The Emotional Element in Public Speaking

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The Emotional Element in Public Speaking

• Veronika Caspers
• November 14, 2004

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Agenda

• Various Forms of Appeals
• Characteristics of Emotional Appeals

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Various Forms of Appeals

• Aristotles distinction
• rational appeal (logos)
• ethical appeal (ethos)
• emotional appeal (pathos)

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Rational Appeals

• address the audiences reason or understanding
  (facts, figures)
• deductive reasoning (main point comes first and
  is supported by arguments)
• inductive reasoning (arguments lead to the main
  point)

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Deductive Reasoning

• I suggest that we delay making our decision
  until after Legco makes its decision because I
  think a certain amount of caution in committing
  to TV advertisement is necessary because of the
  expense. In addition to that, most of our
  production is done in China now and its not
  really certain how the government will react in
  the run-up to 1997.

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Inductive Reasoning

• Because most of our production is done in China
  now, and its not really certain how the
  government will react in the run-up to 1997, and
  since I think that a certain amount of caution in
  committing to TV advertisement is necessary
  because of the expense, I suggest that we delay
  making our decision until after Legco makes its
  decision (Scollon Scollon 1995 1f.).

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Appropriate Use of Rational Appeals

• strong claims
• clear and valid reasons for claims
• strong evidence (facts, statistics, observations)
• acknowledgement of the opposition

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Poor Use of Rational Appeals

• over-generalisations
• reasons that are not fully explained
• logical fallacies
• no recognition of opposing views

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Logical Fallacy Assumed Causal Relationship

• The Warehouse Project was initially very
  successful. To begin with, a multidisciplinary
  project team was formed to develop a project
  timeline and project management structure. In
  just two weeks ..., final packaging options were
  selected, and a project completion deadline and
  budget were established.

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• The problems didnt start until the team from
  marketing became involved. Only two weeks after
  they joined the effort, people started having
  second thoughts about not just the packaging
  options but also about whether the budget we
  originally agreed on is still adequate. It may
  well have been a mistake to have marketing
  involved at this early stage (Eckhouse 1999
  100f.).

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General Problem of Rational Appeals

• as theorists have always recognized, truth
  alone does not persuade. By tying the rational to
  the emotional, what eloquence can do is make what
  a speaker considers true palatable to the
  audience (Jamieson 1988 46).

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Ethical Appeals

• The speaker persuades through his/her character,
  intelligence and goodwill
• Rational and emotional appeals will not be
  effective if the speaker is not considered
  trustworthy

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Appropriate Use of Ethical Appeals

• Speaker is
• well-informed about the topic
• confident
• sincere and honest
• open to the audiences concerns

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Poor Use of Ethical Appeals

• biased presentation of information
• dismissal of opposing ideas
• support of intolerant ideas
• claim of ultimate truth

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Emotional Appeals

• Emotions can be activated automatically and
  unconsciously for the audience
• Emotions are involuntary insofar as they will be
  brought about by the respective stimulus

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Appropriate Use of Emotional Appeals

• reinforce logical arguments
• create rapport with the audience
• appeal to emotions in a balanced way

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Poor Use of Emotional Appeals

• substitute for logic and reason
• use of stereotypes
• offer of simplistic solutions
• closer to manipulating than convincing the
  audience

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Characteristics of Emotional Appeals

• Choice of vocabulary
• Rhetorical strategies
• Intonation
• Story telling/Personal details

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Choice of Vocabulary

• Appraisors, e.g. adjectives expressing an
  evaluation good, great, precious, valuable,
  false, bad, diminishing, terrible
• Words creating group cohesion we, us, our,
  together, common, united, mutual

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Teresa Heinz Kerry, Address at DNC 2004

• To me, one of the best faces America has ever
  projected is the face of a Peace Corps volunteer.
  That face symbolizes this country young,
  curious, brimming with idealism and hopeand a
  real honest compassion. Those young people convey
  an idea of America that is all about heart and
  creativity, generosity and confidencea
  practical, can-do sense and a big, big smile.

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Rhetorical Strategies

• Comparisons and Paralellisms
• Questions
• Repetitions
• Contrasts

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Bill Clinton, Address at DNC 2004

• Our crime policy was to put more police on the
  streets and take assault weapons off the streets.
  It brought eight years of declining crime and
  violence. Their policy is the reverse, theyre
  taking police off the streets and putting assault
  weapons back on the streets. If you agree with
  their choices, vote to continue them.

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Hillary Clinton, Address at DNC 2004

• He will lead the world, not alienate it. Lower
  the deficit, not raise it. Create good jobs, not
  lose them. Solve a health care crisis, not ignore
  it.

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Intonation

• Chunking and Pauses
• Emphasis

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Storytelling/Personal Details

• The Power of Individual Stories

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• Thank you for your attention