Throughout our second reading, chapters 11 and 12, I have learned so much and have walked away with many takeaways and things to improve upon. In my eyes, one of the most important topics in chapter 11 was organization. This is for both your outline, and the speech itself. Before reading, I knew the importance behind the introduction, the thesis, the body, and the conclusion but I never realize how much more can be added to all of those. In my past, I have never had experience with outlines until about last year when I was taking notes out of book and they had to be done in a certain format. This new way of outlining, in my eyes, can be seriously beneficial.
- Main point
- Supporting point
- Sub supporting point
- Sub sub supporting point
- Sub supporting point
- Supporting point
This outline can allow me to glance at my paper and know immediately what to talk about so I can maintain my eye contact throughout my speech. This is something I would really like to work on and get used to. Towards the end of the chapter, they also explain the meaning behind each of those topics and it allowed the concepts to click in my head so I could fully understand the concept. The book states that “The thesis is supported by main points, main points are strengthened by supporting points, and supporting points consist of carefully chose evidence and examples.” This is spot on and lets people see the true meaning behind why things are main points and sub points. Overall, this chapter was very helpful when talking about organization, and I think it can be very beneficial when writing my next outline.
On top of all of this, chapter 12 opened my eyes to the natural selection we do when choosing the speech and organization aspects of it. It talked a lot about making sure that things were in the correct order to allow everything to flow and make sense. This is huge when engaging your audience because you don’t want things to sound confusing. In my mind, it helps to first have all of your ideas down, and then order them in a way that makes sense. The chapter goes in depth about painting a picture or bringing the audience on a tour and I think that this is a very helpful analogy. Overall, there are many different patterns that you can use for any type of speech you’re trying to give but making sure everything come across smoothly and with a purpose is defiantly helpful to both the speaker and the audience. Organizing and allowing your audience to be a part of your speech emotionally and also allowing them to picture your message in their own minds is very helpful and a huge part of public speaking.
