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. The authors, teachers of oral advocacy who have broad trial experience as well, maintain that everyone can master basic oral advocacy, and they skillfully and in an engaging style guide the reader through the steps necessary to do so. Tongue-Tied America: Reviving the Art of Verbal Persuasion will make an excellent supplement to any Advocacy course, but anyone who ever speaks in front of other people—formally or informally—will find it an enlightening and valuable resource.
This highly readable text draws from the teachings of masters of rhetoric and uses techniques from several disciplines. It includes:
University of Virginia Article
Summary of Contents
Prologue
Part I: Essentials of Persuasion
Ch. 1. Our Case: The Abiding Importance of Speech
Ch. 2. The Canons of Persuasion
Ch. 3. The Wide Variety of Rhetorical Formats
Part II: Getting from Here to There
Ch. 4. Writing the Spoken Word
Ch. 5. Hallmarks of Distinguished Mechanics: Bringing a Speech to Life
Ch. 6. Tools of the Trade: Voice and Breath
Ch. 7. Using Visual Aids
Ch. 8. Gender and Persuasion
Ch. 9. Generational Issues
Ch. 10. To Sum it Up: Checklists on the Good, the Bad, and the Ugly
Part III: Rhetoric Applied to the Real World
Ch. 11. Rhetoric in Court
Ch. 12. Oral Communications in the Workplace
Ch. 13. The Effects of Technology on Communications Skills
Ch. 14. The Rhetoric of Presidential Campaigns
Ch. 15 Rhetoric Gone Haywire
Part IV: The Best of the Best
Ch. 16. Rhetoric of the Greatest Speeches
Epilogue
Appendix A: A Suggested Cirriculum
Appendix B: A Quick History of Rhetoric
Appendix C: Poverty and Communications Skills
Appendix D: High School or College Debate: A Modest Proposal