Chapter 6. Lecture Notes - Public Speaking

Public Speaking Chapter 6 1 .SUPPORT YOUR MAJOR PROPOSITIONS Once you've identified your thesis and major propositions turn your attention to supporting each of them You must tell the audience what it needs to know about the elements in human blood You need to convince the audience that Grace Moore is In fact Honest knowledgeable and an effective negotiator. In the informative speech, your support primarily amplifies-describes illustrates, defines exemplifiesflthe various concepts you discuss You want the "causes of inflation" to come alive for the audience. You want them to see and feel the drug problem, the crime or the economic hard ships of the people you're talking about Supporting materials accomplish this. Presenting definitions, for example, helps the audience understand specialized terms : definitions breathe life into concepts that may other-wise he too abstract or vague Statistics (summary figures that explain Various trends) are essential for certain topics Presentation aids-charts, maps actual objects, slides films and so on enliven normally vague concepts. Because presentalion aids have become so important in public speaking, you may want to include these in each of your speeches If you start using these with your first speeches you'll develop considerable facility by the end of the semester The best way to do this is to read Unit 9 Presentation AidsVimmediately after you complete this unit and begin to incorporate such aids into all your speeches. In a persuasive speech your support is proof material that offers evidence Argument and motivational appeal and that establishes you credibility Proof helps you convince the audience to agree with you Let's say, for example, that you want to persuade the audience that Grace Moore is an effective negotiatoryour first major proposition as noted earlier To Do this you need to give your audience good reasons for believing in Moore's effectiveness as a negotiator. Your major proposition might be supported as illustrated here : 2. Grace Moore is an effective negotiator. ' A. Moore effectively negotiated the largest raise we ever received. B. Moore prevented management from reducing our number of sick days. C. Moore has been named "Negotiator of the Year" for the past three years by our own union local. Support your propositions with reasoning from specific instances, from general principles. and from causes and effects. These are logical supports. You can also support your position with motivational appeals For example, you might appeal 10 the audience's desire for status, for financial gain, or for increased self-esteem. You also acid persuasive force through your own personal reputation or credibility if the audience sees you as competent Of high moral character And charismatic, they're more likely to believe what you say. 2. ORGANIZE YOUR SPEECH MATERIALS Organize your materials to help your audience understand and retain what you say. You might, for example select a simple topical pattern This involves dividing your topic ; into its logical subdivisions or subtopics. Each subtopic becomes a main point of your speech and each is treated about equally Next organize the supporting materials under each of the appropriate points The body of the Speech Then might look like this : I. Main point I A. Supporting material for I B. Supporting material for l II. Main point it A. Supporting material for II B. Supporting material for II C. Supporting material forI II III. Main point III A. Supporting material for III B. Supporting material for III For a persuasive speech you may wish to consider other organizational patterns. For example a problem-solution pattern might be effective for a number of topics Let's say you want to persuade your listeners that medical schools should require communication courses. You might use a problem solution pattern Your speech in outline form might look like this : I. Doctors can't communicate. (Problem) A. Tliey'reinurticulete in expressing ideas. (Problem 1) D. They‘re ineffective listeners. (Problem 2) C. They don't see beyond the literal meaning. (Problem 3) II. Medical schools sheuldrequire communication courses. (Solution) A. Communication courses will train doctors to express themselves. (Solution 1) ' B. Communication courses will train doctors in listening skills. (Solution 2) C. Communication courses will train doctors to listen for meaning beyond the literal, (solution 3) 3. WORD YOUR SPEECH Because your audience will hear your speech only once, make what you say instantly intelligible Don't speak down to your audience, but do make your ideas even complex ones, easy to understand at one hearing. Use words that are simple'rather than complex concrete rather than abstract Use personal and informal rather than impersonal and formal language. For example.Use lots of pronouns (I, me, you, our) and contractions (can't rather than cannot, I'll rather than I will) Use simple and direct rather than complex and indirect sentences Say "Vote in the next election" instead of "It is important that everyone vote in the next election." In wording the speech, be careful not to offend members of your audience Remember that not all doctors are men Not all secretaries are women. Not all persons are or want to be married Not all persons love parents, dogs, and children. The hypothetical person doesn't have to be male. Perhaps the most important advice to give at this point is to not write your speech out word-forword This will only make you sound as though you're reading to your audience and you'll lose the conversational quality that is so important in public speaking Instead outline your speech and speak with your audience, using this outline to remind yourself of your main ideas and the order in which you want to present them Units 15 and 16 offer more extensive style suggestions. Title Your Speech In some ways the title of a speech is a kind of frill On the other hand the title may be effective in gaining the interest of the audience and, perhaps. Stimulating them'to listen In inure formal public speech presentations The title helps gain audience attention and interest in announcements advertising the speech. Devise a title that's relatively short (so it's easy to remember) Two, three or four words are often best. The title should attract the attention. 4. CONSTRUCT YOUR INTRODUCTION, CONCLUSION, AND TRANSITIONS The last items to consider are the introduction, conclusion and transitions. For now we'll cover just enough to get you started in your early speeches : the discussion in Unit 13 "Introductions, Conclusions, and Transitions," will expand and elaborate or the ways to introduw, conclude, and tie your Speech together. Introduction Because you must know in detail all you're going to say before you prepare ; the introduction, construct your introduction last Your introduction should immediately gain the attention of the audience Most often, your Coming to the front of the room will attract their attention However, as you start to speak, make a special efort to hold their attention or you may lose them. A provocative statistic a little-known fact, an interesting story, or a statement explaining the topic's significance will help secure this initial attention. Second, establish a connection among yourself, the topic, and the audience. Tell audience members why you're speaking on this topic ; tell them why you're concerned with the topic and why you're competent to address them These are questions that most audiences will automatically ask themselves. Here‘s one example of how this mightbe done. You may be wondering why a twenty-five-year-old woman with no background in medicine or education is talking to you about AIDS education addressing you today as a mother of a child with AIDS, and I want to talk with you about my child's experience in class-and about every child's experience in class-your own children as well as mine. ‘ Third, give some lo‘nd of orientation. Tell the audience what you're going to say in the order you're going to say it I'm going to explain the Ways in which war movies have changed, through the years To do this I'm going to discuss examples ofmones depicting World War II, the Korean War And Vietnam. 5. Conclusion In concluding your speech Do at least two things : summarize your ideas and bring your speech to a close. In your summary, identify the main points again and sum up what you've told the audience. Let's all support Grace Moore. She's our most effective negotiator ; she’s honest, and she knows what negotiation and our union are all about. In your closing Wrap up your speech Develop a crisp ending that makes it clear to your audience that your speech is coming to an end. I hope then that when you vote on Tuesday you ll vote for moore She's our only choice. -Transitions After you‘ve cmnpleted the introduction and conclusion. review the entire speech to make sure that the parts flow into one another and that the movement from one part to another (say, from the introduction to the first major proposition) will be clear to the audience. 'L‘ransitional words phrases and sentences will help you achieve this smoothness of movement. These linguistic devices are often called "connectives" because they connect pieces of the speech to each other Here are a few suggestions : - Connect your introductions orientation to your first major preposition : "Let 's new look at the first of these three elements, the central processing unit. in detail. The CPU is the heart of the computer It consists of . . . ." - Connect your major propositions to each other : But not only is cigarette smoking dangerous to the smoker, it's also dangerous to the nonsmoker. Passive smoking is harmful to everyone . . . . - Connect your last major proposition to your conclusion : As we saw, there were three sources of evidence against the butler He had a motive ; he had no alibi ; he had the opportunity. 6. REHEARSE YOUR SPEECH You've prepared your Speech to deliver it to an audience. so your next step is to practice it. Rehearse your speech From start to finish Out loud At least four times before presenting it in class. During these rehearsals Time your speech so that you stay within the specified time limits If you're using presentation software such as PowerPoint or Corel Presentation. you'll be able to time not only your entire speech but also the time you spend on each slide. Practice any terms that you may have difficulty with ; consult a dictionary to clarify any doubts about pronunciation. 7. DELIVER YOUR SPEECH In your actual presentation, use your voice and bodily action to rein force your message. Make it easy for your listeners to understand your speech Any vocal or body movements that draw attention to themselves (and away from what you're saying) obviously should be avorded Here are a few guidelines that will prove helpful (Units 17 and 18 offer more suggestions.) When called on to speak, approach the front of the room With enthusiasm. Even if you feel nervous (as most speakers do) show your desire to speak with your listeners. When at the front of the room don't begin immediately ; instead pause engage your audience eye to eye for a few brief moments and then begin to- talk directly to the audience. Talk in a volume that can be easily heard without straining. Throughout your speech maintain eye contact with your entire audience ; avoid concentrating on only a few members or looking out of the window or at the floor. Answering Questions In many public speaking situations a question and answer period will follow So be prepared to answer questions after your speech Here are a few suggestions for making this Q&A session more effective. - If you wish to encourage questions you might preface the question period with some kind of encouraging statement, for example "I know you've lots of questions-especially on how the new health program will work and how we'll finance it and probably lots of others I‘ll be happy to try to respond to any or your questions Anyone ?» -Maintain eye contact with the audience Let the audience know that you're still speaking with them. -After you hear the question. Pause think about the question and about your answer. It you suspect the entire audience didn't hear the questionrepeat it and then begin yOur answer. . , -Control any tendency to get defensive Don't assume that the question a personal attack. Assume, instead that the question is an attempt to secure more information or perhaps to challenge a position you've taken. -If appropriate Thank the person for asking the question or not that the question is a particularly good one This will encourage others to also ask questions. -Don't bluffs. If you're asked a question and you don't know the answer say so. -Consider the usefulness of a persuasive answer Question and answer sessions often provide opportunities to further advance your purpose by connecting the question with one or more of your major assertions or points of view: "I'm glad you asked about child care because that's exactly the difference between the tv proposals we're here to vote on The plan l'm proposing. There are situations however when you might want to discourage queen don perhaps you want your audience to think about the material for a while or you don't want to goginto a matter in detail before sufficient data are available or you know there are people in the audience who just want to use the question [and answer period as an opportunity to voice their own ideas if you want to discourage questions, than, obviously reverse many of these suggestions. For example, don't preface the period with an encouraging remark, don't praise the questions or the questioner, and avoid eye contact with audience members.