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On Monday 16th January, College hosted the British author and tech philosopher Dr Tom Chatfield for a masterclass on ‘The Principle of Charity and the Straw/Steel Man’, followed by his talk ‘How to Think’.

Before discussing the topic of critical thinking, you must start by outlining the term; however, critical thinking is challenging to define, so start by defining the opposite instead – to do something at face value without thinking. This was how Dr Tom Chatfield kickstarted his masterclass where he broadened our ways of thinking.

Walking into the masterclass I was unsure as to what the title was referring to (‘principle of charity?’, ‘straw versus steel man?’). However, after our first exercise, it clicked. We were all brought out of our comfort zones instantaneously, as you had to persuade your partner that an opinion you naturally strongly disagree with is the best idea in the world. For example, my peer tried to argue that the benefits outweigh the challenges of a dictatorship.

What we had been putting into practice was the philosophical exercise dubbed ‘the principle of charity’: To actively disagree with our own perspectives and viewpoints to rigorously think through the opposing arguments. This not only allows you to strengthen your reasoning regarding your own opposition, but also allows you to consider some of the merits of the opposition’s ideas.

The masterclass was enjoyable and engaging not only due to the accessible topic but also because the session centred around exercises exploring critical thinking.

Dr Chatfield went on further to explain the modern-day version of the principle of charity: the straw man fallacy versus the steel man argument. A straw man fallacy is where one constructs a ridiculous argument that does not tackle the argument itself, but rather embarrasses or rallies forces to burn the straw man, the opposition. Whereas, the steel man argument is where the strongest argument is created in favour of the opposition to understand their perspective better. This form of argument is used in many businesses to continue strengthening their business models and arguments.

To better understand the straw man fallacy and steel man argument we carried out two exercises. In one of the exercises, each person had to pick one out of three metaphorical hats to wear; politician, scientist, or artist. Then, as the chosen persona, you answer the question: ‘what should people do with their lives?’ This encouraged us to step into an outlined character that has certain motives in life, which altered what views and personal reasons they would have.

By being able to wear different ‘hats’, it stimulates the human ability to empathise. That is one of the keys to unlocking richer discussions. If you are able to gain an understanding of another’s viewpoint rather than dismiss them for the sake of argument, you can have richer and more varied discussions that create a more open-minded community.

To conclude, Dr Chatfield gave us the challenge of encountering a different perspective and gaining knowledge from this. Dr Chatfield left us with the concluding remark: “Critical thinking is a means to overcome the limits of a single perspective.”

Ludmila, SFC1 (Year 12)

SFC1 (Year 12) student, Claire, shares her comments on Dr Chatfield’s talk:

Dr Tom Chatfield gave an aspiring talk on critical thinking. The talk was extremely interactive, constantly engaging the students in discussion and allowing them to share their ideas. He explained why people’s view of the current world is mostly delusional and seductive, especially due to the influence of social media, full of emotional stimulants, which seek more clicks and likes. He criticised how people are frequently cognitively biased, believing ‘what you see is all there is’.

During the Q&A session, students asked some truly riveting questions. To the question of whether critical thinking can ensure objectivity, he answered that obtaining adequate evidence through critical selection and thinking still cannot always form perfect impeccable ideas, acknowledging that critical thinking cannot be a magic bullet to achieve a faultless view of the world.

Throughout his talk, students learned how to take a pause and critically assess the plethora of information available around them in this current world where misleading information can confuse and even distort people’s thoughts and opinions. Thank you very much to Dr Tom Chatfield for his time to visit CLC to deliver such a thought-provoking talk.