TOW #10: Outliers - Chapter 1

In chapter 1 of Outliers, Malcom Gladwell, a credible British-Canadian journalist and bestselling author, starts off by saying that we view success in a certain context and he supports this with the analysis of professional hockey players in Canada. The understanding is that the best are the best because they were born with that certain talent. However, Gladwell begs to differ, stating that the best are the best because of the month in which the hockey players were born. He explains that the cutoff date for hockey classes are January 1. This means that a child born earlier in the year could possibly be playing another child 364 days younger than him, an advantage in physical maturity. Gladwell finishes the chapter by stating that cutoff dates are significant and that things like hockey classes should be divided based on birth-month.
Gladwell introduces this example of cutoff dates and hockey in order to show his readers, especially those who think talent is an innate ability, that talent is cultivated. His purpose is to show that, although some are exceptionally gifted in certain facets of life, date and birth holds much more weight than actual talent and whether or not one is born with "it" or not. Gladwell persuades and intrigues the audience, readers who are intrigued by success and what causes success, with the use of ethos. By citing credible sources, such as Canadian Psychologist Roger Barnsley, Gladwell gains the trust of his readers; he becomes a reliable and believe source. Gladwell also uses anaphora to emphasize the reason in which certain people achieve success. He starts the sentence with "The best are the best because..." and states the most common misconception and then states the actual reasoning in the second sentence.
Malcom Gladwell has started off Outliers with an interesting theory and legitimate reasoning that has shed light to a possible reason as to why some people are more talented (and ultimately more successful) than others. I am excited to read more about Gladwell's reasoning and ideas.