Cultural Misconceptions In The Outliers, By Joyce Gladwell

Think of something you are passionate about. Is it a skill that you are able to push yourself in? People are always told that with enough hard work you could become a master of that skill. Even without natural talent, enough hard work at a skill will eventually build up the ability. By constantly pushing oneself past their limits during practice, they can improve quicker than someone who has the natural ability and doesn’t try. However, skill doesn’t always equal success. As Malcolm Gladwell states in his book The Outliers, luck plays a large role in the ability to obtain the 10,000 hours required to become an expert in a subject. However, many studies and even the researchers of the 10,000 hour study have rejected the rule outright. I disagree with Gladwell that 10,000 hours is required to become a master, and that luck plays a much larger role than he states.

“My mother's education was the product of the riots of 1937 and the industriousness of Mr. Chance. These were history's gifts to my family and if the resources of that grocer, the fruits of those riots, the possibilities of that culture, and the privileges of that skin tone and been extended to others, how many more would now live a life of fulfillment, in a beautiful house high on a hill? (Outliers, Gladwell, 2008, pg.285).” The way how his grandmother well-to-do concerted cultivation. The last extrinsic factor was Mulatto in the American South, when slave woman would have been socially ostracized, and any offspring form the union of black and white would have been left in slavery. However, in Jamaica, the attitudes were very different than America South. In Jamaica, if people are mixed then they did not have any discrimination. Gladwell was wrong when he wrote that “If you work hard enough and assert yourself, and use your mind and imagination, you can shape the world to your desires (Outliers, Gladwell Chapter 5, section 10, pg.151)” because individual cultural legacies, time of birth, and opportunities are more important factors when achieving

In the book, Outliers: The Story of Success, Malcom Gladwell intended to teach the readers about the many different rules that he discussed in his book, to help with the understanding people have of success. Gladwell defines outliers as “men and women who do things that are out of the ordinary” (Gladwell 17). Gladwell accurately applies the rhetorical techniques of logos, exemplification, and repetition to effectively employ how highly successful people are outliers.

Success has been pondered over for centuries. How does one gain success? Is it worked for or is it only designated for a special few? Looking past the multitude of self help books that have been written, many like Malcolm Gladwell have begun to consider factors beyond just “working for it” as a contributor to success. One of these factors are cultural legacies. Though it is true that cultural legacies can be extremely powerful and that we should acknowledge them when considering someone’s success, it should be evident that the extent of power culture has is less than what Gladwell proposes. The place someone originated from has extremely influential effects on how that person thinks and acts, and in turn how they gain their success. The culture they grew up with becomes deeply rooted in their minds and results in different thought processes that shape the mindset they have while developing into an individual. However, Gladwell overestimates how powerful

Beverly Tatum 's "Why Are All the Black Kids Sitting Together in the Cafeteria?"and Ann DuCille 's Multicultural Barbie and the Merchandising of Difference demonstrate what it means to be an African American adolescent in today 's time. One of the obstacles that African American adolescents face is the expectations of others. Often a single comment is all that is needed to imply to a student how another feels about their potential. For example, Tatum describes the experience of Malcolm X. Although Malcolm X was separated from his family and living in a foster home, he was a star athlete, a class president, and an A student. Despite his success as an adolescent, he was told by a respected teacher that his goal of becoming a lawyer was "no realistic goal for a nigger." (Tatum 379) As the result of this single comment, Malcolm stopped participating in class, thereby hindering any current educational opportunities. This expectation from Malcolm 's teacher changed his educational experience making him adhere to his racial

The concept of cultural honor is an issue presented in chapter 6 and the news article. Gladwell discusses the feuds that occurred between the founding families of Harlan, who were “… killing one another…” (Gladwell 162) in an attempt to display their dominance. This is comparable to the article where theorists suggested that black and white people were created separately due to the idea that people of color are inferior. Both the novel and outside source express how although there are different aspects that contribute to the conflict, the results are similar in that the lesser side gets condemned. Outliers approaches the subject by presenting the scenario and then analyzing the reasoning behind its occurrence. The outside source, on the other

In the book Outliers, the author Malcolm Gladwell elucidates that people have to practice for more than 10,000 hours or 10 years in order to fully become successful. People can achieve more regardless of not being financially wealthy. Even though some people that have practiced for less than 10,000 hours did achieve their goals, the majority of the successful people have practiced for more than 10,000 hours. Gladwell states that, “they work much, much harder” (39). and that they have to want to stand out from everyone else. I believe that very successful people are lucky, and have talent, and are willing to work harder than everyone else.

The achievements for which the graduation speaker praises recent graduates from the narrator’s school differ from the narrator’ hopes for herself and her classmates in the aspect of success and achievements. The speaker praises the whites when it comes to being successful in their field of endeavor and always given the priority in many facets of life. He even gave the bragging rights for them. He made them feel the racial discrimination where whites are being favored over the blacks like them. They get all the attentions and assistance unlike the colored people who are not given the good opportunities for their future. The whites make sure that they are superior in every step of the

Outliers is a book that studies the factors that contribute to high levels of success. Gladwell examines several success stories ranging from Bill Gates to the Beatles. The book also looks at how cultural differences play a large part in perceived intelligence and rational decision making. Throughout the publication, Gladwell repeatedly mentions the "10,000-Hour Rule." This rules claimes that the key to achieving world class expertise in any skill is a matter of practicing the correct way, for a total of around 10,000

In Chapter 7 of The Outlier as well as Malcolm Gladwell’s discussion of Why Do Planes Crash? Gladwell discusses his precise thesis on uses of “mitigated’ speech within different cultures and how it determined success. Gladwell also explains in depth how why ‘“mitigated’ language was the reason for the plane crash. Many cultures, such as China, used ‘mitigated’ language as a form of authority; yet, in a culture like the United States, an individual will not have much success as issues can be overlooked. Overall, Gladwell's thesis explained why people, such a Bill Gates, are successful. Therefore, Gladwell's assertion of mitigation on work, culture, and communication is accurate in determining if a person is successful or not.An example that

The brain is one of the most complex, unknown organs of the human body. Researchers often break down the characteristics of the brain to whether tendencies are achieved through nurtured environments or the inheritability of genetics. Intelligence is one of the most controversial topics when it comes to deciding whether environment or genetics are most influential. Many argue that intelligence is based on environmental factors and the unique ability to work hard, but fail to realize the essential cognitive qualities concerning what truly defines intelligence. Although some may consider this trait as based on environment, intelligence is a cognitive attribute established by the nature of genetics.

The novel Outliers, aims to investigate the very thing we want for our family, our students, and ourselves. For most of our lives we have believed that with hard work, anyone can achieve success. That had to be the reason that poor immigrants like Andrew Carnegie and college dropouts like Bill Gates achieved unimaginable wealth. Most of us were taught that working harder than anyone else would lead to ultimate success.

Outliers-The Story of Success is a sociological, and psychological non-fiction book, which discusses success, and the driving reasons behind why some people are significantly more successful than others. Malcolm Gladwell explains this by dividing the book into two parts, opportunity and legacy. Opportunity discusses how select people are fortunate enough to be born between the months of January through March, and also includes the idea that those who are already successful will have more opportunities to improve and become even more successful. The 10,000-hour rule proves the idea that in order to become successful in a certain skill, one must have practiced that skill for at least 10,000 hours. In addition to the 10,000-hour rule, timing

“Anderson, don’t talk out loud. You lower the IQ of the whole street.” Intelligence can be defined as person’s ability to learn and understand, and use that knowledge manipulated his/her environment to achieve their goal. Albert Einstein’s reasoning and understanding of the world pioneer the creation of cellar technology. However, intelligence does not lead to success, like the case of Christopher Langan who has a higher IQ than Einstein, but failed because he lack the practical intelligence needed to have a successful career. In Outliers, by Malcolm Gladwell he explores the concept of cultural legacy. The rice paddies tradition cultivated a hardworking and detail oriented generation. When this cultural legacy was adopted by the KIPP academy

Visualize a ball of clay, perfectly round, cold, and anxiously waiting for its potter to form it into a masterpiece. The ball is prepared for molding and the process begins. The strong hands of the potter pull the ball, squish the ball, and rubs out any imperfections. The potter brushes the newly shaped clay with glaze that seems to be dull and lacks beauty at every angle, but little does the viewer know that this pot holds secrets because their eye deceives them and doesn’t allow them to see the lively color lying beneath the surface. The potter makes yet another examination of the pot to be sure that he has erased any blemish or imperfection before gently placing it into the kiln. The kiln fires the pot allowing the pot’s colors to come through