The Tyranny of Malcolms

<blockquote> malcolm (n.) A folksy anecdote used to begin a chapter in a popular nonfiction book, in an attempt to draw in uninterested readers. (Named for Malcolm Gladwell (b. 1963), who popularised the technique and spawned many less sure-handed emulators) </blockquote> I recently read Paul Johnson’s excellent Follow the Money, a book about British public finances. I <a href="https://twitter.com/stianwestlake/status/1663217706236096517?s=20" rel="noopener ugc nofollow" target="_blank">liked it</a> mainly because it’s incredibly well written and well informed, about an important subject that I care about. But another reason that I liked it is that it the refreshing absence of gratuitous malcolms. <img alt="" src="https://miro.medium.com/v2/resize:fit:700/1*z1ukdW9OI4KCW7fApd0svA.png" style="height:420px; width:700px" /> Some actual Malcolms If you’ve read popular nonfiction books in the past twenty years, you’ll have come across malcolms, even if you didn’t know what they were called. A malcolm is a lengthy anecdote used to begin a chapter, before the author gets to the actual point they’re trying to make. Let’s say the author has written a chapter arguing that that rivals make the best teams. Often nowadays they will begin the chapter with a long story about John Lennon getting in an argument with Paul McCartney, before recording a classic Beatles album, or about two rival basketball teammates, or whatever. The aim is to make the reader care about the more abstract points that the author wants by providing a tangible, relatable, surprising example. Now don’t get me wrong: a good malcolm is a thing of beauty. Malcolm Gladwell, in whose honour they are named, uses them superbly, as you’d expect from one of the world’s most successful nonfiction writers. His stories are deeply engaging, and because he is a very skilled writer, they pivot weightlessly into the substantive points he writes about, making the reader emotionally engaged in what are often reasonably technical subjects. <a href="https://stianstian.medium.com/the-tyranny-of-malcolms-259f3e01f17a">Click Here</a>