Interactive Videos, 15.1

What I liked about Dixie’s speech is that her voice was very smooth and clear, she made great eye contact, her citations were stated at the beginning of each sentence , her thesis and main points were given upfront, and she also did not stand in one place.  Dixie held my attention, and actually had me sold on the concept of home schooling. 

Janine did an excellent job too.  He used the same exact delivery style as Dixie.  What I also liked is he came up with a “compromise” in that "parental involvement” is the goal.  His thesis was clearly stated, and I thought his conclusion was very strong by stating, “Home school is the not answer.”  This was a very direct and confident statement.

Both used the appeals of “ethos” because both speakers were competent, trustworthy, dynamic, and likeable.  Both speakers influenced me, but I’m going to have to go with Janine.

Types of Claims

Hello,

I like the way the book explained the two types of claims:  premises and conclusions.  If you give your audience three premises that make sense to them, then the audience will agree with the conclusion.  This strategy can be helpful in not only speaking, but in a writing assignment.  It can also be used when you are trying to present an idea for a project, etc in the workplace.  I am taking an Argumentation class here at Sierra College this semester, and the claim has been explained as the main idea of the argument.  In other words, the claim is what you want your audience to believe.  I have never heard of the term “enthymeme.”  Obviously from looking at the Coca Cola ad in the book, I recognized the enthymeme and do admit it fits in nicely with the girls in the ad.  Enthymeme’s appear in advertising all of the time, and now I will be able to recognize them.  

Max

Ethical Public Speakers

I really like the idea of ethical public speakers.  I had no idea that ethical speakers must meet the National communication Association’s standards of ethical communication.  In my opinion, speaking ethically should be the only option; however, there is no quality control over public speakers.  Audience members must use their own educated mind and good judgment when listening to a speech.  The fact that the National Communication Association has standard of ethical communication involving two categories of ethical violations is important for the audience.  These categories will help to prevent misleading information to be delivered to the audience, and will enforce the speaker to state the full ramifications of his or her topic.  The book uses an example of DNA as the topic.  Yes, it would be fascinating and tempting to get your DNA; however, as the book states, there are serious drawbacks of DNA testing.  In addition, if I knew the speaker was an ethical public speaker, the credibility of that speaker would be much higher at the beginning of the speech.  In other words, the speaker would have instant credibility with me. 

Sea of Persuasion

I never realized how much persuasion I actually have on a daily basis in my life.  For example, I started my morning off by making some coffee, taking the dog for a short walk, doing homework, trying to save money on my energy bill, and AT & T Uverse trying to persuade me to schedule a “last effort” technical repair service.  I persuaded myself to have three cups of coffee this morning so I could get through the day.  The dog persuaded me into going for a walk first thing this morning.  During the walk, I noticed signs posted persuading dog owners to pick up after their pets.  I persuaded myself to leave the air condition off today so I could save money on my monthly electric bill.  Lastly, I’ve been having problems with AT & T Uverse for the past month, and when I called to cancel, the customer service representative tried to persuade to schedule a “last effort” technical service repair.  Thankfully, I am not the type of consumer that has to have the greatest and latest.  I tune out most advertisers.  I like to pick and choose how I want to spend my money.  I'm not easily persuaded.

Monroe

Monroe’s Motivated Sequence is just that, a “Motivated Sequence” of motivational statements in a speech.  Using the five-step organizational pattern allows the speaker to focus on one step at a time, and build on each step.  The goal is to motivate the audience to take action.  In other words, the speaker must motivate the audience to go whatever the speaker is asking whether the speaker is asking for church donations, selling magazine subscriptions, or soliciting volunteers.  I prefer to use the “problem-solution” pattern of organization because its sequence is designed to “sell the audience.”  Monroe developed this sequence in 1930 and used it to keep sales presentations organized.  Persuading is really selling; therefore, if you want to persuade the audience you must sell the audience on your idea or concept.  You must first grab your audiences attention; next, present a problem that must be addressed; then offer a solution to the problem; next help the audience to see how life will change for the better with the solution; and finally offer a specific plan to implement the satisfaction step.  Following these five steps for persuading the audience is the foundation of a successful motivating persuasive speech.

Max

Flickr - Sexist Language

The people who are posting discussions regarding sexist language on Flicker are really in a different place than the students taking this COMM 1 class.  The students at Sierra College are taking their education and careers seriously and are being taught the “proper” way to deliver a speech in today’s society.  The individuals on Flicker are just “shooting the bull” sorta speak about sexist language and are not to be taken very seriously.  I would be offended if someone called me a girl.  Calling a woman a girl is disrespectful and sloppy.  Perhaps it just might depend on when you were born.  Every generations see things differently.  It is imperative that people who engage in public speaking deliver a politically correct speech.  If a speaker delivers a speech with sexist language, his or her credibility will be shot.  Another example of how language has changed is trailer parks are now mobile homes.  What about man and wife? 

Speech Video 10.1

Hello,

It is helpful when a speaker refers to the audience as "we, us, and you" because it makes a clear statement that the speaker is a normal person just like the people in the audience.  Instead of feeling that the speaker is superior, it gives the audience a sense of comfortableness.  The separation between speaker and audience disappears, leaving the audience feeling more comfortable with the speaker.  The audiences' guard is down which allows an instant connection to the speaker.  Asking the audience to "visualize" something is very powerful.  It gives the audience an opportunity to think and put themselves in another place.  Inviting the audience to imagine something is an excellent way to connect with the audience.  To put yourself in a situation that you normally would not allows a person to use critical thinking skills.  Humor has connected me to many speakers.  A speaker who makes me feel like I am just the same as they are, and one who can  make me laugh is a speaker worth listening to!

Cheryl

Language and Culture, Chapter 10

Hello,

The Language and Culture section in Chapter 10 made lots of sense to me.  Put public speaking aside, and focus on individual conversations for a minute.  You can tell a great deal about someone's culture just by listening to the way they speak to you.  Listening to a speech and listening to someone speak to you are reflections of that person's culture.  First impressions are lasting impressions.  For example, when someone in the office uses the word "whatever" joking or not, it tells me something about that person's personality.  People use jargon in texts such as "OMG!"  Jargon in text messages is fine as long as everyone reading the text understands.  Euphemisms can be cleverly used to "mask" direct or harsh messages.  Cliches might be overused, but when someone uses one, the listener is never confused about its message.  If you are speaking to someone and used a cliches they did not understand, they would ask you what you meant.  Some jargon are generational.  For example, you wouldn't hear a 60-year-old man or woman say, "My bad."  Overall, using jargon in the workplace or in a speech is risky, and is best left between you and your best friends.

Cheryl

Max's blog: Self Evaluation #2

Overall, I feel like I did well presenting my Informative Speech on American Sign Language (ASL).  While I tried not to rely on my on my index cards, I believe I gave an adequate overview of the purpose of my speech.  It was important to me to make my power point presentation “real” and include pictures of someone I personally know who is deaf rather than show a power point presentation of someone I don’t know.  I felt extremely comfortable and confident while delivering my speech.  It is extremely important to me to use as much “improv” as possible and not rely on note cards; however, the note cards would have kept me more organized and I will definitely use them as an aid in my next speech.  Showing the class how to say a specific phrase such as “How are you,” may have added more substance to my speech.  I was not aware that I said so many “ums”!  For my next speech, I will definitely practice more so there will not be an opportunity for me to say “um…”  There is no comparison to this speech and my last speech (pesto demonstration) because I was much more familiar with ASL.  I’ve worked with Christy (in PPP) for three year, and I am very familiar with her struggles as a deaf person.  I also was not ill for this speech as I was for the first speech.  In my first speech, I could not find enough information during my research on pesto so I wasn’t as confident.  I believed that my eye contact was great and gave myself a “7” rating.  I recall comfortably glancing at the class rotating from side-to-side; however, lack of eye contact was noted on my critique by the professor.  I rate my grade for this speech as a “B” because I did not rely heavily on my note cards; I had an interesting topic and used a co-worker in my PPP; I started with an attention getter; continued with the purpose and thesis; established credibility; and previewed main pointes.  I expressed 2 main points and supporting subpoints, and concluded with a review of my main points; reinforced my purpose, and provided closure.  I used only a couple of my citations, and actually had more on my outline.  I can improve on my next speech by practicing my speech more frequently with my note cards.  In addition, I must list all of my citations on my note cards.  I do not believe all of my citations were listed on my note cards for this speech.  This speech was much better because you learn by doing.  I’m more comfortable with the class and the professor.  I look forward to my tribute and persuasive speeches.  I plan to list citations on note cards, keep main points simple, and practice more.  As I stated earlier, I was not as familiar with my last speech topic as I was this one.  It is best that I stick with a topic that I have a strong passion for and interest in.  I doubt I will be making pester anytime soon! 

Cheryl D. Davis