Granovetter's Theory Of Human Thresholds Essay
It remains a mystery why terrible events happen so often. People always try to find answers to make sense of this problem. A perfect example of this phenomenon is Granovetter’s theory of human thresholds. This theory accurately proves that riots and school shootings occur because of influence and the tendency we have as humans to follow the crowd. Malcolm Gladwell successfully persuades his readers to believe Granovetter’s theory with facts and examples. Granovetter states that riots are an example of thresholds and why school shootings are occurring so often. They have turned into a nation wide act of assault which he accurately portrays in his article “Thresholds of Violence.” In this article, Gladwell successfully persuades his readers that
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Granovetter’s model of human thresholds and riots are appropriate and applicable to school shooters. School shootings have occurred in all fifty states of the USA becoming a nation wide phenomenon.
It has been thought that those who would commit such horrendous crimes would suffer from some sort of mental illness, however Granovetter’s model proves otherwise. In Malcolm Gladwell’s article “Thresholds of Violence” he uses the story of a young man named John LaDue, who was a quiet and loving kid that one day plotted to set off a bomb at his own high school. “I have good parents. I live in a good town,” says LaDue. He was never diagnosed with any type of mental illness and did not have typical symptoms of a school killer. Granovetter’s theory offers us an explanation as to why such a normal kid would commit to such a terrible act. The theory states that a person who normally wouldn’t do something belligerent, such as a rioter, is more likely to do it because they saw someone do the same thing first. Gladwell uses this theory to convince readers that this is why school shootings have become more common. “A riot was a social process, in which people did things in reaction to and in combination with those around them.” Granovetter claims that this theory could describe many different situations such as strikes, elections, and even leaving a
party.
Violence is as glorified more than ever now a days which, according to Granovetter, has an effect on the morals of others. Evan Ramsey was only sixteen years old when he committed murder against his own mother. His father believed he was under the influence of a video game called Doom. Even the parents of Michael Carneal victims thought the movie “The Basketball Diaries” had an influence on the people who shot their children. The makers and distributors of that movie were sued due to this matter. Darion Aguilar was a good person who was heavily influenced by Eric Harris, one of the Columbine shooters. While committing the crime Aguilar dressed up like Harris, used the same weapons, and wore the same backpack as him. He even came out shooting at the same exact time the Columbine shooting took place, 11:14 AM. All of these incidents relate to the fact that the influence of other has a major effect on the behavior of these scooters. Granovetter’s model states, “Think of it as a slow motion, ever-evolving riot, in which each new participant’s action makes sense in reaction to and in combination with those who came before.” In the article “Thresholds of Violence,” Gladwell proves that Granovetter’s Model of human thresholds accurately describes why some school shooters seem like perfectly normal human beings.
Granovetter’s model of human thresholds and riots are appropriate and applicable to school shooters. School shootings have occurred in all fifty states of the USA becoming a nation wide phenomenon.
It has been thought that those who would commit such horrendous crimes would suffer from some sort of mental illness, however Granovetter’s model proves otherwise. In Malcolm Gladwell’s article “Thresholds of Violence” he uses the story of a young man named John LaDue, who was a quiet and loving kid that one day plotted to set off a bomb at his own high school. “I have good parents. I live in a good town,” says LaDue. He was never diagnosed with any type of mental illness and did not have typical symptoms of a school killer. Granovetter’s theory offers us an explanation as to why such a normal kid would commit to such a terrible act. The theory states that a person who normally wouldn’t do something belligerent, such as a rioter, is more likely to do it because they saw someone do the same thing first. Gladwell uses this theory to convince readers that this is why school shootings have become more common. “A riot was a social process, in which people did things in reaction to and in combination with those around them.” Granovetter claims that this theory could describe many different situations such as strikes, elections, and even leaving a
party.
Violence is as glorified more than ever now a days which, according to Granovetter, has an effect on the morals of others. Evan Ramsey was only sixteen years old when he committed murder against his own mother. His father believed he was under the influence of a video game called Doom. Even the parents of Michael Carneal victims thought the movie “The Basketball Diaries” had an influence on the people who shot their children. The makers and distributors of that movie were sued due to this matter. Darion Aguilar was a good person who was heavily influenced by Eric Harris, one of the Columbine shooters. While committing the crime Aguilar dressed up like Harris, used the same weapons, and wore the same backpack as him. He even came out shooting at the same exact time the Columbine shooting took place, 11:14 AM. All of these incidents relate to the fact that the influence of other has a major effect on the behavior of these scooters. Granovetter’s model states, “Think of it as a slow motion, ever-evolving riot, in which each new participant’s action makes sense in reaction to and in combination with those who came before.” In the article “Thresholds of Violence,” Gladwell proves that Granovetter’s Model of human thresholds accurately describes why some school shooters seem like perfectly normal human beings.