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Part II
Basic Course Materials
A. Sample Course Syllabus

For many students the first few days of a course are accompanied by feelings of uncertainty and apprehension about
what is expected of them. During this initial period the instructor can ease the pain somewhat by providing the
students with a well thought-out syllabus. This allows the teacher to set the climate of the course and espouse his or
her philosophy toward speech as well as giving pertinent information regarding the structure and content of the
class. Although syllabi vary greatly, each should include the essential requirements of the course. Students
appreciate knowing the textbook(s) to be used, the number and types of assignments and exams, course policies, and
the like. The following is just one example of a syllabus used in a basic public speaking course.

Instructor: Neeley Silberman Dept. Office: Saint Mary's, D329


Public Speaking I Dept. Phone: 555-4666
Office Hours: T, Th 9:30-10:00 and by appt.

REQUIRED TEXT: Sprague and Stuart, The Speaker’s Handbook

Also required: A DVD-R to be brought to class each day you are scheduled to speak.

COURSE OBJECTIVES: This course is designed to provide you with basic theories and skills that are essential to effective public speaking.
Topics include audience analysis, organization, persuasion, credibility, and delivery. Ideally, you should be able to apply these skills in a variety
of public speaking situations whether in future college courses or in non-academic settings. As a member of the class you will also become an
active listener and learn to analyze, critique, and evaluate the speaking of others.

ATTENDANCE: Your attendance and active participation are essential to the success of this class. Your participation in exercises, speech
evaluation, and class discussion is encouraged and should make the class more interesting and a better learning experience. As a general
rule, make-up speeches will not be allowed. If an extreme emergency arises, and you notify me as soon as humanly possible, we can try to
work out an exception to this policy. Except in these very rare cases, there will be a substantial penalty for late work. Your participation in
exercises, speech evaluations, class discussion, and question and answer periods is encouraged and rewarded. You are expected to do your
own work for the course, to work independently and to give credit for all materials used in your research.

You must complete all assignments/exams to pass the course.


I. Speaking Assignments:
A. Impromptu 5% of grade
B. Mini-speeches 10% of grade
C. Informative 15% of grade
D. Persuasive 20% of grade
II.Examinations:
A. Two multiple choice exams based
on textbook, lectures, classroom
activities and discussion 20% of grade
B. Final: Essay exam (comprehensive) 20% of grade
III. Attendance, participation, completion of
class exercises and critiques 10% of grade

1
Since the course syllabus is in effect an informal contract, it is important that students understand and internalize the
requirements and ground rules that it spells out. One way to check on this is to develop a quiz on the syllabus. It can
be an ungraded early exercise, or it can be graded, giving students some easy points so that the start the class on the
upbeat. Of course, this should not be done in a patronizing manner.

B. Sample Course Calendars

A course calendar should be prepared along with the course syllabus. Whether or not you expect to distribute this
day-by-day schedule to students, it should be planned before the class starts. Take into account holidays, time
needed for students to prepare for each speech, and allow some flexibility. Here are two sample calendars, one for a
skills-oriented course, where five presentations are required by departmental policy, and one for an elective class
that uses student support groups to unify the course.

1. Skills-Oriented Class (Semester Calendar)

Class Class Assignment


Period Activity
1. Introduction to Course Lecture
2. Students interview each other
/Discuss overcoming fear of speaking 1, 4
3. Lecture/discuss Modes of
Delivery, Listening and Planning 2, 5, 24
4. Speech I—Impromptu or Personal
Experience Speeches
5. Speech I
6. Lecture/discuss Speech Topics &
Purposes, Topic Analysis, & Contexts 6, 23
7. Lecture/discuss Outlining and
Selecting Points.
Scrambled Outline exercise 11
8. Lecture/discuss/exercise.
Arranging Points and Transitions 9, 10, 12
9. Lecture/discuss Introductions and
Conclusions. Group Exercise 13, 14
10. Speech II—Demonstration Speeches
11. Speech II
12. Speech II
13. Speech II
14. Speech II
15. Lecture/discuss/exercise
Supporting Materials 15
16. Lecture/discuss Research, Inform. Strategies.
Scavenger Hunt exercise 8, 21
17. Lecture/discuss Attention and
Interest, and Style. Video tape 17, 18
18. Lecture/discuss Vocal Delivery.
Charades exercise 26

2
19. Lecture/discuss Physical Delivery.
Charades exercise 27
20. Speech III—Informative Speech
21. Speech III
22. Speech III
23. Speech III
24. Speech III
25. Midterm
26. Lecture/discuss Audience Analysis.
Audience Analysis Assignment 7
27. Lecture/discuss Persuasive
Strategies. Group exercise 22
28. Lecture/discuss Reasoning.
Critique sample speech 16
29. Lecture/discuss Credibility.
Famous people exercise 19
30. Lecture/discuss Ethics
Ethical Quality Scale Exercise 3
31. Speech IV—Problem-Solution Speech
32. Speech IV
33. Speech IV
34. Speech IV
35. Speech IV
36. Lecture/discuss Motivational
Appeals. Advertisement exercise 20
37. Lecture/discuss Presentation Aids.
Videotape of newscasters 28
38. Lecture/discuss Adapting to
Speech Situation 29
39. Lecture/discuss Answering Questions.
Simulation 30
40. Speech V—Motivated Sequence
41. Speech V
42. Speech V
43. Speech V
44. Speech V
45. Make-ups/Review for Final

3
2. Elective Course Calendar

Class Class
Period Activity Assignment
1. Orientation
2. Form support groups, get acquainted FNDTN., PREP. INTRO
3. Delivery/Confidence 1, 4
4. Speech Ethics. Listening, Assign Speech I
5. Speech purposes. Meet in groups 2, 5, and 6
6. Organization 9-12
7. Introductions and Conclusions 13, 14
8. Practice in groups, Inform. Strategies 21, 25
9–13. Group speeches evaluating the
ethics of one speech from the Web Site
14. Recap Speech I,
Assign Speech II
15. Research, library tour 8, 21
16. Supporting Materials 15
17. Presentation Aids 28
18. Attention and Interest.
Audience Analysis 7, 18
19. Credibility 19
20. Practice in groups, Adapting to Contexts
and situations 23, 29
21–25. Informative Speeches
26. Assign Speech III, review for midterm
27. Midterm examination
28. Physical and vocal delivery 24, 26, 27
29. Style and language 17
30. Reasoning 16
31. Discuss audience analysis
assignment, assign Speech IV
32. Workshop session in groups
33–36. Speech defining an abstract concept
37. Motivational appeals 20
38. Persuasive strategies 22
39. Workshop session in groups &
Answering Questions 30
40–44. Persuasive speeches
45. Review for final Audience analysis papers due

4
C. Sample Assignment Sheets

Besides the syllabus and calendar, we find it useful to distribute a sheet spelling out the purpose, requirements, and
grading criteria for each speaking assignment. Today’s students come from varied academic backgrounds. While
some are able to respond to a two- or three-minute oral description of an assignment, many need more guidance and
detail. Without lowering one’s standards or getting into remedial instruction, a teacher can adapt to the needs of
many entering students by making criteria explicit and by defining a task as prescriptively as possible. Lower
division students especially are learning not only how to give public speeches; they are learning the study skills
essential for college. After they have done their preliminary research they should be able to follow the directions on
the sheet, referring to the designated sections of The Speaker’s Handbook when necessary. After the speech is
prepared, they should check it against the criteria to be sure it meets all requirements.
These assignment sheets do not spoon feed students. On the contrary, they foster a sense of individual
responsibility for ensuring that the speech adheres to all the guidelines. The following pages contain examples of
assignment sheets for several popular assignments. They are taken from two different instructors to show you how
individual styles differ. Notice how these assignment sheets reflect the cumulative nature of most courses. Early in a
course only a few basics are required. As the course progresses, more requirements are added and more advanced
skills are addressed. While the total demands may increase, the prescriptiveness may decrease in some areas once a
student demonstrates mastery of a skill. For instance, you may insist on an explicit preview of points in any early
speech, but later just require an effective logical orientation, leaving to the student how best to fulfill that function.

The assignment sheets include:


• One-point Speech
• Supporting-a-Claim Speech
• Tribute Speech
• Demonstration Speech
• Problem Solution Speech
• Audience-Analysis Project

5
One-Point Speech
Assignment Sheet

Prepare a 3- to 4-minute presentation supporting a specific statement of fact or value. Your outline should be a
complete-sentence outline and is due on the day of your speech. Use and label the supporting materials (definitions,
examples, statistics, testimony) from Chapter 15. Also use and label at least two of the techniques of clear
explanation from Chapter 21 (emphasis cues, signposting, acronym, slogan, or figurative analogy).
The assignment is designed to build speech-making skills rather than represent a complete or typical speech.
Below is a brief example of the outline format you will use. Naturally, your outline will include more details and
will be of a more serious nature.

Outline
I. Gary Ruud is a lousy teacher.
A. Gary Ruud doesn’t show concern for his students.
1. Class evaluations indicate 97% of Gary Ruud’s students rank him in the bottom 5th
percentile in this category. (Statistic)
2. Students have complained to the administration about Gary Ruud’s uncaring
behavior.
a. Student Fred Whitlock said “I went to Mr. Ruud’s office to ask for help but all he did was
make fun of my name.” (Testimony)
b. Student Buck Macho said “I went to Mr. Ruud’s office six times during the quarter and I cried
each time I left.”
3. Faculty members have made comments about Gary Ruud’s uncaring behavior.
a. Pat Bendigkeit, Mr. Ruud’s supervisor, says, “He has about as much compassion for students
as this anvil I use for a door-stop.” (Figurative Analogy)
b. And so on . . .
B. Gary Ruud grades unfairly.
1. Teachers generally use one of two grading systems.
a. Using a typical curve suggests that there will be a small percentage of As and Fs, a larger
percentage of Bs and Ds, and the largest percentage of Cs. (Definition)
b. Using a criterion-based system suggests that any student, no matter how many, who meets
established criteria will receive the designated grade.
2. Mr. Ruud bases his grade on ethnic origin.
a. Students that are of Italian-Norwegian descent receive As.
(1) Luigi Magnusson flunked all of his exams and received an A for the course.
(2) Olaf Mapelli flunked all of his assignments and received an A for the course. (Example)
b. Students that are of Bulgarian-Australian descent receive Fs.
(1) And so on . . .
Presentation
You are to use one or two 3x5 note cards. Delivery should be extemporaneous. Utilize the physical and vocal skills
we’ve worked on in class. Content should be clear, organized. Use supporting materials and cite sources when
appropriate. Have fun!!!

Grading
Outline 50%
Presentation 50%

6
Supporting-a-Claim Speech
Assignment Sheet

Purpose of This Assignment


In persuasive speaking it is essential the speech be made up of claims that support the proposition/thesis. Each of
these claims is then supported through the use of evidence and reasoning. For example, the claim that fatty foods
cause high cholesterol must be supported by evidence such as statistics, testimonies, and/or examples. Once the
evidence is established, the speaker must then use his/her own reasoning skills to inform the audience of the
importance of the evidence. In other words, by reasoning, you tell the audience how that evidence supports the
claim. For this assignment, you are to give a two-minute speech which establishes one claim, supported by three
pieces of evidence as well as one use of reasoning linking each piece of evidence to the claim.

Requirements
1. Create a proposition/thesis. (See example on next page).
2. Create three main points/claims that support the proposition. [9]
3. Choose one of the claims and then support it using three pieces of evidence. [15]
4. Connect your evidence to your claim through reasoning [16].
5. Your speaking exercise should be 2 minutes in length. You do not need an introduction or a conclusion.
6. You are required to turn in your completed planner on the day you speak. Your planner should include:
• Clearly stated thesis [6]
• Provide three main points/claims [9, 16]
• Display one main point as the claim to be supported [9].
• Three pieces of evidence, taken from two different sources [15].
• Follow the conventional outline format [11].
• Include a reference list of at least two sources in correct bibliographic form [8].
7. Use a conversational and extemporaneous style of speaking. [25]
8. One note card may be used.

7
Supporting-a-Claim Speech: Example

Part One:

Proposition: The US schools system should adopt a school uniform policy.


Main Point I: Within the last decade there has been an increase in juvenile crimes.
Main Point II: School uniforms will reduce competition.
Main Point III: School uniform programs will decrease juvenile crimes.

Part Two:

I. (Main Point/Claim): School uniform programs will decrease juvenile crimes.

A. (Evidence) Sonoma county school district has seen a 10% reduction in juvenile crimes since
implementing their school uniform policy one year ago (Stevens, 1997).
Statistic

Reasoning: If one school district has seen a decrease in crimes committed by juveniles then it is
probable that others will as well.

B. (Evidence) Steven, a student at a school that has a uniform policy, stated that before the policy he and
his friends had stolen articles of clothing, but since the uniform policy he has not found a need or
desire to continue stealing clothing (Brawley, 1996).
Example

Reasoning: One student says he has stopped stealing as a result of having to wear a school uniform.
There are undoubtedly others we don’t know about yet who feel the same way now.

C. (Evidence) A Professor at the University of California, Berkeley states that her research has found a
direct correlation between the need for material possessions and the need to commit crimes (Stevens,
1997).
Testimony

Reasoning: This testimony shows that if the materialistic aspects of schooling are decreased, it may
lead to a decrease in the students’ desire for such items, thus resulting in a decrease in criminal
activities.

8
Tribute Speech
Assignment Sheet

Purpose of This Assignment


One of the forms of public speaking that we do not do enough of is paying tribute to another human being. There are
many occasions in our lives for giving a tribute: family gatherings, weddings, graduations, retirements, special
birthdays, etc. This presentation will give you an opportunity to practice such a speech. Choose a person who is
important to you—who touched your life or impressed you—and share two specific things about this individual. The
person you choose must still be alive and could be a family member, friend, teacher, coach, pastor, musician, writer,
sports celebrity, etc. You will receive credit for the assignment by completing the exercise planner as well as
delivering your presentation to the class.

Requirements
1. You will honor one living individual who has influenced you in a positive way. Share two specific things
about this person that made him/her so influential.
2. Your speech should have three parts—an introduction, body, and conclusion [11, 13, 14].
3. The introduction should begin with a sentence that gets our attention and previews the two things you will be
sharing about the person [13].
4. The body should devote one main point to each of the two important things about this person [9, 10].
5. The conclusion should summarize your two points and leave the audience with a closing thought about this
person [14].
6. The speech should be between 3–5 minutes in length.
7. Your outline will be turned in before you speak, and MUST be typed.
8. Use a conversational and extemporaneous style of speaking [25]. 3 note cards may be used.

Criteria for Evaluation


First, you must meet all of the above requirements to receive a passing grade for the assignment. Then, points will
be assigned based on how well you carried out each aspect of the assignment. In other words, if each requirement is
present, expect to receive about 70% of the possible points in that category (C range). If you fail to meet one of the
basic requirements, the grade will be lower on that component. If you not only meet the minimal requirements, but
carry them out very well, expect to receive 80-89% (B range) or 90-100% (A range) of the possible points.

Suggestions for Preparation


Choose a person who is important to you—who touched your life or impressed you. Keep in mind the importance of
clarity. This is largely achieved through effective organization. Do not have too many main points. Confine your
speech to two or three main ideas and group the other points under these. Clarify the relationship between your
points. Use clear, explicit previews, connectives and summaries [12]. Keep your speech moving ahead according to
a well-developed plan; do not jump back and forth from one idea to another.
Practice the speech several times but do not memorize it [24]. Time your speech when practicing. After you
have written your outline, set it aside and practice speaking from brief notes.

9
Demonstration Speech
Assignment Sheet

Purpose of This Assignment


Informative speeches take many forms, one of which is the demonstration speech. The primary purpose of any
speech to inform is to ensure the audience’s clear understanding of the ideas presented. This assignment asks you to
explain and demonstrate to the audience the steps involved in carrying out a certain task or process.

Requirements
1. The topic should be informative and challenging to this audience.
2. The speech should be four to six minutes in length.
3. The three functional steps of the introduction [13] and the three functional steps of the conclusion [14] should
be clearly identifiable.
4. There should be a definite, logical transition bridging each component of the speech [12].
5. Each main point should be clearly stated and developed [9, 10, 11].
6. Delivery is to be in the extemporaneous mode [25]. Use only two or three note cards.
7. You are to use at least one visual presentation aid according to the guidelines presented in the text [27].
8. A typed outline, submitted on the day of the speech, should
— state the specific purpose of your speech [6]
— state your thesis [6]
— follow the correct outline format [11]
— label the three functions of the introduction [13]
— label the three functions of the conclusion [14]
— include a reference list of at least two sources in correct bibliographic form [8]

Criteria for Evaluation


First, you must meet all of the above requirements to receive a passing grade for the assignment. Then, points will
be assigned based on how well you carried out each aspect of the assignment. In other words, if each requirement is
present, expect to receive about 70% of the possible points in that category (C range). If you fail to meet one of the
basic requirements, the grade will be lower on that component. If you not only meet the minimal requirements, but
carry them out very well, expect to receive 80-89% (B range) or 90-100% (A range) of the possible points.

Suggestions for Preparation


Select a topic that you are already familiar with and on which you can quickly gather additional information.
Keep in mind the importance of clarity. This is largely achieved through effective organization. Do not have too
many main points. Confine your speech to two or three main ideas and group the other points under these. Clarify
the relationship between your points. Use clear, explicit previews, connectives and summaries. Keep your speech
moving ahead according to a well-developed plan; do not jump back and forth from one idea to another.
Prepare your visual aids and gather your props and materials at once and practice with them. Practice the speech
several times but do not memorize it [24]. Time your speech when practicing. After you have written your outline,
set it aside and practice speaking from brief notes.

10
Problem Solution Speech
Assignment Sheet
Purpose of This Assignment
This speech is to introduce you to persuasive speaking by working first on the logical substance, or logos, that is the
essence of any persuasive effort. If you advocate a change, you should be able to clearly document the existence of
some sort of a problem and then explain specifically what course of action is necessary to solve that problem. For
this speech, assume that you are speaking to a logical, unbiased audience. You should relate to your audience
through effective psychological orientation in the introduction and psychological closure in the conclusion, and
through effective use of attention factors. However, the emphasis of this speech is on sound reasoning and solid
support for your points.
Requirements
1. The topic should be timely, timeless [6] and controversial. Choose a topic on which you hold strong convictions
and upon which you can realistically expect to influence an audience through reasoned argument.
2. The speech should be five to seven minutes in length.
3. The three functional steps of the introduction [13] and the three functional steps of the conclusion [14] should
be clearly identifiable.
4. There should be a definite, logical transition bridging each component of the speech [12].
5. The speech should follow the problem-solution format. Main point I should explicate the problem. Main point II
should explain the solution [9, 10].
6. Delivery is to be in the extemporaneous mode [25]. Use only two or three note cards.
7. You are to use at least three different kinds of supporting material [15].
8. You are to use at least three different attention factors [18].
9. A typed outline, submitted on the day of the speech, should
— state the specific purpose of your speech [6]
— state your thesis [6]
— follow the correct outline format [11]
— label the three functions of the introduction [13]
— label the three functions of the conclusion [14]
— label the three kinds of supporting material [15]
— label the three kinds of attention factors [18]

— include a reference list of at least four sources in correct bibliographic form [8]
Criteria for Evaluation
First, you must meet all of the above requirements to receive a passing grade for the assignment. Then, points will
be assigned based on how well you carried out each aspect of the assignment. In other words, if each requirement is
present, expect to receive about 70% of the possible points in that category (C range). If you fail to meet one of the
basic requirements, the grade will be lower on that component. If you not only meet the minimal requirements, but
carry them out very well, expect to receive 80-89% (B range) or 90-100% (A range) of the possible points.
Suggestions for Preparation
Select a topic that you can research readily in the time available. Once again, strong organization is your best ally.
Make your main points clear and be very explicit on how the subpoints relate to each other and to the main points.
Use summaries and transitions like the following: “I have shown you the economic and social manifestations of the
problem. Now let me tell you about its social impact.” Do not rush through a long string of facts and statistics. Take
time to explain them and to make clear what they mean.
Practice the speech several times but do not memorize it [24]. Time your speech when practicing. It is difficult
to keep control of a number of facts and statistics. Students have a tendency to read this speech. To read or
memorize it will affect your delivery grade. After you have written your outline, set it aside and practice speaking
from brief notes. It is a real challenge to be very familiar with your material and still maintain a conversational
delivery.

11
Audience-Analysis Project:
Pre- and Post-Persuasive Speech

Purpose
The purpose of this assignment is to demonstrate that (a) you understand the theory of audience analysis, and (b)
that you can apply this theory by adapting your persuasive speech to this particular audience. There are five parts to
this assignment. Parts 1, 2, and 3 are to be turned in along with your outline prior to your speech; parts 4 and 5 are to
be turned in after you have given your speech. All five parts are explained below so that you can see how the
assignment as a whole is structured.

Pre-Speech Analysis: Parts 1, 2, and 3


To complete these segments you must participate in the in-class audience analysis project. This means you will type
or neatly print your proposition statement (as it was approved) on the pre-speech audience analysis form in the space
provided. Make ____ copies of your questionnaire and bring them to class with on the day the data will be collected.
DO NOT FORGET! If you miss the chance to collect this pre-speech information, it will affect your grade on the
outline and the speech. After you have collected the data from your classmates, review it and write a few paragraphs
discussing the next three topics. Turn this write-up in along with your outline.

Part 1: General Audience Analysis


What do you know about the composition of this group offhand? Include audience size, age, sex, etc. Also include
the general impressions you have formed about the value orientations of the audience, their intellectual pre-
dispositions, and their conduct as an audience from your experiences during the course of this semester (Remember,
these are things you could say about this audience regardless of the topic they were listening to). Explain your basis
for these statements.

Part 2: Specific Audience Analysis


What have you learned about your audience in terms of their attitudes toward your specific speech topic? What was
the average audience score? What was the range of their scores? It is your job to interpret this data in your write-up.
For example, is your audience fairly homogenous or heterogeneous in terms of their attitudes? Would you classify
them as unfavorable, neutral, favorable, or a combination of these? What additional information did you collect
about your audience? Summarize the results and explain why this information is relevant to your speech.

Part 3: Persuasive Strategy


Justify your speech strategy with regards to your audience. What ratio of reasoning, motivational appeals, and
credibility do you feel is demanded for this audience on this topic? Should you use counter arguments? Which ones?
On what basis do you justify your organizational pattern? On what basis do you justify your introduction and
conclusion? How much attention-getting material do you need for this audience? How much background
information? These are questions to consider. While I don’t expect you to justify your speech sentence by sentence,
I do expect you to justify each major decision of persuasive strategy.

12
Audience-Analysis Project (cont.)

Post-Speech Analysis: Parts 4 and 5


Part four is to be turned no later than one class session after you deliver your speech.
After you give your speech, your audience will fill out a Post Speech Analysis Form. They will report their
attitudes after the speech and make comments on why they were or were not persuaded. Take this information home,
analyze it, and compare it to the Pre-Speech Audience Analysis. Next, write a few paragraphs that covers parts four
and five.

Part 4: Comparison of Pre-Speech and Post Speech Results


Report on the shift of attitude, if any. How successful were you? Give specific examples of dramatic shifts in
opinion, if any, as well as general description of the audience as a whole. Sometimes a bar graph or table is useful
here as well as a comparison of the audience mean attitude scores before and after the speech. Also, summarize the
comments made by the audience on why they were or were not persuaded.

Part 5: Analysis of Persuasive Impact


Why do you think some people were persuaded? Why do you think some were not? If you had the entire speech to
do over again to an identical audience, what would you do differently both in conducting your speech analysis and
in preparing and presenting your speech? Be specific.

13
Pre-Speech Audience Analysis
Write your proposition below and add four more questions that you would like to have answered by your audience
as you prepare your persuasive strategy. This is information you will be able to use to reformulate your speech. The
questions should be clear, concise, and the entire questionnaire must be possible to complete within 2 minutes. Make
_____ copies for the audience and bring them to class on the day scheduled for the data collection.

Questionnaire

1. What is your attitude toward this statement?


Speaker’s Proposition: ________________________________________________________________

Strongly Moderately Slightly Neither Agree Slightly Moderately Strongly


Disagree Disagree Disagree nor Disagree Agree Agree Agree
1 2 3 4 5 6 7

Category Two: Factual

2.

3.

4.

Category Three: Open-Ended

5.

Sample Pre-Speech Audience Analysis

Questionnaire
1. What is your attitude toward this statement?
Speaker’s Proposition: “School uniforms should be required in all public schools for grades K-8.”

Strongly Moderately Slightly Neither Agree Slightly Moderately Strongly


Disagree Disagree Disagree nor Disagree Agree Agree Agree
1 2 3 4 5 6 7

Category Two: Factual


2. Do you have children? Yes or No
3. Would you feel differently about this issue if you were a parent? Yes or No
4. Have you ever attended a school that required uniforms? Yes or No

Category Three: Open-Ended


What would be the advantages and disadvantages of requiring school uniforms in public schools for grades
K though 8?

14
Post-Speech Audience Analysis
Speaker’s Name:

Instructions:
Put your name and proposition, exactly as it was phrased on the Pre-Speech Audience Analysis Questionnaire, on
this sheet and make _____ copies for your audience. Bring these to class with you on the day of your final speech.

Speaker’s Proposition: ________________________________________________________________

(Indicate your attitude after the speech by circling one of the following)

Strongly Moderately Slightly Neither Agree Slightly Moderately Strongly


Disagree Disagree Disagree nor Disagree Agree Agree Agree
1 2 3 4 5 6 7

Comments on why your attitude did or did not change:

Comments on the speech: Content, organization, delivery, etc.

15
D. Short Speech Assignment Ideas

These short speech assignment ideas are easily adapted into in-class assignments or activities and can be de-briefed
to fit the learning objectives set out for that session.

1. The speech of introduction

This popular assignment takes many forms. A student may introduce herself or himself, highlighting certain features
that have been specified. In addition to the obvious demographic and biographical factors⎯major, hometown,
interests⎯a person could be asked to address some topics like “how communication skills will fit into my career
goals.”
A variation on this assignment that facilitates group interaction and reduces self-consciousness is to have
students introduce a classmate.

2. The personal experience speech

This speech is a good early assignment that introduces students to each other. The narrative nature of the content
helps students organize their points and tends to hold audience attention. The assignment can be as general as “tell
about a significant experience that you will never forget,” or it can be focused toward more specific experiences
such as:

My most embarrassing moment

My first date

My worst date

An experience that changed my life

My greatest triumph

The biggest mistake I ever made

Variations:

The culture shock speech. The student tells about an experience where he or she became starkly aware of being in
an unfamiliar cultural situation and discusses how communication came into play. In one class of all international
students these were some of the shocks students received about US culture: people sunbathing on campus to try to
get a tan, people spending money and lavishing attention on dogs and cats, people expecting you to help yourself to
food or drink in their homes rather than serving you directly, students challenging their teacher’s authority or
opinions, students laughing and seeking help after failing an exam instead of being ashamed, people staying in their
homes on holidays instead of going to public places to celebrate as a community. All of these points help US
students to see that their cultural patterns are arbitrary rather than “natural.” The exercise gives international students
a chance to be experts and to excel on an early assignment. At the same time, most US students can identify some
culture shock experience, either through travel experiences or hosting of international visitors. As necessary, culture
can be defined more broadly to include any experience where one moved into a setting where the values and norms
that were taken for granted were unknown to the individual. The very issue of whether moving from the South to the

16
West, or going to work in a high tech company after previously working in retail is really a “culture shock” makes
for an interesting discussion.

A speech that analyzes a personal decision. The student tells about a decision such as where to go to college, what
car to buy, what to major in, and discusses the process of the decision making. Who were the key sources consulted?
How credible were they? How did logic and emotion enter into the decision making?

A speech about a person. The most unforgettable character the student ever met, the student who has influenced
you the most, the person admired the most, the favorite/least favorite teacher, the most credible speaker you ever
heard, the strongest leader you know, etc.

The day you were born. This is an interesting way for students to learn to use library resources and to know a little
about history. They can describe what was happening politically, what songs were popular, what sports teams were
doing, etc.

A speech on a speech experience. My worst speech, my best speech, how I handled fear of speaking, how I used
persuasion on my job, how I lost/gained credibility, how I learned the importance of audience analysis, and so on.

Analysis of a communication breakdown. If a communication model is presented early in the course, students can
provide examples of breakdowns they have witnessed, analyze the causes of the breakdown and suggest ways it
could have been averted.

3. Television advertisement speech

Assigning this speech at the beginning of your discussion on persuasion helps students understand the function of
Monroe’s Motivated Sequence as a persuasive organizational pattern. Students should develop a 1- to 1-1/2-minute
advertisement in which they try to persuade the class to buy some product or use some service. Because this speech
is designed as a television advertisement, students should be creative and use visual materials during their
presentation.

4. The group speech

To ease speech anxiety and to emphasize the macrostructure of an organized speech some instructors have students
give their first speech in a group. Speaker One of the group presents the introduction, consisting of an attention
getter, psychological orientation, and a logical orientation (preview), and then makes a transition to the first main
point. Speaker Two states, develops, and summarizes the first main idea and then makes a transition to the next
speaker’s point. After two, three, or four speakers present the remaining main points, the final speaker concludes the
speech with logical closure (a summary), psychological closure, and a clincher. Students have the opportunity to
work together on the overall division and organization of the topic and they have the moral support of speaking with
a group of colleagues.

5. The demonstration speech

This is a popular and effective assignment to use early in a course to break the ice and help students learn about their
classmates’ interests and talents; the heavy, intellectual topics can come later in the term. For this assignment
encourage students to explain a process with which they are very familiar. They will be less self-conscious when the
focus is on an activity like serving a tennis ball, washing a dog or making a Caesar salad. The process to be

17
explained can often be easily organized into natural steps. If the body of the speech organizes itself in this manner, a
novice speaker can concentrate on clearly structuring the introduction, transitions, and conclusion.

Variations:

A presentation aid speech using charts, models, etc. See 27.

A process speech that requires explaining more complex and difficult material. Such topics would be the
process of photosynthesis, how an employee orientation program is established, or how to analyze a poem.

Reminder: If you have not taught before, beware of the range of student creativity on this assignment. You may
want to give a humorous disclaimer that there should not be any dangerous or illegal materials brought to class, or
you may want to have students clear topics in advance. A favorite subject of conversation among veteran speech
teachers centers on the theme: The day one of my students let a king snake get away in the classroom; caused a
chemical explosion; drew the university police by firing a gun with blank bullets; changed his sister’s diapers;
pierced her roommate’s ears; brought a razor blade, mirror, and some flour to show us how to cut a line of cocaine;
put a condom on a cucumber, etc. Think through your boundaries in terms of safety, legality and good taste, and
then communicate these to your students.

6. The “what I believe” speech

This is another good first or second assignment. The goal is to communicate a belief, and three reasons for that
belief, so clearly that the entire audience understands the speaker’s point of view. The goal is not to persuade
listeners to agree. The main criterion for the supporting reasons is that they are in fact separate and roughly
equivalent reasons for the stated conclusions. The reasons need not be factually supported or fully defended. This is
an excellent chance for students to air their pet peeves, religious convictions, and other passions that may not be
suited to other speeches. The emphasis should be on clear organization and explicit previews, transitions, and
summaries.

7. The impromptu speech

The instructor prepares a list of topics which are placed in a hat (envelope, bowl, whatever). Just as it is his or her
turn to speak each student draws three slips, selects one, returns the others and has one minute to prepare a two- to
three-minute speech.

Here is a list of words that can be used for impromptu topics:

Hot Tubs On-line Dating Espresso Bars Exercise Traveling


Insomnia Color Junk Food Parking Meters Divorce
Hangovers Teachers Dentists Dormitories Marriage
Pets Nightmares Surprise Parties Vegetarianism Roommates
Commercials Reality TV

Add local and current topics, names of entertainers, politicians, etc.

Persuasive Impromptu Topics:

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Select something you have in your possession or on your person. Convince us why we need one too.

We want to take a trip during our summer vacation. Convince us where we should go.

We want to take a friend out to dinner for his or her birthday. Convince us where we should go.

We want to rent a movie or go to a movie this weekend. Convince us what we should see or rent. (You may also
convince us to read a book or watch a particular television show.)

Select a course in your major. Convince us why we should take it.

We want to get involved in a club or organization. Select a club or organization and convince us to join.

We are in the market for a new car or truck. Select a model and convince us why we should buy it.

We want to get a pet. Select an animal and convince us that it should be our choice.

We know exercise is important. We want to take up a sport or activity, but can’t decide among all the options. Select
a sport or healthful activity and convince us to take it up.

We win some money in the lottery. We decide to use some of the money to make a donation. Select a charity and
convince us why we should donate money to that organization.

We want to buy a computer. Mac or PC? Convince us which one to buy.

Informative Impromptu Topics:

Tell us about a tradition you have in your family.

Share an experience you have had with another culture.

If a movie were made about your life, who would play you and what two events would be included.

Tell us about a hobby you have or an activity you are involved in.

Tell us about a dream you hope to realize or goal you hope to achieve.

Tell us about a unique job you have or had.

Variations:

Use proverbs, provocative questions or phrases as topics. One teacher brought a bag of fortune cookies to her
early morning class. Those who drew one of those inscrutable quotations to discuss were rewarded with a snack.
Have students turn in three of four topics each and use these for the impromptu speeches. If your students fill
out an information card at the beginning of the course listing hobbies and interests, you can give each student a
personally selected topic you are sure she or he can talk about.

19
Vary the preparation and speaking time. One popular format is to let a speaker draw a topic just as the preceding
speaker is ready to begin and to step outside the classroom to prepare in private during that speech. (Surprisingly
few students disappear!)

Instead of scheduling the assignment as a complete round of speeches, use it as a filler throughout the course.
Whenever there is some time left at the end of a class period, take volunteers for impromptu speeches. This will use
time efficiently when lectures run short or scheduled speakers are absent. Also, the use of volunteers tends to
encourage the more confident and experienced speakers to speak early. The more reticent can wait until later in the
course and the additional speech experience often serves to reinforce their newly-developed skills.

8. The rhetorical analysis speech

In this speech the student gives a speech about a speech, analyzing its effectiveness in terms of rhetorical criteria.
Speeches may be drawn from anthologies, Vital Speeches, or published transcripts of current speeches. Require that
a copy of the speech be turned in along with the speech outline so that you can evaluate the student’s analysis. One
format for a speech of this type might be:

Introduction
Include a description of the occasion, setting, audience, speaker, etc.
I. Designate and justify what you think are the three most important criteria for speech effectiveness.
A. First Criterion
Justification
B. Second Criterion
Justification
C. Third Criterion
Justification
II. Compare the speech to those criteria.
A. How the speech compares to the first criterion
Examples and quotations to justify
B. How the speech compares to the second criterion
Examples and quotations to justify
C. How the speech compares to the third criterion
Examples and quotations to justify
Conclusion
Synthesis of points, leading to an overall evaluation of the effectiveness of the speech

Variations:

Cross-cultural speech analysis. If you or your students are able to locate speeches by men and women of various
ethnic and cultural backgrounds, it would be very effective to use this speech to lead into a discussion of how the
nature of eloquence varies across groups. The criteria for effectiveness will certainly vary and students can identify
ways that public speaking both reflects and shapes social life. In your discussion, take note of how both gender and
culture come into play for both speakers and audiences.

The ethics speech. Assign students to evaluate speeches of their choice according to standards of ethical
communication. Guidelines can be drawn from chapter 3 of the Handbook and supplemented in lecture or through
additional readings such as those mentioned in Part I of this instructor’s resource manual.

20
Combine the group speech and the rhetorical analysis speech. One group of students might present a
symposium/panel on each speech from the Sample Speeches Web Site for The Speaker’s Handbook or on another
speech of their choice. Individual speakers could address issues of organization, reasoning, motivational appeals,
and so forth. Or a group of students could address a common rhetorical concept such as credibility and each speaker
could discuss the application of that concept in a different speech.

9. The speech on an abstract concept

For this assignment the student is to select an abstract term of concept such as love, leadership, commitment,
productivity, or peace. The goal of the speech is to make the speaker’s understanding of that concept clear to the
audience. (They need not agree, but they should have a very concrete image of the term.) The speaker is required to
use a variety of techniques from 13, 14, 15, 18 and 21.

E. Speech Outlines

You will notice that the treatment of organization in the Handbook separates the marshalling of ideas from the
preparation of the outline. In the former process, it seems to be pedagogically sound to encourage experimentation
and to discourage premature moves toward locking into a set of main points and a specific phrasing. Students need
to have disposable drafts at this stage. The later process of refining a set of points into a final outline requires quite a
different set of skills and tools.
The virtually universal practice of teachers requiring speech outlines has persisted for several reasons. Outlines
give the teacher a chance⎯away from the distractions of the classroom⎯to analyze the structure of the student’s
speech and the depth of her or his analysis. Outlines provide an impetus for students to prepare thoroughly.
Although students complain about them throughout the course, at the end they are almost unanimous in their
comment that the discipline of outlining was useful. They do not recommend depriving their successors of this
learning experience.
Though nearly every teacher requires some sort of outlines, the uses vary widely. At one extreme is the
instructor who is primarily concerned with the actual oral presentation of the speech, conceiving of the outline only
as a helpful organizational tool or as a way to force students to prepare their speeches before the last minute.
Outlines are not optional in their classes, but they are typically given very little weight in grading, or perhaps just
given a 3, 3+, or 3-. The rationale given for this approach is that in the real world, outlines are not essential; what is
said is what matters, not what a speaker plans to say. At the other extreme is the teacher who views preparation of a
detailed outline as an integral part of each speech assignment and weights it heavily in evaluating content and
organization. This approach holds that in the classroom laboratory the preparation of a good speech is one of the
most teachable skills. Inexperience or fear may cause a student to botch part of an oral performance, but given solid
skills in developing speech content, smooth delivery will come along in time. Thus, a student should be rewarded for
producing a coherent, logical, well-supported outline.
Teachers also divide along lines of how much detail they want included in their outlines. Some want a logical
plan in propositional language. The points must clearly stand out as separate from the proof or development of them.
The outline of the McNeil speech in Sample Speeches under Book Resources on The Speaker’s Handbook Web Site
leans toward this approach. The defenders of this position argue that students should never come close to writing a
manuscript. More-elaborate outlines too often merge transitional language and even, heaven forbid, evidence, into
the phrasing of main points. Subpoints often turn out to be more than a sentence long if they are statements of the
evidence as it will be used. The reader of the outline loses the ability to visually scan the basic relationships of
points. The student is tempted to read from the outline or to memorize points as phrased. The phrasing of points in
delivered speech should be created during oral practice and not resemble writing.

21
Those who prefer a more detailed outline argue that an instructor cannot really evaluate how a student has put a
speech together without a look at the substance of the speech. An outline that contains more fully stated points and
completely cited evidence is more like a legal brief. The student is forced to lay out the points as they actually will
be delivered. The issue of how to get students to lay the outline aside and present the speech in an oral and
conversational manner is a different one altogether. It is secondary to the important skills of speech preparation
which are developed through outlining.
Outlines primarily serve to organize ideas. Additionally, many instructors use the outline assignment to direct
their students’ attention to the choices they make in designing a speech. This is achieved by calling for marginal
notations to label required speech elements and rhetorical devices. The composition of the notations would vary
according to the type of speech. One speech type might highlight organization issues, another attention factors, or
reasoning. A few specific expectations for notation should be spelled out in each written assignment with the goal of
making students conscious of what they are doing, and inducing them to use a variety of elements. And beyond this,
students need to be reminded that every speech has a psychological as well as a logical structure. While a formalized
content outline helps crystallize the relationships between propositions and support, the student can also use the
outline to chart the relationships between speaker and audience. Handbook chapters 15–22 explain how to use many
speech elements and rhetorical devices to enhance the speech. If the students make marginal notations on their
outlines, showing where these elements and devices are to be used, it will help them to see what they are doing so
they can improve the audience appeal of their speeches, if necessary. Is all the humor clustered at the beginning and
end of an hour-long lecture? Perhaps some humor can be shifted to the middle. Does a student support every main
point with a fact followed by a hypothetical example? Perhaps he or she can vary the forms of support. An example
of a notated outline (McNeil) can be found in Sample Speeches under Book Resources on the Speaker’s Handbook
Web Site.
Decide how you see the role of outlines in your class. Are they rough strategic plans for you to respond to as
you coach students before the speech? Or are they to serve as a reflection of the final speech content? Clarifying
these issues will help you decide when to collect outlines and how to evaluate them. Some teachers have outlines
due at least two class periods before the scheduled speech date so they can return them with feedback that the
student can incorporate into the finished product. Others require the outlines the class period before the speech,
evaluate their content and organization outside of class, and focus on evaluating delivery, adaptation, and oral style
during the speech. Still others have outlines turned in at the time of the speech, and evaluate and return them later.
The generic outline checklist inside the back of The Speaker’s Handbook will save you time in checking outline
format and will tell students where to find guidelines for correcting their errors. The example on the facing page
shows how easily that checklist can be tailored to a particular assignment by substituting specific criteria for the
topic selection and for the labeling of whatever rhetorical devices are being highlighted in that speech.

22
Outline Checklist—Problem-Solution Speech

Topic
Significant, challenging and controversial
Timely and timeless [6]
Sufficiently narrowed [6]
Lends itself to reasoned argument
Purpose
Specific Purpose identified [6]
Thesis
Single declarative sentence [6]
Reflects the major ideas of the speech [6]
Main Points
Phrased as single declarative sentences [11]
All directly related to thesis sentence [9]
Arranged in logical order [10]
Appropriate number [9]
Mutually exclusive [9]
Equal in importance [9]
Phrased in concise parallel language [11]
Outline Format
Typed (spelling, punctuation correct, typos neatly corrected)
Consistent and correct use of symbols [11]
Indentation reflects relationships [11]
Two or more points at each level of subordination [11]
No more than one sentence per symbol [11]
Label three parts of introduction [13]
Label three parts of conclusion [14]
Label three different kinds of supporting material [15]
Label three attention factors [18]
Label three kinds of reasoning [16]
Reference list appended [8]
Minimum of four published sources
Correct bibliographic form

23
F. Critique Forms

On the next few pages are a number of sample critique forms. The first is a comprehensive checklist, followed by
two instructor critique checklists that were developed to go along with the informative and problem-solution
speeches described earlier in this resource manual. You will find it easy to devise your own forms by shortening and
adapting the comprehensive checklist (also available on the Web site). Make the chapter references on the form as
specific as possible. Then, when you use the forms during speeches you may want to become even more specific, for
instance indicating which introduction pitfall was fallen into. You can spread these categories out, leaving ample
white space for comments, or keep the checklist compact and append comments on another sheet.
We find it useful to distribute the critique forms with the speech assignment sheets to show students exactly
how they will be evaluated. In the spirit of conserving paper, they are requested to return the critique form to the
instructor on the day they speak. They may provide certain information such as their name and speech topic. It is
sometimes effective to ask the student to designate a couple of categories where they have set special goals and are
focusing on being consciously competent. These designations invite the instructor to provide special feedback on the
targeted areas for improvement.
Following the instructor’s checklists are sample critique forms for self-evaluation, peer evaluation and peer shift
of opinion.

24
Sample Evaluation Checklist
(Select those categories relevant and appropriate to the kind of speech being evaluated.)

ORGANIZATION
Introduction Connectives
Attention getter needed [13] Express logical relationships [12]
Psychological orientation Employ internal previews and summaries [12]
Establish relationship [13] Conclusion
Relate topic to audience [13] Logical closure
Logical orientation Summarize main points [14]
Establish a context [13] Connect with larger context [14]
Orient audience [13] Psychological closure
Avoid introduction pitfalls [13] Relate back to audience [14]
Main Points Make an appeal [14]
Improve overall pattern [10] Clincher needed [14]
State clearly [11] Avoid conclusion pitfalls [14]

DEVELOPMENT
Reasoning [16]
Invalid inductive patterns Attention and Interest [18]
Invalid deductive patterns Use concrete and familiar materials
Invalid causal reasoning Involve audience
Invalid reasoning from analogy Variety and movement needed
Avoid fallacies Inappropriate humor
Supporting Materials Language and Style [17]
Clarify explanations [21] Employ oral style
Improve definitions [15] Strive for clarity
Improve use of examples [15] Use appropriate language
Improve statistical evidence [15] Use vivid, varied language
Improve use of testimony [15] Credibility [19]
Use variety of supporting materials [15] Establish competence
Cite sources [15, 8] Establish concern
Weave support smoothly into speech [15] Establish trustworthiness
Motivational Appeals [20] Establish dynamism
Relate to needs and values of listeners
Avoid misuse of emotional appeals

PRESENTATION
Study extemporaneous mode [23] Physical Delivery [26]
More practice needed [24] Be conscious of your appearance
Work on confidence, poise [4] Eliminate distracting mannerisms
Improve posture
Vocal Delivery [25]
Employ purposeful movements
Eliminate distracting characteristics
Gesture naturally
Speak loud enough
Maintain eye contact
Speak at appropriate rate
Control your facial expression
Enunciate clearly, naturally
Strive for vocal variety Presentation Aids [27]
Use acceptable pronunciation Needed/not needed
Make clear and manageable
Use more effectively

25
GENERAL
Select appropriate topic [6]
Conform to time limit [6, 24]
Sources cited appropriately [8]
Learn to handle distractions [28]
Be responsive to audience questions [29]

Persuasive Strategies [22]


Adjust to audience attitude
Use psychological pattern of organization
Arrange main points for max. persuasive impact
Answer appropriate counterarguments

20
Informative Speech: Evaluation Form
Instructions
Fill in your name and roll number and hand in this form, with your outline attached, on the day that you speak. After
it is returned to you with comments, keep it until the course is over. The ratings on the sub-categories stand for
Excellent, Good, Average, Fair, and Needs Improvement.

Speech Element Rating Comments


Speech Topic
Topic Meets Requirements [6] EX GD AV FR NI

Organization
Introduction [13]
Attention Getter EX GD AV FR NI
Psychological Orientation EX GD AV FR NI
Logical Orientation EX GD AV FR NI
Avoids introduction pitfalls EX GD AV FR NI
Body
Main points stated declaratively [11] EX GD AV FR NI
Use of supporting material [15] EX GD AV FR NI
Organizational pattern [10] EX GD AV FR NI
Connectives between points [12] EX GD AV FR NI
Conclusion [14]
Logical Closure EX GD AV FR NI
Psychological Closure EX GD AV FR NI
Clincher EX GD AV FR NI
Avoids conclusion pitfalls EX GD AV FR NI

Content
Points clearly developed [9,11,21] EX GD AV FR NI
Defined terms as needed [15] EX GD AV FR NI
Sufficient information presented EX GD AV FR NI

Delivery
Vocal Delivery [25] EX GD AV FR NI
Physical Delivery [26] EX GD AV FR NI
Use of Note cards [24] EX GD AV FR NI
Use of Presentation Aids [27] EX GD AV FR NI

Speech Overall EX GD AV FR NI
Appropriate Speech Length EX GD AV FR NI

SPEECH GRADE: COMMENTS:

21
Persuasive Speech: Evaluation Form
Instructions
Fill in your name and hand in this form, with your outline attached, on the day that you speak. After it is returned to
you with comments, keep it until the course is over. The ratings on the sub-categories stand for Excellent, Good,
Average, Fair, and Needs Improvement.

Speech Element Rating Comments


Speech Topic
Topic Meets Requirements [6] EX GD AV FR NI

Organization
Introduction [13]
Attention Getter EX GD AV FR NI
Psychological Orientation EX GD AV FR NI
Logical Orientation EX GD AV FR NI
Avoids introduction pitfalls EX GD AV FR NI
Body
Main points stated declaratively [11] EX GD AV FR NI
Use of supporting material [15] EX GD AV FR NI
Organizational pattern [10] EX GD AV FR NI
Connectives between points [12] EX GD AV FR NI
Clear and sound reasoning [16] EX GD AV FR NI
Sources cited [8, 15] EX GD AV FR NI
Conclusion [14]
Logical Closure EX GD AV FR NI
Psychological Closure EX GD AV FR NI
Clincher EX GD AV FR NI
Avoids conclusion pitfalls [14d] EX GD AV FR NI

Content
Supporting materials [15] EX GD AV FR NI
Sufficient information presented EX GD AV FR NI
Sufficient support presented EX GD AV FR NI
Attention factors [18] EX GD AV FR NI

Delivery
Vocal Delivery [25] EX GD AV FR NI
Physical Delivery [26] EX GD AV FR NI
Use of Note cards [24] EX GD AV FR NI
Use of Presentation Aids [27] EX GD AV FR NI

Overall Speaking Improvement EX GD AV FR NI

SPEECH GRADE: COMMENTS:

22
Self-Evaluation Form

1. How well do you think you achieved your purpose?

2. Which of your main ideas seemed to be accepted best?

3. Which of your main ideas seemed to be least acceptable?

4. How comfortable and confident did you feel during the speech?

5. What types of questions were asked by the audience? (Requests for information? Requests for clarification?
Questions about relevance of information? Challenges of your reasoning? Other?)

6. Do the kinds of questions asked indicate anything to you about your preparation?

7. If you had it to do over again, what changes would you make in preparation, support, organization, or delivery?

8. What one goal do you have for improving content in your next speech?

9. What one goal do you have for improving delivery in your next speech?

23
Peer Critique Form

1. What was the specific purpose of this speech?

2. Was the introduction effective? Why or why not?

3. Was the body clearly organized?

4. What were the main points? List them.

5. Were the main points supported? How?

6. Was the conclusion effective? Why or why not?

7. Did the speaker make adequate eye contact?

8. Were vocal characteristics (articulation, volume, rate, and variety) effective?

9. Were body movements appropriate?

10. What was your overall impression of the speaker?

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G. End of Class Awards

To culminate a term, it is fun to give awards to speakers in various categories. In one class they were called the
Emenemmies Awards (the prizes were M&Ms) and students voted before the final exam; ballots were tallied during
the exam and awards were given at a class party immediately following. The teacher made sure that every member
of the class won some award. There were several ties and she created a few new categories herself to make it come
out that way. Variations might be to have the class make nominations for the “big” awards, best speaker, best
delivery, etc., and actually vote for finalists during one of the last few classes. A committee could meet with the
teacher to devise special awards. One recent class awarded the introduction pitfalls award to a student who began
her final speech by asking the camera operator, “does my hair look OK?” and the handling distractions with aplomb
award to a student who out-shouted construction noises in the hallway. Here are a few categories to consider. You
and your students can make up others.

Most improved speaker Most credible image Best visual aids

Best delivery Most expressive face Best gestures

Most sincere speaker Best use of pathos Most poised

Most relaxed speaker Most humorous speaker Most organized

Ms./Mr. Congeniality Most unusual topic Most creative

Most enthusiastic speaker Clearest explanations Best evidence

Most penetrating question by an audience member Best overall speaker

Most supportive audience member

25
26
Another random document with
no related content on Scribd:
Merry’s Adventures.

chapter xvii.

I cannot easily make my readers, who have always lived in cities


or towns, understand the pleasure of sleeping in the woods, with no
roof but the sky. Perhaps most persons would think this a hardship,
and so it would be, if we had to do it always: but by way of adventure
now and then, and particularly when one is about seventeen, with
such a clever fellow as Mat Olmsted for a companion and a guide,
the thing is quite delightful.
The affair with the panther had excited my fancy, and filled my
bosom with a deep sense of my own importance. It seemed to me
that the famous exploits of Hercules, in Greece, which are told by the
old poets, were, after all, such things as I could myself achieve, if the
opportunity only should offer.
Occupied with these thoughts, I assisted Mat in collecting some
fagots for our night fire—but every moment kept looking around,
expecting to see some wild animal peeping his face between the
trunks of the gray old oaks. In one instance I mistook a stump for a
bear’s head, and in another I thought a bush at a little distance, was
some huge monster, crouching as if to spring upon us.
The night stole on apace, and soon we were surrounded with
darkness, which was rendered deeper by the fire we had kindled.
The scene was now, even more wild than before: the trees that stood
around, had the aspect of giants, lifting their arms to the sky;—and
their limbs often assumed the appearance of serpents, or demons,
goggling at us from the midnight darkness. Around us was a
seeming tent, curtained with blackness, through which not a ray of
light could penetrate.
I amused myself for a long time, in looking at these objects, and I
remarked that they assumed different aspects at different times—a
thing which taught me a useful lesson, and which I will give, gratis, to
my young readers. It is this, that fancy, when indulged, has the
power to change objects to suit its own wayward humor. Whoever
wishes to be guided right, ought, therefore, to beware how he takes
fancy for a guide.
When our fire had been burning for about half an hour, Matthew
having unbuckled his pack, took out some dried deer’s flesh, upon
which we made a hearty supper: we then began to talk about one
thing and another, and, finally, I spoke of the Indians, expressing my
curiosity to know more about them. Upon this, Mat said he would tell
an Indian story, and accordingly, he proceeded nearly as follows:
These six nations, you must know, were not originally confined to
this small tract of country, but they were spread far and wide over the
land. Nor were they always united, but in former days they waged
fierce wars with one another. It was the custom among all the tribes
to put captives to death, by burning them, inflicting at the same time
the most fearful tortures upon the victims. Sometimes, however, they
adopted the captive, if he showed extraordinary fortitude, into the
tribe, and gave him all the privileges of the brotherhood.
An instance of this sort occurred with the Senecas. They had
been at war with the Chippewas, who lived to the north. Two small
bands of these rival tribes met, and every one of the Chippewas was
slain, save only a young chief named Hourka. He was taken, and
carried to the village of the victorious Senecas. Expecting nothing
but torture and death, he awaited his fate, without a question, or a
murmur. In a day or two, he saw the preparations making for his
sacrifice: a circular heap of dried fagots was erected, and near it a
stake was driven in the ground.
To this he was tied, and the fagots were set on fire. The scorching
blaze soon flashed near his limbs, but he shrunk not. An Indian then
took a sharp piece of stone, and cut a gash in Hourka’s side, and
inserted in it a blazing knot of pine. This burned down to the flesh,
but still the sufferer showed no signs of distress. The people of the
tribe, came around him, and jeered at him, calling him coward, and
every other offensive name: but they extorted not from him an
impatient word. The boys and the women seemed to be foremost in
taunting him; they caught up blazing pieces of the fagots, and thrust
them against his naked flesh; but yet, he stood unmoved, and his
face was serene, showing, however, a slight look of disdain. There
was something in his air which seemed to say, “I despise all your
arts—I am an Indian chief, and beyond your power.”
Now it chanced that a daughter of an old chief of the Senecas,
was there, and her heart was touched with the courage and manly
beauty of the youthful Chippewa; so she determined to save his life if
she could: and knowing that a crazy person is thought by the Indians
to be inspired, she immediately pretended to be insane. She took a
large fragment of the burning fagot in her hand, and circling around
Hourka, screamed in the most fearful manner. She ran among the
woman and boys, scattering the fire on all sides, and at the same
time exclaiming, “Set the captive free,—it is the will of Manitto, the
Great Spirit!”
This manoeuvre of the Indian maiden was so sudden, and her
manner was so striking, that the Indians around were taken by a
momentary impulse, and rushing to the captive, sundered the strings
of bark that tied him to the stake, and, having set him at liberty,
greeted him as a brother. From this time, Hourka became a member
of the tribe into which he was thus adopted, and none treated him
otherwise than as a chief, in whose veins the blood of the Senecas
was flowing, save only a huge chief, called Abomico.
This Indian was of gigantic size, and proportionate power. He had
taken more scalps in fight, than any other young chief, and was,
therefore, the proudest of all the Senecas. He was looked upon by
the girls of the tribe, very much as a young man is among us, who is
worth a hundred thousand dollars. When, therefore, he said to
Meena—the daughter of the chief who saved the life of Hourka—that
he wanted her for his wife, he was greatly amazed to find that she
did not fancy him. He went away wondering that he could be
refused, but determining to try again. Now the long, dangling
soaplocks, and filthy patches of beard, worn by our modern dandies,
who desire to dazzle the eyes of silly girls—were not in vogue
among the Senecas: but foppery is a thing known among savages
as well as civilized people.
Accordingly, Abomico, when he had determined to push his suit
with Meena, covered himself entirely over with a thick coat of bear’s
grease; he then painted one side of his face yellow, the other blue;
his arms he painted red; on his breast he drew the figure of a snake;
on one leg he painted a skunk; on the other a bear. Around his neck
he hung a necklace of bears’ claws, and on his arm he bore forty
bloody scalps, which he had taken from the heads of enemies slain
in battle; at his back was a quiver of arrows, and in his left hand was
a bow. In his hair was stuck a bunch of eagles’ feathers; from his
right ear swung the skin of a racoon; in his right hand he bore the
wing of a crow.
Thus attired, Abomico marched toward the tent, where Meena
dwelt with her father. Never was a beau of one of our cities, new
from the hands of the tailor, more delighted with his appearance,
than was this Indian dandy, as he drew near to the tent, and waited
at the door for the maiden to appear. “If she can resist my charms
now,”—thought Abomico,—“she must be bewitched indeed!”
Meena soon appeared—and the chief spoke to her again,
begging her to become his wife. “Come!” said he—“go with me, and
be the singing bird in my nest. I am a great warrior. I have slain forty
brave men in battle. I have feasted on the flesh, and drunk the warm
blood, of my enemies. I have the strongest arm, the truest hand, the
swiftest foot, the keenest eye, of any chief in the mighty tribe of the
Senecas.”
“It is not true!” said Meena.
“Not true?” said the chief, in great anger and astonishment. “Who
dares to match himself with Abomico? Who can vie with him in the
race? Who can shoot with him at the mark? Who can leap with him
at the bar?”
“Hourka!” said Meena.
“It is a lie,” said Abomico; though I must say, that he meant no
offence—because, among the Indians, such a speech was not a
discourtesy.
“Nay—nay,” said Meena—“I speak the truth; you have come to
ask me to be your wife. Hourka has made the same request. You
shall both try your power in the race and the leap, and at the bow. He
who shall be the master in the trial, may claim Meena for his slave.”
This proposition was gladly accepted, and Hourka being informed
of it, a time for the trial was appointed. The people of the village soon
heard what was going on; and, as the Indians are always fond of
shows and holidays, they rejoiced to hear of the promised sport.
The day of the trial arrived. In a grassy lawn, the sport was to be
held; and here the throng assembled. It was decreed by the chiefs
that the first trial should be with the bow. A large leaf was spread out
upon a forked branch of a tree, and this was set in the ground, at the
distance of about fifty yards. Abomico shot first, and his arrow
pierced the leaf, within half an inch of the centre. Hourka followed,
and his arrow flew wide from the mark, not even touching the leaf.
He seemed indeed careless, and reckless. But, as he turned his eye
upon Meena, he saw a shade of sorrow come over her face.
In an instant the manner of the young chief changed. He said to
himself,—“I have been mistaken: I thought the maiden slighted me
and preferred my rival: but now I know that she loves me, and I can
now beat Abomico.”
There were to be three trials of the bow. In the two which followed
the first, which we have described, Hourka had the advantage and
was pronounced the victor. And now came the leap. A pole was set
horizontally upon stakes, to the height of about five feet, and Hourka,
running a little distance, cleared it easily. Abomico followed, and he
also leaped over it with facility. It was then raised about a foot, and
Hourka, bounding like a deer of the wood, sprang over the pole,
amid the admiring shouts of the multitude. Abomico made a great
effort, and he too went over, but his foot grazed the piece of wood,
and the victory here again was awarded to Hourka.
The face of the haughty Abomico, now grew dark as the thunder-
cloud. He could bear to be rejected by Meena; but to be thus
vanquished before the whole tribe, and that too by one who had not
the real blood of a Seneca, was more than his pride could bear. He
was, therefore, plotting some scheme of revenge, when the race was
marked out by the chiefs. It was decreed that they should run side by
side to a broad river which was near; that they should swim across;
ascend on the opposite bank to a place above a lofty cataract in the
river, and recrossing the river there, return to the point of their
departure.
The place occupied by the spectators, was so elevated as to
command a fine view of the entire race-ground; and the interest was
intense, as the two chiefs departed, bounding along, side by side,
like two coursers. The race was long nearly equal. They came to the
river, and at the same moment both plunged into the water. They
swam across, and at the same moment clambered up the rocky
bank on the other shore. Side by side they ran, straining every
muscle. They ascended to the spot above the roaring cataract, and
plunged into the river; then drew near the place where the water
broke over the rocks in a mighty sheet, making the earth tremble
with the shock of their fall. Still the brave swimmers heeded not the
swift current that drew them toward the precipice. Onward they
pressed, cutting the element like ducks, and still side by side.
Intense was the interest of the spectators, as they witnessed the
strife. But what was their amazement, when they saw Abomico rise
above the wave, grapple Hourka and drag him directly toward the
edge of the cataract. There was a shout of horror, through the tribe,
and then a deathlike silence. The struggle of the two rivals was
fearful, but in a short space, clinging to each other, they rolled over
the precipice, and disappeared among the mass of foam, far and
deep below!
Killed, by falling on the rocks, and gashed by many a ghastly
wound, the huge form of Abomico was soon seen drifting down the
stream; while Hourka swam to the shore, and claimed his willing
bride, amid the applauses of men, women and children.
The Zodiac.

The Zodiac consists of a broad belt in the heavens, among which


the sun appears to make his annual circuit. The stars are arranged in
groups, and the ancients, who were fond of astronomy, called these
groups or constellations, by particular names. One group they called
ursa major, or great bear; one they called orion; another, the crown;
another, the dog; another Hercules, &c.
In the month of March, the sun is said to enter aries, that is the
group or constellation called aries, or the ram; in April it enters
taurus, or the bull; in May, gemini, the twins; in June, cancer, the
crab; in July, leo, the lion; in August, virgo, the virgin; in September,
libra, the scales; in October, scorpio, the scorpion; in November,
sagittarius, the archer; in December, capricorn, the goat; in January,
aquarius, the water bearer; in February, pisces, the fishes.
The Voyages, Travels, and Experiences of
Thomas Trotter.

chapter xvi.
The grotto of Pausilippo.—​A dying man.—​The Lazzaroni.—​Weather
at Naples.—​The grotta del cane.—​Inhuman sport.—​Subterranean
fires.—​A Funeral.—​Characteristics of the Neapolitans.

I had heard a great deal of the grotto of Pausilippo, which is a


great tunnel through a mountain at one end of the city, and I took a
walk toward that quarter, for the purpose of visiting it.
This is certainly one of the most surprising works of art in the
world, considering its age. It was executed two or three thousand
years ago, and is probably the most permanent artificial work on the
face of the earth. Even the Egyptian pyramids will not last so long as
this. To have some idea of it, you must understand that Naples is
separated from the towns on the northern coast by the hill of
Pausilippo, which is a ridge of solid rock.
Through this rock an immense tunnel is cut, three quarters of a
mile long, and nearly a hundred feet high. It is broad enough for two
carriages to pass, and lighted by lamps. Several air-holes, at proper
distances, serve to ventilate it and keep the air pure. A great deal of
travel is constantly passing through it: and during the heat of
summer, the grotto, has a most refreshing coolness. The rumbling of
the carriages is echoed from the rocky vault overhead in a very
remarkable manner. Altogether, the place struck me with surprise
and astonishment; and when I thought of our railroad tunnels, which
we boast of as modern inventions, I could not help repeating the
observation of king Solomon, that “there is no new thing under the
sun.”
While I sat at supper in the evening, I was startled by hearing a
bell tinkling violently under my window. I ran to the balcony and
found the whole street in a blaze of light. A religious procession was
going down the street bearing lighted tapers. I was told that it was a
priest going to administer extreme unction to a dying man.
At the sound of the bell, which was carried by one of the
procession, all the neighbors ran to the windows and balconies with
lamps and candles, and fell upon their knees; for this is the custom
on such occasions. In an instant the whole street was in a blaze of
light, and the prospect of this illumination, with the long procession of
persons dressed in white, chanting a mournful dirge, and the crowds
in the balconies in solemn and devout attitudes, struck me very
forcibly. As the procession passed by each house, the spectators
crossed themselves and uttered a prayer for the soul of the dying
man. So sudden are the transitions of these people from the gayety
and merriment of their daily occupations to the solemnity of their
religious observances.
Everybody who has been at Naples, has something to say about
the Lazzaroni, which is the name given to the idle fellows and
ragamuffins of this city. Many people imagine them to be a distinct
race of men, like the gipseys in other parts of Europe; but this is an
error. Every city in Europe has its proportion of lazy and ragged
fellows: but in Naples their number is so great that they have
obtained this peculiar name. By some, their numbers are stated at
twenty thousand. I will not vouch for the full number, but they exist in
swarms. Nowhere else did I ever see such comical raggedness as
among these people. The scarecrows, which Yankee farmers set in
their cornfields to frighten away the birds, are genteel figures
compared to these fellows. One has half a pair of trowsers; another
half a jacket, and no trowsers at all; another wears the leg of an old
stocking for a cap; another has a ragged pair of breeches the wrong
side upwards for a shirt. As to the patches and tatters, they surpass
all power of language to describe. How they get their living, one is
puzzled to guess, for they seem to spend all the day basking in the
sun; and in spite of their rags and dirt, they appear to be as happy as
lords. They are constantly in good humor, singing, chattering,
grimacing, and cutting capers from morning to night. In fact,
notwithstanding their want of almost all those things which we call
necessaries of life, they appear to be troubled with very little
suffering. Their rags and nakedness give them little concern, for the
climate is so mild that they hardly feel the want of a covering. Their
food is chiefly macaroni, which is very cheap here: two or three cents
worth will suffice a man for a day. Their manner of eating it makes a
stranger laugh; they hold it up in long strings, at arm’s length, and
swallow it by the yard at a time. As for their homes, the most of them
have none: they sleep in the open air, on the steps of the churches,
and wherever they can find a convenient spot to lie.
It was about the middle of March, which is the most disagreeable
month of the whole year in this country; yet I found the weather very
mild and pleasant. Light showers of rain happened almost every day;
but these lasted commonly but a few minutes and were succeeded
by warm sun-shine. I could discern the Appenines at a distance,
covered with snow, while the hills around the city were decked with
green olive trees. Oranges and lemons were plenty and very cheap:
three or four for a cent.
I set out on a walk to visit the famous grotta del cane, or “dog’s
cavern,” which is only a few miles from Naples. The road lay through
the grotto of Pausilippo, and I could not avoid again admiring this
wonderful cavern, the work of men who lived in what we have
supposed to be an age of barbarism. At the further end I emerged
into the open air and found a region of fields and vineyards,
separated by walls of clay. Little children ran along by my side,
tumbling head over heels, clacking their chops, making queer noises
and antic gestures by way of begging for coppers. All along the road
were poplar trees, to which the vines were trained, but they were not
in leaf. After a walk of three or four miles I came to lake Agnaro, a
piece of water about the size of Fresh Pond in Cambridge. On the
shore of this lake is the grotta del cane. It is a rocky cavern which
enters horizontally a little above the water, and emits from its mouth
a sulphureous steam or vapor, which will kill a dog if he is put into
the cavern. People who live in the neighborhood keep dogs for the
purpose of exhibiting this phenomenon to strangers. The dogs know
the fatal properties of this cave, and refuse to go in. While I was
there, some of these fellows came to me and offered to exhibit the
experiment; but I declined, not wishing to see an animal treated with
cruelty for mere curiosity. They assured me that the dog need not be
killed—that they would only keep him in the cave long enough to
throw him into a swoon, and then bring him to life again by plunging
him into the water. I told them this was as bad as killing him outright:
for the animal could suffer no more by actually dying. They were very
unwilling to lose their expected fee, and answered me that there was
no suffering in the case, but, on the contrary, the dogs were very
fond of the sport! I laughed at this impudent falsehood, and refused
to have anything to do with the exhibition.
A few minutes after, a party of visiters arrived who had no such
humane scruples: they were resolved to see the experiment tried.
Accordingly, a dog was brought forward; and I now had a chance to
see how much truth there was in the assertion that these animals
were fond of being choked to death. The poor dog no sooner
perceived his visiters than he became as perfectly aware of what
was going forward as if he had heard and understood every syllable
that had been said. It showed the utmost unwillingness to proceed
towards the cavern, but his master seized him by the neck and
dragged him with main force along till he reached the mouth of the
cave, into which he thrust him howling and making the most piteous
cries. In a few minutes he fell upon the ground motionless, and lay
without any signs of life. The spectators declared that they had seen
enough to satisfy them; on which the fellow took the dog up by the
ears and plunged him into the lake. After two or three dips, the poor
animal began to agitate his limbs and at length came to himself and
ran scampering off. These inhuman exhibitions ought not to be
encouraged by travellers.
Every part of the neighborhood of the city abounds with evidence
of the existence of volcanic fire, under ground. As I walked along the
road I found the smoke issuing from holes and clefts in the ground:
and on placing my hands in these fissures, I found them so hot that
one might roast eggs in them. Yet people build houses and pass
their lives upon these spots, without troubling themselves with the
reflection that they live on a thin crust of soil hanging over a yawning
gulf of fire! In my walk homeward I passed by a hill, about the size of
Bunker Hill, which some time ago rose up suddenly, in a single night,
from a level plain. It is now all overgrown with weeds and bushes. If
it were not for Mount Vesuvius, which affords a breathing-place for
these subterranean fires, it is highly probable that the whole face of
the country would be rent into fragments by earthquakes and
volcanic explosions. Vesuvius may be called the safety valve of the
country.
On my way home, I was stopped on the road by an immense
crowd. It was a funeral. A long train of monks and priests attended
the hearse, each one clad in a dress which resembled a loose white
sheet thrown over the head and falling down to the feet, with little
round holes cut for the eyes. They looked like a congregation of
spectres from the other world. The corpse was that of an army
officer. He lay not in a coffin, but exposed in full uniform upon a
crimson pall edged with gold. Everything accompanying the hearse
was pompous, showy and dazzling.
This indeed is the characteristic of the people; almost everything
in their manners and mode of life is calculated to strike the senses
and produce effect by dazzling and external display. Nothing can
surpass the splendor of their religious processions, the rich and
imposing decoration of their churches, and the pomp and parade
and showy display which attend the solemnization of all their public
festivals. The population of these countries are exceedingly sensitive
to the effect of all these exhibitions, and their lively and acute
feelings bring them under the influence of whatever is addressed
strongly to their outward senses. They are little guided by sound
reason and sober reflection, but are at the mercy of all the impulses
that arise from a keen sensibility and an excitable imagination.
Story of Philip Brusque.

chapter xi.
The meeting.—​Discussion.—​A government adopted.—​Conclusion
for the present.

The time for the meeting of the people to take measures for the
establishment of a government for the island of Fredonia, was fixed
for the day which followed the events narrated in the last chapter.
This meeting was looked forward to with intense interest, by all
parties. The men, who knew that there could be no peace or safety
in society, without government, regarded the event as likely to decide
whether the inhabitants of the island were to be happy or miserable.
The women, who were perhaps not apt to reflect upon these
things, had also learned from their experience that a government,
establishing and enforcing laws, was indispensable to the quiet and
security of society: they saw that their own lives, their freedom, their
homes, were not secure, without the protection of law. Even the
children had found that government was necessary, and these as
well as the women, were now rejoicing at the prospect of having this
great blessing bestowed upon the little community of Fredonia.
The day for the meeting arrived, and the men of the island
assembled, agreeably to the appointment. First came the men of the
tent party, and then, those from the Outcast’s cave. The latter were
greeted by a shout of welcome, and mingling with the rest, a kind
shaking of hands took place between those, who so lately were
arrayed against each other in deadly conflict.
After a short time, Mr. Bonfils, being the oldest man of the
company, called the assembly to order, and he being chosen
chairman, went on to state the objects of the assembly, in the
following words:
“My dear friends; it has been the will of Providence to cast us
together upon this lonely, but beautiful island. It would seem that so
small a community, regulated by mutual respect and mutual good
will, might dwell together in peace and amity, without the restraints of
law, or the requisitions of government. But history has told us, that in
all lands, and in all ages, peace, order, justice, are only to be
secured by established laws, and the means of carrying them into
effect. There must be government, even in a family; there must be
some power to check error, to punish crime, to command obedience
to the rule of right. Where there is no government, there the violent,
the unjust, the selfish, have sway, and become tyrants over the rest
of the community. Our own unhappy experience teaches us this.
“Now we have met together, with a knowledge, a conviction of
these truths. We know, we feel, we see that law is necessary, and
that there must be a government to enforce it. Without this, there is
no peace, no security, no quiet fireside, no happy home, no pleasant
society. Without this, all is fear, anxiety, and anarchy.
“Let us then enter upon the duties of this occasion, with a proper
sense of the obligation that rests upon us; of the serious duty which
is imposed on every man present. We are about to decide questions
which are of vital interest, not only to each actor in this scene, but to
these wives and sisters and children, whom we see gathered at a
little distance, watching our proceedings, as if their very lives were at
stake.”
This speech was followed by a burst of applause; but soon a man
by the name of Maurice arose—one who had been a leading
supporter of Rogere—and addressed the assembly as follows:
“Mr. Chairman; it is well known that I am one of the persons who
have followed the opinions of that leader who lost his life in the battle
of the tents. I followed him from a conviction that his views were
right. The fact is, that I have seen so much selfishness in the officers
of the law, that I have learned to despise the law itself. Perhaps,
however, I have been wrong. I wish to ask two questions—the first is
this: Is not liberty a good thing? You will answer that it is. It is
admitted, all the world over, that liberty is one of the greatest
enjoyments of life. My second question then is—Why restrain liberty
by laws? Every law is a cord put around the limbs of liberty. If you
pass a law that I shall not steal, it is restraint of my freedom; it limits
my liberty; it takes away a part of that, which all agree is one of the
greatest benefits of life. And thus, as you proceed to pass one law
after another, do you not at last bind every member of society by
such a multiplied web of restraints, as to make him the slave of law?
And is not a member of a society where you have a system of laws,
like a fly in the hands of the spider, wound round and round by a
bondage that he cannot burst, and which only renders him a slave of
that power which has thus entangled him?”
When Maurice had done, Brusque arose, and spoke as follows:
“Mr. Chairman; I am happy that Mr. Maurice has thus stated a
difficulty which has arisen in my own mind: he has stated it fairly, and
it ought to be fairly answered. Liberty is certainly a good thing;
without it, man cannot enjoy the highest happiness of which he is
capable. All useless restraints of liberty are therefore wrong; all
unnecessary restraints of liberty are wrong. But the true state of the
case is this: we can enjoy no liberty, but by submitting to certain
restraints. It is true that every law is an abridgment of liberty; but it is
better to have some abridgment of it, than to lose it all.
“I wish to possess my life in safety; accordingly I submit to a law
which forbids murder: I wish to possess my property in security; and
therefore I submit to a law which forbids theft and violence: I wish to
possess my house without intrusion; I therefore submit to a law
which forbids one man to trespass upon the premises of another: I
wish to go and come, without hindrance, and without fear; I therefore
submit to a law which forbids highway robbery, and all interference
with a man’s pursuit of his lawful business.
“Now, if we reflect a little, we shall readily see that by submitting
to certain restraints, we do actually increase the amount of practical,
available, useful liberty. By submitting to laws, therefore, we get
more freedom than we lose. That this is the fact, may be easily
tested by observation. Go to any civilized country, where there is a
settled government and a complete system of laws, and you will find,
in general, that a man enjoys his house, his home, his lands, his
time, his thoughts, his property, without fear: whereas, if you go to a
savage land, where there is no government and no law, there you
will find your life, property, and liberty, exposed every moment to
destruction. Who, then, can fail to see that the very laws which
abridge liberty in some respects, actually increase the amount of
liberty enjoyed by the community.”
Maurice professed himself satisfied with this solution of his
difficulties; and the meeting proceeded to appoint a committee, to go
out and prepare some plan, to be submitted to the meeting. This
committee returned, and after a short space, brought in a resolution,
that Mr. Bonfils be for one year placed at the head of the little
community, with absolute power; and that, at the end of that period,
such plan of government as the people might decree, should be
established.
This resolution was adopted unanimously. The men threw up their
hats in joy, and the air rang with acclamations. The women and
children heard the cheerful sounds, and ran toward the men, who
met them half way. It was a scene of unmixed joy. Brusque and
Emilie met, and the tears of satisfaction fell down their cheeks.
François went to his aged mother, and even her dimmed eye was
lighted with pleasure at the joyful issue of the meeting.
We must now take leave of the island of Fredonia—at least for a
time—and whether we ever return to it, must depend upon the
wishes of our young readers. If they are anxious to see how the
people flourished under the reign of their aged old chief, and how
they proceeded in after years, perchance we may lift the curtain and
show them the scene that lies behind it. But I hope that our readers
have learnt, that not only men and women, but children, have an
interest in government, and therefore that it is a thing they should try
to understand.
The Tanrec.

This creature resembles the hedgehog, but is larger than that


animal, and is destitute of a tail. It does not roll itself into a ball, for
defence, like the former animal. It passes three of the warmest
months of the year in a state of torpor, differing in this respect from
other animals, which become torpid from extreme cold. Its legs are
very short, and it moves very slowly. It is fond of the water, and loves
to wallow in the mud. It moves about only by night. There are three
species, all found in the island of Madagascar.

Letter from a Correspondent.


Little Readers of the Museum:
I sometimes read Mr. Robert Merry’s Museum, and I like it
very much, as I presume all his little “blue-eyed and black-
eyed readers” do. He talks very much like good old Peter
Parley. I should think he had heard him tell many a story while
he rested his wooden leg on a chair, with a parcel of little
laughing girls and boys around him. Oh, how many times I
have longed to see him, and crawl up in his lap and hear his
stories! But Mr. Merry says he is dead, and I never can see
him. I am very—very sorry, for I hoped I should sometime visit
him, for I loved him very much, and I guess he would have
loved me some, for I like old people, and always mean to treat
them with respect. How cruel it was for others to write books
and pretend that Peter Parley wrote them!—for it seems that
this shortened his life. I am glad, however, that Mr. Merry has
his writings, for I think he loves his little friends so well that he
will frequently publish some of them. I said that I loved Peter
Parley, and I guess you will not think it strange that I should,
when I tell you what a useful little book he once published,
and how much pleasure I took in reading it. He wrote a great
many interesting pieces which I read and studied, and they
did me much good, I think. I hope that the little readers of the
Museum will learn a good deal from what they read.
Peter Parley wrote a piece which told us how to make
pens. I read it over, and over again, and, finally, I thought I
would see if I could not make one. So I went to my little desk
and took out a quill, got my aunt’s knife and laid the book
before me and tried to do just as Peter Parley told me I must.
I succeeded very well, and my friends were quite pleased.
This encouraged me very much, and soon I made them so
well that my teachers made me no more pens. By-and-by my
little associates got me to make and mend theirs, and I loved
the business very much.
Well, a few years since, I went to a beautiful village to
attend school, where a splendid academy stands, around
which, are large green trees, under whose shade my little
readers would love to sit. There I staid two or three years.
Often did I walk out with the teachers, whom I loved, to
botanize, or ramble, with nimble step, over the beautiful hills
of that sweet place, and listen to the constant murmur of its
waterfalls, or gather the delicate flowers that grew so
plentifully there. But to my story. My teachers saw that I made
my own pens, and occasionally, when they were busy, would
bring me one to make for them. The students soon found it
out, and I had plenty of business. One day the principal of the
school came to me and offered to compensate me by giving
me my tuition one term, which was six dollars, if I would make
and mend pens. I did not accept the money of course, though
I cheerfully and gladly performed the small service.
So you see, Peter Parley’s instruction has done me a great
deal of good, for how many persons there are who cannot
make a good pen, because they never learned how.
My little readers, I am now almost twenty years old, but I
still remember many other things which I read in Peter
Parley’s books when I was a little girl. Mr. Robert Merry talks
and writes just like him, almost, and I hope you will love to
read and study attentively Merry’s Museum, for it is a good
little work, and a pleasant one. Be assured, my young friends,
you can learn a great deal from it, if you read it carefully. I
should like to say much more to you, but I cannot now. I have
been sitting by the fire, in a rocking-chair, writing this on a
large book, with a pussy under it for a desk, but she has just
jumped from my lap, and refuses to be made a table of any
longer. So farewell.
Your young friend,
Laura.
Springfield, Jan. 6, 1842

Cookery Book.—“Has that cookery book any pictures?” said


Miss C. to a bookseller. “No, miss, none,” was the answer. “Why,”
exclaimed the witty young lady, “what is the use of telling us how to
make a good dinner, if they give us no plates?”

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