Tongue-tied America : reviving the art of verbal persuasion

This concise, practical text focuses on the art and craft of persuasive oral argument. It explores why people are ill-at-ease with public speaking and addresses why the problem exists, why it matters, and what to do about it.

• About the Authors p. xv
• Acknowledgments p. xvii
• Prologue p. 1
• Part 1 Essentials of Persuasion p. 5
• Chapter 1 Our Case: The Abiding Importance of Speech p. 7
• A Why It Matters p. 7
• B Why Isn't It Taught?: The Educational Black Hole p. 9
• 1 An Ancient Feud p. 9
• 2 The Harvard Paradox p. 10
• 3 The Odd History of Legal Education p. 10
• 4 Expensive to Teach p. 11
• 5 Who Is to Teach It? p. 11
• C Who Can Learn It?; Excellence Is Within Reach p. 12
• Chapter 2 The Canons of Persuasion p. 13
• A Time-Honored Pillars of Classical Rhetoric p. 13
• 1 Aristotelian Basics p. 13
• 2 Other Classical Truisms p. 16
• 3 The Cicero Commandments p. 17
• B The Contribution of Behavioral Psychology p. 19
• C A Potpourri of the Best of the Rest p. 23
• Chapter 3 The Rainbow of Rhetorical Formats p. 27
• A Prepared Speeches p. 28
• 1 The Epideictic or Inspirational Speech p. 29
• 2 Deliberative Advocacy p. 32
• 3 Forensic/Legal Advocacy p. 32
• B Speeches That Are a Mixture of Prepared and Quizzed Presentations p. 34
• C Informal Presentations p. 35
• Part 2 Getting from Here to There p. 37
• Chapter 4 Writing the Spoken Word p. 39
• A The Beginning p. 41
• B The Middle p. 42
• 1 Simplify Your Structure p. 43
• 2 Simplify Your Language p. 47
• C The End p. 53
• Chapter 5 Hallmarks of Distinguished Delivery: Bringing a Speech to Life p. 55
• A Break It into Beats p. 57
• B Free Yourself from the Script p. 61
• C Separate Beats with Delivery p. 62
• D Maintain Eye Contact p. 63
• E The Importance of Rehearsal p. 64
• F What to Do with Hands and Feet: Gestures and Walking p. 66
• G A Tale of Two Speeches: John Kerry and Barack Obama p. 70
• Chapter 6 Tools of the Trade: Voice and Breath p. 77
• A The Importance of Warming Up p. 79
• B How the Voice Works p. 80
• C Breath p. 80
• D Vocal Cords p. 83
• E Resonators p. 84
• F Articulators p. 86
• G Loosening the Jaw p. 88
• H Adding Some Color: Pitch, Cadence, Speed, and Volume p. 88
• I Some Final Thoughts: Taking Care of Your Voice p. 93
• Chapter 7 Using Visual Aids p. 95
• A Things to Consider in Designing a Visual Aid p. 96
• 1 Is It Worth Putting onto a Visual Aid? p. 96
• 2 Text or Picture? p. 97
• 3 Can the Audience See It? p. 98
• 4 How Will You Introduce the Visual Aid Gracefully? p. 98
• 5 Once You Have Introduced It, Use It p. 99
• 6 Decide How to Interact with It p. 99
• 7 Get Rid of It When You Are Done with It p. 100
• B Choosing the Right Type of Visual Aids p. 101
• 1 Diagrams p. 101
• 2 Pre-Written Road Map p. 101
• 3 Chalkboard, Whiteboard, Overhead Transparencies, Flip Chart, Foam Board p. 102
• 4 Handouts p. 103
• 5 Any Three-Dimensional Prop p. 104
• 6 Video or Audio Clips p. 104
• 7 PowerPoint p. 105
• C Rehearsing with Visual Aids p. 109
• Chapter 8 Gender and Persuasion p. 111
• A Pitfalls for Men p. 112
• 1 The Bully p. 112
• 2 The Patronizing Male p. 115
• 3 The Wimp p. 116
• B Pitfalls for Women p. 118
• 1 The ôLittle Girlö p. 118
• 2 The Whisperer p. 121
• 3 The Onlooker p. 123
• 4 The Emotional/Unemotional Woman p. 124
• Chapter 9 Generational Issues p. 127
• A The Traditionalist Generation p. 129
• B The Baby Boomers p. 132
• C Generation X p. 134
• D The Millennial Generation p. 136
• Chapter 10 To Sum It Up: Checklists on the Good, the Bad, and the Ugly p. 139
• A The Good p. 139
• B Unpersuasive Rhetoric: The Bad and Ugly p. 142
• Part 3 Rhetoric Applied to the Real World p. 145
• Chapter 11 Rhetoric in Court p. 147
• A The Trial p. 148
• 1 Credibility p. 148
• 2 Audience Diversity p. 149
• 3 Exhaustion p. 150
• 4 Maintaining Poise and Calm p. 150
• 5 The Challenge of the Varied Tasks of a Trial p. 151
• B Making an Argument to a Judge p. 159
• 1 Spend Some Time Preparing p. 160
• 2 Practice p. 160
• 3 Answer the Question p. 160
• 4 Be Brief p. 160
• 5 Respond with Full Candor p. 161
• 6 Be Selective p. 161
• 7 Answer the Exact Question That was Asked p. 161
• 8 Pay Attention to Delivery p. 161
• Chapter 12 Oral Communications in the Workplace p. 163
• A When to Speak? p. 164
• B How to Speak? p. 166
• C Be Canny About E-Mail p. 168
• Chapter 13 The Effects of Technology on Communications Skills p. 171
• Chapter 14 The Rhetoric of Presidential Campaigns p. 175
• A From the Mouths of the Candidates p. 176
• 1 Franklin Delano Roosevelt (1932, 1936, 1940, 1944) p. 176
• 2 Harry Truman (1948) p. 176
• 3 Dwight D. Eisenhower (1952, 1956) p. 177
• 4 John F. Kennedy (1960) p. 178
• 5 Lyndon B. Johnson (1964) p. 180
• 6 Richard Nixon (1968, 1972) p. 180
• 7 Jimmy Carter (1976) p. 181
• 8 Ronald Reagan (1980, 1984) p. 182
• 9 George H. W. Bush (1988) p. 183
• 10 Bill Clinton (1992, 1996) p. 184
• 11 George W. Bush (2184, 2004) p. 184
• B Advertising Campaigns p. 186
• 1 Patriotism p. 186
• 2 Fear p. 186
• 3 Racism p. 187
• 4 Tranquility p. 187
• C Does All This Matter? Rhetorical Lessons from Presidential Campaigns p. 188
• Chapter 15 Rhetoric Gone Haywire p. 193
• A A Formulation of ôEthicalö Speech p. 193
• 1 The Historical Debate: Honest Advocacy Versus Deceitful Rhetoric p. 194
• 2 Oral Advocacy and Democracy: Dangerous But Essential p. 194
• 3 The Effect of Modern Modes of Communication on Democratic Debate p. 196
• 4 Three Rules for Ethical Advocacy p. 197
• B An Example of Unethical Speech Run Amok: Adolf Hitler and the Nazis p. 200
• C ôParanoid Rhetoricö: Another Example of Unethical Speech p. 205
• 1 What Does Paranoid Rhetoric Look Like? p. 206
• 2 Effects of Paranoid Rhetoric p. 208
• D Defusing the Bomb: Fighting Dangerous, Abusive, or Paranoid Rhetoric p. 210
• Part 4 The Best of the Best p. 213
• Chapter 16 Rhetoric of the Greatest Speeches p. 217
• A Making the Farewell Speech: Lou Gehrig p. 217
• B Delivering the Eulogy: Maya Angelou p. 220
• C Winning the Argument: Barbara Jordan p. 226
• D Overcoming Bias, Part 1: Sojourner Truth p. 235
• E Overcoming Bias, Part 2: Mary Fisher p. 239
• F Making a Speech in a Time of Crisis, Part 1: Robert F. Kennedy p. 245
• G Making a Speech in a Time of Crisisd, Part 2: Winston Churchill p. 250
• H Makting a Speech in a Time of Crisis, Part 3: Abraham Lincoln p. 255
• I Makting a Speech of Hope, Part 1: John F. Kennedy p. 261
• J Making a Speech of Hope, Part 2: Ronald Reagan p. 266
• K Using a Refrain: Martin Luther King p. 275
• L Discussing a Difficult Topic: Barack Obama p. 280
• Epilogue p. 295
• Appendix A A Suggested Curriculum p. 297
• Appendix B A Quick History of Rhetoric p. 303
• Appendix C Poverty and Communications Skills p. 309
• Appendix D High School or College Debate: A Modest Proposal p. 315
• Endnotes p. 323
• Index p. 337