Lecture types of persuasive speech and components of persuasive speech. “The impact of public speaking. Speech culture as an influence of community leadership. Aim

LECTURE 9. Types of persuasive speech and components of persuasive speech. “The impact of public speaking. Speech culture as an influence of community leadership.


Aim: To acquaint students with types of persuasive speech and components applicable to their own learning and teaching situations


Objectives: By the end of the course students will

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  obtain an overview of key issues and research findings in oratory discussions and the ideas of the course to their thoughts and experiences both as learners and future teachers
  
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  reflect on their own language learning processes by linking theories of oratory with practical experience
  

Informative Speeches
Many people would rather go see an impassioned political speech or a comedic monologue than a lecture. Although informative speaking may not be the most exciting form of public speaking, it is the most common. Reports, lectures, training seminars, and demonstrations are all examples of informative speaking. That means you are more likely to give and listen to informative speeches in a variety of contexts. Some organizations, like consulting firms, and career fields, like training and development, are solely aimed at conveying information. College alumni have reported that out of many different speech skills, informative speaking is most important.Rudolph Verderber, Essentials of Informative Speaking: Theory and Contexts (Belmont, CA: Wadsworth, 1991), 3. Since your exposure to informative speaking is inevitable, why not learn how to be a better producer and consumer of informative messages?
Creating an Informative Speech
As you’ll recall from Chapter 9 "Preparing a Speech", speaking to inform is one of the three possible general purposes for public speaking. The goal of informative speaking is to teach an audience something using objective factual information. Interestingly, informative speaking is a newcomer in the world of public speaking theorizing and instruction, which began thousands of years ago with the ancient Greeks.Thomas H. Olbricht, Informative Speaking (Glenview, IL: Scott, Foresman, 1968), 1–12. Ancient philosophers and statesmen like Aristotle, Cicero, and Quintilian conceived of public speaking as rhetoric, which is inherently persuasive. During that time, and until the 1800s, almost all speaking was argumentative. Teaching and instruction were performed as debates, and even fields like science and medicine relied on argumentative reasoning instead of factual claims. While most instruction is now verbal, for most of modern history, people learned by doing rather than listening, as apprenticeships were much more common than classroom-based instruction. So what facilitated the change from argumentative and demonstrative teaching to verbal and informative teaching? One reason for this change was the democratization of information. Technical information used to be jealously protected by individuals, families, or guilds. Now society generally believes that information should be shared and made available to all. The increasing complexity of fields of knowledge and professions also increased the need for informative speaking. Now one must learn a history or backstory before actually engaging with a subject or trade. Finally, much of the information that has built up over time has become commonly accepted; therefore much of the history or background information isn’t disputed and can now be shared in an informative rather than argumentative way.