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Tuesday, December 25, 2012

HOW TO PREPARE FOR DEBATE AND SPEECH (part 4)


                       HOW FAMOUS SPEAKERS PREPARED THEIR ADDRESSES
               1. “The art of war” said Napoleon, “is a science in which nothing succeeds which has not been calculated and thought out”. That is as true of speaking as of shooting. A talk is a voyage. It must be charted. The speaker who starts with nowhere, usually gets there.

                          2.  No infallible, ironclad rules can be given for the arrangement of ideas and the construction of all talks. Each address has its own particular problems.

                   3.    The speaker should cover a point thoroughly while he is on it and then not refer it again. There should be no darting from one thing to another and then back again as aimlessly as a bat in the twilight.

                      4.   The late Dr. Conwell built many of his talks on this plan:
               a). State your facts.
               b). Argue from them.
               c). Appeal for action. 
  5.    You will probably find this plan very helpful:
               a). Show something thing that is wrong.
               b). Show how to remedy it.
               c). Appeal for action.
  6.     Here is an excellent speech plan:
                a). Secure interested attention.
                 b). Win confidence.
                 c). State your facts.
                 d). Appeal to the motives that make men act.
                          7.    All the facts on both sides of your subject must be collected, arranged, studied, and digested.  Prove them;  be sure the are facts; then think out for yourself the solution those facts compel.

                    8.  Before speaking, Lincoln thought out his conclusions with mathematical exactness. When he was forty years of age, and after he had been a member of Congress, he studiedEuclid so that he could detect sophistry and demonstrate his conclusions.

                    9. When Theodore Roosevelt was preparing a speech, he dug up all the facts, appraised them, then dictated his speech very rapidly, corrected the typewritten copy, and finally dictated  it all over again.

                         10. Notes destroy about fifty percent of the interest in your talk. Avoid them. Above all, do not read your speech. An audience can hardly be brought to endure listening to a read speech.

             11.  After you have thought out and arranged your speech, then practice it silently as you walk along the street. Also get off somewhere by yourself and go over it from beginning  to end, letting yourself go. Imagine that you are addressing a real audience. The more of this you do ,the  more comfortable you will feel when the time comes for you to make your speech.

Monday, December 24, 2012

HOW TO PREPARE FOR DEBATE OR SPEECH part 3

                           SELF CONFIDENCE THROUGH PREPARATION
1. When a speaker has a real message in his hand and heart- an inner urge to speak, he is almost sure to    do himself credit. A well prepared speech is already nine-tenth delivered.

2. What is preparation? The setting down of mechanical sentences on paper? The memorizing of phrases? Not at all. Real preparation consists of digging something out of yourself, in assembling and arranging your own thoughts, in cherishing and nurturing your own convictions.
 
3.   Do not sit down to manufacture a speech in thirty minutes. A speech can’t be cooked to order like a  steak. A speech must grow. Select your topic early in the week, think over it during odd moments, brood over it, sleep over it, dream over it. Discuss it with friends. Make it a topic of conversation. Ask yourself all possible questions concerning it. Put down on pieces of paper all thoughts and illustrations that come to you and keep reaching out for more. Ideas, suggestions, illustrations will come drifting to you at sundry times –when you are bathing, when you are driving downtown, when you are waiting for dinner to be served. That was Lincoln’s method. It has been the method of almost all successful speakers.

Wednesday, December 12, 2012

HOW TO PREPARE FOR DEBATE OR SPEECH PART 2

Develop Courage And Self Confidence
1.               A large number of students and other people are desirous of training debates and speeches now. The prime reason is that they want to conquer their nervousness, to be able to think on their feet and to speak with self confidence and ease before a group of any size.
2.                The ability to do this is not difficult to acquire. It is not a gift bestowed by Providence on only a few rarely endowed individuals. It is like the ability to play golf: any man or woman every person can develop his own latent capacity if he has sufficient desire to do so.
3.       Many experienced speakers can think better and talk better when facing a group than in conversation with an individual. The presence of larger number proves to be a stimulus. An inspiration. If you faithfully follow my suggestions, a time may come that you will look forward with positive pleasure to making an address.
4.       Do not imagine that your case is unusual. Many men who afterwards  became famous speakers were, at the outset of their carriers, beset with self- consciousness and almost paralyzed with audience fright. This was the experience of Bryan, Jean Jaues, Llyod George, Charles Stewart Parnell, john Bright, Sheridan and host of others.
5.       No matter how often you speak, you may always experience this self-consciousness just before you begin; but in a few seconds after you have gotten on your feet, it will vanish completely.
6.       In order to get most out of this article and to get it with rapidity and dispatch, do four things: 

a)      Start with a strong and persistent desire. Enumerate the benefits this effort to train yourself will bring you. Think what it can mean to you .Arouse your enthusiasm for it. Think what it can mean to you financially, socially and in terms of increased influence and leadership. Remember that upon the depth of your desire will depend the swiftness of your progress.

    b) Prepare. You can’t feel confident unless you know what are you going to say.

c) Act confident. “To feel brave” advises Professor William James, “act as if we were brave, use   all of our will to that end, and a courage fit will very likely replace the fit of fear”.

d) Practice. This is the most important point of all. Fear is the result of lack of confidence; and lack of confidence is the result of not knowing what you can do; and that is caused by lack of experience. So get a record of successful experience behind you, and your fears will vanish. 

Monday, June 4, 2012

Students Debate! Writing the Constructive Speech, Part 2



This video features a discussion of how to write a speech based on a constructive argument. The discussion prepares students to write their speech for the actual debate of the project.

For more informations on the topic please visit my next posts.


How To Prepare For Debate And Speech Part 1

Now I am starting the series of posts about how to prepare for speech and debate. Following is the first lesson of the series.



Tuesday, May 29, 2012

How to Write an Essay part 7


Classification of Essays:
         Essays may be divided in many ways according to subject matter or style. We have roughly divided them in to three classes          
(1)             Descriptive essays describe the size, appearance, growth or uses of any given object, place
                Or material.                                                   
(2)            Narrative essays narrate a story, an event, or the life of a person in logical sequence.
(3)            Reflective essays  express the ideas or reflections of the writer on any subject, even any   
         Abstract one.
This classification is neither rigid nor conventional, because there is much room for reflection even in descriptive or narrative writings. Rather it is mostly arbitrary. Convenience, simplicity and ease are at the bottom of this division.

 
Practical Hints For Writing an Essay;
(1)           Select the essay which suits you best.
               (a)    Think before writing, raise question.
               (b)    Put down on a piece of paper the principal ideas that suggest themselves to you.
               (c)    Arrange them in a proper order.
               (d)    Develop them and let every principal idea have a harmonious paragraph to itself.
               (e)    Add fresh details if necessary.
               (f)     Provide an introduction.
               (g)     Set a limit to your essay.
               (h)     Cut down irrelevant stuff and stick carefully to the outline.

(2)            In descriptive writings: 
                 (a)      Long description should be avoided.
                 (b)     Accuracy must be the primary consideration.
                 (c)     Important features and details must not be overlooked.
                 (d)    The details should be arranged as to present a clear picture to the reader’s mind.
                 (e)      Comparisons, if used properly, can produce satisfactory result.
                 (f)      The description should read as interesting and realistic as possible.
                 (g)      Persona’ method is preferable to the objective method of expression.
(3)              In narrative writing:
                  (a)        Make sure about the plot.
                  (b)       Make a direct beginning. Link up the points in natural manner.
                  (c)        Do not have a lengthy introduction
                  (d)        Never write a long story
                  (e)        The narration should be developed to a logical conclusion and should be brief.
                  (f)         Conversation can also be introduced with advantage.
                  (g)         A title is necessary, but a moral should be avoided.
                  (h)         While narrating historical events, causes, incidents, results and reflections should be                                 given under the clear heads.                     
                               
(i)                  While attempting a biography, date and place of birth, parentage, early life and education, career and achievements, circumstances of death, estimate of character are   relevant points, to be borne in mind
(j)          If a phenomenon of nature is to be described, its causes and effects should be
              clearly brought out.
(k)          It is sometimes desirable to end a biographical or natural narration with a quotation.                                                               
(4)                  In reflective writings
(a)           Exact scope of the essay should be clearly understood.
(b)           Do not exceed due limits. Bring out all the points for and against clearly
(c)           Truths should be established
(d)           Their application or otherwise to life should be explained.
(e)           Conclusions should be justified.
(f)            Give instances.
(g)           Short and appropriate quotations may be used.
(h)           Points should be illustrated by examples, references and quotations.
(i)            The essay should bring forth original thoughts and attractive ideas.         

(5)                 Due regards should be paid to spellings, punctuation and grammatical correctness.
                      (a)          Revise your essay carefully. The stops and errors should be corrected.
                      (b)          Revision is as necessary as planning, treatment and proper conclusion.
                      (c)           It is always desirable to a lot some time for it.
                         

Wednesday, May 23, 2012

How to Write an Essay Part 6


4.       Planning
                Then comes the most important stage in essay writing, namely, planning. All the thoughts, ideas, arguments etc., should be given a definite and systematic form and a skeleton should be set up. Everything written must have some bearing on the subject. There should be no wandering into outside matter no bearing about the bush and no uncalled for digression. The arrangement should be made carefully and thoughtfully. Exaggeration indicates bad tastes and must not be indulged in. Planning is of much importance. It is more than half the battle. To do this facts are to be collected. They are to be properly arranged. The right word is to be used in the right place .It is always advisable to write from one’s knowledge, observation, reflection and imagination. Once the outline or the skeleton of the essay formed, the task is facilitated enormously. In writing an essay it must always be attractive and convincing. Well begun is half done, and similarly if the essay is not ell concluded it may not appeal to the reader. The conclusion should be brief striking and natural. Claritand precision are as essential as originality. There should be unity of the structure in paragraphs as well as on the whole. All parts should be properly linked to one another like the links of a chain. Repetition of words and ideas should be avoided. To sustain interest in the composition it is essential that the meaning should be expressed clearly and plainly. Unnecessary words and phrases should not be introduced. Some variety in ideas and words is essential to create  lasting impression on the reader.

                    For more guidance please visit my other posts as well.