Public Speaking

112 CHAPTER^8 Choosing Supporting Materials

You can access your online resources for Public Speaking: Concepts and Skills for a

Diverse Society at cengagebrain.com using the access code that came with your book or

that you purchased online.

Key teRmS

Review your Flashcards. The terms below are defined in the margins throughout this chapter.

analogies 108

empirical facts 97

enumeration 99

established fact 97

figurative analogy 109

hypothetical example 103

literal analogies 108

literal images 109

mean 100

median 100

metaphorical image 110

mode 100

percentage 100

rate of increase or

decrease 100

ratio 101

CRItICal    thInKIng    exeRCISeS

1. What facts do you personally believe about global warming or climate change? Why?
   What actual research have you done on the subject? What kind of information would
   you trust on an issue such as this? When you find conflicting data on a topic, how do
   you judge which makes more sense? How would you go about forming a reasoned
   opinion on this topic? Does it matter if you do? Why or why not?


2. Construct a hypothetical example that would be appropriate on a controversial topic of
   your choice. Come to class prepared to share your example and explain why you
   chose the details in it.


3. Go to the online edition of a newsmagazine such as Time or U.S. News & World
   Report. Read one of the featured stories and find examples of a fact, example, visual,
   expert and peer testimony, statistic, and comparison. Be prepared to discuss how each
   type of evidence functions to make a more complete story.

applICatIon QUeStIonS

1. Stalin is alleged to have said, “A million deaths is a statistic; a single death is a tragedy.”
   Examples are the primary tool for eliciting emotional identification with the story. They
   add drama, emotion, and vividness to any topic. Statistics appeal to the mind; exam-
   ples appeal to the heart. Be prepared to discuss the differences and how to use each
   in speeches.


2. Bring to class a news source—whether online or in print. With your classmates, choose
   a topic from the headlines. Collect and display information by dividing the board into
   five sections, one for each kind of evidence: facts, examples, quotations, numerical
   data, and analogies. Contribute information from your news source, cooperating with
   your classmates to fill the board. Evaluate the evidence using the tests presented in
   this chapter.


3. Discuss with your classmates the criteria that determine whether or not someone is an
   expert on a particular topic. Can students be experts on their speech subjects? How
   can they communicate their expertise to their classmates?


4. Make a list of topics that almost require visual evidence. (For example: feng shui.)
   Discuss your list with a group of your classmates and explain why a visual is essential.

Copyright 2016 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be copied, scanned, or duplicated, in whole or in part. Due to electronic rights, some third party content may be suppressed from the eBook and/or eChapter(s).

Editorial review has deemed that any suppressed content does not materially affect the overall learning experience. Cengage Learning reserves the right to remove additional content at any time if subsequent rights restrictions require it.www.ebook3000.com