Public Speaking

Develop Your Main Points (^119)

Develop Your Main Points

After you have decided on major points, make them distinct and parallel. Then develop

each one by adding supporting materials and connecting your ideas into a smooth flow.

Make Points Distinct

Each point should be clear and separate from the others. For example, one student’s

speech on CPR was so disorganized that her audience had trouble telling her main

points from her supporting material. Here are the main points she presented:

I. Once you have training in CPR, you also have responsibilities.

II. Rules of CPR for an adult.

III. Signs: Something to look for. [Under this point she explained the steps of CPR.]

IV. Statistics from the American Heart Association.

If she had used one of the traditional patterns, her points would be easier to support

and her audience could better follow her train of thought. Here’s how a problem–

solution pattern would work:

I. [problem] Every year, thousands of people experience sudden cardiac arrest outside

the hospital.

A. This condition has several causes.

B. The effects show up in specific symptoms.

II. [solution] More lives could be saved if more people had CPR training.

A. The American Heart Association teaches people the steps of CPR.

B. Trained and certified responders have specific responsibilities in crisis situations.

Rhyming or alliterating main ideas are additional strategies that can make points

distinct and memorable as these examples show:

Obesity: what dieters don’t need, heed, or read.^11

Advergaming is evaluative, efficient, effective, and engaging.

Make Points Parallel

Next, make your points parallel, meaning they are similar in kind and in length. Don’t

write some as declarative sentences and others as questions. Avoid mixing phrases and

complete sentences, and don’t put two sentences in a single point, all of which this

student did in her first draft:

I. What is multiple sclerosis (MS)? [a sentence in question form]

II. The Big Mystery! [a sentence fragment or phrase]

III. Who? [a single word in question form]

IV. Effects... Symptoms of MS. [an incomplete sentence]

V. Three prominent medications are now being used to treat MS. These are talked about

in the magazine Inside MS. [two declarative sentences]

She should reorganize and rewrite her points as declarative sentences, as shown

here:

I. Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a disease of the central nervous system.

A. The causes remain a mystery.

B. Sufferers tend to share age, gender, and regional characteristics.

C. The condition affects eyesight and bodily coordination.

II. Most physicians prescribe one of three major medications.

parallel points points that

are similar in kind and length

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