Not Exactly Tom Sawyer’s Slingshot
Little David brings down the mighty Goliath with a slingshot. Seems kind of unlikely, doesn’t it? Maybe Goliath was a bit more delicate than his reputation that preceded him? Perhaps not, because the sling that slung the stone was not exactly the slingshot you can buy in the toy department at Walgreen’s:
“Imagine standing in front of a Major League Baseball pitcher as he aims a baseball at your head. That’s what facing a slinger was like—only what was being thrown was not a ball of cork and leather but a solid rock.”
Lawrence in Arabia
A profile of T.E. Lawrence—more famously known as “Lawrence of Arabia”—is one that demonstrates the advantages of existing—like David—outside the establishment. Being a rebel on the ground gives on an advantage that all the greatest generals stationed thousands of miles away can never replicate. Lawrence was successful because he wasn’t like everybody else in the British military…but a lot like those they were fighting:
“He was an archaeologist by trade who wrote dreamy prose. He wore sandals and full Bedouin dress when he went to see his military superiors. He spoke Arabic like a native, and handled a camel as if he had been riding one all his life.”
Uncle Remus was Created by a Racist
The tales of Uncle Remus were invented by white racist from Georgia. In the tales, Brer Rabbit gets stuck in the tar and tricks Brer Fox into rescuing him by telling the fox that no matter what else he may have in store for him, just please do not throw him into the briar patch—which is exactly what he really wants and which, of course, is exactly what the outwitted fox does. This story becomes an ironic metaphor for how members of the Civil Rights Movement outwitted white systemic racism:
“They could not defeat Bull Connor at the polls, or in the streets, or in the court of law. They could not match him strength for strength. What they could do, though, was play Brer Rabbit and try to get Connor to throw them in the briar patch.”
Reading is Fundamental
A passage about a man named Gary Cohn provides the opportunity for the author to construct a portrait of the full scale that being afflicted by dyslexia can take on some people. He makes certain to note that this is hardly the case for all, but for many it is equally true:
“Dyslexia blew a hole in Cohn’s life—leaving a trail of misery and anxiety. But he was very bright, and he had a supportive family and more than a little luck and enough other resources that he was able to weather the worst effects of the blast and emerge stronger.”
French Impressionism
Another outsider underdog that knocked down the mighty Goliath are the French Impressionists. Although it seems like a predetermined deal that the likes of Manet, Monet, Cezanne, Seurat, and Van Gogh would all become Goliaths in their field, this is most certainly not the case. As integral as their brilliant artwork is to their eventual conquest of art, so is the means by which they slung their stone at the power of the establishment represented by the Salon:
"The Salon was a lot like an Ivy League school. It was the place where reputations were made. And what made it special was how selective it was…The Salon was the Big Pond. But it was very hard to be anything at the Salon but a Little Fish.”
