1
2
Why improve your public speaking skills?
 All of your teachers will be holding you responsible for your
public speaking skills. Every teacher will be using the same rubric
to assess your presentations.
 By learning how to effectively speak in public, you'll be able to
increase your own self-confidence. Since public speaking is one of
the most prevalent fears in the western world, by enabling yourself
to master this difficult skill you'll have the confidence that you
need to meet and greet future challenges.
 Every year, the National Association of Colleges and Employers
(NACE) surveys employers to see what qualities they want most
from college students they are considering for employment.
What’s the number one “soft” skill employers are looking for?
Verbal communication skills. Strong work ethic, teamwork skills,
analytical skills, and initiative, while all critical skills, followed
verbal communication in importance. If you master speaking, you
chances of success increase dramatically.
 When 104 Silicon Valley employers were asked, “What additional
business communication skills would you like to see in your recent
college graduate new hires?” employers sought improved oral
presentation skills more frequently than they did written skills.
Their comments expressed a need for stronger skills in public
speaking, enhanced interpersonal skills, increased confidence, and
improved interviewing skills. Several wrote that students needed
more presentation skills, highlighting the ability to use software
tools like PowerPoint.
3
Hatboro-Horsham Oral Presentation Rubric
NON VERBAL SKILL SET
Distinguished
Eye
Contact
Presenter holds
attention of entire
audience with the use of
direct eye contact.
Student relies on notes
for prompting only.
Poise
Presenter stands up
straight and displays a
relaxed, self-confident
nature with no mistakes.
Movements seem fluid,
enhance the audience’s
understanding, and help
the audience visualize.
Proficient
Presenter holds
attention of entire
audience with the
use of direct eye
contact most of the
time. Student relies
on notes for
prompting only.
Presenter stands up
straight. Makes
minor mistakes, but
quickly recovers
from them; displays
little or no tension.
Movements seem
fluid and help the
audience visualize.
Apprentice
Novice
Presenter displays
minimal eye contact
with audience.
Student sometimes
reads from notes.
Presenter makes no
eye contact with
audience. Entire
presentation is read
from notes.
Presenter sometimes
stands up straight.
Displays mild
tension; has trouble
recovering from
mistakes. Very little
movement or
descriptive gestures.
Presenter slouches.
Tension and
nervousness is
obvious; has trouble
recovering from
mistakes. No
movement or
descriptive gestures.
VERBAL SKILL SET
Distinguished
Proficient
Apprentice
Novice
Volume
Presenter's voice is loud
enough to be heard by
all audience members
throughout the whole
presentation.
Presenter's voice is
loud enough to be
heard by most
audience members
throughout the
whole presentation.
Presenter's voice is
low. Audience
members have some
difficulty hearing
presentation.
Presenter’s voice is
often too soft to be
heard by the majority of
the audience members.
Clarity
Presenter uses a clear
voice and precise
pronunciation of words.
Presenter uses a
clear voice and
pronounces most
words correctly.
Presenter mumbles
at times and/or
incorrectly
pronounces some
words.
Presenter mumbles
and/or cannot be
understood. Student
mispronounces many
words.
Presenter speaks at
an inconsistent rate
throughout most of
the presentation.
Presenter speaks at an
inconsistent rate
throughout the whole
presentation.
Presenter’s delivery
rarely matches the
emotion of the topic
and/or is rarely
establishes the
appropriate
atmosphere for the
audience toward the
topic.
Presenter’s delivery
does not match the
emotion of the topic
and/or does not
establish the
appropriate atmosphere
for the audience toward
the topic.
Rate
Presenter speaks at a
steady pace; changes in
rate are purposeful.
Tone
Presenter’s delivery
matches the emotion of
the topic. The presenter
establishes the
appropriate atmosphere
for the audience toward
the topic.
Presenter speaks at
a steady pace for
most of the
presentation but at
times is too fast or
too slow.
Presenter’s delivery
matches the
emotion of the topic
most of the time.
The presenter
establishes the
appropriate
atmosphere for the
audience toward the
topic most of the
time.
4
DEMONSTRATION OF CONTENT KNOWLEDGE
Focus
Content
Organization
Distinguished
Proficient
Apprentice
Presenter
demonstrates a clear
purpose and ability
to stay on point.
Presenter shows a
full understanding of
the topic; offers
unique, insightful
perceptions;
provides
sophisticated
analysis when
appropriate;
develops ideas with
engaging supporting
details that are
specific, necessary
and thought
provoking; makes no
errors or omissions.
Presenter has some
success defining
purpose and ability
to stay on point.
Presenter attempts
to define purpose
and to stay on
point.
Presenter’s purpose
and points are not
clearly defined.
Presenter shows a
good understanding
of the topic;
includes
perspective,
persuasive analysis
when appropriate;
develops ideas
thoroughly with
supporting details
that directly relate
to focus; makes
few errors or
omissions, if any.
Presenter show
basic
understanding of
the topic; provides
basic analysis;
includes supporting
details which relate
to focus, but could
be more thorough;
makes some errors
or omissions.
Presenter shows
minimal or no
understanding of the
topic; provides
inadequate analysis;
requires additional
supporting details, or
needs to clarify the
relationship between
detail and focus; may
make significant
errors or omissions.
Student addresses
information in
logical sequence,
which audience can
follow.
Audience has
difficulty following
presentation
because the
information is not
in a logical
sequential order.
Audience cannot
understand
presentation because
there is no sequence
of information.
Presenter articulates
information in
logical, interesting,
and creative
sequence, which
audience can follow.
Novice
VISUAL ENHANCEMENT
(Based upon Assignment Requirements)
Distinguished
Visual
Enhancement
Visual enhancement
is carefully prepared
and supports the
presentation
effectively. It
clarifies and
reinforces the spoken
message while
adding impact and
interest to the
presentation.
Proficient
Visual
enhancement
supports the
presentation
effectively. It
clarifies and
reinforces the
spoken message.
Apprentice
Visual
enhancement is
attempted; but it
provides minimal
support to the
presentation. It
relates to the
spoken message.
Novice
Visual does not
enhance or support
the spoken message
and/or is not
appropriate.
–ORVisual not provided.
Revised 5-3-12
5
Mrs. Ulmer’s 10 Tips for Successful Public Speaking
Feeling some nervousness before giving a speech or presentation is natural and healthy. It
shows you care about doing well. But, too much nervousness can be detrimental or harmful.
Here's how you can control your nervousness and make effective, memorable presentations:
1. Know the room. Be familiar with the place in which you will speak.
2. Know the audience.
3. Know your material. If you're not familiar with your
material or are uncomfortable with it, your nervousness will
increase. Practice your presentation and revise it if necessary.
4. Relax. Ease tension by doing exercises.
5. Visualize yourself giving your presentation. Imagine yourself speaking,
your voice loud, clear, and assured. When you visualize yourself as successful,
you will be successful.
6. Maintain eye contact with your audience and speak up!
Your audience needs to know that you are speaking to them and they need to
be able to understand what you are saying.
7. Turn nervousness into positive energy.
Harness your nervous energy and transform
it into energy and enthusiasm.
8. Don't apologize. If you mention your
nervousness or apologize for any problems
you think you have with your speech, you
may be calling the audience's attention to
something they hadn't noticed. Keep silent.
6
9. Concentrate on the message -- not the medium. Speak to your audience -not to the floor or your presentation/visual. Focus your attention away from
your own anxieties, and outwardly toward your message and your audience.
Your nervousness will disappear.
NO!
YES!
10. Realize that people want you to succeed. Audiences want you
to be interesting, stimulating, informative, and entertaining. They don't want
you to fail.
The Five Most Important Elements to a Great Speech
These are the elements you will be graded on when it comes time to speak in front of the class.
standing
1. Poise – Look at the way you are
. Are you leaning back on the white board? Are
your arms crossed? Are you playing with your shirt? Your body language expresses more about
you sometimes than what you’re saying, so make sure you are sending the message you are
intending to send.
2. Eye Contact – Are you lking at your audience? By looking straight into your listeners’
eyes, you will be telling them that you are confident and know what you are talking about.
3. Volume – MAKE SURE YOU ARE SPEAKING LOUD ENOUGH FOR EVERYONE TO
HEAR YOU. Look around the room for items that may cause hearing problems (carpet, air
conditioner/heating vents, construction, etc.). These items all play a role in how well you are
being heard, so adjust your volume accordingly.
4. Rate – Pleasemakesureyou’respeakingataratethatisunderstandbletoeveryone. Often times
when we are nervous, we uncontrollably speed up our rate of speech. You should feel like you’re
speaking slower than usual when you are speaking publicly.
5. Clarity – Do ot umble or eech. Or in clearer words, do not mumble your speech. Be aware of
how you are pronouncing and enunciating each word and syllable.
7
How to Cure the "Verbal Virus"
A Five-Step Treatment Plan
Warning! You may be infected with a virus that could be lethal to your
grades, your presentations, and even your social life. I call it a "Verbal
Virus."
Questions you may have about this are:



What is a verbal virus?
What harm do they do?
How can they be corrected?
This handout will answer those questions.
Meaningless fillers
Verbal viruses are meaningless verbal fillers that speckle our speech, distract
from your message, drain our impact and annoy listeners. I call them verbal
viruses because they seem to be contagious and we pick them up without
being aware of it.
Common ones
The most common verbal viruses are: "uh" "um" "like" "you know" "well"
"okay" and "sort of." They also include annoying mouth sounds and lip
smacks.
You sound unsure
Verbal viruses are jarring to the ear and inconsistent with the formal image
you may be trying to exhibit when presenting a formal speech. They can
make you sound unsure, unprepared and poorly educated. The good news
about verbal viruses is that they are easily cured.
8
5-step plan
Here is a 5-step plan for prevention, treatment and cure:
1. Diagnose the problem
Since verbal viruses are unconscious, the only way you'll hear them is on
tape. Record yourself speaking to a friend to quickly determine if you are
suffering from a verbal virus infection. Or ask a friend to observe you
speaking and tell you what verbal fillers you tend to use, when you use
them, and how often you use them.
2. Pause
Whenever you catch yourself saying a non-word, just stop talking. Say
nothing. This gap of silence will feel scary at first, but if the pause is no
longer than 5 seconds, the listener will scarcely notice. A pause will help you
gather your thoughts while giving the listener time to
reflect on what you have just said.
3. Record the voicemail messages you leave for others
Listen to them note whether or not unwanted fillers have crept into your
messages.
4. Enlist the help of a friend or parent
Explain what you are trying to do and invent a code word he or she can use
every time you use a filler word. The constant reminder will help you break
the habit fast.
5. Take a breath
When you feel you are about to use a non-word, take a breath, hold it for a
moment and then begin to speak. The focus on your breathing will occupy
your mind, keep you calm and centered and make the silence between the
words seem much less scary.
In conclusion
You should try to avoid using meaningless fillers when you speak. They can
distract from our message. A plan to prevent using these "verbal viruses" is
to diagnose the problem and take steps like pausing or taking a breath
before speaking.
9
Using Your Tone of Voice
by Stephen Boyd | January 31, 2003
In speaking, we know that what we say may not be as important as how we say it. When
my children were small, the tone of my voice when I called their names told them whether I
was angry or happy with them. If I called them for dinner, they could tell by my tone of
voice whether they should have been at the table ten minutes earlier or if they had another
ten minutes to play. The tone of voice says everything. As editorial columnist and debater
James J. Kilpatrick wrote about speaking in a column entitled, "Thinking About 'Like and
As,'" "We have one tone for a eulogy, another tone for an address to the 20th Precinct
Democratic Club. Depending upon our audience, we shift keys like a pickup pianist at a
homecoming party."
We tell an audience by our tone of voice whether we are in fun or are passionate about our
topic. The tone of voice shows our concern for the audience and determines in the minds of
the audience whether or not we are sincere. The audience may say a speaker is boring even
though the content in very stimulating. It's the monotone voice that makes them think the
presentation is dull.
So as speakers we must be concerned with exhibiting the appropriate tone of voice for our
content and have the appropriate tone for the message we want to communicate. Here are
some suggestions for making our content more impactful by the tone of voice we use.

Pause before emphasizing an important word or concept. Doing that will make you
punch out what comes next to show the audience this is important.

Speed up your rate to show excitement. Speeding up will invariably make the tone of
voice more urgent and compelling.

See in your mind the story you are telling. This will translate into your vocal quality.
That is why a person who retells a story of an event that just happened will tell it
with more excitement in the voice because the picture of the event is still fresh in
his/her mind. Talk to a child at the end of a school day and he/she will give a more
excited and animated summary of the day than if you ask about the day later in the
evening or the next day. Train yourself to relive the story as you tell it and you will
see a difference in your tone of voice.

Define a place in your speech that might be considered a "wow" factor for the
audience. When you get to that point, the audience will think, "Wow! I did not realize
that!" If you can anticipate that point in the speech, you will be more likely to put
punch into the tone of voice as you speak and your content will impact your audience
with greater effect.

Include vivid facial expression or bigger gestures when you get to an emotional or
dramatic part of your presentation. More expressive body movement body will often
be reflected in the tone of your voice.
During World War II, President Franklin Delano Roosevelt gave us hope by the tone of voice
in his famous Fireside Chats. Today, we communicate fun, excitement, passion, anger, and
enthusiasm by our voices. Set the tone for your next speech by preparing your tone of
voice.
10
Really Bad PowerPoint
By Seth Godin, author, marketing expert, and award-winning public speaker
January 29, 2007
It doesn’t matter whether you’re trying to champion at a church or a school or a Fortune 100
company, you’re probably going to use PowerPoint.
PowerPoint was developed by engineers as a tool to help them communicate with the marketing
department—and vice versa. It’s a remarkable tool because it allows very dense verbal
communication. Yes, you could send a memo, but no one reads anymore. As our companies are
getting faster and faster, we need a way to communicate ideas from one group to another. Enter
PowerPoint.
PowerPoint could be the most powerful tool on your computer. But it’s not. Countless
innovations fail because their champions use PowerPoint the way Microsoft wants them to,
instead of the right way.
Communication is the transfer of emotion.
Communication is about getting others to adopt your point of view, to help them understand why
you’re excited (or sad, or optimistic or whatever else you are.)If all you want to do is create a file
of facts and figures, then cancel the meeting and send in a report.
Our brains have two sides. The right side is emotional, musical and moody. The left side is
focused on dexterity, facts and hard data. When you show up to give a presentation, people want
to use both parts of their brain. So they use the right side to judge the way you talk, the way you
dress and your body language. Often, people come to a conclusion about your presentation by
the time you’re on the second slide. After that, it’s often too late for your bullet points to do you
much good.
You can wreck a communication process with lousy logic or unsupported facts, but you can’t
complete it without emotion. Logic is not enough.
Champions must sell—to internal audiences and to the outside world.
If everyone in the room agreed with you, you wouldn’t need to do a presentation, would you?
You could save a lot of time by printing out a one-page project report and delivering it to each
person. No, the reason we do presentations is to make a point, to sell one or more ideas.
If you believe in your idea, sell it. Make your point as hard as you can and get what you came
for. Your audience will thank you for it, because deep down, we all want to be sold.
Four Components to a Great Presentation
First, make yourself cue cards. Don’t put them on the screen. Put them in your hand. Now, you
can use the cue cards you made to make sure you’re saying what you came to say.
Second, make slides that reinforce your words, not repeat them. Create slides that demonstrate,
with emotional proof, that what you’re saying is true not just accurate.
11
Talking about pollution in Houston? Instead of giving me
four bullet points of EPA data, why not read me the stats
but show me a photo of a bunch of dead birds, some
smog and even a diseased lung? This is cheating! It’s
unfair! It works.
Third, create a written document. A leave-behind. Put in
as many footnotes or details as you like. Then, when you start your presentation, tell the
audience that you’re going to give them all the details of your presentation after it’s over, and
they don’t have to write down everything you say. Remember, the presentation is to make an
emotional sale. The document is the proof that helps the intellectuals in your audience accept the
idea that you’ve sold them on emotionally.
IMPORTANT: Don’t hand out the written stuff at the beginning! If you do, people will read the
memo while you’re talking and ignore you. Instead, your goal is to get them to sit back, trust you
and take in the emotional and intellectual points of your presentation.
Fourth, create a feedback cycle. If your presentation is for a project approval, hand people a
project approval form and get them to approve it, so there’s no ambiguity at all about what
you’ve all agreed to.
The reason you give a presentation is to make a sale. So make it. Don’t leave without a “yes,” or
at the very least, a commitment to a date or to future deliverables.
Bullets Are For the NRA
Here are the five rules you need to remember to create amazing Powerpoint presentations:
1. No more than six words on a slide. EVER. There is no presentation so complex that this
rule needs to be broken.
2. No cheesy images. Use professional stock photo images.
3. No dissolves, spins or other transitions.
4. Sound effects can be used a few times per presentation, but never use the sound effects
that are built in to the program. Instead, rip sounds and music from CDs and leverage the
Proustian effect this can have. If people start bouncing up and down to the Grateful Dead,
you’ve kept them from falling asleep, and you’ve reminded them that this isn’t a typical
meeting you’re running.
5. Don’t hand out print-outs of your slides. They don’t work without you there.
The home run is easy to describe: You put up a slide. It triggers an emotional reaction in the
audience. They sit up and want to know what you’re going to say that fits in with that image.
Then, if you do it right, every time they think of what you said, they’ll see the image (and vice
versa).1
Sure, this is different from the way everyone else does it. But everyone else is busy defending
the status quo (which is easy) and you’re busy championing brave new innovations, which is
difficult.
12
Ethos, Pathos, Logos: 3 Pillars of Public Speaking
By Andrew Dlugan, award-winning speaker
January 24, 2010
2,300 years ago, Aristotle wrote down the secret to being a
persuasive speaker, the secret which forms the basis for nearly every
public speaking book written since then.
Do you know the secret?
If you don’t, you might be wondering what a 2,300-year-old theory has
to do with public speaking in the year 2010.
In a word — everything!
In this article, you’ll learn what ethos, pathos, and logos are (the
secret!), and what every speaker needs to understand about these three
pillars of public speaking.
What are Ethos, Pathos, and Logos?
So, what are ethos, pathos, and logos?
In simplest terms, they correspond to:



Ethos: credibility (or character) of the speaker
Pathos: emotional connection to the audience
Logos: logical argument
Together, they are the three persuasive appeals. In other words, these are the three essential
qualities that your speech or presentation must have before your audience will accept your
message.
Origins of Ethos, Pathos, Logos — On Rhetoric by Aristotle
Written in the 4th century B.C.E., the Greek philosopher Aristotle compiled
his thoughts on the art of rhetoric into On Rhetoric, including his theory on the
three persuasive appeals.
Many teachers of communication, speech, and rhetoric consider Aristotle’s On
Rhetoric to be a seminal work in the field. Indeed, the editors of The Rhetoric
of Western Thought: From the Mediterranean World to the Global Setting call
it “the most important single work on persuasion ever written.” It is hard to
argue this claim; most advice from modern books can be traced back to
Aristotle’s foundations.
13
Ethos
Before you can convince an audience to accept anything you say, they have to accept you as
credible.
There are many aspects to building your credibility:




Does the audience respect you?
Does the audience believe you are of good character?
Does the audience believe you are generally trustworthy?
Does the audience believe you are an authority on this speech topic?
Keep in mind that it isn’t enough for you to know that you are a credible source. (This isn’t about
your confidence, experience, or expertise.) Your audience must know this. Ethos is your level of
credibility as perceived by your audience.
Pathos
Pathos is the quality of a persuasive presentation which appeals to the emotions of the audience.



Do your words evoke feelings of … love? … sympathy? … fear?
Do your visuals evoke feelings of compassion? … envy?
Does your characterization of the competition evoke feelings of hate? contempt?
Emotional connection can be created in many ways by a speaker, perhaps most notably by
stories. The goal of a story, anecdote, analogy, simile, and metaphor is often to link an aspect of
our primary message with a triggered emotional response from the audience.
Logos
Logos is synonymous with a logical argument.



Does your message make sense?
Is your message based on facts, statistics, and evidence?
Will your call-to-action lead to the desired outcome that you promise?
Which is most important? Ethos? Pathos? or Logos?
Suppose two speakers give speeches about a new corporate restructuring strategy.


The first speaker — a grade nine student — gives a flawless speech pitching strategy A
which is both logically sound and stirs emotions.
The second speaker — a Fortune 500 CEO — gives a boring speech pitching strategy B.
Which speech is more persuasive? Is the CEO’s speech more persuasive, simply because she has
much more credibility (ethos)?
14
Some suggest that pathos is the most critical of the three. In You’ve Got to Be Believed to Be
Heard, Bert Decker says that people buy on emotion (pathos) and justify with fact (logos). True?
You decide.
Aristotle believed that logos should be the most important of the three persuasive appeals. As a
philosopher and a master of logical reasoning, he believed that logos should be the only required
persuasive appeal. That is, if you demonstrated logos, you should not need either ethos or pathos.
However, Aristotle stated that logos alone is not sufficient. Not only is it not sufficient on its
own, but it is no more important than either of the two other pillars. He argued that all three
persuasive appeals are necessary.
Is he right? What do you think?
15
GOOD PERSUASIVE SPEAKERS AVOID:
Trying to persuade the opposing side to agree with them
Using “you,” unless they know with certainty
what the reaction from the audience is going to be
Making assumptions,
generalizations or stereotypes
Having holes in their argument;
they know their opposing side as well
as they know their own.
PowerPoints or visuals that are
full of writing
Sounding like they’re
reading their presentation
Winging it
16
“I have a dream”
Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
August 26, 1963
On the steps of the Lincoln Memorial
in Washington D.C.
250,000 people in attendance
I am happy to join with you today in what will go down in history as the greatest demonstration for freedom in the
history of our nation.
Five score years ago, a great American, in whose symbolic shadow we stand today, signed the Emancipation
Proclamation. This momentous decree came as a great beacon light of hope to millions of Negro slaves who had been
seared in the flames of withering injustice. It came as a joyous daybreak to end the long night of their captivity.
But one hundred years later, the Negro still is not free. One hundred years later, the life of the Negro is still sadly
crippled by the manacles of segregation and the chains of discrimination. One hundred years later, the Negro lives on a
lonely island of poverty in the midst of a vast ocean of material prosperity. One hundred years later, the Negro is still
languished in the corners of American society and finds himself an exile in his own land. And so we've come here today
to dramatize a shameful condition.
In a sense we've come to our nation's capital to cash a check. When the architects of our republic wrote the magnificent
words of the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence, they were signing a promissory note to which every
American was to fall heir. This note was a promise that all men, yes, black men as well as white men, would be
guaranteed the "unalienable Rights" of "Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness." It is obvious today that America
has defaulted on this promissory note, insofar as her citizens of color are concerned. Instead of honoring this sacred
obligation, America has given the Negro people a bad check, a check which has come back marked "insufficient funds."
But we refuse to believe that the bank of justice is bankrupt. We refuse to believe that there are insufficient funds in the
great vaults of opportunity of this nation. And so, we've come to cash this check, a check that will give us upon demand
the riches of freedom and the security of justice.
We have also come to this hallowed spot to remind America of the fierce urgency of Now. This is no time to engage in
the luxury of cooling off or to take the tranquilizing drug of gradualism. Now is the time to make real the promises of
democracy. Now is the time to rise from the dark and desolate valley of segregation to the sunlit path of racial justice.
Now is the time to lift our nation from the quicksands of racial injustice to the solid rock of brotherhood. Now is the
time to make justice a reality for all of God's children.
It would be fatal for the nation to overlook the urgency of the moment. This sweltering summer of the Negro's
legitimate discontent will not pass until there is an invigorating autumn of freedom and equality. Nineteen sixty-three is
not an end, but a beginning. And those who hope that the Negro needed to blow off steam and will now be content will
have a rude awakening if the nation returns to business as usual. And there will be neither rest nor tranquility in
America until the Negro is granted his citizenship rights. The whirlwinds of revolt will continue to shake the
foundations of our nation until the bright day of justice emerges.
But there is something that I must say to my people, who stand on the warm threshold which leads into the palace of
justice: In the process of gaining our rightful place, we must not be guilty of wrongful deeds. Let us not seek to satisfy
our thirst for freedom by drinking from the cup of bitterness and hatred. We must forever conduct our struggle on the
17
high plane of dignity and discipline. We must not allow our creative protest to degenerate into physical violence. Again
and again, we must rise to the majestic heights of meeting physical force with soul force.
The marvelous new militancy which has engulfed the Negro community must not lead us to a distrust of all white
people, for many of our white brothers, as evidenced by their presence here today, have come to realize that their
destiny is tied up with our destiny. And they have come to realize that their freedom is inextricably bound to our
freedom.
We cannot walk alone.
And as we walk, we must make the pledge that we shall always march ahead.
We cannot turn back.
There are those who are asking the devotees of civil rights, "When will you be satisfied?" We can never be satisfied as
long as the Negro is the victim of the unspeakable horrors of police brutality. We can never be satisfied as long as our
bodies, heavy with the fatigue of travel, cannot gain lodging in the motels of the highways and the hotels of the cities.
We cannot be satisfied as long as the negro's basic mobility is from a smaller ghetto to a larger one. We can never be
satisfied as long as our children are stripped of their self-hood and robbed of their dignity by a sign stating: "For Whites
Only." We cannot be satisfied as long as a Negro in Mississippi cannot vote and a Negro in New York believes he has
nothing for which to vote. No, no, we are not satisfied, and we will not be satisfied until "justice rolls down like waters,
and righteousness like a mighty stream."
I am not unmindful that some of you have come here out of great trials and tribulations. Some of you have come fresh
from narrow jail cells. And some of you have come from areas where your quest -- quest for freedom left you battered
by the storms of persecution and staggered by the winds of police brutality. You have been the veterans of creative
suffering. Continue to work with the faith that unearned suffering is redemptive. Go back to Mississippi, go back to
Alabama, go back to South Carolina, go back to Georgia, go back to Louisiana, go back to the slums and ghettos of our
northern cities, knowing that somehow this situation can and will be changed.
Let us not wallow in the valley of despair, I say to you today, my friends.
And so even though we face the difficulties of today and tomorrow, I still have a dream. It is a dream deeply rooted in
the American dream.
I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: "We hold these truths to
be self-evident, that all men are created equal."
I have a dream that one day on the red hills of Georgia, the sons of former slaves and the sons of former slave owners
will be able to sit down together at the table of brotherhood.
I have a dream that one day even the state of Mississippi, a state sweltering with the heat of injustice, sweltering with
the heat of oppression, will be transformed into an oasis of freedom and justice.
I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of
their skin but by the content of their character.
I have a dream today!
I have a dream that one day, down in Alabama, with its vicious racists, with its governor having his lips dripping with
the words of "interposition" and "nullification" -- one day right there in Alabama little black boys and black girls will be
able to join hands with little white boys and white girls as sisters and brothers.
18
I have a dream today!
I have a dream that one day every valley shall be exalted, and every hill and mountain shall be made low, the rough
places will be made plain, and the crooked places will be made straight; "and the glory of the Lord shall be revealed and
all flesh shall see it together."
This is our hope, and this is the faith that I go back to the South with.
With this faith, we will be able to hew out of the mountain of despair a stone of hope. With this faith, we will be able to
transform the jangling discords of our nation into a beautiful symphony of brotherhood. With this faith, we will be able
to work together, to pray together, to struggle together, to go to jail together, to stand up for freedom together, knowing
that we will be free one day.
And this will be the day -- this will be the day when all of God's children will be able to sing with new meaning:
My country 'tis of thee, sweet land of liberty, of thee I sing.
Land where my fathers died, land of the Pilgrim's pride,
From every mountainside, let freedom ring!
And if America is to be a great nation, this must become true.
And so let freedom ring from the prodigious hilltops of New Hampshire.
Let freedom ring from the mighty mountains of New York.
Let freedom ring from the heightening Alleghenies of
Pennsylvania.
Let freedom ring from the snow-capped Rockies of Colorado.
Let freedom ring from the curvaceous slopes of California.
But not only that:
Let freedom ring from Stone Mountain of Georgia.
Let freedom ring from Lookout Mountain of Tennessee.
Let freedom ring from every hill and molehill of Mississippi.
From every mountainside, let freedom ring.
And when this happens, when we allow freedom ring, when we let it ring from every village and every hamlet, from
every state and every city, we will be able to speed up that day when all of God's children, black men and white men,
Jews and Gentiles, Protestants and Catholics, will be able to join hands and sing in the words of the old Negro spiritual:
Free at last! Free at last!
Thank God Almighty, we are free at last!
19
“Victory Speech”
Barack Obama
November 4, 2008
Grant Park in Chicago, Illinois
240,000 people in attendance
If there is anyone out there who still doubts that America is a place where all things are possible; who
still wonders if the dream of our founders is alive in our time; who still questions the power of our
democracy, tonight is your answer.
It's the answer told by lines that stretched around schools and churches in numbers this nation has
never seen; by people who waited three hours and four hours, many for the very first time in their
lives, because they believed that this time must be different; that their voices could be that difference.
It's the answer spoken by young and old, rich and poor, Democrat and Republican, black, white,
Hispanic, Asian, Native American, gay, straight, disabled and not disabled -- Americans who sent a
message to the world that we have never been just a collection of individuals or a collection of Red
States and Blue States: we are, and always will be, the United States of America!
It's the answer that -- that led those who have been told for so long by so many to be cynical, and
fearful, and doubtful about what we can achieve to put their hands on the arc of history and bend it
once more toward the hope of a better day.
It's been a long time coming, but tonight, because of what we did on this day, in this election, at this
defining moment, change has come to America.
***
But above all, I will never forget who this victory truly belongs to. It belongs to you. It belongs to
you. I was never the likeliest candidate for this office. We didn't start with much money or many
endorsements. Our campaign was not hatched in the halls of Washington. It began in the backyards
of Des Moines and the living rooms of Concord and the front porches of Charleston. It was built by
working men and women who dug into what little savings they had to give 5 dollars and 10 dollars
and 20 dollars to the cause. It grew strength from the young people who rejected the myth of their
generation's apathy, who left their homes and their families for jobs that offered little pay and less
sleep. It drew strength from the not-so-young people who braved the bitter cold and scorching heat to
knock on doors of perfect strangers, and from the millions of Americans who volunteered and
organized and proved that more than two centuries later a government of the people, by the people,
and for the people has not perished from the Earth. This is your victory.
And I know you didn't do this just to win an election. And I know you didn't do it for me. You did it
because you understand the enormity of the task that lies ahead. For even as we celebrate tonight, we
know the challenges that tomorrow will bring are the greatest of our lifetime: two wars, a planet in
peril, the worst financial crisis in a century. Even as we stand here tonight, we know there are brave
Americans waking up in the deserts of Iraq and the mountains of Afghanistan to risk their lives for
us. There are mothers and fathers who will lie awake after the children fall asleep and wonder how
20
they'll make the mortgage or pay their doctors' bills or save enough for their child's college
education. There's new energy to harness, new jobs to be created, new schools to build, and threats to
meet, alliances to repair.
The road ahead will be long. Our climb will be steep. We may not get there in one year or even in
one term. But, America, I have never been more hopeful than I am tonight that we will get there. I
promise you, “we as a people will get there.”
There will be setbacks and false starts. There are many who won't agree with every decision or policy
I make as President. And we know the government can't solve every problem. But I will always be
honest with you about the challenges we face. I will listen to you, especially when we disagree. And,
above all, I will ask you to join in the work of remaking this nation, the only way it's been done in
America for 221 years -- block by block, brick by brick, calloused hand by calloused hand. What
began 21 months ago in the depths of winter cannot end on this autumn night.
This victory alone is not the change we seek. It is only the chance for us to make that change. And
that cannot happen if we go back to the way things were. It can't happen without you, without a new
spirit of service, a new spirit of sacrifice. So let us summon a new spirit of patriotism, of
responsibility, where each of us resolves to pitch in and work harder and look after not only
ourselves but each other. Let us remember that, if this financial crisis taught us anything, it's that we
cannot have a thriving Wall Street while Main Street suffers. In this country, we rise or fall as one
nation, as one people. Let's resist the temptation to fall back on the same partisanship and pettiness
and immaturity that has poisoned our politics for so long.
Let's remember that it was a man from this state who first carried the banner of the Republican Party
to the White House, a Party founded on the values of self-reliance and individual liberty and national
unity. Those are values that we all share. And while the Democratic Party has won a great victory
tonight, we do so with a measure of humility and determination to heal the divides that have held
back our progress. As Lincoln said to a nation far more divided than ours: "We are not enemies but
friends...." "Though passion may have strained, it must not break our bonds of affection."
And to those Americans who -- whose support I have yet to earn, I may not have won your vote
tonight, but I hear your voices. I need your help. And I will be your President, too.
And to all those watching tonight from beyond our shores, from parliaments and palaces, to those
who are huddled around radios in the forgotten corners of the world, our stories are singular, but our
destiny is shared, and a new dawn of American leadership is at hand.
To those -- To those who would tear the world down: We will defeat you. To those who seek peace
and security: We support you. And to all those who have wondered if America's beacon still burns as
bright: Tonight we've proved once more that the true strength of our nation comes not from the might
of our arms or the scale of our wealth, but from the enduring power of our ideals: democracy, liberty,
opportunity, and unyielding hope.
That's the true genius of America: that America can change. Our union can be perfected. What we've
already achieved gives us hope for what we can and must achieve tomorrow.
This election had many firsts and many stories that will be told for generations. But one that's on my
mind tonight's about a woman who cast her ballot in Atlanta. She's a lot like the millions of others
who stood in line to make their voice heard in this election except for one thing: Ann Nixon Cooper
is 106 years old.
21
She was born just a generation past slavery; a time when there were no cars on the road or planes in
the sky; when someone like her couldn't vote for two reasons: because she was a woman and because
of the color of her skin.
And tonight, I think about all that she's seen throughout her century in America -- the heartache and
the hope; the struggle and the progress; the times we were told that we can't, and the people who
pressed on with that American creed: Yes we can.
At a time when women's voices were silenced and their hopes dismissed, she lived to see them stand
up and speak out and reach for the ballot: Yes we can.
When there was despair in the dust bowl and depression across the land, she saw a nation conquer
fear itself with a New Deal, new jobs, a new sense of common purpose: Yes we can.
When the bombs fell on our harbor and tyranny threatened the world, she was there to witness a
generation rise to greatness and a democracy was saved: Yes we can.
She was there for the buses in Montgomery, the hoses in Birmingham, a bridge in Selma, and a
preacher from Atlanta who told a people that "we shall overcome": Yes we can.
A man touched down on the moon, a wall came down in Berlin, a world was connected by our own
science and imagination.
And this year, in this election, she touched her finger to a screen, and cast her vote, because after 106
years in America, through the best of times and the darkest of hours, she knows how America can
change: Yes we can.
America, we have come so far. We have seen so much. But there is so much more to do. So tonight,
let us ask ourselves -- if our children should live to see the next century; if my daughters should be so
lucky to live as long as Ann Nixon Cooper, what change will they see? What progress will we have
made?
This is our chance to answer that call. This is our moment. This is our time, to put our people back to
work and open doors of opportunity for our kids; to restore prosperity and promote the cause of
peace; to reclaim the American dream and reaffirm that fundamental truth, that, out of many, we are
one; that while we breathe, we hope. And where we are met with cynicism and doubt and those who
tell us that we can't, we will respond with that timeless creed that sums up the spirit of a people: Yes,
we can.
Thank you.
God bless you. And may God bless the United States of America.
22
Analyzing Powerful Speeches
Powerful speeches are structured very much like powerful writing. The speaker
and speech both have a very distinct and clear purpose, the speech has a specific
tone, and the speaker plays to both the logical and emotional sides of the audience,
while making sure to establish credibility. The speaker is also very aware of his/her
audience and uses this knowledge in his/her speech.
Now that we have analyzed a famous speech together for its purpose, audience
awareness, and use of logical, emotional, and credibility appeals, it is your turn to
choose a powerful speech to analyze for the same powerful speech aspects.
Please visit http://www.americanrhetoric.com/. Here you will find a database of
5,000+ famous speeches, from political speeches to movie speeches. Please spend
about 15 minutes browsing through this database before choosing a speech (real or
literary) to analyze. If you pick a speech and cannot understand it, pick another
one!
You should turn in the following:
1. The speech with your handwriting on it, pointing out where (and if) the
speaker uses logical, emotional, and credibility appeal, and where the
speaker points out his/her purpose and knowledge of the audience.
2. Your analysis in the following order:
a. Purpose – Did, and if so, how, the speaker make his/her purpose
known?
b. Audience Awareness – Was the speaker aware of his/her audience? If
so, how did he/she use that awareness to make his/her speech more
effective?
c. Logos – How did the speaker use logical appeal?
d. Ethos – How did the speaker establish both him/herself as a credible
speaker and his/her information as credible information?
e. Pathos – How did the speaker appeal to the emotional side of the
audience?
h
23
Name: _________________________________________________________________
An Inconvenient Truth
Al Gore
Directions: Evaluate how Al Gore “stacks up” when giving his persuasive presentation on
global warming. What do you notice about the former vice president’s presentation in regards to
his public speaking skills? Some things to consider: Know the Room; Know the Audience; Know
Your Material; Relax; Visualize; Turn Nervous Energy into Positive Energy; Don’t Apologize;
Concentrate on the Message – Not the Medium; People Want you to Succeed; Tone; PowerPoint
Presentations; Winging it; Making Assumptions; Reading One’s Presentation; Poise; Eye
Contact; Volume; Rate; Clarity; Organization; Visual Enhancements; Using PowerPoint;
Logos, Ethos and Pathos
Tip or
Al Gore
Speech Element
Example:
Knowing the material &
Being relaxed
Al Gore has obviously rehearsed his presentation. He never
stumbles over what he is saying and seems relaxed and confident.
24
Overall, do you think Al Gore’s presentation was effective? Why?
25