OUTLINE FORMAT
** Must be double-spaced!
Topic:
General Purpose:
Specific Purpose:
I.
INTRODUCTION
A. (Attention getter)
B. (Reason to listen)
C. (Speaker Credibility)
D. (Thesis Statement)
E. (Preview) First I’ll talk about…. Then…. And finally….
II.
BODY
A. (Main point one)
1. Subordinated point one
a. Subordinated point a
b. Subordinated point b
2. Subordinated point two
a. Subordinated point a
b. Subordinated point b
(Transition) Write out what you are going to say as a transition
B. (Main point two)
1. Subordinated point one
a. Subordinated point a
b. Subordinated point b
2. Subordinated point two
a. Subordinated point a
b. Subordinated point b
(Transition) Write out what you are going to say as a transition
C. (Main point three)
1. Subordinated point one
a. Subordinated point a
b. Subordinated point b
2. Subordinated point two
a. Subordinated point a
b. Subordinated point b
III. CONCLUSION
A. (Review) Restate thesis and review main points. Main point A. Main point B.
Main point C.
B. (Reason to remember)
C. (Tie back to attention getter)
INFORMATIVE OUTLINE AND SPEECH REQUIREMENTS
General guidelines for your informative speech:
 The outline will follow the format handed out in class. You are required to do research for
this speech and include your research in your outline and speech. In your outline, you are
expected to verbally mention sources for your important claims; otherwise you are expected
to cite your sources like you do in a regular research paper. You are required to have a
reference page / bibliography you may use APA or MLA format.

You will be expected to use different forms of evidence to back up your claims in your
speech, and to label your evidence. We will be going over this in class.

You are required to use a visual aid for this speech, and your persuasive speech.
INFORMATIVE OUTLINE CHECKLIST
_______
Size 12 Courier or Times New Roman font
_______
The outline has proper subordination and structure.
_______
Full sentence outline (but the speech should not be written out).
_______
Be sure to use transitions between main points.
_______
Check your grammar, spelling and punctuation.
_______
The outline must be typed, double spaced, and stapled.
_______
The Evaluation Form must be stapled to the outline.
_______
Your name, the date, the class and time should appear on the first page of
the outline.
_______
Follow APA or MLA guidelines for both in-text citations and
reference/bibliography page.
_______
Use at least four different sources to gather your information. No more
than ONE of your sources should be from a .com. The rest should be from
books, journals, newspapers, and scholarly magazines. Encyclopedias are
not suitable resources for this assignment. One can be from personal
communication (testimony).
_______
Evidence requirements: One piece of each type of evidence (Ch 7 & 10).
All pieces of evidence must be labeled & cited.
_______
Label each section of the outline and each type of evidence used.
These are the labels I should see in your outline:
____(Attention Getter)
____(Reason to Listen)
____(Speaker Credibility)
____(Thesis)
____(Preview)
____(First Main Point)
____(Second Main Point)____(Third Main Point) ____(Transition)
____(Review)
____(Reason to Remember)
____(Tie Back)
____(Example) ____(Statistic)____(Testimony) ____(Narrative)____(Analogy)
Sample Informative Outline Utilizing Evidence
Your Name
Date
Thu 8:20pm
Speech 101
Topic: Arranged Marriages in the Indian Culture
General Purpose: To inform
Specific Purpose: To inform the audience about arranged marriages in the Indian Culture.
I. INTRODUCTION
A. (Attention Getter) (Narrative) After eight months of wedding preparation, it
seemed nothing could have gone wrong on that evening in November 1992. Well,
almost. An elephant—a symbol of a new beginning—showed up a bit tardy. But
otherwise, for Paritoh Malaviya, 25, it was the longest and sweetest ride of his
life—to face an arranged marriage, Indian style. Paritosh and his bride, Shikha,
22, were introduced by eager parents from both the United States and India.
Shikha’s aunt, who had stolen a photograph of her, showed it to Paritosh’s
mother, who showed it to the prospective groom. The Malaviyas are one of
hundreds of Indian couple in the United States who have succumbed to the
centuries-old tradition of arranged marriages (Nambiar, 1993).
B. (Reason To Listen) The tradition of arranged marriage, while alien to most
Americans, is still in practice not only in India, but here in the United States. In
order to become more culturally aware, I would like to share with you how the
Indian culture views marriage.
C. (Speaker Credibility) I am a senior majoring in religious studies with a special
interest in Indian culture. I have spent many hours researching this topic and have
written several papers on arranged marriages.
D. (Thesis and Preview) To help you better understand arranged marriages in the
Indian culture, I would like to first focus on the surprising age at which girls are
married. Second, I will discuss the importance of the dowry. And lastly, I will talk
about current trends in the sage old tradition of arranged marriages.
II. BODY
A. (First Main Point) (Example)The marriages of young children, of young girls to
old men, of children to each other, are not only unremarkable in much of India,
but routine (Gargan, 1991).
1. Although criminal statues in India prohibit any marriages among those under
the age of eighteen, civil law does sanction marriage among minors.
a. (Fact) In the case of Islamic civil law, girls who have reached puberty
are permitted to marry if they agree to the match (Gargan, 1991).
b. (Example) Similarly, Hindu civil law recognizes the validity of
childhood marriages (Gargan, 1991).
2. (Statistic) According to statistics, approximately 90% of girls in Indian Villages
get married before the are of 13 (Gargan, 1991).
a. (Expert Testimony) Taveleen Singh, one of India’s most outspoken
columnist, wrote, “It’s very common…the average…Indian wouldn’t even
be shocked by it… you are a spinster at 16” (as cited in Gargan, 1991, p. A4).
b. (Expert Testimony) According to K. M. Kapadia, a professor of sociology
at the University of Bombay, “We do not know that usual difference
between the ages of the husband and wife, but with eight or ten as the age
of the bride it would be twelve years of so, and this is apparently usual”
(Kapadia, 1968, p. 138).
(Transition: Now that I have discussed the young age at which children are married in
India, I will next talk about the importance of the dowry.)
B. (Second Main Point)(Example) A dowry is the money and gifts given by a bride’s
parents to the groom (Gargan, 1993).
1. (Example) Dowries may include jewelry, silver, and brass vessels for
the home as well as a sum of money (Ross, 1967).
2. Dowries are not without their problems.
a. (Example)There has been a rise in the killing of women for not
providing dowries that are opulent enough (Gargan, 1993).
i. (Statistic)In 1992, according to government statistics, approximately
5,000 women were killed by their husbands for not providing adequate
dowries (Gargan, 1993).
ii. (Statistic) In the first two months of 1993, nearly 200 cases of “dowry
abuse”, including death, were turned over to detectives in India’s
Silicon Valley (Gargan, 1993).
b. Another problem encountered by a number of Indian families is the element
of blackmail which can enter into dowry negotiation.
c. A third problem with the dowry system is that, too often, the education of
the girl is neglected so that her parents can save up for her dowry.
(Transition: Now that I have covered the importance of the dowry, I will talk about how
Indian arranged marriages have been affected by Western culture.)
C. (Third Main Point) The Western worldview has influenced Indian marriages.
1. (Example) Indian parents in the United States often worry that their children—
especially daughters—will adopt “Western vices and marry foreigner”
(Nambiar, 1993).
2. As the Indian population grows in the United States, young Indian men and
women are torn between the ways of their adopted homeland and the life they
left behind.
a. (Example)The age-old tradition of arranged marriages is clashing more
frequently in American households, “where Indian children often insist of
the freedom to choose their own spouses” (Nambiar, p. 27, 1993).
b. (Lay Testimony) “The faith we used to have in the older generation
knowing best is eroding,” says Veena Talwar Oldenburg, professor of
history at Baruch College “it is leading to a lot of tension in the Indian
community” (Nambiar, p. 12, 1993).
III. CONCLUSION
A. (Summary and Restatement of Main Points) Today, we have looked at some
interesting aspects of the centuries-old Indian tradition of arranged marriages.
Specifically, I discussed the surprisingly young age at which Indian couple marry;
the importance of the dowry, and lastly, we looked at the effects of western culture
on these practices.
B. (Tie Back to Attention Getter) Remember the marriage between Paritosh and
Shikha Malaviya—this was a typical Indian arranged marriage. And although it
may seem strange to us others might say that (Analogy) an arranged marriage is
like a kettle that starts cold but gradually warms up. And in this country with
constantly rising divorce rates maybe it would’nt be so bad to start of a little
cold and turn up the heat though the years!
C. (Reason to Remember) Arranged marriages may seem medieval to most
Americans, but for the Indian culture they are a part of life. I hope the interesting
knowledge I shared with you today will be useful to you in the future.
References
Gargan, E. (1991, October 21). Tearful bride just 10, touches India’s conscience. The
NewYork Times. p. A4.
Gargan, E. (1993, December 30). For many brides in India a dowry buys death. The
New York Times. p. A4.
Kapadia, K.M. (1966). Marriages and Families in India. New York: Oxford
University Press.
Nambiar, S. (1993, November 17). Love With the Proper Stranger. The Washington
Post, pp. C1,C4.
Ross, A.D. (1967). The Hindu Family in its Urban Setting. Toronto: University of
Toronto Press.
INFORMATIVE OUTLINE EVALUATION FORM
Name_________________________Topic_______________________________
INTRODUCTION (13 pts)
Attention Getter
0
1
2
3
Reason to Listen
0
1
2
3
Speaker Credibility
0
1
2
Thesis Statement
0
1
2
Preview
0
1
2
3
BODY (21 pts)
Main Points Organized Well
0
1
2
3
Content Well-Developed
0
1
2
3
Proper/Effective Subordination
0
1
2
3
Use of Transitions
0
1
2
Overall Quality of Work
0
1
2
3
4
5
4
5
4
4
5
CONCLUSION (8 pts)
Review Main Points
0
1
2
3
Reason to Remember
0
1
2
Tie Back/Powerful End
0
1
2
3
EVIDENCE (19 pts)
Citations Used When Needed
0
1
2
3
4
Contains required evidence which supports claims made (2 points each)
0
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
Correct number/use of sources 0
1
2
3
4
ORGANIZATION/STRUCTURE (14 pts)
Proper Outline Format
0
Format: In-text & Ref/Biblo Page
0
Spelling, grammar, punctuation
0
Deductions:
Total Possible
Not stapled
No eval sheet
75
1
1
1
2
2
2
(2 pts)
(2 pts)
Total Score
____________
3
3
3
4
4
4
5
10
5
6