Malcolm Gladwell's The Power Of Context

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Can the solution to quickly ridding a city of crime and changing how the inhabitants behave and judge simply be controlled by the environment and surroundings. In “The Power of Context,” the author, Malcolm Gladwell, discusses and uses examples to demonstrate and explain how the environment and surroundings as well as context play a major role in behavior and judgment and how it had an influence on crime in New York City. In addition, another author, Leslie Bell, discusses in the "Selections from Hard to Get: Twenty-Something Women and the Paradox of Sexual Freedom," how two women, Jayanthi and Alicia, unique lifestyles, different environmental factors, and upbringings manipulated their behavior, identity, and sexuality. Although both…show more content…
Television shows and magazines, for example, can portray a certain message to the audience watching or reading them causing the watchers or readers to change how they behave or judge a certain situation. For example, Bell states that “television shows such as Sex and the City, and movies seem to encourage sexual experimentation,” and also that magazines such as Glamour or Cosmopolitan give women tips and advice on different sexual positions (Bell 27). These encouragement, tips, and advice can send a signal, similar to broken windows in New York City, and a message to women who watch or read these TV shows or magazines to experiment sexually and try new things causing them to change and explore their sexual behavior. In addition, Gladwell mentions that “people who watched Peter Jennings on ABC were more likely to vote Republican that people who watched either Tom Brokaw or Dan Rather” (Gladwell 157). Although Peter Jennings never exclusively showed his affection toward the Republican party or even mentioned the Republican party or affiliates in his show, his audiences still connected him to the Republican party. Just through watching Jennings show the behavior and preferences of Jennings audience changed. Jennings audience were more likely to vote Republican than Democrat.…show more content…
If the people around us behave or act a certain way, we will, in turn, unconsciously end up behaving or liking something the same way to fit in. For example, if society were to one day not like apples, we may change our eating preferences and behaviors to avoid eating apples. A more general example would be people liking a certain pop artist, for example. If everyone is hooked on this certain artist’s music, you may change your preferences and behavior to adapt, fit in, and ultimately like this artist. Bell talks about how Claudia “felt some shame about her sexual desires and feared other might label her a “ho” for acting on them” (Bell 25). This fear of being labeled a ho caused her to change how she sexually behaved. She holds back her true behavior to conform to the trends in her environment and
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