere knew these people for a specific reason. Gladwell chose William Dawes to compare his Paul Revere against a common man. According to Gladwell, William Dawes identical message did not raise as many militiamen as Paul Revere. Gladwell explains the reason Dawes did not raise as many militiamen as Revere was because, “Roxbury, Brookline, Watertown, and Waltham were not Boston . . . once he left his hometown he probably wouldn’t know whose door to knock on” (Gladwell, 58). He argues that since Dawes only has a circle in Boston, he was unable to raise as many militia members as Revere. Although this is true, Gladwell presents Dawes as if he did stop and knock on doors. It is a debate whether Dawes attempted to do the same thing as Revere. Gladwell, for an obscure reason, does not acknowledge the debate. Echoed throughout the historic community is the fact that Dawes did not make it his imperative to tell the countryside that the British were coming. According to the strong opposition, his primary objective was to inform Samuel Adams and John Hancock to flee Lexington. Gladwell cannot tell his audience these facts as it would foil his argument. In this case, he uses
Paul Revere, a historic example, as the primary Connector to introduce logic into the argument. However, this completely backfires when the uncertainty behind Dawes’ actions that night are revealed. Most importantly, Gladwell’s rollercoaster-like method of arguing in his book results in a confusing arrangement of ideas. In all nonfiction books, there exists a need to provide logos to introduce logic into the argument. In this case, he overloads his audience with information. This is exemplified when the author stretches his Stickiness Factor to a point where the reader is lost. This is not a lackluster attempt to prove his credibility through the use of external sources. It is simply the way Gladwell chooses to form his argument. When he explains concepts such as The Law of the Few, he makes his audience curious and, for the most part, proves his point. However, Gladwell disrupts the flow of his book once “far too many pages [try] to convince [the reader] that ‘stickiness’ [is] a key factor in the success of Sesame Street and Blue's Clues” (McElhearn). Many of the pages that McElhearn describes contain research and ideas that do not connect with the main idea of a Stickiness Factor. At that point in the book, McElhearn describes that Gladwell’s argument structure is confusing because he does not focus on any one idea. To clarify, he discusses an “innovation . . . called the Distractor” (Gladwell, 102) which for five pages he praises by writing how great it was for Sesame Street. Later on, he drops the hammer on the Distractor by explaining that it is a “fairly crude instrument” (Gladwell 106). This up and down storytelling that Gladwell uses throughout the explanation of the Stickiness Factor is the cause of the confusion, as the reader is already unable to decipher the plethora of concepts and studies he uses to prove the Stickiness Factor. The structure of an argument is only effective when it makes sense to the audience. Gladwell’s writing style is enough to usher most of his audience onto the next part of the book, but the critical reader will be lost in the rollercoaster that is The Tipping Point. Many of the arguments Gladwell makes in The Tipping Point are hampered by his ineffective use of logos and ethos and limited by the structure of his argument. His fallacious arguments based on unsupportive research and history reveals that Gladwell writes for the masses. Although his writing guides the reader through most of his argument, he seems to only use science to support a theory he knows to be shocking. Critics of The Tipping Point make this very clear: it strays too far from its main point. The Tipping Point itself goes from an obscure moment when something small turns into something more important to a bundle of ideas and concepts that Gladwell hardly holds together. The author does not disappoint the casual reader, but those who read the book critically will be disappointed. Similar to many events in the world, The Tipping Point proves that there are people who are still convinced by emotion, not fact.
These divisive effects of the pre-Revolutionary War time period first become evident when Daniel West witnesses certain events go by and starts to question his own loyalty to the British King. Daniel is a young, fourteen year-old, colonist with a father who happens to be a doctor, a sister and a brother, and best friend, Beckett Foote. He has to deal with many worrying events and the conflict between the Tories and the Whigs. They were two groups that caused Salem and its people to split under the escalating violence. The Whigs stood for the American side, however, the Tories were the patriots loyal to the King. Though Daniel and his family were loyal Tories, but he did not take part in any events that occurred where violence was involved. At that time, 1774, Salem was home to a sickness and it caused additional unrest with the current situation between the two groups. It was only a year before the great Revolutionary War would begin. Daniel watches as events that lead to the war take place and starts to question his place with the loyalists. The mischief of The Liberty Boys harassing Tories, adults avoiding their neighbors, the danger of fire in a town, the tricks that Sam Adams plays to work around the British governor and the redcoats, and more force Daniel to make his decisions. The Liberty Boys are a young, rowdy group of trouble makers. Throughout the story, a message is conveyed, simply a touch of danger can change one’s life. Salem was in a time of turmoil; the conflicting groups made it worse.
Notably, on the night of April 18, 1775 William Dawes set off to warn minutemen that the British were coming. William Dawes had to sneak past British guards stationed at the Boston Neck. Since Dawes was a tanner he befriended British guards so he could get past stationed at passes. In fact, that is what happened April 18, 1775. When he tried to go over a bridge going over the Boston Neck, there was a British patrol stationed there. Since he had befriended so of the guards, he was able to cross the Boston Neck with ease. Sometimes he would act like a drunk farmer going back to his house. After he went over the Boston Neck, he headed for Concord. William Dawes set off at 9:00 p.m (PBS).
In the book Into the Wild, Jon Krakauer wrote about Christopher McCandless, a nature lover in search for independence, in a mysterious and hopeful experience. Even though Krakauer tells us McCandless was going to die from the beginning, he still gave him a chance for survival. As a reader I wanted McCandless to survive. In Into the Wild, Krakauer gave McCandless a unique perspective. He was a smart and unique person that wanted to be completely free from society. Krakauer included comments from people that said McCandless was crazy, and his death was his own mistake. However, Krakauer is able to make him seem like a brave person. The connections between other hikers and himself helped in the explanation of McCandless’s rational actions. Krakauer is able to make McCandless look like a normal person, but unique from this generation. In order for Krakauer to make Christopher McCandless not look like a crazy person, but a special person, I will analyze the persuading style that Krakauer used in Into the Wild that made us believe McCandless was a regular young adult.
The Tipping Point by Malcolm Gladwell looks at a number of social epidemics and analyzes their build up to the point where they tip. “Tipping” is that point where an epidemic booms, or grows, to its maximum potential. Gladwell begins defining “tipping” with a literal example of the famous shoes, Hush Puppies. Once considered old-fashioned, Hush Puppies experienced a social boom in the mid-90s when hipsters in New York made them trendy again. Gladwell continues explaining “tipping” with a medical epidemic of syphilis in Baltimore. Gladwell introduces us to three essential rules of epidemics: the Law of the Few, the Stickiness Factor and the Power of Context. The Law of the Few says a key factor in epidemics is the role of the messenger: it spreads through word-of-mouth transmission. Gladwell explains this theory with an example of how Paul Revere managed to spread the news of British invasion overnight. Gladwell continues to explain that there are several types of people that create these types of epidemics. They are called Connectors, Mavens and Salesmen. Connectors are those people that are very social and can literally connect with people with as little as two degrees of separation. Mavens are those that know a lot about a lot of different things. They may recommend a certain restaurant and you must go because you know what they told you about it is true. And Salesmen are exactly that: people that are easily social and persuading.
To understand how things reach a tipping point, you must first understand the three rules of epidemics. Gladwell defines the three rules of epidemics as the law of the few, the stickiness factor, and the power of context. The first rule, the law of the few, explains how individuals with the gift of connections and persuasion make a difference in pushing epidemics to the limit and spreading a useful message wide and far. It most certainly takes talent to be that person or persons to make something reach its peak. The ...
“A Modest Proposal” was written in 1729 by a satirical author by the name of Jonathan Swift. Swift studied at the University of Oxford and was also know for his popular writing in Gulliver’s Travel. The purpose for his satire “A Modest Proposal” was to enlighten the citizens of Ireland about their hardship and suffering. He informed them about their scares of food, money, and property, but provided a possible solution to their problem. To persuade the people Swift adopts a comforting and friendly tone to his audience for the people to react to his solution.
The Letter from Birmingham Jail was written by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. in April of 1963. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was one of several civil rights activists who were arrested in Birmingham Alabama, after protesting against racial injustices in Alabama. Dr. King wrote this letter in response to a statement titled A Call for Unity, which was published on Good Friday by eight of his fellow clergymen from Alabama. Dr. King uses his letter to eloquently refute the article. In the letter dr. king uses many vivid logos, ethos, and pathos to get his point across. Dr. King writes things in his letter that if any other person even dared to write the people would consider them crazy.
For my whole life, I have lived in Boston. In 1773, me and some others went on to the British’s ship to protest. We threw 342 chests of tea into the Ocean. This had caused the Boston Tea Party. As I am serving in the war, young women at home are crushing on British soldiers, only for their handsomeness and red fancy coats. At one point Washington’s position was uncertain. Valley Forge was located about 18
On April 19th, 1775 British troops marched to Lexington and Concord, where many militia men already awaited their arrival. The British were after the ammunition of the militia. Paul Revere previously warned the militia so that they could be prepared. Many people are unaware of the fact that Paul Revere was accompanied by William Dawes on his midnight ride.
...ion. Without the sacrifices of Revere, Dawes, and Prescott that night, the British might have captured or killed Adams and Hancock, and seized vital military supplies making the War for Independence lost before it even began.
In the minds of most Americans, the name of Paul Revere forever conjures up the image of the lone patriotic rider shrouded in the darkness of the New England night. His mission: to inform the countryside that the Regulars are coming. On this night, the fate of the natural rights of all men in the new world seemed to rest on his shoulders. As terrifically romantic as this thought may be, it is far from the truth. Revere's midnight ride was anything but the heroics of just one man; rather, it can be much better summarized as the collective effort and doings of all New England Whigs. (ANB)
Pollan’s article provides a solid base to the conversation, defining what to do in order to eat healthy. Holding this concept of eating healthy, Joe Pinsker in “Why So Many Rich Kids Come to Enjoy the Taste of Healthier Foods” enters into the conversation and questions the connection of difference in families’ income and how healthy children eat (129-132). He argues that how much families earn largely affect how healthy children eat — income is one of the most important factors preventing people from eating healthy (129-132). In his article, Pinsker utilizes a study done by Caitlin Daniel to illustrate that level of income does affect children’s diet (130). In Daniel’s research, among 75 Boston-area parents, those rich families value children’s healthy diet more than food wasted when children refused to accept those healthier but
The movie trailer “Rio 2”, shows a great deal of pathos, ethos, and logos. These rhetorical appeals are hidden throughout the movie trailer; however, they can be recognized if paying attention to the details and montage of the video. I am attracted to this type of movies due to the positive life messages and the innocent, but funny personifications from the characters; therefore, the following rhetorical analysis will give a brief explanation of the scenes, point out the characteristics of persuasive appeals and how people can be easily persuaded by using this technique, and my own interpretation of the message presented in the trailer.
As described in novel The Tipping Point: How Little Things Can Make a Big Difference the course of any trend, movement, social behavior, and even the spread of a virus has a general trend line that in essence resemble a parabola with 3 main critical points. Any trend line first starts from zero, grows until it crosses the first tipping point, and then spreads like wildfire. Afterwards, the trend skyrockets to its carrying capacity (Galdwell, 2000). Then the trend gradually declines before it reaches the next tipping and suddenly falls out of favor and out of memory. Gladwell defines tipping points as the “magic moment when an idea, trend, or social behavior crosses a threshold, tips, and spreads like wildfire” (Gladwell, 2000).
Jonathan Kozol revealed the early period’s situation of education in American schools in his article Savage Inequalities. It seems like during that period, the inequality existed everywhere and no one had the ability to change it; however, Kozol tried his best to turn around this situation and keep track of all he saw. In the article, he used rhetorical strategies effectively to describe what he saw in that situation, such as pathos, logos and ethos.