AIM1003 RHETORIC AND PUBLIC SPEAKING
Chapter Introduction
1
“Speech is power: speech is to persuade, to
convert, to compel.”
Ralph Waldo Emerson
Chapter Focus: Introduction of rhetoric and public speaking.
1
Ralph Waldo Emerson
Student Learning Objectives:
• Students will be able to identify the purpose of public speaking
• Students will be able to explain the roots of public speaking, including
the ancient study and practice of rhetoric
• Students will be able to explain the communication context
• Students will be able to identify the types of public speaking
Why study public speaking
APPLY WHAT YOU LEARN~
• Help you critically evaluate messages and appeals of all
kinds.
• Make you more sensitive to people and situations
• Enable you to recognize and adapt to diverse audiences
and complex occasions.
• Increase your self-confidence and your willingness to
engage in serious dialogue with others.
What is Rhetoric?
• = the art of seeing the available means of persuasion – Aristotle
• Applied to any form of communication
• Three types of persuasive speech:
1. forensic/ judicial – establish facts and judgments about the past,
e.g detectives at a crime scene
2. Epideictic/ demonstrative – makes a proclamation (official
declaration) about the present situation. E.g wedding speeches
3. Deliberative/ symbouleutikon – focuses on the future, use to
establish change. E.g politicians debate a new law and imagine its
effect; activists urging change – present with possible future, try to
enlist their help to avoid or achieve
Develop specific communication skills
1. How to listen
2. How to decide
3. How to find material
4. How to think critically
5. How to organize
6. How to use language
7. How to use voice and body
8. How to use visual aids
9. How to adapt
10. How to understand and benefit from reactions
Ancient Speech and the Roots of
Democracy
• In the modern world, we can broadcast our opinions
from any venue: while standing on a street corner or in
a public park, by speaking up at town or city meetings,
or on our own podcasts and YouTube videos.
• Public speaking was once a right reserved only for
priests, kings, and other leaders in the ancient world.
Three Fundamental Persuasive Elements
in an Effective Speech:
1. Ethos: the credibility or believability of the speaker, which
helps convince listeners that the argument is valid.
2. Logos: the use of logic in the speech, which must be
structurally solid and backed up by evidence.
3. Pathos: the emotional appeal of the speech, which can be
used to reach the heart of the listener.
The Five Canons of Rhetoric
• The great Roman orator Cicero took Aristotle’s study of rhetoric
further when he outlined The Five Canons of Rhetoric. The Five
Canons, or rules, include:
1. Invention: The process of deciding on a topic and the appropriate
arguments to support it.
2. Arrangement: The different components of an argument, organized in
a way to achieve the greatest success.
The Five Canons of Rhetoric
3. Style: The manner in which the argument is delivered. This can include
word selection, imagery, and metaphor.
4. Memory: The methods orators use to remember their speech and
make it memorable for the audience.
5. Delivery: The manipulation of speech, including pitch and volume, as
well as physical gestures, to engage the audience during the speech.
The Right to Speak in Public
• The right to speak in public has not always been available or
guaranteed. Over centuries, however, public speaking came to
be viewed as an essential component of democratic societies.
• Beginning in ancient Greece and continuing through the
medieval era, public speaking has been the cornerstone of
education and political change.
New Methods of Communication
• The Internet have emerged and become more accessible to
millions of people.
• Ted Talks
• YouTube
• Social Media
• Spoken Word
• TikTok
• Rather than take the right to speak in public for granted, people
in the past and even today use it to continue the pursuit of
social, political, and economic justice.
Purpose and quality of the speech
• Informing
• Persuading
• Entertaining
Goals for first speech
• Develop a clear message
• Establish positive ethos
Organise your speech
• The introduction
• The body
• The conclusion
Practice the speech
• Outline
• Practice
• Overcome anxiety
DISCUSSION
• Identify what type of rhetoric do you usually use? Explain why you said that.
Communication Contexts
Intrapersonal Communication
Communicating with yourself (self talk)
Communication Contexts cont.
Interpersonal Communication
Communication between two people
Communication Contexts cont.
Small group Communication
Communication occurs among
approximately three to ten people
Communication Contexts cont.
Public Communication
Communication that occurs among more than ten people
one message is presented to the participants
receivers are limited primarily feedback
Communication Contexts cont.
Mass Communication
Communication produced and transmitted via media to massive
audience
DISCUSSION
1. Intrapersonal (Think about the idea, ask yourself what topic you want to
present)
2. Interpersonal (Discuss your topic with your friends and make one decision
which idea are chosen)
3. Small Group (In a group with 5 members, brainstorm your idea, select your
topic and prepare your presentation)
4. Do your presentation (Class activity)
Type of Speeches
1. Impromptu – with little or no preparation
2. Extemporaneous –designed to be given from a few key words, should be
presented differently based on your audience
3. Manuscript – read directly word for word from a script
4. Memorized - given directly from memory (disadvantage: memory failure)
