Analysis Of The Book Blink

Message: In Malcom Gladwell’s book Blink, Gladwell shares his belief that split second decisions made by the unconscious mind must be trusted while making decisions. Gladwell rebuts the common notion that the best decisions are made by spending hours looking at data and coming to a conclusion. Gladwell begins his book with a description of one of the Getty’s art deals. A man was trying to sell an ancient Greek statue to the art gallery that was in impeccable condition and expected to be a forgery. After months of research the Getty bought the statue and at its first showing, during the first moments of seeing the statue, art experts “were able to understand more about the essence of the statue than the team at the Getty was able to understand

In the introduction of the book, he reveals that, “In Blink you’ll meet doctors and generals and coaches and furniture designers and musicians and actors and car salesmen and countless others” (Gladwell 16).Gladwell makes the book accessible to people from all walks of life by including examples and studies that deal with a wide variety of subjects. By appealing to the general public, Gladwell believes he can make the largest impact on the world. Gladwell argues that if everyone analyzed their split second decisions, it would “change the way wars are fought, the kinds of products we see on shelves, the kinds of movies that get made, the way police officers are trained, the way couplers are counseled, the way job interviews are conducted and on and on” (Gladwell 17). The science of basic decision-making is something that is applicable to everyone, and thus, Gladwell aims to reach as many people as he

After discussing a few examples, Gladwell directly asks the reader a question: “when you first picked up this book. How long did you first hold it in your hands? Two seconds?” He follows this question by saying, “in that short space of time, the design of the cover, whatever associations you may have with my name, and the first few sentences about the kouros all generated an impression that has fundamentally shaped the way you have read this introduction so far” (Gladwell 13). Gladwell clearly believes that everyone has the ability to make split second decisions. His shows his confidence in this belief by making the reader a piece of evidence he uses. By breaking the fourth wall and talking directly to the reader, it makes it obvious that Gladwell personally believes in the science of quick decisions. Gladwell breaks the fourth wall numerous times throughout the book to reveal that he believes people are unaware of how split second decisions work. For example, at the end of the introduction, Gladwell asserts that, “I think we pay too much attention to those grand themes and too little to the particulars of those fleeting moments” (Gladwell 16). By talking directly to the audience, Gladwell cunningly challenges the reader to relate the topic of the book to their own lives. In doing this, Gladwell