Page 355 - Between One and Many The Art and Science of Public Speaking

322 Part 3 Putting Theory Into Practice

Generally speaking, the more abstract or unfamiliar something is, the more
it begs to be illustrated visually. If you plan to speak on a topic that involves
subjects for which the audience has only a vague reference, and gestures alone
will not suffi ce, illustrative media can make these subjects more concrete for the
audience.

Simplifying the Spoken Word

In the course of speaking or listening to a speaker, you may encounter verbal
statements that are so complex they demand to be illustrated visually. Certainly
this is the case with many informative speeches. It is next to impossible to ad-
equately explain a topic such as the structure of DNA without visuals. It’s not
that words cannot convey the complexity of this topic but that they are ill suited
to the task. Why make it diffi cult for your audience by trying to verbally explain
what can be readily understood with a graphic poster or slide?

Complementing the Spoken Message

Finally, visual aids frequently serve more than a single purpose. For example,
they may illustrate what we say and visually complement our general topic. One
of our international students gave an informative speech on Mexican traditions.
She visually complemented her speech by wearing traditional folk dress. An
Indonesian student wore a Batik skirt for her speech about the arts and crafts of
her home country.
A student from Los Angeles created what amounted to a visual theme to
complement his informative speech on hiking the Appalachian Trail. He cre-
ated a large backdrop using a visible and colorful trail map dry-mounted on tag
board along with several large colored photos similarly mounted. He also fi rst
displayed and then put on the actual backpack he used on his trek over the trail.
As he talked about where he trekked, the things he saw, and the gear needed, he
used each of these as both an illustration and as an overall complement to his
speech.
Although visual aids may serve other functions, the ones described here will
help you decide which function is most likely to serve your purpose. Keep this
in mind as we turn to selecting the visual aids most appropriate to you and the
purpose your speech is designed to serve.

Selecting the Right Content

Which is better? A photograph of an object or the object itself? The answer, of
course, is that it depends. It depends on your topic and purpose. It depends on
the rhetorical situation, including any constraints you will face as a result of the
physical context in which you speak. It depends on the nature of the content you
plan on sharing with your audience. And it depends on your skill in using spe-
cifi c types of presentational media.
After thinking through the demands of the context, we can begin to focus on
the relationship between the content of the speech and the presentational media
from which we can choose. Some kinds of information are better suited to visual