Book Demo
Description
Vocal Characteristics
Language
EnglishVoice Age
Young Adult (18-35)Accents
North American (General)Transcript
Note: Transcripts are generated using speech recognition software and may contain errors.
This is from Malcolm Gladwell's David and Goliath. David and Goliath is a book about what happens when ordinary people confront giants by giants. I mean powerful opponents of all kinds, from armies and mighty warriors to disability, misfortune and oppression. Each chapter tells the story of a different person, famous or unknown, ordinary or brilliant, who has faced an outsized challenge and has been forced to respond. Should I play the rules or follow my own instincts? Shall I persevere or give up? Should I strike back or forgive? Through these stories? I want to explore two ideas. The first is that much of what we consider valuable in our world arises out of these kinds of lopsided conflicts, because the act of facing overwhelming odds produces greatness and beauty. And second, that we consistently get these kinds of conflicts wrong. We misread them. We misinterpret them. Giants are not what we think they are. The same qualities that appear to give them strength are often the sources of great weakness, and the fact of being an underdog can change people in ways that we often fail to appreciate. It can open doors and create opportunities and educate and enlighten and make possible what might otherwise have seemed unthinkable. We need a better guide to facing giants, and there is no better place to start that journey than with the epic confrontation between David and Goliath 3000 years ago in the Valley of Elah. When Goliath shouted to the Israel lights, he was asking for what was known a single combat. This was a common practice in the ancient world. Two sides in a conflict would seek to avoid the heavy bloodshed of open battle by choosing one warrior to represent each in the duel.