Blink - Analysis of the Human Mind

Though first published in 2005, i was first introduced to Malcolm Gladwell by one of my really good friends who suggested it as a pleasant read for me and described it as "an analysis of the power of the human mind." However, to be completely honest Blink is not a book you would typically read at night before bed or even early in the morning. It is a book that requires the right frame of mind to help digest and process the heavy technicalities and case studies layered out by the author. Having said that though, i have to admit i loved every minute of it!

Not only does Gladwell go into the depths of the power of the human mind ad the subconscious in great detail he provides appropriate case studies to allow the readers to understand what he is talking about. Very courageous in his topic of analysis of the subconscious mind, Gladwell develops and displays his argument to illuminate us to the power of a force we use and come into contact with on a daily basis and in doing so he questions what is in fact the unquestionable.

A simple experiment referred to by Gladwell is the gambling game in chapter 1, where in he describes the placement of two decks of cards in front of a person, red and blue. They are then asked to pick a card slowly from each pile in order to increase their winnings. Unbeknownst to the person the red cards are more of a gamble as they have higher losses while the blue cards give a modest winning each time. He shows that after only 50 cards people tend to favour picking from the blue pile though they cannot explain it until their 80th card wherein they realize the difference between the two decks. However he shows the power of the unconscious mind as he shows that after just the 10th card sweat glands in the hand begin to increase whenever a red card is picked. This shows that the unconscious mind has realized the difference between the two decks nearly 40 cards before the conscious mind begins favouring the blue deck.

Gladwell goes on to illustrate this power in case study after case study and holds the readers interest by illuminating the unknown. Not only does he provide a good read but he also provides a good analysis of the mind opening new doors for readers.