Persuasive Speeches
Persuasive speeches are a customary part of the public speaking course. For your speech, select
one of the following “hypothetical situations” by which to frame the arguments for your speech:
1) You are an advocate for a large non-profit or private organization that either helps others
or produces artistic or scientific endeavors for public benefit. Create your speech as
though you were advocating for your group to receive a 1 million dollar grant. What is
the history of your group, and what is the problem your group is trying to solve? What
are the causes to the problems? How can your 1 million dollar grant serve as a solution?
What statistics back up these arguments? What is a reason some people might not want to
help out the organization (opposing viewpoint)? Offer a visualization and call to action to
demonstrate how your organization will benefit from the grant.
2) Inspire us with a philosophical argument (persuasion) supporting an ideology that is
based on human relationship with others in the world around them. Such topics may
include: “love your neighbor,” or “spend more time in nature.” What is the problem you
see in society with regards to your ideology? What are people not doing enough? Why
are they not doing it, and what are some statistics to back it up? Offer a solution using the
“persuasive speech” elements of opposing viewpoint, visualization, call to action.
*Remember* it is more credible to include an in-text citation for each of the following
sections…
Persuasive speeches should include:
1. History/Problem: Tell us the background of your case. How and why did it develop,
define the key terms, explain the key facts, values, opinions, beliefs, and/or policies.
2. Cause: In the problem-cause-solution pattern, you should describe why a topic is a
serious problem and the known causes of that problem. For example, if the topic was
diabetes, certain causes may include diet, genetics, biochemical processes, and obesity.
3. Solution: Your proposed solution for preventing diabetes or mitigating its effects would
then be based on what you know about these causes and what steps should be taken to
arrive at a feasible solution.
4. Opposing view point: In this section, explain the argument against your own. Give
reasons why the opposing viewpoint works, and then refute those reasons with your
better ones.
5. Rebuttal to opposing viewpoint: In this section, address the opposing viewpoint and
explain how your argument is actually better or more feasible.
6. Visualize costs and benefits: In this section, help us see the ways your argument makes
the problem better. Tell us how it would look in a real-life scenario.
7. Call to action: In this section, tell us what we can do to help you with your issue.
Possible call to actions include: finding out more information, visiting a website, place of
business, organization, making a call, and signing a petition.
PERSUASIVE SPEECH ASSIGNMENT
Prepare this speech according to the directions and suggestions below. Additionally, you need to
turn in a completed preparation outline on the day your speech is due.
HIGHLIGHTED SKILLS:
 Thesis statement and connected main supporting points
 Use of persuasive appeals
 Absence of fallacies
 Sincere delivery
 Use of outline
 Citing research
TIME LIMIT: 5-6 minutes
Topic selection. Your purpose here is to choose and examine a debatable issue (an issue that
someone else could or may argue against) and then…
 create, change, or reinforce thinking or
 create, change, or reinforce action
Audience analysis is essential. Obviously, you frame your message for your specific listeners.
Don’t speak to us as if we are some generic audience.
Are you arguing a question of …?
 Fact – that something is true or not, happened or not, or exists or not.
 Value – that something is right or wrong, or good or bad.
 Policy – how things should happen or get done on an individual, group, societal or global
level (past, present or future)
Sections of the speech:
1. Introduction
a. Attention material
i. Rhetorical question
ii. Shocking statistic
iii. Narrative
iv. Quote
v. Humor
vi. Thesis
vii. Initial credibility
viii. Internal preview
2. Body
a. Problem
b. Cause
c. Solution
d. Opposing viewpoint – Develop the negative picture first, and then reveal what
could happen if your ideas are accepted.
i. Rebuttal to opposing viewpoint
3. Conclusion
a. Summary of speech and thesis
b. Audience takeaway
c. Closing material
i. Visualization - Describe what the situation will look like if your ideas are
adopted. Emphasize the positive aspects.
ii. Call to action – Leave your audience with specific things they can do to
solve the problem. You want them to take action now.
iii. Rhetorical question
iv. Shocking statistic
v. Narrative
vi. Quote
vii. Humor
Audiences must perceive you as ethical and civil to be persuaded. Pay added attention to these
qualities.
Strengthen your argument with relevant and credible research. You must verbally cite a
minimum of two research sources during the speech.
Use a variety of forms of support, looking especially to narrative, emotional proof, and personal
experience.
Visual support is required for this speech. Make sure your visuals add to your credibility and
persuasiveness.
Work to engage your listeners. The more your listeners feel personally involved in your
argument, the more likely you are to be successful in your persuasion.
You have three classic appeals in persuasion: ethos (speaker credibility), pathos (emotion) and
logos (logic). You also have a variety of contemporary appeals. Select the appeals appropriate
and effective for your message.
If you are using reasoning (logos) as one of your persuasive tools, be sure to avoid reasoning
fallacies.
Genuine delivery. Look in our eyes, stand up straight, move your body convincingly, use your
voice in a way that we believe that you believe in what you’re saying. Let your passion for your
ideas come through in your body, face and voice.
Speak conversationally. If you use note cards, use them for your speaking outline only. There is
a maximum of 5 cards allowed.
Consider your language. Keep in inclusive, make it accurate, and define terms,
Make eye contact with your audience. Show confidence in your other nonverbals.
Use a solid volume. We have to hear you to be able to interact with your message.
Practice to familiarize yourself with your material and to meet the time limit.
Persuasive Speech
Speaker: Student Name Here
Title: Dissolution of the Bipartisan System
Speech Purpose: To persuade
INTRODUCTION/ATTENTION
1. Attention material
a. Narrative
i. When I first was getting my license, I ended up with something we’ve all
seen, a voter registration form.
ii. I wasn’t completely sure of my own political views at the time, and as I
looked over the options for my political party, I just checked the box for
the one I recognized and thought I would agree with.
iii. Honestly, I had no idea what my party really stood for, or the things that
they’ve tried to accomplish and achieve, but I didn’t know this for any of
the parties either.
iv. I found myself aligned with a group of people and quickly realized I
would be judged by others, depending on what party I chose to affiliate
with.
v. Even the first time I voted, I wasn’t sure what those people stood for or
what they wanted to do, or even what the measures were that I had to vote
on as well.
b. Rhetorical question
i. How many of you know what your party has accomplished?
ii. How about what they are really striving for?
iii. Nowadays, it’s pretty commonplace to check the box for the politician that
is running in your party without really knowing what that person stands
for and what they’re record is.
iv. We just check the box because you tell yourself, “I’m a republican, and so
is this guy, so he must want what I want.”
c. Startling statistic
i. Everyone knows that the two parties that get the most representation in
this country are the republicans and the democrats.
ii. But did you know that as of 2013, despite whether they lean towards
democrat or republican ideals, 42% of Americans have identified as
politically independent (Gallup.com).
d. Quote
i. George Washington warned of the problems that come with partisanship
in his farewell address by saying “The alternate domination of one faction
over another, sharpened by the spirit of revenge, natural to party
dissension, which in different ages and countries has perpetrated the most
horrid enormities, is itself a frightful despotism,” (harpers.org).
e. Thesis
i. What I’m trying to get at is that we should stop using political parties to
categorize politicians, because it causes more problems than it solves.
f. Internal preview
i. During my speech, I’d like to talk about:
1. The history of the bipartisan system and the issues it has.
2. The benefits from dissolving the party systems and what that
would mean for us.
3. Problems that can arise from having a no party government.
g. Initial credibility
i. I’ve spent many hours discussing and researching the party system.
ii. I’ve been watching political news channels for some time now and have
better learned what each party is up to and how they’ve gone about their
business.
Transition: Now let’s talk a little bit about the history of the bipartisan system.
BODY
1. Main Point 1 (History): The two party, or bipartisan, system has its beginnings in the
early years of our nation, and its problems have only grown since then.
a. This system first came about in 1854 when the Republican Party officially
established itself in opposition against the Democratic Party, (brittanica.com).
i. The split was because of the differing opinions on slavery and how it
should be treated in the territories to the west.
ii. As we all know, this issue led to the Civil War, as we fought each other
over the freedom of slaves.
1. Our bipartisan system, that we continue to use, has its beginnings
in war, yet we still use it to this day.
b. (Problem): Some of the issues that the bipartisan system has created over the
years are clear, others, not so much.
i. A huge issue is that either party can put forth however extreme a candidate
that they want and this person is more likely to become elected than if
each and every voter was able to choose their top two candidates
(usnews.com).
1. (Cause): Independent voters are essentially unrepresented in any
given election.
c. (Problem): Politicians have been able to gerrymander electoral districts.
i. (Cause): The reason behind this is that traditionally, borders of electoral
districts were moved to where they favor one political party or another.
1. This practice is still widely used, with only a few states even trying
to fight it (aclu.org).
d. (Problem): One of the big issues I’ve noticed with the two party system lies with
the people though.
i. (Cause): This may not be true for everyone, but very often after Election
Day, I’ve asked people who they voted for and why and I ended up with a
very common answer.
1. Many of them just voted for the politician that aligned themselves
with their party, without knowing what that person wanted to do
once they got into office.
Transition: These issues are only scratching the surface of the issue, but I think you are
beginning to see the problem. There are some pretty major benefits to getting rid of our
bipartisan system.
2. Main Point 2 (Satisfaction): The biggest and most beneficial outcome of dissolving the
current party system we have in place is that it would benefit our nation and our
government, which in turn benefits us!
a. This would force us all to have to become more informed voters.
i. No longer can anyone just vote for whoever aligns themselves with their
favorite party. Nor can they decide they don’t like someone just because
“he’s a democrat” or “they’re a republican.”
ii. Currently, there are times that a person is best represented by a person of
the opposing party, obviously this isn’t benefitting the person.
1. Every candidate in every elections that affiliates with either party
agrees with the ideals of their party in a broad and general sense,
but each candidate varies in personal opinion on specific issues,
and may not vote the way the rest of their party does on a
particular issue.
2. Having a no party system, people can stop judging whether or not
they agree with a political candidate based on their political
affiliation and more on how they feel about key issues.
Transition: Now I know not everyone agrees with me on this topic, and I’m sure some of you
have a few issues with it.
3. Main Point 3 (Opposing Viewpoint): Having a government free of political parties may
have its issues, but they aren’t all bad.
a. Organization is key. And doubtlessly, without our party system, our government
would fall apart, right?
i. (Opposing Viewpoint Rebuttal): Not true. While our current system is
rather organized, it’s almost too much so. The two parties formed together
under broad ideas that unified them and even helped provide the muscle to
push forward their groups legislature, but even now there are countless
different off branches and sects that form within the parties, all with
differing ideals. So a reform to a multiple party system, or a no party
system, might be just what they need (delewareonline.com).
b. (Satisfaction): A political party provides a place for likeminded individuals to
come together and try to advance their ideals, and tearing down the bipartisan
system would compromise this right, would it not?
i. Put simply, dissolving the two party system may have people stumbling at
first, but it wouldn’t take long for people to gather up again and discuss
their ideals.
Transition: So now you’ve learned a little about our countries bipartisan system, and some of its
faults.
CONCLUSION
Summary of speech thesis: With our current bipartisan political system, some of the nation’s
biggest issues may never be solved, and dissolving the parties could be just what we need to
remedy this.
Audience take-away (Visualization): Whenever you find yourself unsure of your political
party, or even of just a particular politician, I urge you to look into this idea, and think about how
removing the labels of this party and that party can benefit you and everyone in your life.
Closing material (Call to Action): Our republican and democratic leadership has failed to solve
many of our biggest problems, I say it’s time we work together and forget the labels.
References
Berger, B. (2013, May 2). Breaking the Hold of Two-Party Politics. Retrieved November 2,
2014, from http://www.usnews.com/opinion/articles/2013/05/02/why-the-two-partypolitical-system-is-failing-the-united-states
Dameron, K. (2010, October 6). Staff Editorial: Do not blindly vote one party. Retrieved
November 2, 2014, from http://www.dailyeasternnews.com/2010/10/26/staff-editorialdo-not-blindly-vote-one-party/
Democratic Party. (2014). In Encyclopædia Britannica. Retrieved from
http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/157244/Democratic-Party
Durante, C. (2014, September 13). Do we still benefit from the two-party system? Retrieved
November 18, 2014, from
http://www.delawareonline.com/story/opinion/contributors/2014/09/13/still-benefit-twoparty-system/15530441/
Horton, S. (2008, June 5). Washington on the Threat of Partisan Entrenchment. Retrieved
November 18, 2014, from http://harpers.org/blog/2008/07/washington-on-the-threat-ofpartisan-entrenchment/
Jones, J. (2014, January 8). Record-High 42% of Americans Identify as Independents. Retrieved
November 18, 2014, from http://www.gallup.com/poll/166763/record-high-americansidentify-independents.aspx
"Redistricting." American Civil Liberties Union. ACLU, 8 Jan. 2014. Retrieved from
https://www.aclu.org/voting-rights/redistricting 18 Nov. 2014.
Tafel, R. (2013, October 7). The Only Upside to the Shutdown: Realizing We Need a New
Political System. Retrieved November 3, 2014, from
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/rich-tafel/the-only-upside-to-the-sh_b_4060985.html
PERSUASIVE SPEECH EVALUATION
Speaker:
___X__ Organization (5-10%)
·
rhetorical question
·
generalized statement
·
shocking statistic
·
narrative
·
roadmap
·
purpose
.
thesis
·
three main points
.
Opposing Viewpoint
__X__Outline (5-10%)
__X__Delivery (5-10%)
·
volume, rate, pauses
·
language enhanced understanding
·
good gestures, movement, posture
·
good eye contact
·
extemporaneous delivery
·
confidence
__X__5 In-text citations (Less than 5 is incomplete)
__X__5 verbal citations (Less than 5 is incomplete)
.
.
.
.
·
·
·
·
·
Visualization
Satisfaction
Call to Action
subpoints
re-state main points
memorable closing
philosophical thought
entertaining narrative
use of humor
__X__Spelling/grammar/punctuation
__X__APA format: in-text citations and Reference page
__X__Time (5-10%)
__X__Rough draft is stapled to final copy (10%)
_____/150__TOTAL
COMMENTS: