Tuesday, November 01, 2005

 

Delivery and language for persuasive speeches

At the end fill out the Persuasive Speech Outline

 

Outlining video

 

 

Delivery and language for persuasive speeches. 1

OUTLINE STAGES. 1

intro. 2

BODY.. 2

Select pattern. 2

Language. 3

disability, handicap, and challenge. 3

Examples of positive and negative phrases. 5

Seven Ways of Avoiding Wordiness. 5

Presenting. 5

·       Body language. 5

·       Articulation. 5

·       Pronunciation. 5

·       Pitch. 5

·       Speed. 5

·       Pauses. 5

·       Volume. 6

·       Quality. 6

·       Variance. 6

The Strategy: Appear Wise. 6

Delivery + more. 6

1) Visualization Step. 7

2) Call-to-action. 7

 

OUTLINE STAGES

FIRST OUTLINE = PREPARATION

FORMAL OUTLINE “WITH YOUR BIBLIOGRAPHY” due Thursday 3 november

KEYWORDS

 

intro

BODY

Select pattern

Info-time sequence - chronological

Climatic builds

  1. Time sequence to a certain event
  1. Spatial relations

Give audience a tour

  1. cause and effects
  2. topical sequence - no importance on sequence
  3. climatic or anticlimactic - builds to a dramatic conclusion
  4. Problem solution organization pattern - the way you frame the problem will depend on point of view

 

Take our pattern and put it into your outline

DIVISION

            SUBPOINTS

COORDINATION

SUBPOINTS

PARALLELISM

SUBPOINTS

 

PROBLEM

SOLUTION

 

we make persuasive speeches for three reasons

  1. to inspire
  2. to move to action
  3. to convince

 

Using media to extend the five basic senses: touch, sight, sound, taste, and smell

 

POINTS TO CONSIDER

Never try to convey more than one idea on a visual medium

 

For overheads need at least an 14 -point font to see in this room

Video – no more than two-minutes –

Models – be sure we can see them

Poster boards – careful that we can see what you are saying

Flip Charts – usually used in a business meeting

Audio –

Slides – photos – if from the Internet etc save as a .jpg file and save to a disc

 

Over reliance on visual media, sometimes to the point of overkill

Too much information crammed on a single hard-to-see visual

Wrong type of presentational media to achieve the purpose

 

Make it as a complement to speech  -

 

Powerpoint

 

Use graphs and pie charts

 

  1. Outlining
  2. Organization

 

Language

p.220 “Building a speech”

Avoiding euphemisms

 

disability, handicap, and challenge.

 

Which of these terms do you believe is preferable for referring to students who receive special education.


“The handicapped” is an archaic term – it is no longer used in any federal legislation - that evokes negative images (pity, fear, and more). The origin of the word is from an Old English bartering game, in which the loser was left with his “hand in his cap” and he was thought to be at a disadvantage.

 

“Disabled” is not an appropriate descriptor, either. Our society corrupts the meanings of words. Traffic reporters frequently use the term, “disabled vehicle”. In that context, “disabled” means “broken down”.  People with disabilities are human beings and they are not broken!

 

Disability has become the generally accepted term, having replaced the word handicap in federal laws (e.g. Individuals with Disabilities Education Act instead of the Education of all Handicapped Children's Act).

A disability is a measurable impairment or limitation that "interferes with a person's ability, for example, to walk, lift, hear, or learn. It may refer to a physical, sensory, or mental condition" (Schiefelbusch Institute, 1996).

The word handicap is not a synonym for disability. Rather, a handicap is a disadvantage that occurs as a result of a disability or impairment. The degree of disadvantage (or the extent of the handicap) is often dependent on the adaptations made by both the individual and society (Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, 2000). Therefore, the extent to which a disability handicaps an individual can vary greatly. For instance, a person who uses a wheelchair would be much less "handicapped" in a building that is wheelchair accessible than one that is not.

In comparing the two definitions, disability seems the better choice for describing a person's condition, particularly in a usage such as "a child with a disability," which would conform to the current trend of using people-first language.

A person who wears glasses does not say, “I have a problem seeing”. She says, “I wear [or need] glasses”.

People-First Language? Just as the term would imply, this language trend involves putting the person first, not the disability (e.g. a person with a disability, not a disabled person).  Thus, people-first language tells us what conditions people have, not what they are (Schiefelbusch Institute, 1996). Other suggestions for referring to those with disabilities include:

Examples of positive and negative phrases

 Seven Ways of Avoiding Wordiness

Presenting

There are several important aspects of presentation to keep in mind:

make sure that you have a proper posture. If your shoulders are sagging and your legs are crossed, you will not appear as being honest.

articulation means how your talking process works. There are several steps to this. First, you need air from the lungs. Your vocal cords must be working. Your mouth and tongue must work together. And you have to make sure that you have some saliva in your mouth to keep things oiled. You should be aware of your physical makeup to be able to understand how you speak.

pronounce each word. Avoid slang, except to make a point. And do not slur your words. Avoid saying, "you know."

 pitch refers to the highs and lows of your voice. Whatever you do, avoid a monotone.

your speed, or pace, is important to control. Between 140-160 words per minute is the normal pace. Any faster and you may appear to be insincere. Any slower and you sound like you are lecturing. If you are not sure about your speed, tape yourself for one minute and then replay it and count the number of words you used in the minute! The human ear and brain can hear over 400 spoken words per minute. So, if you are going too slow your listeners' minds are going to start to wander.

the pause is a critical tool. When you want to highlight a certain word, just pause for one second before. If you really want to punch it, pause before and after the word.

volume is another good tool for persuasive speech, but you should use it with caution. If you scream all the way through your speech, people will become used to it. On the other hand, a few well-timed shouts can liven up the old speech! Try to "project" or throw your voice out over the entire group - speak to the last row.

quality of voice is tested by the effect that your voice has on your listeners. Quality of voice is its nature and traits. Try to keep your vocal quality high; it is what separates your voice from everyone else's.

variance of voice is your most important consideration of all! Change your pitch, volume, and speed at least once every 30 seconds, if only for just one word. Never go more than one paragraph without a change. This keeps your group locked into your speech, if for no other reason than it sounds interesting! Let the words speak for themselves. Reflect their nature through your voice. If you use the word "strangle," say it with a hint of danger in your voice. If you say the word "heave," let the group feel the force behind it. If you say the word "bulldozer," make it sound like a big earthmover, not like a baby with a shovel.

The Strategy: Appear Wise

When you are trying to convince someone of something, you must sell yourself before you sell your message. If people feel that you are not being reasonable, you do not stand a chance. You must be committed to the goals of your speech and what you are saying. Do not use words such as "maybe" or "might"- use positive words such as "will" and "must."

You are the power figure in this speech, so you had better supply enough information to prove your points. People can usually spot someone who is trying to "wing" a speech. You should also appear to be truthful --even when you are really stretching a point. If you do not appear to be honest, people will doubt your word and tune out your speech.

Lastly, do not be afraid to show a little emotion. Your body and voice must match the tone of your words. If your language is strong, you must present a physical force to go along with your delivery.

 

Delivery + more

Two of the most overlooked and forgotten elements to a persuasive speech are:

1) Visualization Step

 

A Visualization Step is a sentence or two which helps the audience visualize what would happen if they did, or did not, do what you are trying to persuade them to do. For example, if you are giving a speech about blood donation, you obviously want the members of the audience to be persuaded to give blood. The Visualization Step should cause the audience to think about all the wonderful things that would happen if they did give blood, or all of the terrible things that would happen if they did not give blood. The visualization could sound something like, "Think about your mother. brother. daughter. niece.. What if they were in an accident and badly needed blood for a life saving operation, but there wasn't enough donated blood available for them to have this operation because too few people donated blood? Donating blood could save the life of someone you care about."

 

2) Call-to-action.

  

In addition to a Visualization Step, you also need a "Call-to-action" in your persuasion speech. The easiest, yet most forgotten part of a persuasion speech, a Call-to-action is simply telling the audience exactly what you expect them to do once you finish your speech. It should be simple, unambiguous statement which causes the audience to act. For example, referring back to the blood donation speech, a Call-to-action could sound something like, "So, go to your nearest blood bank and donate blood today."

 

Each of these speech elements usually works best toward the end of the speech, just before the final closing of the speech. They also work well when used together. Generally, getting the audience to visualize what their life would be like if they did (or did not) do what you want them to do, then hitting them with the Call-to-action works very effectively.

 

An example of a persuasive speech driving age

 

Watch Kennedy Speech

 

Reports 4 and 5

 

Persuasive Speech Outline to Complete

General Purpose:

Specific Purpose:

 

ATTENTION STEP

I. Opening Statement of Interest

        A. Reason (s) to Listen

        B. Speaker Credibility

        C. Thesis Statement

NEED STEP

II. Statement of Need

        A. Illustration

        B. Ramifications

                1.

                2.

         C. Pointing

SATISFACTION STEP

III. Statement of Solution

        A. Explanation of Solution

        B. Theoretical Demonstration

                1.

                2.

                3.

        C. Practical Experience

        D. Meeting Objections

                1.

                2.

VISUALIZATION STEP

IV. Restatement of Proposed Solution

        A. Negative Visualization

        B. Positive Visualization

ACTION STEP

V. Restatement and Summary

        A. Statement of Specific Action or Attitude Change

        B. A statement of your personal intent to take the course of action or attitude recommended.

        C. A concluding statement to recapture interest Reason to Remember

 

SOURCES:

 

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