“Character is more like a bundle of habits and tendencies and interests, loosely bound together and dependent, at certain times, on circumstances and context.” Malcolm Gladwell’s suggestion that a person’s character is reflected in a given context is correct shown through his or her first instinct and past experiences.
A person’s character greatly depends on what he has been taught and what he knows is right and wrong. The first instinct a person has and how they execute in the situation after that strictly depends on the environment. If there’s a man struggling in pain on the side of the road a citizen walking by may do one of two things. His first instinct on what to do in this situation relies on where and when this is happening. However, his character at the exact moment he sees the man is defined when he makes the choice to help him or not. Perhaps the man on the side of the road is in a run down, beat up part of town. It may be difficult for anyone to stop and help him. This supports Gladwell in that character depends on the context of a situation.
Past experiences play a huge role in new circumstances by allowing more knowledge and understanding in new situations. Under pressure, a person with knowledge from similar experiences will be more likely to make a smart decision that reflects his character. Gladwell mentions that a lot of people have a consistent character due to the ability to control the environment he is in. This doesn’t necessarily