Tropes (15%)

In the course of your speech you must use all four of the "Master Tropes," listed below. You may use them in any order you desire, and you may use them as many times as you like—provided each gets used at least once. Be creative in your use of the tropes; come up with some original metaphors rather than "dead" ones.

Four Master Tropes

Irony: The use of words to convey the opposite of their literal meaning. The use of words to express something different from, and often opposite to, their literal meaning. An expression or utterance marked by a deliberate contrast between apparent and intended meaning. Incongruity between what might be expected and what actually occurs. E.g.: when something designed for protection or betterment leads to an individuals downfall.

Metaphor (Perspective/Comparison): A figure of speech whereby one thing is seen in terms of something else. A figure of speech in which a word or phrase that ordinarily designates one thing is used to designate another, thus making an implicit comparison, as in "a sea of troubles." Metaphors use words or concepts that are already known to an audience to explain other words, concepts, or relationships, that may not be so well known. (A metaphor is not the same as a simile: a figure of speech in which two essentially unlike things are compared, often in a phrase introduced by "like" or "as," as in "How like the winter hath my absence been" or "So are you to my thoughts as food to life" (Shakespeare).

Metonymy (Reduction): To convey some incorporeal or intangible state in terms of the corporal or tangible, e.g., to speak of "the heart" rather than "the emotions." Also: "container for the contained," such as references to the pen being mightier than the sword—where the words represent "peace" and the sword "war." Reduction is representation. Substitution of one word for a related word.

Synecdoche (Representation): Part for the whole, whole for the part. An integral relationship, a relationship of convertibility between the two terms. E.g., a politician representing "the people"; the president representing the executive branch. Any act of representation.

1. Begin thinking about communication.
   
2. Learn about figures of speech.
   
3. Begin to think about language creatively (or rhetorically).
   
4. Introduce yourself to the class.

• 3–5 minutes.
  
• Outline required—one week before speech.
  
• One note card—turned in after your speech.
  
• Meet the "criteria for effective speeches."

Yourself in Metaphor (15%)

For this speech you will tell us about three characteristics of your life by drawing upon three metaphors. You might talk about your life chronologically or through three phases. For example: "when I was a boy I was a badger"; "when I was a teenager I was a pitbull"; "as a college student I am an owl." You might also choose to talk about three characteristics of your life that are apparent only to certain people. E.g., "with your parents you are a child"; "with your friends you are a shrink"; and "with your teachers you are a scholar." This is only a few ideas; the list is limitless. Try to avoid "dead" metaphors like sports analogies, horses galloping, lions or bears, or computers. Leave such metaphors to suffer the deaths they have earned. Be creative and original.

The purpose of this assignment is to:

1. Teach you how to use language more effectively.
   
2. Provide you with experience organizing thematically.
   
3. To introduce yourself to your classmates.
   
4. Start you thinking creatively about speech writing

• Outline required—one week prior to speech.
  
• 3–4 Minutes.
  
• One note card—turned in after speech.
  
• Be creative and try humor or irony if comfortable with it.
  
• Meet the "criteria for effective speeches."

Let Them Eat Cake (15%)

In this speech, your task is to convince your audience that such action is necessary, and to try and get them to take the action you suggest.

The Speech should:

1. Be 7–10 minutes.

2. Delivered with a maximum of five 3 x 5 note cards (to be turned in).

3. Use visual aids if they will enhance the presentation.

4. Envision any audience and occasion most effective for the subject and goal and turn in an audience analysis form with the outline.

5. Use a minimum of three credible sources of information (excluding the encyclopedia and dictionary) noted on a reference page turned in with your outline).

6. Ask the audience to engage in some action which is against the law.

7. Use persuasive strategies.

8. Have a clear introduction, body, and conclusion.

9. Be delivered effectively.

Figure of Speech (15%)

The purpose of this assignment is to:

1. Begin thinking more carefully about communication.
2. Learn about figures of speech.
3. Begin to think creatively (or rhetorically) about the use of language.
4. Use informational communication strategies.

• Outline and handout required—one week before speech.
• 5–7 minutes.
• Create a handout explaining your figures and providing original examples.
• Two note cards—turned in after speech.
• Employ "informational" strategies.
• Meet the "criteria for effective speeches."

We Agree (15%)

This assignment asks you to take a definite position on an issue of substance locally, statewide, nationally, or internationally (in other words not why chocolate is the best food) and persuade the audience through logic and evidence to believe as you do. You should make the audience think about an issue that they can be persuaded on and agree with you.

The Speech should:

• Be 7–9 minutes.
• Use a manuscript with the entire speech written out.
• Use visual aids if they will enhance your presentation.
• Envision this class as the audience.
• Use five or more credible sources of information (excluding the encyclopedia and dictionary), that will be included in the speech and should be cited in at the end of the manuscript.
• Turn in the manuscript after the speech. An earlier draft should also be turned in one week before the speech for comment and question.
• Use persuasive strategies and all of the forms of support.
• Have a clear introduction, body, and conclusion.
• Be delivered effectively.

Persuasive Sales Speech (10%)

Second: perhaps the next most important issue is repetition. You need to repeat your ultimate point (to sell your product) over and over ad nauseam. We must know what it is, why we should want it, what it will cost, were we can get it, why it is reasonably priced, how to order it, etc. This includes repeating and demonstrating the features in a variety of (somewhat tedious) ways.

Third: use ethos, pathos, and logos. Give me logical reasons, give me personal accounts of its value, and make me believe that you believe it all.

Fourth: you must have the actual product there to convince us and show it being used in a variety of "useful" ways. You might want to enlist a "wacky" sidekick to banter with you or to demonstrate the product. Depending on the product, a "fit, attractive, professional, competent" or "intelligent" aid will be sought. This is just an idea not required.

Fifth: your job is to sell these things and not just talk about them/it. You must include a means of our acquiring your product in your presentation. This is not an "informative" speech but a persuasive speech where you seek to convince us that we simply "must" have this product. Be prepared to answer any questions. You might want to "seed" the audience with a few questions ahead of time to get the audience rolling.

Sixth: be sure and address the issue(s) of why I should want this product, why I "need" this product, of what benefit will this product be to me, and how the product will make my life better. In doing this you must be able to demonstrate an understand of what factors might motivates the members of your audience through the way that construct your appeals.

One way to accomplish this is by focusing on "features" and "benefits." Features refer to those aspects of a product or item that are a result of its design. For example:

1. The features of this handout are: inexpensive construction materials, recyclable content, good contrast, highly legible type choice, complete explanations/examples, etc.
2. The benefits of the features are: cheep to produce, inexpensive to replace, may be easily transported, helps the environment, doesn’t strain the eyes to read and does not require very good vision to see, and the document contains enough information for you to successfully begin preparation for your assignment.

• 5–7 minutes.
• Envision an appropriate audience and designate it before your speech.
• Visual aids required.
• Two or more credible sources: not the WWW, dictionary, or encyclopedia.
• Two note cards—turned in after speech.
• Be creative and employ "informational" strategies.

Reason to Believe (10%)

This assignment asks you to take a definite position on an issue of substance locally, statewide, nationally, or internationally (in other words not why chocolate is the best food) and persuade the audience through logic and evidence to take a specific course of action. You should make the audience think and ACT.

The Speech should:

1. Be 9–11 minutes.

2. Use a manuscript with the entire speech written out.

3. Use visual aids if they will enhance the presentation.

4. Envision this class as the audience.

5. Use a minimum of three credible sources of information (excluding the encyclopedia and dictionary) noted on a reference page turned in with your manuscript).

6. Ask the audience to engage in some action.

7. Turn in the manuscript used the day you speak and the draft with Instructor comments.

8. Use persuasive strategies.

9. Have a clear introduction, body, and conclusion.

10. Be delivered effectively.

The Truth, the Whole Truth, and Nothing But the Truth…(10%)

For this speech you will focus on an issue, person, area, philosophy, belief, etc., that you have reason to believe the audience is mistaken or misguided about. Examples include:

• George Washington was said to go down in his hemp fields and smoke hemp.
• Ben Franklin had numerous illicit affairs.
• Martin Luther King plagiarized in his dissertation and in his "I have a Dream Speech."
• The Bible was written over the course of 50 years and not by King James.
• The accounts of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John on Jesus’ crucifixion are inconsistent. Beyond that, no one calls Judas a traitor until years after his betrayal.
• Saint Augustine was a womanizer and pagan before he converted.
• According to research, Satan was not an evil figure in early religious writing but was a helper of God. He became known as an evil or bad figure about c.e. 0–100.
• Santa was invented in Scandinavia not that long ago.
• The Scarlet letter does not have a happy ending.
• A substantial portion of contemporary songs in all fields are simply remakes of earlier versions by better artists.

Requirements:

1. 5–7 Minutes.
2. Two note card—turned in after speech.
3. Use at least three credible sources—not the WWW, dictionary or encyclopedia.
4. Be sure to employ adequate forms of support.
5. Meet the "criteria for effective speeches."
6. Take a position and support it—don’t be "neutral."

Article Review (15%)

Be prepared to invest some time reading/understanding the article and discussing it with me so that you might transmit the important, interesting, useful aspects of the article to the class.

Your goal in this speech is threefold: (1) to heighten the audiences interest about the article/author you are reviewing. (2) to "review" the article’s key points for the audience in such a way that they understand the essence of the arguments and the thrust of the article—hence the required visual aids. And (3), take a position relevant to the authors claims and either agree or disagree with the authors claims.

Visual aids should not be paragraph by paragraph outlines of the article but rather, should contain key facts/points, explain difficult concepts, and include examples to illustrate the authors claims.

Requirements:

• Handout required—one week before speech.
• Create a one-page handout as part of presentation.
• One additional visual aid is required.
• 6–8 Minutes.
• Two note cards—turned in after speech.
• Be sure use all appropriate forms of support.
• Employ "informational" strategies.
• Meet the "criteria for effective speeches."

Biography (15%)

You have two options on this assignment:

Option (1): select someone with a cultural background different than yours and present their life and contributions to the class. Note: all people born in the US are considered to have the same cultural background unless you can convince me otherwise.

Option (2): select any woman born in the United States prior to 1920 and present their life and accomplishments to the rest of the class.

Requirements:

• Handout required—one week before speech.
• 7–9 minutes—with questions.
• At least three credible sources: not the WWW, dictionary, or encyclopedia.
• Visual aids optional.
• Three note cards—turned in after speech.
• Employ "informational" strategies.
• Meet the "criteria for effective speeches."

Demonstration (10%)

Although "demonstrations" are sometimes conducted of new products, automobiles, computer systems, and other complicated phenomenon in such a way that the audience cannot actually duplicate what was demonstrated to them, that is not your goal in this speech. You should not select something to demonstrate that cannot be actually brought into the classroom and "demonstrated" in the timeframe available. Furthermore, your demonstration should be conducted with the assumption that your audience could actually go home and do what you demonstrated. Thus, any activity involving heavy machinery, complicated power tools, or an understanding of some specialized knowledge base such as computers, mathematics, or machine repair should be avoided.

For this speech you should pick something that you already know how to operate, use, or explain. Be sure to choose something that can be explained in the timeframe that you have available. Keep in mind that when done everyone in the audience should, in theory, be able to do what you have demonstrated.

For this speech be sure to do the following: (1) create a textual visual aid(s) that will serve to remind your audience of the steps involved in the activity you are demonstrating. (2) bring in sufficient visual aids to demonstrate your activity. This likely will involve having multiple V.A.s to demonstrate the progress of your activity. For example, showing the ingredients to the cake you will demonstrate making and how they are combined. Showing how to test if the cake is done with a model cake. Showing how to cool the cake. And finally, having finished (and frosted) samples for your audience to try. (3) utilize the steps involved in informational communication: motivation, clarification, and retention/repetition. (4) attempt to select something to demonstrate that the members of your audience would feel is interesting, useful, or valuable. (5) be competent at demonstrating what you select.

Requirements:

• Visual aides are required.
• Handout required—one week before speech.
• 5–7 Minutes, plus questions.
• Two note cards—turned in after speech.
• Employ "informational" strategies.
• Meet the "criteria for effective speeches."

Required Informative (10%)

Your goal here is to "inform" the audience about some issue, subject, event, phenomena, activity, etc., that they would be interested in hearing about, and find valuable to hear about. Your topic should be an issue of substance rather than some banal or trite topic. Make an effort to inform about an area of general interest to the audience but also an area where they could stand to know more about.

There is no point in informing your audience about an issue that they already know a great deal about or already agree with—no preaching to the congregation. Nor should your efforts be aimed solely at persuasion—you should be concerned with informing not convincing.

One must be aware, when one is attempting to "inform," what that information should mean or be worth to your audience. Be aware of the political value of the information to your audience. Just because you think that an informative speech on rape is significant does not mean that your audience does, or even has to, the informer must supply the link to the audiences values.

Although this is to be an informative speech, the line between information and persuasion is a thin one. At times it may be necessary to convince your audience that what they knew before (before you came to inform them) was false or misguided. Although "information" may seem politically neutral All information, to some extent, has a political or ideological component. Information is the basis for knowledge, and knowledge is the basis for many forms of power, thus information may and does constitute power.

For example, when the federal government puts a ban on federally funded agencies preventing them from providing information concerning abortion to women they are hindering free choice by limiting information. Similarly, the teaching of religion in schools is prohibited because of the assumption that such information could tend to oppress those with differing views or limit the freedom of expression of the majority of citizens. Information is not "politically neutral."

Issues such as "abortion" or "gun rights" are so emotionally charged that so called efforts at "informing" are often doctrinaire persuasive efforts in disguise. Try to avoid issues that are so heavily charged that "honest" informing is not possible.

Requirements:

• 7–9 Minutes
• Select a socially significant and intellectually challenging topic.
• Link the issue to the audience’s beliefs, values, attitudes, etc.
• Two visual aids required.
• Three note cards—turned in after speech.
• Employ the principles of effective informational communication.
• Three or more sources not counting WWW/dictionaries/encyclopedias.
• Meet the "criteria for effective speeches."
• Take a position and support it—don’t be "neutral."

Required Persuasion (10%)

The attention step refers to your introduction where you "get your audience’s attention," or "motivate" them to listen. The need step is established in the body of the speech where you establish some tangible "need" to be resolved in the minds of your audience.

The satisfaction step is where tell your audience, explicitly, what needs to be done to "satisfy" the issue in question—the satisfaction step also occurs in the body of your speech.

The visualization step usually is the last main point of your speech. This is where you paint a vivid picture in the mind of your audience and provide them with either "positive" or "negative" visualization. "Positive visualization" is where you tell your audience what benefits will result from taking the action you advocate; "negative visualization" is where you tell your audience what unfortunate events will occur if they fail to take the action you advocate.

Finally, the action step is where you call the audience to take the action you are advocating—the action that will resolve the "need" you have already discussed.

What you are not doing here is simply trying to get you’re your audience’s agreement. Nor are you trying to convince them that they are wrong and you are right. Your goal is to move them to take some action. The mere willingness on the part of an audience member to take some action is proof enough that you have stimulated or convinced them.

Once again, in this speech you must use MMS and have some sort of "observable," measurable, quantifiable, action step.

Topics for this speech should emerge from intellectually significant social, cultural, economic, and political questions confronting our society and/or university environment today. The speech subjects should be well adapted to the classroom audience. Your topic, whether it deals with the Middle East, the energy crisis, UFOlogy, Emporia, or Marriage, should involve action steps.

Specific Objectives of the Speech to Persuade

• Selection of a good subject: An intellectually significant current events topic is recommended. Have a strong feeling for the topic and be sure you understand it thoroughly. Statistical and testimonial evidence should be available on the subject, and the topic should lend itself to the effective use of criteria.
• Adequate analysis of your proposition: Analysis is the process of discovering and understanding all of the parts or division of a subject and their interrelationships.
• Adequate use of criteria: Criteria are standards of measurement, requirements, or goals that should be met within the ideal situation.
• Adequate use of evidence: Arguments or contentions remain unsupported assertions unless they are sufficiently backed up with well-documented materials.
• Adequate use of sound, logical, reasoning: Check the text for the various kinds of reasoning and the tests each type must meet. Employ cause and effect reasoning when possible.
• Adequate adaptation of the speech content to the audience: Make the audience feel that the problems affect them. Make the issues relevant to the audience.
• Adequate vocal and physical delivery: Employ a forceful, sincere, and enthusiastic delivery.

• Select a socially significant topic.
• 8–10 Minutes.
• Use Monroe’s Motivated Sequence.
• Two visual Aids required.
• Three note cards—turned in after speech.
• Be sure use all appropriate forms of support.
• Have an identifiable and quantifiable action step.
• 5+ sources excluding the WWW, dictionaries, etc.

Proposition of Policy (25%)

• Speeches of fact seek to establish the truth/falsehood of a proposition. They deal with what has happened in the past and what is likely to happen in the future. For example, "…since I have established that higher education leads to higher lifetime earnings everyone should want to go to college…" What is at stake in a speech of fact is establishing the accuracy of the claims involved.
• Speeches of value usually deal with the area of behavior or how we "ought to" act or behave. For example, "…since education is so important we all should send our children to college…"
• Finally, speeches of policy deal with a change in the status quo and often involve arguments of fact and value. For example, "…since I have established that lifetime earnings are increased by going to college, and that we should all send our children to college if we want them to be successful, what we need to do is to convince the administration of ESU give faculty offspring free tuition…"

In this speech it will be necessary to clearly define the "problem" as you work to convince your audience that there is in fact a need that they should be addressing. Once you have effectively established that there is a need, you must demonstrate how the policy that you are proposing provides a satisfactory solution. Some questions you might want to address include: is the solution desirable? Is the solution feasible? Is it an improvement over the status quo? Does the solution tie into the audiences beliefs, values, and behaviors?

Topics for this speech should emerge from intellectually and socially significant societal, cultural, economic, religious, moral, and political questions confronting society or the university, today. Speech subjects should be well adapted to the classroom audience. Your topic, whether it deals with the Bosnia, science, UFOlogy, SUNY, or the cost of milk, should be phrased as a proposition of policy.

A proposition is something which is advanced, or proposed, to another for consideration. Propositions of "policy" are issues that deal with "policies," or how we should act or proceed. Other types of propositions (which you will not be employing in this speech) include: propositions of "fact" which deal with issues of truth or falsehood—is something so, or not so; and propositions of "value" which deals with good and bad, or how we should conduct our lives, our "values."

Propositions of policy lend themselves’ well to judgment based on proposed criteria. Propositions of fact and value are not so readily determined by criteria but often involve assessment of external criteria. Propositions of fact, for example, are often subject to "proof" and are used to support propositions of policy. Propositions of value, by contrast, are often more influenced by an audiences beliefs about the world: politics, religion, family, etc., are also useful for supporting propositions of policy.

See the persuasive speech handout for more information on persuasion.

Requirements:

• Select a socially significant, and intellectually challenging topic.
• 8–10 Minutes.
• Three note cards—turned in after speech.
• Be sure to employ MMS and use adequate forms of support.
• Five or more sources not counting the WWW/dictionaries/encyclopedias.
• Meet the "criteria for effective speeches."
• Take a position and support it—do not be "neutral."

Counter Intuitive Argument Paper (10%)

Your task will be to argue in favor of the topic given—no matter how absurd—and to come up with sound arguments for pursuing said course of action. Your paper will be evaluated based on how well you construct an argument—that is, your use of ethos, pathos and logos, your use of "support"—and how appropriate, believable, convincing, relevant, suitable, and credible your sources are.

Your paper will also be evaluated based on the "notes on the scholarly essay" handout on my Web page http:WWW.fredonia.edu/department/communication/kent/essays.html. Proper referencing, citation, and bibliographic referencing are also expected. Be sure and review the handout on writing scholarly essays also before you begin.

Requirements:

• 4–6+ pp.
• Use at least five "forms of support"—and identify them in your paper in brackets after their use.
• Introduce three or more valid/reliable sources to support your contention—not from the WWW, a dictionary, or an encyclopedia.
• Have a coherent structure.
• Convince me.

Analysis of Underlying Assumptions Paper (10%)

This assignment will call on you to examine the underlying assumptions of your major/minor or field of study, to identify the assumptions that guide the practice of research and the theories in your field. You are not required to agree with the assumptions that you identify, nor are you required to disagree, however, you should take a position in regard to what you learn.

Your task in this essay will be to identify and examine the underlying assumptions of your field in order to explain how said assumptions affect conduct in your field. Your essay will be evaluated based on how well you analyze the assumptions of your field—and how appropriate, believable, convincing, relevant, suitable, and credible your sources and arguments are. Your paper will also be evaluated based on the "notes on the scholarly essay" handout on my Web page http:WWW.fredonia.edu/department/communication/kent/essays.html. Proper referencing, citation, and bibliographic referencing are also expected. Be sure and review the page on writing scholarly essays also before you begin.

Requirements:

• 4–6+ pp.
• Interview at least two members of your department.
• 3+ references—cite textbooks, articles, or editorials from your field to back up your claims/findings.
• Have a coherent structure.
• Convince me that you have grasped the essence of your disciplines assumptions.

Essential Information on Written Assignments

1. Nothing that is considered illegal by the University or the State will be considered appropriate to bring into the classroom.

2. Nothing can be done that violates the rules of common sense.

3. Nothing can be done that violates the rules of good taste (PG-13 rating).

4. Do not attempt to persuade the audience to believe in a particular God.

5. Proper English must be used in all speeches.

6. Proper attire is required; you must look credible.

7. All speeches will be original material.

8. Topics used for written assignments in this class may not be used for speaking assignments.

9. While you may use an encyclopedia and dictionary for background information, neither fulfill the "credible source" requirement.

10. Late work will carry a penalty.

11. Plagiarism of any kind is unacceptable.

12. Sources of facts and statistics must always be cited.

13. Follow the APA guide to writing papers.

14. You will be asked to resubmit any written assignment that does not fulfill the requirements stated for the particular assignment.

15. Page length requirements DO NOT include the title page or the reference page.

16. No topics used for written projects may be used for speaking assignments.

17. Encyclopedia and the dictionary DO NOT count as credible sources.

18. Topics for papers must be original—You cannot use any of the banned topics identified in the public speaking section. Old and worn topics should also be avoided.

19. Topics that are old and worn MUST be avoided. If you can make an argument that an otherwise "old" topic has been revived and needs further consideration I MAY waive this.
20. Please review the "Topics to Avoid" list. These topics are banned for several reasons: (1) They are easy to do the night before the assignment is due so little learning takes place; (2) Since they have been argued sufficiently by hundreds of other people one is simply taking old arguments not creating new ones so little learning takes place; (3) Listening to several speeches on the same topic does not make for good audience members; (4) There are plenty of other topics available.

NB: Once a written project has been turned in, graded, and returned to the student, it may be re-written for an improved grade. The student has one week to complete the re-write and you must turn in the original paper AND evaluation form with the re-write. Work turned in late will still carry the late penalty assessed regardless of a re-write.

Notes on Analysis

The separation of an intellectual or substantial whole into its constituent parts for individual study.

Tautology is defined as:

1.a. Needless repetition of the same sense in different words; redundancy. b. An instance of such repetition.

Logic: An empty or vacuous statement composed of simpler statements in a fashion that makes it logically true whether the simpler statements are factually true or false; for example, the statement Either it will rain tomorrow or it will not rain tomorrow.

Circular reasoning. When conducting your analysis, you do not need to restate the obvious for me like: "education assumes that people can be taught," unless your statement is somehow in contention of you will argue that the assumption is false.

Just because you write that "X is an assumption of the field" does not mean you have conducted an analysis. Analysis involves "separation of an intellectual or substantial whole into its constituent parts for individual study." You must support your claims about the field as well as making them. Analysis involves telling me why something is or is not the so and how that assumption guides or influences practice in your field.

Bottom line. Do not restate the obvious to me. I already understand the basic assumptions of most fields. I want you to explain to me how those assumptions influence professional or academic practices in your field. Your job is to conduct an analysis that demonstrates to me that you understand why these assumptions exist and how they influence the conduct of members of your discipline.

Your Choice (10–15%) [May be a Speech]

For this option you should submit a proposal for approval as soon as possible so that you might begin. You must submit your proposal and have it approved before you begin this assignment.

Your proposal should include the following:

• A one to two paragraph description of your project.
• How the project relates to the subject matter for the class.
• What kinds of goals will be reached by your doing the assignment.
• An indication of the length that you expect the final essay or speech to be (5–10 pages/minutes is recommended. Length will affect the value of the assignment).
• How many or what sources you will consult (again, 5–10 is recommended).

Persuasion—Written (20%)

• Your essays should be 6–10 pages in length.
• Your essays should be based on sound arguments and outside research and not just your own opinion.
• Your essays should draw on five or more sources—not the WWW, dictionary, or the encyclopedia but these can be used to supplement your essay.
• Present your view on the issue and characterize fairly the views of the other side.
• Take a position relevant to the controversy you are exploring and support your position.
• Your essay should be clear, well organized, logical, convincing, thoughtful, and provacative.

Specific Objectives of Persuasion

• Selection of a good subject: An intellectually significant topic. Have a strong feeling for the topic and be sure you understand it thoroughly. Statistical and testimonial evidence should be available on the subject, and the topic should lend itself to the effective use of criteria.
• Adequate analysis of your proposition: Analysis is the process of discovering and understanding all of the parts or division of a subject and their interrelationships.
• Adequate use of criteria: Criteria are standards of measurement, requirements, or goals that should be met within the ideal situation.
• Adequate use of evidence: Arguments or contentions remain unsupported assertions unless they are sufficiently backed up with well documented materials.
• Adequate use of sound, logical, reasoning: Employ cause and effect reasoning when possible.
• Adequate adaptation of the speech content to the audience (argument ad hominem): Make the audience feel that the problems affect them. Make the issues relevant to the audience.
• Adequate vocal and physical delivery: Employ a forceful, sincere, and enthusiastic delivery.

Speaker Critique (20%)

For this assignment, you should go out and observe a speaker. The event cannot be something you saw on television, or a speaker you saw last year, but must be some real, live, event that will take place this semester (after you have read this). You must take "critical" notes when you are at the event—which is why this must be a future speaking event.

Your goal in this paper is to critically evaluate the speakers using concepts from the class, your text, and class discussions. You should evaluate the credibility of the speaker, his/her organization, message, delivery, sources, structure (introduction, body, conclusion), his/her use of evidence and sound reasoning or rhetorical strategies, and whatever else you deem relevant. In the critique you should not simply "describe" what the speaker did, but "analyze" it. Answer questions such as: "why was the speaker effective/ineffective?" "Why were his/her arguments persuasive, sound, flawed, etc.?" And, any other questions that seem relevant. This should not be a summary of what the speaker did but an explanation of why or how what s/he did was effective and why. Do not simply assert that the speaker was effective but be able to provide "good reasons" for why s/he was effective.

To support your analysis and claims in your essay you are expected to draw upon concepts and theories from the textbook and class discussion. As part of your analysis you should provide a brief audience/occasion/speaker analysis that addresses several questions: what was the event?; what time of day did it occur?; what was the location of the event?; what was the seating like?; how many people were in attendance?; why were they there?; what was their dispositions like?; what was the format of the lecture/talk like?; were there opportunities for questions and answers?; where were you seated?; why were you there, and what was your disposition? And finally, as suggested above, was the speaker effective and why? Your paper will also be evaluated based on the "notes on the scholarly essay" handout on my Web page http:WWW.fredonia.edu/department/communication/kent/essays.html. Proper referencing, citation, and bibliographic referencing are also expected. Be sure and review the page on writing scholarly essays also before you begin.

Requirements:

• 5–7+ pages.
• The speech observed must be at least 15 minutes long.
• Provide background information about the speaker and the event.
• Provide a brief summary of the speakers message.
• Evaluate the speech situations, characteristics, arguments, etc., that you found interesting from a communication standpoint.
• Discuss specific strategies for the speaker to improve.

Oral Interpretation† (20%)

NB: At no point in an oral interpretation "speech" should you try to explain to the audience what the text you have selected is "supposed to mean," what it means to you, what you think the author meant, etc.. Based on your delivery of the selection alone, all of those things should become clear to your audience.

Selection of Material: Select a piece of poetry or prose that has universality or profundity—something that speaks to everyone in the audience.

pro·fun·di·ty (pre-fùn´dî-tê, pro-) noun; plural pro·fun·di·ties

1. Great depth.
2. Depth of intellect, feeling, or meaning.
3. Something profound or abstruse.
   • Select a piece that has individual appeal—something that appeals to you.
   • Select a piece that has suggestibility—a piece that suggests new meanings to you each time you read it. A piece with layers, textures, colors. Do not select something trite, banal, specific to only one part of the audience, or because it is "hip."

• Your delivery should be conversational. You should sound like you are really just talking this out to us, your sister, an old man/woman, or the toaster.
• If you are delivering a metered poem, go by meaning not by meter.
• Instead of an outline you must conduct a dramatistic analysis by answering the following questions (write as much as necessary to answer these questions but not less than 2­3 pages):

1. Who is speaking?—a character, the author, an author's persona. You must "know," or have an idea of who is speaking. Investigate the poem or prose piece for ideas, inferences, cues. If you cannot answer this or the next questions, create/invent answers.
2. To who is the person speaking? Are they speaking to themselves, the Gods, an absent friend, an inanimate object (this is Lyric poetry); are they speaking to a specific character or person (this is Dramatic poetry); or are they speaking to the audience, or to a combination of the audience and a specific person (this is Epic poetry). No matter who they are speaking to, give that person a "location." Place the character in the room with you, and make sure you have a specific image in your mind of who that person is. Face the audience as well; do not speak in profile.
3. Where is the piece taking place? Visualize this location and know what it consists of—items in the room, location of furniture, doorways, lights, lamps, tables, etc..
4. When is the piece taking place? The location in space and time of an event has a significant influence on how a poem/prose piece will be delivered. A conversation about love that takes place in Appleby’s last week will be very different than the same conversation that takes place in a tea-house in London in the 1850s.
5. Why are you saying this?—to make your audience understand something, to help us understand you, to stop us from making a mistake, to remind us of something, to instruct us? What is your goal?
6. How are you saying it? What is your frame of mind—are you compelled to speak, "casually" mentioning something, passionately declaiming this message, writing it in a letter, saying it over the phone, reading from your diary?

• How deep you choose to go with your analysis and characterization will influence how deep our understanding is of the piece you deliver.
• The clearer the character is to you, the more fully you will be able to place yourself into the fictive world of the piece you are delivering/interpreting.

Requirements:

1. 5–7+ minutes.
2. You may give the audience a "brief" (title, author, play, etc.) explanation of the piece, not an "interpretation," before you begin.
3. You must turn in your analysis at least a week before the speech.
4. You may provide the audience with the text as a handout if you like.
5. Do not just read your selection. Deliver/Interpret it. Most oral interpretation deliveries are very close to memorized so be polished.

© 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2015, 2019, Michael L. Kent

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Last updated: Wednesday, February 20, 2019