Persuasive Speaking

Persuasive
Speaking
Reflection (name, Lab #, Instructor)
1.
2.
3.
4.
What is one thing you learned from the
content of the speeches during the
Informative round?
What is one thing you learned about
speech-making by watching others do it?
What is one thing you plan to do during the
next assignment because of your
experience during the informative round?
What is something you have been
persuaded to do or to think about differently
during the past year?
Agenda



What is Persuasive Speaking?
What are the requirements for our next
assignment?
How do I get started?
 Specific
Purposes
 Policy Speeches (The 3 Ps)
Persuasive speaking can be
contrasted with informative
speaking.

The two appear on a continuum.

Informative ---------------------- Persuasive
There are several
points of contrast.
 Informative
speaking reveals
and clarifies
options.
 Persuasive
speaking urges
us to choose
from among
options.
Points of Contrast
 Informative
speaking asks
the audience for
little
commitment.
 Persuasive
speaking asks
the audience for
major
commitment.
Points of Contrast
 Informative
Speakers face
limited ethical
obligations.
 Persuasive
speakers face
extensive ethical
obligations.
Points of Contrast
 The
informative
speaker is a
teacher.
 The
Persuasive
speaker is a
leader.
Points of Contrast
 Informative
speeches rarely
contain
emotional
appeals.
 Persuasive
speeches
typically include
emotional
appeals.
What kinds of
persuasion are
there?
One focus of persuasion is the
question of fact.


Something we can know
to be true or false, but
right now we can argue
about it.
Examples include
predictions, historical
controversy, or questions
of existence.
A second focus of persuasion is
the question of value.



something is right or
wrong, moral or immoral,
or better or worse than
another thing.
"To persuade my audience
that it is wrong to share
downloaded music files."
"To persuade my audience
that dorms are better than
off campus housing."
A third focus of persuasion is
the question of policy.





Some action should or should not
be taken.
“To persuade my audience to
donate blood.”
“To persuade my audience that
the city of Ames should/should
not build a parking garage in
campus town.”
“To persuade my audience to
support the expansion of the
Children’s Health Insurance
Program.”
The form is always: "To persuade
my audience that X should do Y."
Fact, Value or
Policy?
(this is ex. 2 p. 429 in textbook)
1. To persuade my audience
to donate time as a
community volunteer.
Turn it into a fact issue

To persuade my audience that experience
as volunteers will help them on the job
market.
Turn it into a value issue

To persuade my audience that they have a
moral obligation to become community
volunteers.
Turn it into a different kind of policy

To persuade my audience that the U.S.
should adopt a mandatory youth
community service program.
Fact, Value, or Policy?
5. Look at what you wrote for # 4 on the
reflection; was it a fact, value or policy
issue you were persuaded about? Explain
briefly.
[If you have nothing for #4, then tell me what
this statement is: “To persuade my audience that
violence on television is a major cause of violent
behavior in society.” And turn it into a specific
purpose statement for a question of policy.]
Your Assignment
See your workbook, pp. 46-50
Goals: A Policy Speech
 Topics: approved, substantial,
“controversial” and submitted on WebCT
by Friday at 8 p.m.
 Time: 8 minutes
 Sources: minimum of 4 strong sources;
review guidelines about sources in W pp.
53, 57-58

Your Assignment
Visual Aid—discretion of lab instructor
 Extemporaneous delivery
 Preparation outlines due by workshop—
next Tuesday
 Formal final outline due on speaking day
 Speaking outline to deliver from

What do I do next?
Persuasive Speech Policy
Analysis
One type of Persuasive speech Aims
to Gain Passive Agreement

To persuade my audience that the Iowa
legislature should adopt new laws to
better protect the victims of domestic
abuse.

To persuade my audience that the federal
government should impose a ban on all
advertising for cigarettes and other
tobacco products.
The Other
Type of Policy Speech Aims to
Gain Immediate Action




To persuade my audience to volunteer as
literacy tutors.
To persuade my audience to boycott Nike
products.
To persuade my audience to participate in the
political process beyond voting.
To persuade my audience to sign a petition for
longer library hours.
Central Concept from Lucas
“We often think of persuasion as something
a speaker does to an audience. In fact, as
a great deal of research shows,
persuasion is something a speaker does
with an audience” (p. 403).
After Topic and Goal
Selection; Move to Analysis



Arguing to change the status quo.
The speaker advocating change has the
Burden of Proof
The three issues to consider are grounded in
theories of human psychology.
The Three Ps:
Persuasive Speech Stock Issues
1. The Problem issue refers to what is
wrong with the status quo.
 2. The Plan issue refers to the solution.
 3. The Practicality issue refers to
considerations of how well the plan solves
the problem and its advantages and
disadvantages.

Problem
Plans


Support?
Withdraw?
Practicality: Better?
Practicality: Worse?
Topic Analysis
To persuade my audience that the state of
Iowa should have a mandatory helmet law
for motorcyclists.
 #6. What would be the problem issue
here?

Looking Ahead




Topic form on WebCT as soon as you can [due
Friday, 8 p.m.]
For next time read “The Problem With Pennies”
W pp. 70-71. Find Problem, Plan and
Practicality
Due dates:
 W p. 51 due Oct. 17 in lab
 W. pp. 55-56 due Oct. 22 in lab
Volunteers? I need 3-4 readers for next
class.
Persuasive
Speaking: Day 2
How do I create and organize
persuasive speeches so that
they are more convincing?
Problem, Plan and
Practicality
“The Problem with Pennies”
Sample Speech: “The Problem With
Pennies” (volunteer readers)
• Specific Purpose: To persuade my audience
that pennies should be eliminated from the
United States money supply.
• Central Idea: Because Pennies cause problems
for individuals, businesses, and the economy as
a whole, they should be eliminated from the U.S.
money system.
Introduction: CARRP




Attention: quote with a twist to raise curiosity
Reveal Topic: pennies… “age of the penny is
over”
Relate to Audience: “most of you say”…putting
questions in their mouths—”what would we do
without pennies?”
Credibility:
 personal:
“I had the same questions when I started
work on this speech.”
 expert: “as a result of my research I’m convinced”

Preview: “the use of pennies is a costly problem
and we can get along fine without them.”
Pattern of Organization?
I.
Pennies cause serious
problems for individuals,
businesses and the
national economy.
[Note the internal preview]
II.
The federal government
should eliminate pennies
from the money supply.
[Note the signpost: “The plan
has 4 steps]”

Problem - Solution
Problem Issue--paragraphs 4-8



Pennies are a nuisance for individuals. [class
survey, U.S. Mint Survey, example of Noel
Gunther from the L.A. Times]
Pennies are a nuisance for businesses too.
[Fortune magazine, National Association of
Convenience Stores]
Pennies are a nuisance for the nation. [stats
and testimony from the Treasury Dept., from
the U.S. Mint, from U.S. News and World
Report]
Plan Issue--paragraphs 10-13




First step is for the federal government to
legalize and standardize rounding off
purchases to the nearest nickel.
The next step is to round the sales tax off to
the nearest nickel.
The third step is for the mint to stop making
pennies.
The fourth step is for people to cash in their
pennies removing them from the money
supply.
Practicality Issue--mixed in with the
plan steps in paragraphs 10-15
Rounding off purchases: would not cause
increased cost to consumers.
 Rounding off sales tax: again, no
increased cost; it is like rounding off to the
nearest dollar on your income tax return.
 Stop minting: this will save $80 million a
year.

More Practicality
Such a plan has worked in the U.S.
before; in 1857 we eliminated the halfpenny.
 We already practice this plan through the
"Leave a Penny, Take a Penny" dishes at
check-out counters.

Persuasive
Speaking
How do I organize persuasive
speeches so that they are
more convincing?
From “Much Ado About Nothing”

DOGBERRY
Marry, sir, they have committed false report;
moreover, they have spoken untruths;
secondarily, they are slanders; sixth and
lastly, they have belied a lady; thirdly,
They have verified unjust things; and, to
conclude, they are lying knaves.
New Patterns for Persuasive
Speeches
Problem-Solution
 Problem-Cause-Solution
 Monroe’s Motivated Sequence
 Comparative Advantages
 In rare cases: Topical

Problem-Solution
Specific Purpose: To persuade my audience
that they should sign universal organ donor
cards.
 Central Idea: We can take a step toward
solving the serious shortage of organ donors
in the United States by signing universal
organ donor cards.
I. There is a serious shortage of healthy organs
available for transplant.
II. By signing a universal organ donor card you
can help solve this problem.

Strategic Benefit

This is a powerful choice.
 Something
is wrong. [You make us care.]
 We can fix it! [You show us what can be done
and how we can help.]

Using your Analysis
I. Problem = Problem/Need
II. Solution = Plan and Practicality
Problem-Cause-Solution

Problem-Cause-Solution is even stronger
than Problem-Solution.
 If
you can isolate the causes and your plan
addresses those causes it has built-in practicality
impact.

Using your analysis
I. Problem = Problem/Need
II. Cause = Problem/Need
III. Solution = Plan and Practicality
Speech Analysis: Putting the
Brakes on Teenage Driving (ch. 15)
Specific Purpose: To persuade my
audience that the age for full driving
privileges should be raised to 18.
 Central Idea: Raising the age for full
driving privileges to 18 will help reduce the
large number of accidents and deaths
among teenage drivers.






Attention:
 story of 16 years olds’ car accident
Credibility
 Goodwill—my nephew, I know you oppose such a
plan
 Expertise—“After researching…experts”
Reveal Topic
 “The best way to prevent such accidents…”
Relate to Audience
 Audience questionnaire
Preview
 Problems associated with teenage driving
 The major causes of the problems
 A plan that will go a long way to solving those
problems.
I.
II.
There are too many car accidents,
injuries and deaths involving teenage
drivers.
There are 4 main causes.
A. Inexperience (but we will always have that)
B. Undeveloped brains
C. Night driving
D. Distracted by passengers
III.
My solution has 3 parts.
A. Change ages of licensing (responds to brains issue).
B. Restrict nighttime driving. (responds to nights arg.).
C. Restrict the number of passengers.
concern about passenger distractions).
(responds to
Monroe’s Motivated Sequence
 Attention
 Need
 Satisfaction
 Visualization
 Action
Monroe’s Motivated Strategic Benefit
The pattern of choice for immediate action
speeches.
 Using Your Analysis

 Attention
= Gain Attention in Introduction
 Need = Problem
 Satisfaction = Plan
 Visualization = Practicality
 Action = Call to Action in Conclusion
Outline in Workbook p. 65
Attention—story in intro
 Need—Problem issue developed

 35,000
people need bone marrow transplant
 Process is used to treat many diseases
 70% of people who need it have no family
match to try.
 1 in 9 people in need find no match

Satisfaction
 Iowa Marrow Donor Program
 Two donor drives in Nov. and December
 You can join right here in Ames
 Process
of becoming a Marrow Donor is simple.
 Increasing the number of people in the registry will
help solve the problem.

Visualization
 Jessica’s
story [U of I student had a need]
 Scott’s story [Urbandale man became a donor and
saved a life]

Action
 Get
registered
 “take time to become a hero”
Comparative Advantages



For use only when the
audience already agrees that
there is a problem that needs
to be solved.
The main points are used to
discuss the advantages and
disadvantages of the various
plans suggested.
It is essentially a process of
elimination structure.
Comparative Advantages: Using Your Analysis




Intro sets out the Problem: In the Intro do CARRP but
also review the Problem
Gas prices have risen sharply
Review stats
Review percentage of budget for drivers
Be sure to include a Preview
There are three possible ways to solve this problem,
but only one can really work. Today I will argue that
the government should invest its resources to
develop alternate fuel technology.
First part of the Body
I. Some argue that we should increase our
refining capacity.

It has been proposed. [describe the Plan]
B. This won't work. [Practicality]
A.
II. Some argue that we should increase drilling
in the U.S.
Proposals for drilling in Alaska and for offshore
drilling have been made. [Plan]
B. This won't work. [Practicality]
A.

Internal Summary/Transition: We all agree that we
must take action to deal with the current fuel
shortage and high prices. Increasing refining
capacity and new domestic drilling projects have
been proposed, but they won’t solve the
problem. Instead, what we must do is….
III. The government should invest its resources in
alternative fuel technologies.
A.
B.

Specifics of the Plan are covered.
It will work and will solve our energy crisis.
[Practicality]
Conclusion: Call to "action."
Alternative Comparative Advantages format:
Investing in alternative fuel technologies is a better
plan than investing in new refineries because it is the
most long term solution for our energy needs.
II.
Investing in alternative fuel technologies is a better
plan than investing in new refineries because it is more
ecologically sound.
III. Investing in alternative fuel technologies is a better
plan than investing in new refineries because such
investment will have the best impact on the national
economy.
Each Main point looks at 2 plans to compare them on one
practicality point.
I.
Topical Pattern
[See pp. 49-50 in the workbook.]
This pattern might be resorted to when
arguing against a change in the status
quo.
 The strategy is essentially one of listing
reasons to keep the present system.
 Problem, Plan and Practicality must still be
dealt with.

Sample Topical Pattern:


Introduction: CARRP+ show that a call for
change had been made. [in a sense that call for
change is the Problem for the speaker]
Body
I. We should not abolish casino gambling in Iowa
because no one is being hurt by it.
II. We should not abolish casino gambling in Iowa
because it is not an immoral activity.
III. We should not abolish casino gambling in Iowa
because it increases tourism in the state.
IV. We should not abolish casino gambling in Iowa
because it is raising money for education.

Conclusion: Simply reinforce the case and
urge the class to act accordingly.

What it is doing is arguing
 There
is no problem with the status quo.
 The proposed change to the status quo has more
disadvantages than advantages. [practicality]
Practice
1. What pattern of organization is being
used in the following?
I. Alcohol-related traffic accidents kill
more college age people than any other
single problem.
II. Drinking and driving is a social problem
that is caused by peer pressure,
inconsistent laws, and irresponsible
actions.
III. You can help combat this problem by
taking three simple steps.
2. What pattern of organization is being
used in the following?
I. This nation faces a serious crisis of
voter apathy.
II. You must register, study and vote to
contribute positively to the process.
III. You must act because in a nation
where everyone votes responsibly we
would achieve the vision of intelligent
discussion of issues and candidates
who are held accountable.
3. What pattern of organization is being
used in the following?
I.
II.
Lax security in the ISU dorms threatens
the safety of undergraduates.
Keeping residence hall entrances
locked 24-hours a day will make ISU
students safer.
4. What pattern of organization is being
used in the following?
I. We could escape the state budget deficit by
cutting funding for state services and for state
universities.
II. We could escape the state budget deficit by
reducing pay to all state employees through
furloughs.
III. The best way to escape the state budget deficit
is through raising the state’s income taxes.
5. What are the three issues with which
every persuasive speech of policy must
deal? (The three things we explore in our
analysis of a persuasive issue.)

End
Another example of Monroe’s motivated
Sequence. Analysis of “The Ultimate Gift”
(T. pp. A15-A17)

ATTENTION STEP

In the Introduction
 Rhetorical questions; you are not donating blood.

NEED STEP
 American
Red Cross Web pages say we need 3,000
gallons of blood every hour.
 Brooke needs blood
 Only one in 20 of those who could donate actually
donate.
Monroe’s Motivated Sequence in Action

SATISFACTION
 Everyone
can be part of the solution by giving
blood.
 The process of blood donation is simple.
 I was scared the first time, but it was not
painful and it was safe.
Monroe’s Motivated Sequence in
Action

VISUALIZATION
 Every
unit of blood you donate can help save
three lives.
 You can help many people—imagine helping to
save 180 lives over the next decade!

ACTION
 Become
a blood donor
 Lots of motivational appeals



Small price in time
There is a shortage; Brooke needs you
Go do it!