Blink: The Power of Thinking Without Thinking

Use these essay questions as writing and critical thinking exercises for all levels of writers, and to build their literary analysis skills by requiring textual references throughout the essay.

Differentiation Suggestion: For English learners or struggling writers, strategies that work well include graphic organizers, sentence frames or starters, group work, or oral responses.

Scaffolded Essay Questions

Student Prompt: Write a short (1-3 paragraph) response using one of the below bulleted outlines. Cite details from the text over the course of your response that serve as examples and support.

1. In Blink, Gladwell discusses a concept he coins as “the Warren Harding Error.”

• What is the Warren Harding Error and how does it exemplify the primary ideas of the book? (topic sentence)
• How does the Warren Harding Error demonstrate how Fast-and-Frugal Thinking Can Go Wrong?
• In your conclusion, explain how the Warren Harding Error can be overcome, citing examples that Gladwell offers up in Blink, in addition to your own unique suggestions.

2. The first principle Gladwell advises in improving the use of Fast-and-Frugal Thinking is, simply, to use it.

• Why is it important to hone Fast-and-Frugal Thinking skills? (topic sentence)
• What are two ways to Improve Fast-and-Frugal Thinking, as discussed by Gladwell in the text?
• In your conclusion, reiterate why it is important to Improve Fast-and-Frugal Thinking and share a few ways you might develop and improve Fast-and-Frugal Thinking in your own life.