Consider this; how would you feel being encouraged and advised by the owner of the largest personal computer software company in the world on the need to create new and innovative software with the potential for world domination? Well, whether you like software or not, no one would miss the chance to see and hear the famous computer programmer, investor and inventor as well as business magnate talk about the potential of software. Fundamentally, as instructions and programs defining the transformative potential of the computer and associated technologies, software has, and continues to revolutionize many aspects of society with many positive outcomes. The speech by Bill Gates to students at Stanford University provides a persuasive argument on the potential of software through great emotional, ethical and logical appeal. Before explaining the appeals, let us see what Mr. Gates has to say.
Basically, Bill Gates speech to the students at Stanford University in his College Tour of 2008 seeks to persuade the students not only to create software innovations with global reach but also to believe in their potential to succeed and transform the world through their efforts. With regards to topic and context, Bill Gates seeks to highlight the success as well as future potential of software in almost all facets of society, from politics and the economy to people’s social lives all over the world. For instance, software has enhanced communication through enhanced connectivity, while automating repetitive tasks in business and basically redefining development of entire industries like the music industry, among other positive aspects. Gates’ speech is quite persuasive especially since he, ‘as a drop out’ who ‘never got a degree from Stanford’ has risen to become a world-renowned inventor; an image that communicates great emotional appeal in persuading students seeking such as a status (Gates par.1).
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The emotional appeal is applied again where Gates explains about some of the greatest minds pioneering great advances in software at Gates Company, Microsoft, including ‘Rick Rashid, who runs our research’ among others whom Gates (par.2) avers is indebted to the school for. This creates a picture that can spur the students to work hard to join the team at Microsoft and influence society on a global level especially through software advances which invokes excitement towards great accomplishment. The narrative on organizing and storing images exchanges and associated memories of one’s children creates great emotional appeal that persuasively shows the potential of software. Further, Gates also uses great ethical appeal to persuade the students on the potential of software by showing how software can contribute to uplifting poor developing nations.
Moreover, the ethical appeal is amplified by his advocacy efforts in petitioning major organizations including universities and companies for their involvement in ending poverty among the world’s poor and disenfranchised without being defined by pure market incentives. Gates logical appeal is identified in the presentation of the video on application of software in the study of the brain by Jeff Lichtman at Harvard where he logically shows how software aids in understanding how the brain works and its future potential (Gates par.50+). Further, he also shows how production of software, with the appropriate guidance on prevailing economic factors, can be lucrative for the producers especially in a highly dynamic business environment. All this information is affirmed by another American entrepreneur, software engineer and inventor, Marc Andreessen, whose article affirms the lucrative future potential of software despite concerns on financial valuations (Andreessen par.2-8).
Conclusion
With such encouragement provided by a world-renowned inventor with one of the greatest software companies in the world, you can bet that the Stanford University students addressed by Bill gates are well-prodded towards global domination through new software innovations. In summary, it is evident that Gates speech is quite persuasive and inspirational especially when he uses a combination of strong emotional, ethical and logical appeals that enhances the potency of his message while still his own credibility contributes to the same. Considering the many positive changes experienced in society, ranging from medicine to religion, due to utilization of software, as the power behind technological devices like the computer and the iPhone, software really has great future potential. Still, is encouragement really enough to persuade the current generation to actualize the potential of software, especially since it holds great potential that we cannot afford to pass up?
- Andreessen, Marc. “Why Software Is Eating the World.” The Wall Street Journal. August 20, 2011. Web. October 21, 2014. Available at http://online.wsj.com/
- Gates, Bill. “Bill Gates Speech at Stanford University.” Bill Gates College Tour 2008, Stanford University, 2008.
