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A Toolkit
Structuring a Persuasive Speech using Techniques from
Classical Rhetoric
The art of speaking well in public, known as Rhetoric, took shape in the
civilisations of ancient Greece and Rome, and the great orators of those
societies developed a wide range of techniques for using language to create
very effective speeches. These were often used in courts of law, in political
debates, or when persuading the people of the validity (or otherwise) of a
course of action. These techniques are still of great value to us, as they
provide us with structures that help us make the most of our ideas. In this
guide, I will use the term “Speech” throughout, as classical oratory concerned
the skills of public speaking. However, you may be asked to write in a wide
range of different forms, including letters, articles and brochures.
A classical speech followed a fixed pattern. There were six parts to the speech,
the Latin and Greek names of which I have included for you, just for reference:
You have been invited to the a meeting of the school governors, and have been
asked to argue the case for or against abandoning school uniform.
The speech
Ladies and Gentlemen, thank you for this invitation to offer my view The speaker
on the proposal that Nottingham High School should abandon its establishes their
begins by
credibility as
establishing the school uniform. As the head of the Year 11 year council, I come to someone whose
topic to be you representing the views held by a great many boys who have views should be
discussed.
made their voices heard to me throughout this year. At present the taken seriously.
battle to get boys to wear their uniforms properly is raging more
The nature and
importance of the fiercely than ever, and boys' appearance has become a source of
topic are made clear great disharmony and tension between teachers and their pupils. To
The points to be
continue this strife is senseless: in its present state the uniform does covered are
nothing but stifle the boys, anger the teachers and waste otherwise outlined (here
useful time. It must be abandoned. very briefly)
Logical points,
supported by
The chief problem with school uniform is that it has become evidence form
for many an article of faith whose truth cannot be questioned. It is the main body of
the speech.
assumed that, if they are to behave appropriately for school, boys
must wear uniforms, yet the uniform merely inspires disobedience
because of what it stands for. Of course, we are here to work, and
should dress appropriately for that, but must we all be forced to
wear the same clothes merely to achieve that end? Many other
countries – whose education systems are, if international studies are
to be believed, much better than ours – abandoned uniforms long
The speaker
ago, yet we persist simply because “it's what we've always done.”
offers counter-
Tradition is, I grant, important, but is it worth perpetuating if arguments and
shows why they
it is bought at the price of needless arguments and senseless are invalid
conformity? Nottingham High School claims it wants its pupils to
develop into independent young men, yet it insists that everyone
should look identical. One of our greatest strengths as a school is
our diversity, but our uniforms go to ridiculous lengths to mask any
difference between us as individuals. Allowing us to make choices
The speech about our dress for school would challenge us to make wise
concludes with a decisions, rather than simply to conform to decisions already made
passionate by others.
appeal to the
audience's Of course, it will be claimed that uniforms foster a sense of
emotions. shared identity, but do you really wish the principle feeling of that
identity to be one of resentment? Uniforms, it will also be said, are
democratic, in that they remove differences in class and wealth. Yet
this is merely to paper over the cracks and the divide between rich
and poor remains as great as ever: we all know who has the latest
ipod, or the most expensive cricket bat. Are these differences not
better dealt with out in the open, than left unspoken, yet apparent
to everyone?
The school uniform in its present state must be abolished, of
that there is no doubt. This is school: where we should be growing
into young men we are shackled in a pointless uniform, where we
should be making choices, we are taught only to comply, and where
Who is this guy? The Appeal to Ethos
It is very important, early in your speech, to make sure your audience trusts
you and your judgment. It's important to think about how you want your
audience to see you. Do you want them to think you funny, thoughtful, fair,
modest or impressive? Judging the impression you want to make is important,
especially because different audiences will respond differently. Here are some
techniques you can use:
The empty column is for you to create your own example of the figure of
speech, using the School Uniform speech task as a stimulus.
Posh Name Description Example Your example
Qualification and Establishing that I have been
status you are chairman of the
qualified, either Parish Council for
through fifteen years, and
experience, am also the
professionally or village G.P.
academically, to
comment on the
matter in hand.
chreia (very Employing an At the height of
similar to anecdote which the Battle of
anamnesis) relates a saying or Britain, Winston
deed of someone Churchill spoke to
well known. the nation and
told them “we will
never surrender.”
That same
fighting spirit,
that bulldog
tenacity inspires
us in our fight
today.
anamnesis Calling to memory In 1940, Britain
past matters. More stood alone in the
specifically, citing a world, seemingly
past author from at the mercy of
memory. an implacable
foe, yet we stood
firm and won a
great victory for
liberty and all
mankind. Today,
we face the same
struggle.
Litotes Deliberate I may not know
understatement, much about the
especially when great affairs of
expressing a thought international
by denying its politics, but I do
opposite. know it is wrong
to build a fast
food restaurant
on the school
playing fields.
What's the problem here? The Narratio
This is a short, but important part of the speech, and requires you simply to
explain the matter in hand. You might, for example, be recounting the events
that led up to a murder (if you were a barrister in a criminal trial), or simply
stating that a corporation had applied to build a fast food restaurant on the
local playing field. In either case, keep it short and sweet. These six prompts
will help you cover all the aspects, but I suggest you avoid using all of them
(two or three are usually sufficient).
• Who did it
• What was done
• When it was done
• Where it was done
• How it was done
• Why it was done