Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can't Stop Talking

Nonfiction | Book | Adult | Published in 2012

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Summary

Background

Chapter Summaries & Analyses

Introduction-Part 1, Chapter 3

Part 2, Chapters 4-7

Part 3, Chapter 8

Part 4, Chapter 9-Conclusion

Key Figures

Themes

Index of Terms

Important Quotes

Essay Topics

Tools

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Discussion Questions

Part 3, Chapter 8Chapter Summaries & Analyses

Chapter 8 Summary: “Soft Power”

Part 3 asks whether the Extrovert Ideal is found in all cultures. The answer is a resounding no: One researcher published a color-coded map, in which Europe was overwhelmingly shaded extroverted, while Asia was primarily introverted.

Cain talks to a number of Asian American students who bridge the divide, balancing navigating the American system of education with retaining the values and ideals of their immigrants parents. The author finds that most of the students approach school differently from their European American counterparts. Many Asian Americans speak of their role within in the family and the importance of honoring their parents, which for them means studying hard. In Asian countries, being serious about school is in part about maintaining a certain level of silence in the classroom. In China, for example, the teacher lectures and the student listens; the flow of information is in one direction. In America, however, students are expected to participate much more in discussions. As one parent from Taiwan put it to Cain, at UCLA, “I would look at my peers while they were talking nonsense” (185), incredulous that professors encouraged student engagement over accuracy, which in her culture of origin would have been considered a waste of time.

The difference lies largely in how societies are organized. In the West, emphasis is placed on an individual’s personal freedoms and tastes. In the East, particularly in countries influenced by Confucianism, the emphasis is on maintaining one’s proper place within the larger group—be it the family, the community, or the nation. This kind of culture is sometimes referred to as submissive or self-effacing, but as one researcher has written, “It is only those from an explicit tradition who would label [the Asian] mode of discourse ‘self-effacement.’ Within this indirect tradition it might be labeled relationship honouring” (190).

Part 3, Chapter 8 Analysis

This short third section of the book considers how the Extrovert Ideal in American Society compares to other cultures that adopt a different model. Cain explains that nations with a Confucian tradition emphasize the individual fitting into larger units within society rather than the individual finding their own voice and freedom. This should not be mistaken, however, for meekness. Within many Asian cultures, it is still possible to make one’s wishes known indirectly—as well as to exude a quiet strength, a trait demonstrated by Mahatma Gandhi throughout his life and evidence of the Power of Introverts. Gandhi grew up shy and often went along with others, afraid to speak up and raise objections when encountering challenges. As he got older, he came to see this pliability as a strength, rather than a weakness. Having learned to compromise by remaining passive rather than speaking up for his beliefs, he later became known for his strategy of passive resistance when he finally did take a stand—an idea adopted by the American civil rights movement. Gandhi himself used the term satyagraha, a word he came up with that translates as “firmness in pursuit of truth” (199). He thought always objecting, even for incidental matters, was a waste of energy. As Cain writes about the Asian American students she spoke with, “Conviction is conviction, the kids from Cupertino taught me, at whatever decibel level it’s expressed” (202).

The Power of Introverts is borne out not only in social movements but in other areas as well. For instance, quiet persistence in academics helps Asian students achieve excellence. They consistently outpace their counterparts worldwide in the math and science portions of an international assessment called the Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS). Part of the reason seems to be their patience and willingness to keep working on problems, spending more time than students in other countries, until they eventually puzzle out the answer.

This chapter’s reliance on a broad-strokes East-West divide leads the author to the topic of stereotyping. She is wary that her generalizations might unintentionally “encourage rigid national or ethnic typecasting” (187). She notes, however, that a good deal of research backs up the points she makes. While of course individual differences and exceptions exist, overall, the results of study after study indicate a convergence on the introvert-extrovert spectrum between countries of the East and West.