Utrecht Summer School - Rhetoric Recrafted
In July 2024, I visited Utrecht Summer School to attend a class entitled Rhetoric Recrafted.
I always enjoy learning something new and exciting on a subject I love.
I had never been to Utrecht before but soon fell in love with this small, memorable city.
Despite the distraction of the European Football championships (and England edging out the Netherlands), the 5-day class was intensive and fun.
The course focused on context and content, and a handful of assignments culminated in classroom presentations.
The Ethos of Technology
The course went deeply into the strategies of the major social media companies, their desire to keep you hooked on visiting them, and their constant bombardment of adverts.
We watched the docudrama', 'The Social Dilemma', which focused on:
Manipulation and Addiction
Encouraging teenagers to spend over eight screen hours daily on social media sites.
The Dark Side of Connection
I have recently received friend requests from a friend called Tino, who passed away about two years ago.
Sure, perhaps Tino's family failed to close his account, but the algorithm must know that it has been dormant for two years.
Fake News and Misinformation - Individual and Societal Change
We saw how some companies are desperate to interfere with democracy and the negative impacts that can have on society and individuals.
All of this is done by slanted rhetoric, argumentation and manipulating societal norms.
We examined numerous YouTube videos of 'influencers', listened carefully to their claims, and examined which claims were substantiated.
I have been working with several politicians lately, and claims and counterclaims enter the discourse regularly.
I worked on a presentation discussing Enthymemes of the far left and the far right.
An enthymeme is a statement you make and then leave it to the audience to decide its Implications and Goals.
It effectively creates assumptions that the audience can follow or reject. Where it's rejected, you can expect a thorough examination of your claim.
We discussed Aristotle's Rhetoric: Ethos, Logos, and Pathos, and we searched for these throughout the case studies examined in class.
It demonstrated that these themes are as active now as they were back in Aristotle's day.
My class colleagues came from Croatia, the Netherlands, Russia, Ghana, and Malaysia.
Socially, it was a great occasion, too. On Wednesday evening, it was the formal opening of Utrecht Summer School, with a massive gathering of international students and faculty staff at the University's Museum Gardens in the town centre. It was a melting pot of interests and nationalities. The welcome from the vice-chancellor was incredibly inspiring. Thank you.
Overall, it was a wonderful experience. One that I recommend to all readers.
Vince Stevenson - Founder College of Public Speaking 2006 Ltd.
If you have a great attitude and look forward to making a difference in your life, I hope you consider joining us on one of our training the trainer courses or public speaking course one day soon. It's always possible to improve your skillset and take your work and achievements to a higher level.
