Organizing the Body of the Speech

Organization Is Important

Organization allows you and your listeners to see what ideas you have and to put mental “hands” on the most
important ones.  In addition, using a clear, specific method of speech organization can boost your confidence as a speaker and improve your ability to deliver a message fluently.

Main Points

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NUMBER OF MAIN POINTS

You will not have time in your classroom speeches to develop more than four or five main points, and most speeches will contain only two or three. If, when you list your main points, you find that you have too many, you may be able to condense them into categories.

STRATEGIC ORDER OF MAIN POINTS

The most effective order depends on three things—your topic, your purpose, and your audience. 
Five basic patterns of organization used most often by public speakers:

1. Chronological Order, speeches arranged chronologically follow a time pattern
2. Spatial Order , the main points proceed from top to bottom, left to right, east to west, or some other route.
   
3. Causal Order , you can deal first with the effects and then with the causes.
4. Problem-Solution Order
5. Topical Order , each of subtopics becomes a main point in the speech.

 

1. Chronological order is especially useful for informative speeches.
2. Spatial order, like chronological order, is used most often in informative speeches.
3. Causal order can be used for both persuasive speeches and informative speeches, because of its versatility.
4. Problem-solution order is most appropriate for persuasive speeches.
5. Topical order is used more often than any other method of speech organization, because it is applicable to almost any subject and to any kind of speech.

TIPS FOR PREPARING MAIN POINTS

Keep Main Points Separate

Try to Use the Same Pattern of Wording for Main Points

Balance the Amount of Time Devoted to Main Points

 

Supporting Materials

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listeners need supporting materials to accept what a speaker says.

 

Connectives

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Without connectives, a speech is disjointed and uncoordinated—much as a person would be without ligaments and tendons to join the bones and hold the organs in place. Four types of speech connectives are transitions, internal previews, internal summaries, and signposts

TRANSITIONS

Transitions are words or phrases that indicate when a speaker has just completed one thought and is moving on to another.

Now that we have a clear understanding of the problem, let me share the
solution with you.
I have spoken so far of Cesar Chavez the community organizer, but it was
his work as a labor leader that truly etched his name into American history.
Keeping these points in mind about sign language, let’s return to the sentence I started with and see if we can learn the signs for “You are my friend.”

Notice how these phrases remind the listener of the thought just completed, as well as reveal the thought about to be developed.

INTERNAL PREVIEWS

Internal previews let the audience know what the speaker will take up next, but they are more detailed than transitions.

Internal previews are often combined with transitions. For example:

[Transition]: Now that we have seen how serious the problem of faulty credit
reports is, let’s look at some solutions. [Internal Preview]: I will focus on three
solutions—instituting tighter government regulation of credit bureaus, holding
credit bureaus financially responsible for their errors, and giving individuals easier
access to their credit reports

You will seldom need an internal preview for each main point in your speech, but be sure to use one whenever you think it will help listeners keep track of your ideas.

INTERNAL SUMMARIES

Internal summaries are an excellent way to clarify and reinforce ideas. By combining them with transitions, you can also lead your audience smoothly into your next main point:

[Internal Summary]: Let’s pause for a moment to summarize what we have
found so far. First, we have seen that firearm sales at gun shows too often put
weapons in the hands of criminals. Second, we have seen that there is almost no
accountability for gun-show dealers who sell to criminals. [Transition]: We are now
in a position to see what can be done to close the gun-show loophole.

SIGNPOSTS

Here is how one student used simple numerical signposts to help her audience keep track of the major causes for the continuing problem of famine in Africa:

The first cause of this problem is inefficient agricultural production.
The second cause is recurrent drought in the affected countries.
The final cause is mismanagement of available food resources by local leaders.

Properly applied, connectives can make your speeches more unified and
coherent

 

 

 

 

原文参见：The-Art-of-Public-Speaking-11e-Stephen-E.-Lucas  P165-P205

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