Page 329 - Between One and Many The Art and Science of Public Speaking

296 Part 3 Putting Theory Into Practice

expressive than others, like France and Italy. Some cultures, such as Indonesia,
frown on people revealing too much nonverbally. As audience members, we
need to be careful about reading too much into the nonverbal elements of deliv-
ery when listening to a speaker.

Delivery and the Nonverbal

Communication System

Recall that a system is a collection of interdependent and interrelated compo-
nents. A change in one component will produce changes in them all. The non-
verbal system has as its components several interdependent dimensions of be-
havior that profoundly affect the delivery of a speech. The specifi c dimensions
we discuss in this section are the environment, appearance, the face and eyes,
gestures and movement, posture, touch, and time. As a speaker intent on deliv-
ering a message effectively, you need to approach these dimensions systemati-
cally. Further, the verbal language with which you construct your speech should
take into account what you’ve learned from your systematic assessment of the
nonverbal dimensions.

The Environment

For our purposes, environment refers to the physical surroundings as we speak
environment
and the physical distance separating us from our audience. Both surroundings
The physical surround-
and physical space have an undeniable impact not only on our delivery but also
ings as you speak and
on how the speech is perceived by our audience.
the physical distance
separating you from your The physical characteristics of the room in which we speak—for example,
audience. lighting, temperature, comfort, and aesthetics—will infl uence both us and the
9
audience physically and psychologically. A bright, aesthetically neutral room,
which is neither sterile nor plushly decorated, and in which the temperature is
68 degrees, will have a much different overall impact on the speech transaction
than a room that is dimly lit, richly furnished, and 75 degrees. Whereas in the
fi rst, both speaker and audience are likely to be alert and attentive, the second
might prove so comfortable that neither the speaker nor the audience is suf-
fi ciently aroused for the transaction. Thus we would have to plan our delivery
accordingly. Whereas a “normal” pattern of delivery probably would be appro-
priate in the fi rst environment, we likely would need to put extra energy and
enthusiasm into the delivery to succeed in the second.
A second environmental consideration is the physical layout of the room. We
have been in situations where student presentations were hindered by pillars
supporting the roof, by the width and length of the room, and by immovable ob-
jects such as tables. Sometimes we have no alternative but to do the best we can
in such situations. As a result, we move more than we had planned as we speak,
abandon visual aids that would prove impossible for our entire audience to see,
or make gestures larger and more exaggerated than is customary.
At other times, however, we will have the opportunity to physically arrange
the room in which we will speak. This may include the position of a lectern,
elevation of a stage, and confi guration of an audience. Given this opportunity,
experienced speakers will arrange the environment in concert with their style of
delivery. Speakers who have a traditional style of delivery may prefer a lectern,