President and Philosopher Dr. Leo Groarke Delivers 38th Annual Ryle Lecture Series
Dr. Groarke examines the impact of the digital revolution on verbal arguments
"It's amazing that young undergrad students, such as myself, have the opportunity to attend a talk by the University president," said second year Philosophy and Psychology student Jessica Sitko after Trent University president and vice-chancellor Dr. Leo Groarke delivered his opening lecture in the 2015 Ryle Lecture Series at Lady Eaton College on November 10. "I'm sure you don't get that same close connection at other schools.”
Dr. Groarke's talk, Multimodal Arguing: The Drift Away from Words, stemmed from his research as a philosopher and logician and examined how arguments are drifting away from verbal to those which are either wholly or partially visual. A spirited question and answer session followed in which the audience of faculty, students, and staff engaged Dr. Groarke in his topic.
It was the first of three presentations made by Dr. Groarke in this year's lecture series, entitled Words, Pictures, Arguments: What Happens to Logic in an Age of Pictures? The follow up lectures, A Fork in the Road: Two Ways to Greet the Digital Age and Twelve Pinocchios: How Do Cartoons Argue? took place November 11 and 12 at Traill College's Bagnani Hall.
Speaking before his presentation, Dr. Groarke said "I'm trying to look at the changes that are going on in the way we conceive knowledge, explanation and of understanding the world, as we move from an age of the printed word to one that is primarily pictorial."
Noting that the Ryle Lecture Series is known for bringing in very significant philosophers to talk about contemporary issues, Dr. Groarke said, "It's important for students, the general public, for alumni, and interested people to have the chance to listen to philosophers talk about the world. The Ryle lectures provide that unique opportunity."
Ms. Sitka agreed, saying it was a "good opportunity to learn a bit more outside of what we are studying in class and get to hear some other contemporary philosopher's point-of-view."
The Ryle Lecture Series is named after renowned British philosopher Gilbert Ryle, who died in 1976. Since its inception in 1976, it has been an annual event at Trent University featuring distinguished philosophers speaking on a range of topics.
At Dr. Groarke’s final lecture, and as part of Philanthropy Week at Trent University, Dr. Groarke announced a personal gift of $50,000 to create the Louis and Paul Groarke Philosophy Endowment, which will support philosophy events for students, the public, and others interested in philosophy at Trent University. Learn more by visiting http://www.trentu.ca/newsevents/newsDetail.php?newsId=14107