a new outlook on public speaking

When we were given the first blog on an example of public speaking, I automatically thought the Valedictorian at my eighth grade graduation. I thought about how well she started out to the mess she made at the end. I believed her to be an example of bad public speaking, which I still think is. However, now when I think of public speaking a different image comes to mind. I think of the great speech makers like Martin Luther King Jr. and John F. Kennedy. They had such power and meaning behind their words and spoke out to thousands of people. They took on the challenge and presented a speech that is still well-known today.

Another reason I think of these speech makers is because they had a reason behind their speech. While the Valedictorian's speech went on celebrating and reflecting our time together, their speeches motivated others, informed them of current issues, and persuaded people to take action. While learning in this class over the past few weeks I realized that all speeches have a significant purpose and what those purposes are. My understanding of communication and public has changed and after taking this course I've come to realize just how essential speech is. We use it every day for numerous reasons and it only us helps in life. Communication is key and being able to present yourself well and be well spoken will only help you progress and grow into a better person.

A More Meaningful Understanding of Public Speaking

After reviewing my first blog post about Miss South Carolina in the 2007 Miss Teen USA competition, i can say that it still represents my understanding of public speaking to an extent. As mentioned in my first post, preparedness, and, confidence are essential tools of a successful public speaker. However, after completing this class, I now have the understanding of what public speaking really is. Its not just speaking alone in front of a group, but rather speaking in everyday life. Sometimes we are required to speak in front of groups yes, but more often than not, we are engaged in conversation with peers, elders, friends, and family. Public speaking is in fact a part of our everyday life whether we know it or not. Good public speaking skills will take you far in life, and I feel as if this class equipped me with some useful tools for my future.

New Understanding of Public Speaking

When I look back at my first blog, I still feel like the woman who came to talk at my high school was the epitome of a great public speaker. She not only had good delivery and style, but I still remember to this day some of the things she said. I feel like if you're able to accomplish those things through a single speech, you're doing something right.

Through this course, my understanding of public speaking has definitely changed a lot. Six weeks ago, when I thought of public speaking, the delivery was the first (and sometimes only) thing that came to mind. Things like eye contact, speech anxiety and just the way one presents a speech was what I thought of. I never considered the actual writing of the speech and how much work is put into it.

I thought I was experienced in public speaking because I was on my high school's Speech and Debate team for three years, but this course was completely different because I actually had to take the time to research and write my speech. It turns out that I knew a lot less than I thought I did! I didn't know what to expect going into this course, but it gave me a new understanding of public speaking, and I know everything I learned will be useful for the future. I also learned that if you put in the right amount of time researching a topic that you find interesting, it can be really fun to present!

Deliver is (Still) Key

While I still believe that delivery is a key component, I have learned that there is much more to public speaking than that. Delivery represents the end result, or the final product, of a speech, but there is so much more that goes on behind the scenes. Before one can focus on delivery, they must follow certain steps to prepare a well, thought out speech that effectively gets a message across to their audience. In my first blog post, I talked about the speech the valedictorian of my high school gave and i explained how i was disappointed that she did not deliver as well as I had hoped. Looking back now, however, I realize that there are other things that the speaker did do really well. For example, the structure of her speech was excellent and I should have given her more credit than i did originally.

As this class comes to a close, I realize that I have learned so much more than simply how to get up in front of people and give a speech. I have learned about how communication works on different levels and I have learned that it takes a lot more to prepare a speech than just throwing a few words together. Communication is a tool that is important in everyday life, and I am sure I will use the techniques I have learned in this class in many different aspects of my life.

JONATHAN E. MCCOY'S SPEECH: A New Petition.

In my very first post, I used the example of my high school principal’s graduation commencement speech. Now that I have taken the CAS 100A course, I now know that that speech was a special event speech and its purpose was to celebrate our graduation. To me, my principal is still a great example of public speaking and her use of an anecdotal story to connect to the audience was a great move. Now I know that the anecdote was so effective because it appealed to the pathos of the audience.

Though, I still view her speech as an excellent example, it is no longer the first and only thing that comes to mind whenever I consider the term “public speaking.” I now can think of multiple types of speeches, which have various purposes other than to simply celebrate. The first type of public speaking that comes to mind now when I think of the term is public advocacy. I think these speeches appeal to me because they have a strong exigence, which necessitates the use of discourse to solve. They are very important speeches, as they often are a major step in raising awareness to a particular issue and influencing people to open their minds to the cause. They make something as simple as words and language a very powerful tool capable of inciting policy or even social change.

In the video that I have posted above, young McCoy protests against the social and cultural acceptance of the “N” word. He is a successful example of an advocacy speech as he is speaking to the community and asking that the use of the derogatory word be put to an end. He uses multiple examples of successful African American people who have accomplished much in their lives to make his point to the audience that the accomplishments of these people should not be undermined by the use of the “N” word. The introduction component of his speech has a very effective attention getter. The audience was also favorable as their race demographic allows for the educated guess that they will be in support of McCoy’s cause. Also, his delivery is, I think, the key to the powerful impact of his speech. He spoke clearly and passionately and delivered the speech in a conversational way, due to the lack of the use of note cards.

I do not think that public advocacy is the only important speech type by any means, but to me advocating for a policy is among the most important of the reasons for delivering speech. After all, free speech is an unalienable right and using it to support a belief is the concept that our country was founded upon.

A New Perspective

My first blog post dealt with the example of Martin Luther King Juniors' "I have a dream" speech. After taking this class, I still feel that this is a great example of public speaking. It fits many of the requirements of public speaking such as being in front of a large crowd in the public setting. It has a specific purpose to gain support from the audience. King uses his speech to try and convince the public of the importance of the civil rights movement. Although I still find this speech a good example, my understanding of what public speaking is has changed. At the beginning of the class, I thought public speaking was only a formal speech in front of a large crowd. After this class, I recognize that public speaking is done by all of us everyday. It does not have to be a formal speech to be considered public speaking. I now know that it can be done in all types of settings and in front of audiences of all sizes. Also, I already knew that speeches, like King's, had different purposes, but now I have a much better understanding of the many circumstances that shape these purposes. For example, King's purpose in speaking was a result of the racism in America and the need to gain support for the civil rights movement. He had to adjust his message for the audience he was speaking to. Since they were mostly supporters, King made sure his speech focused on showing the public his 'dream' for what America could be like when the racism ended. I now know this technique as the Visualization step in Monroe's Motivated Sequence. I can now look at King's speech and see it as much more than just a famous speech. I can see how it fits into the ideas of public advocacy and civic engagement in his attempts to convince people of his cause and get them to stop the racism. In addition, when listening to the speech I can recognize many of the techniques he utilizes as ones we learned about in class. I would not have picked up on these techniques if I had not taken this class.

Better Pageant Answers

My first blog post was about Miss Teen USA contestant Caitlin Upton. The answer that she gave during her final question was an example of bad public speaking. Her answer only added to the typical beauty pageant stereotypes. She tried her best, but she was unprepared to answer the question.

I found a better example of beauty pageant answers from the 2008 Miss America pageant. I felt like all eight girls meant what they were saying. They answered their questions with confidence. They proved that not all pageant girls fit the stereotypes. This would be an example of good public speaking and also public advocacy because their speaking out about important issues. Throughout this course I learned to be confident when speaking and not to get too nervous. No matter what you have to keep going. You can't just stop speaking. Communication is an important part of everyday life.