Chapter 9: Organizing the Body of the Speech

how do you choose your main points?

- sometimes they will be evident from your specific purpose statement - can emerge during research or when you evaluate your findings ex. specific purpose -- central idea -- main points

Main points (background)

- the start of the process of organizing the body of speech - central features of your speech - select them carefully, phrase them precisely, and arrange them strategically - reasons = main points

why do we need organization?

- they serve us better to be organized - organization allows you and your listeners to see what ideas you have and to put mental hands on the most important ones

signposts

a very brief statement the indicates where a speaker is in the speech or that focuses attention on key ideas - the first cause... second cause... final cause ... - through questions - "above all you need to know'

connective

a word or phrase that connects the ideas of a speech and indicates the relationships among them - without it leads to disjointed and uncoordinated speeches

transitions

a word phrase that indicates when a speaker has finished one thought and is moving on to another

Strategic Order of Main Points the most effective in ordering your point

ordering your points depends on three things: topic, purpose, and audience

strategic organization

putting a speech together in a particular way to achieve a particular result with a particular audience

main points

the major points developed in the body of a speech; most speeches contain from two to five main points

four types of connectives

transitions, internal previews, internal summaries, and signposts

five basic patterns in organization

chronological order spatial order causal order problem-solution order topical order

once you organize the main points and supporting points then you must focus on

connectives

why is speech organization important

- critical thinking - it helps you gain a practice in establishing a clear relationship with your ideas - using this can improve your confidence as a speaker and your ability to deliver a message fluently

Organization is Important why?

- it makes effective speechmaking - listeners demand for coherence - a speaker must be sure listeners can follow the progression of ideas in a speech from beginning to end - must be organized strategically

Tips For Preparing Main Points

- keep main points separate = each point should be independent of the others - try to use the same pattern of wording for main points = consistent pattern of wording; makes main point stand out - balance the amount of time devoted to main points = not always balance is fine; times depends on the amount of complexity of supporting materials for each points

supporting materials

- main points are assertions (need supporting material) - the materials used to support a speaker's ideas; the three major kinds of supporting material are examples, statistics, and testimony - make sure the supporting material is relevant to the main point

Number of Main Points

- no more than 4 or 5 - between 2 and 3 - if you have too much you can condense your main points into categories

checklist for main points

1. body has 2-5 points 2. main points organized based on the methods of organization 3. main points separate from one another 4. same pattern of wording 5. balance the time 6. each main point have supporting material 7. use connectives (so audience knows when you are moving to another point)

problem-solution order

a method of speech organization in which the first main points deals with the existence of a problem and the second main point presents a solution to the problem - first main point: shows existence and seriousness of problem - second main point: solution for the problem

topical order

a method of speech organization in which the main points divide the topic into logical and consistent subtopics - subtopics = main points ANY SPEECH ex. talking about field achievements "as a activist, as a spy, as a entertainer"

chronological order

a method of speech organization in which the main points follow a time pattern - used in speeches explaining a process or how to do something INFORMATIVE

spatial order

a method of speech organization in which the main points follow directional pattern - main points that proceed from top to bottom, left to right, front to back, inside to outside, east to west etc.. INFORMATIVE ex. what a hurricane is made going from the inside to outside ; northern and souther Italy

casual order

a method of speech organization in which the main points show a cause-effect relationship - two main points (one for the cause of the event and the other for dealing with the effects) (or the other way around when the effects have already occur then you want to talk about the cause) INFORMATIVE & PERSUASIVE ex. the Ancient Pueblo peoples that lived (effect than cause)

internal previews

a statement in the body of the speech that lets the audience know what the speaker is going to discuss next (like a preview statement) ex. I will focus on three solutions-- blah, blah, and blah

internal summary

a statements in the body of the speech that summarizes the speaker's preceding points or point - the reverse of preview statements - to clarify and reinforce ideas

what is the first step in developing a strong sense of speech organization ? (first step to getting your speech organized)

getting command if the introduction, body, and conclusion - create the body first and then the introduction