What is communication and how should we define it? How do our ideas and beliefs about the world manifest into the ideological frameworks from which we navigate through life? To address these difficult questions and others, it will first be necessary to examine the philosophical and historical underpinnings of such concepts as communication, ideas, truth & knowledge. Having examined these governing principles, we can begin to understand the various techniques and methods that have been developed to aid in persuasion, as well as the deployment of successful rhetoric. As we assemble these building blocks of communication theory and practical application, we will be poised to use this new perspective as a tool to decode the world around us and plot a course through life. Like salmon on their final journey to return home who struggle against the powerful current, we too will learn to navigate the swift water of communication and the torrent of misinformation that impedes our own journey. With sufficient philosophical and ideological experience, your own ability to interpret the world, formulate ideas, and vigorously defend your own claims will advance your own position in every single dimension of life. In this sixteen-week endeavor, you will meet many of the intellectuals who have been hiding from you in plain sight and consider their ideas. We will hold those ideas up as contrast to the ‘mainstream’ ideas currently defining and reshaping our culture. I would like to welcome you to the course and congratulate you. If you have made it this far, your journey upstream has already begun.