Mr. Gladwell's main point he is trying to argue is that there are unseen advantages and disadvantages in the classical story of David and Goliath after further in depth analysis. He uses the idea of forces and physics to inform that as readers, people greatly underestimate the power of the Sheppard's sling. He states that a the sling could have propelled a rock with the equivalent force of a .45 caliber handgun round. He also touches on the weaknesses of Goliath that we don't consider, like that he could have acromegaly, which is a form of giantism. With acromegaly, a tumor formed on his pituitary gland explaining his massive size and also impaired vision and coordination. Gladwell combines these two to state that David may have actually been the superior combatant in this originally one-sided duel.
Gladwell uses mainly logos in his explanation, as well as hypothetical reasoning in order to back many of his claims. Yet, many of his supposed claims aren't well supported, with lack of much evidence. For example, when he states that David could use his sling to unleash a projectile at over 35 m/sec. There are many variables in that statement, and he doesn't make any statements about how strong David might have been or even where he got this statistic from. Gladwell uses persuasion from ethos. By saying things such as "within the medical community" without referencing any specific physicians or professionals to back up his analysis of the situation. He also quotes the bible in order to add credibility to his findings.
I somewhat stumbled upon this video, yet I'm so glad I did. It was extremely interesting and turned my entire perspective on this originally easy story to understand. On a personal level, it gave me a new way to look at people who i originally assumed as threats. Also the new perspective allowed me to realize that sometimes I am the giant, and i put myself in situations where i am extremely vulnerable, and the only way to really escape is to hide my weaknesses, but, no matter how big we as humans think we are, there is always a weakness. It is different in many people, yet yields the same results if exposed. I think we should all take a moment to realize just how vulnerable we really are, from allergies, to our deepest fears and secrets. It amazing how well we hide these, but don't make the same mistakes as Goliath, because there may be a Shepard right under our noses.
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