IRB #2- Post 2

Chapters 3-5
In this section of Blink by Malcolm Gladwell, the author discusses many different theories to the reasons why we make decisions. In Chapter 3, Gladwell argues that our society is oblivious to our unconsciously motivated behaviors that urge us to make biased assumptions. For example, when elected president in 1920, Warren G. Harding was not the most suitable president yet he was the most handsome and distinguished-looking president. This rapid cognition expresses the root of prejudice and discrimination because people will chose society's "better fit" over anyone else. In Chapter 4, the discussion is based on analytic vs. intuitive decision making. Both of these are used in inappropriate circumstances and often lead to biased decisions. Finally, in Chapter 5, Gladwell goes so far to argue that when learning something new, the confusion that coincides with a new task can actually be an unconscious sign of distrust.

According to the stylistic and rhetorical analysis sheet, a plethora of strategies were used by Gladwell. In chapter 3, there was often a sarcastic tone presented through the informal diction. When describing society's unconsciously biased behaviors, Gladwell uses a less-didactic diction such as using simplistic words of "good" and "bad" instead of a more sophisticated word choice. This sarcastic tone is created through Gladwell's annoyance of society making unintelligent decisions based on their rapidly unconscious behavior. In chapter 4, the use of rhetorical questions was continuously sewn into each page. These questions helped the reader to make decisions based on themselves to determine if they were more analytical decision-makers or intuitive decision-makers. This helps strengthen the connection between the reader to the author because it engages the reader to think about themselves based on the observations of the writer. Finally, in Chapter 5, the rhetor uses a cause-and-effect arrangement to argue his claim effectively. Gladwell discusses different scenarios all leading up to his claim that the unconscious disproval of something new may be out of distrust and confusion. He also makes the audience differentiate between intuitive and emotional judgement.

The overview of this section was unconscious decision making, and how our environment affects the decisions we make unknowingly, and how it strongly dictates our judgement intuitively. The 3 parts of this section were broken up into biased decision-making, analytical vs. intuitive decision-making, and intuitive and emotional judgement. The parts go from broad to more specific; from dealing with a national decision to more personal judgement. The title of each chapter discusses the major example explained in the chapter, and then how it relates back to the main title of the book- Blink. For example, for chapter 3, the "Warren G. Harding Effect"title is an example of how in the "Blink" of an eye, we make unconscious decisions that can be very biased, such as electing a handsome president instead of a more intellectual one. The interrelationships in this section are strong between the writer and audience through the plethora of rhetorical questions that help the audience evaluate their own lives based on the research and observations of the highly credible writer. Finally, the conclusion of this section leaves the audience to judge themselves and think about how biased and intuitive their judgement has been on the past.