Essay Questions

Show how Malcolm Gladwell brings out the importance of persistence in relation to one's success in David and Goliath.

Malcolm Gladwell’s emphasis on the importance of persistence in achieving success is explicitly brought out in the book David and Goliath. In other words, Gladwell seems to place great emphasis on the role that success plays in one’s life, particularly in relation to success. Gladwell argues that with persistence, the odds of becoming successful can be shifted in favor of the persistent individual. He emphasizes these ideologies by using real-life people who have achieved greatness through demonstrating the trait. In this way, the importance of persistence is highlighted.

Highlight Malcolm Gladwell’s principal arguments about success in the book David and Goliath.

In David and Goliath, Malcolm Gladwell presents, explicitly, his ideas about the concept of success. In particular, Gladwell argues that success is “not accepting excuses for failure.” Gladwell goes on to argue that nothing can stand in the way of a person who has the determination and drive to be successful. He also mentions that odds of success are more likely to shift in favor of a persistent and determined person. While Gladwell is more focused on bringing forth strategies that are geared towards helping people in their quest for success, he also mentions the importance of one defining what success really is to them and also define their end goals.

How does Malcolm Gladwell emphasize the fact that individuals can often rise to have enormous success even if the odds are not in their favor?

In this work, Gladwell uses the example of the story of David and Goliath to give strength to his argument that specific people can often achieve success, particularly against enormous odds. In this story, David fights the giant Goliath, a philistine, with nothing but a sling and rock. Even though his odds of success are minimal, he manages to overcome this and wins this fight.