Page 59 - Between One and Many The Art and Science of Public Speaking

26 Part 1 Foundations

for example, you may not get the response you desire. Only after you thoroughly
understand your speech situation, your audience, and their expectations should
you begin to consider the purpose for your speech.

Choosing a General Speech Purpose

general purpose One of the fi rst decisions a speaker faces is to decide on the general purpose—
The primary function of the primary function—of the speech. The three commonly agreed upon general
a speech. The three purposes are to inform, to persuade, and to entertain. The most common types
commonly agreed upon of speeches seek to inform others about things they do not already know or to
general purposes are to persuade others to believe or behave in certain ways. Persuasive speeches not
inform, to persuade, and only seek change, they also may seek to reinforce social values, as when some-
to entertain. one gives a Fourth of July speech or a sermon. Other speeches seek to entertain
by sharing an enjoyable experience. Obviously, these general purposes are not
mutually exclusive. A persuasive speech will also inform the audience, and an
informative speech should be interesting enough that it encourages the audi-
ence to listen. Never theless, the general purpose you either have been assigned
or have decided on yourself should tell you something about the topic you ulti-
mately choose. Simply put, some topics may be inappropriate or only margin-
ally appropriate to your purpose. Though controversial topics, for example, lend
themselves to a persuasive speech, they are less well suited to an informative
speech.

Choosing a Topic

Once you’ve analyzed your audience, the situation you face, and selected a gen-
eral purpose, one of the hardest things for many beginning speakers is the se-
lection of a topic. Sometimes your instructor will do this for you, but it’s just as
likely you’ll have to decide on a topic yourself.
In many classes, the fi rst speech you give may not require choosing a complex
topic. Many of the suggestions in the pages that follow will not become relevant
until later in the class. However, even if you are simply introducing yourself or
telling a story, you still need to choose what you will say about yourself or what
experience you will relate. Many of the same criteria that govern topic choice
for research-based topics also apply to these early speeches. They should be in-
teresting, appropriate, and worthwhile, as should any speech topic.
An obvious place to begin is with your own interests, experiences, and knowl-
edge. Remember to look for topics as you go through your day. For example,
you may see a television program, read a blog, or see a video on YouTube that
deals with a topic that interests you. A magazine or a newspaper may also suggest
a topic.
The Internet, television, newspapers, and magazines are but a few of the
places where you might fi nd a topic. They may not even be the best place to start
your search. Other sources include campus publications, instructors, and fellow
students. The number of places to fi nd a good topic, in fact, is limited only by
how aware you are of what’s going on around you. The following list summa-
rizes a few good places to look for a topic.