Page 43 - Between One and Many The Art and Science of Public Speaking

10 Part 1 Foundations

topic you plan to address. As part of their audience analysis, the best speakers
listen to what audience members say well in advance of speaking. These speak-
ers know that what they hear contains clues about what an audience is thinking.
These speakers then use these clues in both the preparation and delivery of their
speeches.
Learning to speak requires skill in organizing your thoughts and highlighting
key points for listeners. As you learn to do this for your speeches, you will also
learn how to organize the information you receive from speakers, separating
the important ideas from the unimportant. Finally, speakers have to learn how
to research and support their ideas. As a listener, you will need to evaluate the
research and support other speakers provide to you. In fact, almost every public
speaking skill we will discuss has a parallel skill for the listener.

Public Reasons for Developing

Speaking Skills

Skilled public speakers serve as agents of change not only in the workplace but
in the larger world as well. Were it not for those who spoke out publicly, the vot-
ing age would still be 21 and only white male property owners would be able to
vote. All the progress of the past century has resulted from people coming up
with new and sometimes controversial ideas and speaking out to persuade oth-
ers of the wisdom of adopting them.

Becoming a Critical Thinker

As we discuss in Chapter 15, the ability to think critically about your own mes-
sages and those of others is essential to reaching sound conclusions about the
issues of the day. Not only should speakers strive to base their persuasive efforts
on sound reasoning, listeners need to take responsibility to detect unsound rea-
soning. Some arguments that seem valid actually contain fl aws that render them
invalid. Becoming a critical thinker will make you less susceptible to phony argu-
ments and less prone to engage in them yourself.

Functioning as an Informed Citizen

Our nation is a democratic republic based on the premise that for our country
to thrive there must be a free exchange of ideas. Thus, it is no accident that the
First Amendment to the Constitution guarantees freedom of speech, as well as
freedom of the press, religion, and peaceable assembly. The fundamental prem-
ise of our Constitution is that the people must have the information necessary
to make informed decisions. Even if you don’t have an immediate need to speak
out on an issue of public policy, you will be the consumer of countless speeches
on every issue imaginable—from atmospheric warming to zero-tolerance poli-
cies in college dorms for drug possession. The ability to forcefully and publicly
present your thoughts to others—whether as a speaker or as an audience member
questioning a speaker—is more than a desirable skill. It is also a responsibility
you owe to others and yourself.