Once upon a time...

Many are familiar with the story of David and Goliath, where a small Shepard boy defies the odds by defeating a giant. However, Malcolm Gladwell makes the point that the seemingly optimistic theme of overcoming the odds is actually wrong. He explains how it was actually Goliath who was the weaker warrior, because his incredible height of 6' 9" is a symptom of acromegaly. This is a disease which results in abnormal growth, but also causes vision loss and less-acute senses. On the other hand, David was skilled with using a sling to hurtle rocks with the same force as a .45 caliber handgun. This meant he could easily kill Goliath from a distance since the giant could only fight in close combat. By describing these events, the speaker's point was to prove how a person's greatest strength (i.e Goliath's condition) can also be their greatest weakness, and how the powerful giants in our life may be the most unassuming.

Approximately the first five minutes of the Ted Talk is an narration of the original David and Goliath story, namely the Biblical version of the story. Gladwell makes sure to include direct quotes from the Bible, those of which have been considered the most accurate translation. The purpose was to reference them in the future, to show what these quotes prove when combined with historical analysis. In addition, his inclusion of the original story reminds the audience of the generic story, so they are familiarized with the exact details. Once he develops this tale, he begins to describe the events as an underdog story, using pathos as a means to describe David as the victim. Since this is the most common interpretation of the story, it also draws an emotional response from the crowd as they recount on childhood memories and overall familiarity with the story. Yet, despite building up this response, Gladwell quickly develops a more cynical approach and begins to dispute each detail. He says, "Well, let's start there with the phrase, 'all David has is a sling,' because that's the first mistake we make" (6:31). By utilizing this change of tone, he captures the audience's attention by changing focus. He continues to command their attention by using rhetorical questions, such as asking whether the slingshot David wielded was a toy or an actual weapon of war. As an answer, he uses ethos in the form of historical record s found from accredited sources, including details of how "experienced slingers could hit, maim, or even kill at distances of up to 200 yards" (Gladwell 6:40). By including these details, it makes him more credible as an expert since he has provided evidence from factual sources. It makes any ambiguous details with less evidence more believable, since the facts and knowledge presented earlier make his logic seem sound. Lastly, he uses a combination of ethos and pathos to present his final argument. He says, "Well, it turns out there's been a great deal of speculation within the medical community over the years about whether there is something fundamentally wrong with Goliath" (Gladwell 12:15). With his claims that Goliath was suffering from a medical condition, the audience begins to realize the giant was not as much of a threat as they previously assumed; Goliath was fighting a constant battle within himself. The audience thus begins to empathize with the supposed villain of the story, because evidence by the "medical community" deemed it as being highly probable. As a result, the speaker's claim of Goliath being the weaker man becomes more effective, because historical/medical details and the audience's emotions drive the story to reach a new meaning.

While some of the main reasons I chose this TedTalk revolved around the familiar Biblical story and a recommendation from a friend, I continued to watch since its theme of victimization related to several of our past readings. Throughout my time in IB, we have read story after story about people living in oppressive societies. Typically the protagonist is considered the victim, not only because of the narrating perspective but also because of the author's personal views. Yet, sometimes this perspective is never the full story, because no matter if the society is real or fictional, it is still one-sided. I immediately thought of A Handmaid's Tale while watching this video, and how Offred was seemingly oppressed in Gilead as a woman. Though her oppression was extreme and undoubtedly wrong, Offred still may have not been a complete victim as she claimed to be. Margaret Atwood set the society in a time where women were failing to have healthy offspring, and how Gilead was established to remedy this problem. With Offred unwilling to perform this simple task for the sake of humanity, she can come across as somewhat selfish. While this analysis is much more extreme (and not based in fact) than David and Goliath, the same principles of false victimization can still be applied. So, I was drawn to watching this video fully because of the connections I began to see, and the connections I hoped to find to other common stories I have heard throughout my life.