Delivery
Chapter Objectives
After reading this chapter, students should be able to:
1. Explain why good delivery is important to successful speaking.
2. Explain the major characteristics of effective speech delivery.
3. Identify the four methods of delivering a speech.
4. Explain the eight aspects of voice usage that are crucial to public speaking.
5. Discuss the four aspects of physical action that are most important to a public
speaker.
6. Explain the five–step method presented in the chapter for practicing extemporaneous
speech delivery.
7. Identify the two stages in preparing for a question–and–answer session and explain
six things a speaker should keep in mind when responding to questions during the
session itself.
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CHAPTER 13—DELIVERY 185
Chapter Outline
I. Good delivery can make the difference between a successful speech and an unsuccessful
speech.
A. Speech delivery is based on nonverbal communication: the speaker’s use of voice
and body to convey the message expressed by words.
B. Good delivery is an art.
1. It conveys the speaker’s message clearly, interestingly, and without distracting
the audience.
2. Most audiences prefer delivery that combines a certain degree of formality with
the best attributes of good conversation—directness, vocal and facial
expressiveness, and a lively sense of communication.
II. There are four basic methods of delivering a speech.
A. Some speeches are read verbatim from a manuscript.
1. Manuscript speeches are often used in situations that require absolute accuracy of
wording or that impose strict time limits upon the speaker.
2. When speaking from manuscript, speakers should rehearse the speech aloud to
make sure it sounds natural, to work on establishing eye contact with listeners,
and to concentrate on talking with the audience rather than reading to them.
B. Some speeches are recited from memory.
1. Nowadays it is customary to deliver only the shortest speeches from memory.
2. When delivering a speech from memory, the speaker should learn it so
thoroughly that she or he can concentrate on communicating with the audience
rather than on remembering specific words.
C. Some speeches are delivered impromptu.
1. Impromptu speeches are presented with little or no immediate preparation.
2. When speakers find themselves faced with an impromptu speaking situation, they
should follow four simple steps to organize their thoughts quickly.
a. First, they should state the point to which they are responding.
b. Second, they should state the point they want to make.
c. Third, they should use whatever support they have—examples, statistics, or
testimony—to prove their point.
d. Fourth, they should summarize their point.
3. In addition, an impromptu speaker should try to remain calm, to maintain strong
eye contact, to speak at a clear, deliberate pace, and to use signposts to help the
audience keep track of the main ideas.
186 CHAPTER–BY–CHAPTER GUIDE TO THE ART OF PUBLIC SPEAKING
D. Some speeches are delivered extemporaneously.
1. Extemporaneous speeches are carefully prepared and practiced in advance.
2. They are presented from a set of notes, but the exact wording is chosen at the
moment of delivery.
3. There are several advantages to extemporaneous delivery.
a. It gives greater control over ideas and language than impromptu delivery.
b. It allows for greater spontaneity and directness than memorized or
manuscript delivery.
c. It encourages conversational vocal qualities, natural gestures, and strong eye
contact.
III. Effective speakers learn to control their voices to enhance the impact of their message.
A. The volume of a speaker’s voice is basic to effective delivery.
B. The pitch of a speaker’s voice has an impact on delivery.
C. The rate of a speaker’s voice will affect the outcome of a speech.
D. Effective pauses can contribute greatly to a speaker’s impact.
E. Vocal variety is one of the most important elements in effective delivery.
1. Vocal variety refers to modulations in the rate, pitch, volume, and timing of a
speaker’s voice.
2. Speakers who possess strong vocal variety come across as lively, dynamic, and
communicative.
F. Pronunciation is another vocal feature that influences the outcome of a speech.
G. Articulation also has an impact on how a speech is received.
H. A speaker’s dialect can influence how the speech is received.
IV. Effective speakers learn to use their body to enhance the impact of their message.
A. Physical actions can play a major role in the outcome of a speech.
B. Four aspects of physical action are especially important for public speakers.
1. The first aspect is personal appearance.
2. The second aspect is movement.
3. The third aspect is gestures.
4. The fourth aspect is eye contact.
V. Speakers can improve their speech delivery by following a five–step method.
A. First, the speaker should go over her or his preparation outline aloud.
B. Second, the speaker should prepare a speaking outline.
CHAPTER 13—DELIVERY 187
C. Third, the speaker should practice the speech aloud several times using only the
speaking outline.
D. Fourth, the speaker should polish and refine the delivery.
E. Fifth, the speaker should give the speech a dress rehearsal under conditions as close
as possible to those he or she will face during the actual speech.
F. In order for this method to be effective, speakers must start early.
VI. Answering audience questions is often an important part of public speaking.
A. Many speeches include a question–and–answer session with the audience.
B. Thorough preparation is essential for a successful question–and–answer session.
1. The first step in preparing is to formulate answers to possible questions.
2. The second step in preparing is to practice delivering the answers.
C. Managing the question–and–answer session is an important skill in its own right.
1. It is vital to approach questions with a positive attitude.
2. Listening carefully to questions is vital to a successful question–and–answer
session.
3. Answers should be directed to the entire audience, not just to the questioner.
4. Questions should be answered honestly and straightforwardly.
5. Unless there is a moderator for the question period, the speaker is responsible for
keeping it on track.
Exercises for Critical Thinking
(from text pages 248–249)
1. An excellent way to improve your vocal variety is to read aloud selections from poetry that
require emphasis and feeling. Choose one of your favorite poems that falls into this category,
or find one by leafing through a poetry anthology.
Practice reading the selection aloud. As you read, use your voice to make the poem come
alive. Vary your volume, rate, and pitch. Find the appropriate places for pauses. Underline the
key words or phrases you think should be stressed. Modulate your tone of voice; use inflec-
tions for emphasis and meaning.
For this to work, you must overcome your fear of sounding affected or “dramatic.” Most
beginning speakers do better if they exaggerate changes in volume, rate, pitch, and expres-
sion. This will make you more aware of the ways you can use your voice to express a wide
range of moods and meanings. Besides, what sounds overly “dramatic” to you usually does
not sound that way to an audience. By adding luster, warmth, and enthusiasm to your voice,
you will go a long way toward capturing and keeping the interest of your listeners.
If possible, practice reading the selection into a digital recorder. Listen to the playback. If
you are not satisfied with what you hear, practice the selection some more and record it again.
188 CHAPTER–BY–CHAPTER GUIDE TO THE ART OF PUBLIC SPEAKING
Discussion: Beginning speakers are often much less animated delivering a speech than in
ordinary conversation. This is due partly to inexperience, partly to nervousness, partly to
fear of sounding affected. But whatever the cause, the result is dull and lifeless delivery.
This exercise is designed to help students over this barrier. At the start of the course
they are likely to feel more comfortable using their voices expressively when reciting poet-
ry than when delivering a speech. As they work with their poems, they often become more
accustomed to modulating their voices to enhance the meaning of the words. As a cap-
stone to the exercise, have students present their poems orally in class.
2. Watch a 10–minute segment of a televised or streaming drama with the sound turned off.
What do the characters say with their dress, gestures, facial expressions, and the like? Do the
same with a comedy. How do the nonverbal messages in the two shows differ? Be prepared
to report your observations in class.
Discussion: This exercise attunes students to the dimensions and effects of nonverbal
communication, and it usually generates a lively class discussion. It works best if you as-
sign particular programs for the entire class to watch.
3. Attend a speech on campus. You may choose either a presentation by a guest speaker from
outside your school or a class session by a professor who has a reputation as a good lecturer.
Prepare a brief report on the speaker’s delivery.
In your report, first analyze the speaker’s volume, pitch, rate, pauses, vocal variety, pro-
nunciation, and articulation. Then evaluate the speaker’s personal appearance, bodily action,
gestures, and eye contact. Explain how the speaker’s delivery added to or detracted from
what the speaker said. Finally, note at least two techniques of delivery used by the speaker
that you might want to try in your next speech.
Discussion: This exercise provides for an out–of–class speech observation. You may want to
have students write a brief paper reporting their observations; you may prefer that they use
an observation worksheet such as the one provided on page 196.
Using Public Speaking in Your Career
(from text page 246)
Utilizing your business degree and computer savvy, you have made a success of the online mar-
keting company you started after graduating from college. Now in its third year, the company has
prepared a proposal to design the e–commerce site for a major sporting goods retailer. In your 30–
minute presentation to the retailer’s management team, you will review the home–page designs,
site maps, and security protocols.
CHAPTER 13—DELIVERY 189
You notice on the agenda that another 30 minutes have been allotted after your presentation
for questions and answers. Knowing from your previous experience with clients how important
the Q&A session can be, you want to be sure you are ready for it. What steps will you take to
prepare?
Discussion: Like the Using Public Speaking in Your Career scenarios in other chapters,
this one is designed to show how the principles of public speaking discussed in the text-
book are used in everyday life. In this case, you can anticipate that students will mention
what the chapter identifies as the major steps in preparing for a question–and–answer ses-
sion: formulating answers to possible questions and practicing the delivery of those an-
swers. In class discussion, encourage students to be specific about the processes
involved in both of these steps, and use the discussion as a springboard to exploring how
to manage the question–and–answer session itself.
Additional Exercises and Activities
1. Lead a class discussion in which students develop a set of criteria for effective speech deliv-
ery. After the discussion, codify the criteria into an evaluation worksheet that can be used by
the class for the remainder of the term.
Discussion: Although this exercise takes most of a class period, it can be quite helpful. At
the start of the discussion, tell students that they should draw their criteria not only from the
2. Show students Zach Wahls’s February 1, 2011, speech to the Iowa House of Representatives.
Video of the speech is available on YouTube (http://youtu.be/FSQQK2Vuf9Q), and the text
is available on Wahls’s website (http://www.zachwahls.com/?page_id=273). Use the speech
to illustrate points about effective delivery.
Discussion: On February 1, 2011, Zach Wahls, a native Iowan raised by two women, spoke
to the Iowa House of Representatives during a hearing on same–sex marriage. A student
190 CHAPTER–BY–CHAPTER GUIDE TO THE ART OF PUBLIC SPEAKING
stands as a model of effective public speaking. The speech not only made headlines
across the country but turned Wahls into a prominent advocate.
As students watch the speech, have them pay special attention to Wahls’s delivery—
3. Show students one or more selections from the DVD of student speeches that accompanies
this edition of The Art of Public Speaking. Use the DVD to illustrate points about effective
and ineffective speech delivery.
Discussion: It is extremely difficult to teach delivery from a textbook. Perhaps the great-
est benefit of using videos in the speech classroom is that they help students see in ac-
4. Show students a video of a speech—for instance, a TED Talk available on www.TED.com.
After a couple of minutes turn off the sound and have students concentrate on the cues sent
by the speaker’s appearance, bodily movement, gestures, and eye contact. After a couple of
minutes turn the sound back on so students can concentrate on the interaction of the speaker’s
vocal and physical communication.
Discussion: This is an easy way to illustrate the wide range of nonverbal cues sent by a
speaker. To their surprise, students can usually tell from physical action alone whether the
5. Assign one or more rounds of impromptu speeches. Speeches should be one and a half
minutes to two minutes in length. Encourage students to follow the guidelines for impromptu
speaking discussed on pages 233–234 of the textbook.
CHAPTER 13—DELIVERY 191
Discussion: When you announce this assignment, most students will act as if you had
condemned them to a fate worse than death. Yet for most students, impromptu speeches,
if handled properly by the instructor, can be an enormously valuable confidence builder.
One way to approach impromptu speeches is to assign two or three at various intervals
192 CHAPTER–BY–CHAPTER GUIDE TO THE ART OF PUBLIC SPEAKING
include: (1) What is your favorite—or least favorite—hobby, academic subject, sport, time of
6. Distribute “Tips for Speaking from a Manuscript,” which is available on page 197 of this
manual.
Discussion: While most instructors require that their students speak extemporaneously,
there are situations in which speaking from a manuscript is appropriate for a classroom
7. Divide the class into groups of 3 to 5 students. Assign each group a short children’s story to
present at the next class session. In presenting the story, each group is to act as if its audience
were a ward of small children at a local hospital. Tell the students they must exaggerate their
voice, their gestures, their facial expressions, and their bodily actions just as they would if
they were actually telling the story to a group of children. Presentations should be 5 to 7
minutes in length, and each group should get together for an hour or so the evening before the
assignment is due to assign speaking parts and to rehearse its presentation.
CHAPTER 13—DELIVERY 193
Discussion: This exercise can work very well to help students use their voices and bodies
expressively to communicate with an audience. By role playing as if they were addressing
an audience of small children, many students feel less inhibited than if they were “actual-
8. Arrange to record at least one round of informative or persuasive speeches. Meet individually
with each student to review her or his video. Stop the video periodically to point out what the
speaker does particularly well and to indicate where improvement is needed.
Discussion: This can be extraordinarily valuable for students because it gives them a
chance to hear and see themselves as others hear and see them. It also gives you a
9. As an alternative to the preceding exercise, have students use their videos to prepare written
self–assessments of their speeches.
Discussion: Given the size of many classes, it is often impractical for instructors to meet with
each student individually to review her or his video. Another option is to have students review
their own videos and prepare self–assessments of them. Some instructors provide students a
194 CHAPTER–BY–CHAPTER GUIDE TO THE ART OF PUBLIC SPEAKING
Whether graded or non–graded, the assessments often contain an interesting dynamic.
10. Radio and television announcers must have outstanding articulation. One way they develop it
is by practicing tongue twisters such as those listed below. Give students the list so they can
work on their articulation. Tell students to begin by saying the tongue twisters slowly and
firmly, so that each sound is clearly formed. Once they have the sounds correct, they can
gradually increase to a normal rate of speech.
a. Pure food for four pure mules.
b. Which wily wizard wished wicked wishes for Willy?
c. The sixth sick Sheik’s sheep is sick.
d. Fetch me the finest French–fried freshest fish that Finney fries.
e. Shy Sarah saw six Swiss wristwatches.
f. One year we had a Christmas brunch with Merry Christmas mush to munch. But I don’t
think you’d care for such. We didn’t like to munch mush much.
g. The view from the veranda gave forth a fine vista of waves and leafy foliage.
h. She sells seashells on the seashore.
i. While we waited for the whistle on the wharf, we whittled vigorously on the white
weatherboards.
CHAPTER 13—DELIVERY 195
j. Grass grew green on the graves in Grace Gray’s grandfather’s graveyard.
k. Pete Briggs pats pigs.
Briggs pats pink pigs.
Briggs pats big pigs.
Pete Briggs is a pink pig, big pig patter.
l. Amidst the mists and coldest frosts,
With stoutest wrists and loudest boasts,
He thrusts his fists against the posts,
And still insists he sees the ghosts.
Discussion: Try this as an in–class activity. It’s enjoyable and it helps make students
aware of the need for precise articulation. Students who want additional work on articula-
196
Out–of–Class Speech Observation Worksheet
Your name Speaker
Where was the speech presented?
What was the occasion for the speech?
Vocal Communication: Record your observations about each of the following aspects of the
speaker’s voice.
Volume
Pitch
Rate
Pauses
Vocal variety
Pronunciation
Articulation
Physical Action: Record your observations about each of the following aspects of the speaker’s
physical action.
Personal appearance
Movement
Gestures
Eye contact
Overall Evaluation of Delivery: Explain how the speaker’s delivery added to or detracted from
the message.
What It Means for Me: Explain at least two techniques of delivery used by the speaker that you
might want to try in your next speech.
197
Tips for Speaking from a Manuscript
1. Write your speech for the ear. It should be prepared with simple words, short sentences, and
the rhythm of conversation. As you work on the speech, keep saying the lines out loud, listen-
ing for the rhythms of oral style. If possible, record your first draft on your computer, cell
phone, or other device. Listen to yourself to find the awkward phrases that need revision.
2. Make sure your manuscript is easy to read. Use wide margins and double or triple space between
lines. Use a large font that can be deciphered at a glance. Do not use all capital letters, since re-
search has shown that they are harder to read than a combination of capital letters and lower–case
letters. Print the manuscript on firm paper that will not crinkle or roll up at the edges.
3. Do not recite the manuscript word for word when you deliver the speech. Instead, look down
at the page, “photograph” a phrase in your mind, and deliver the phrase. Try not to speak
when your eyes are fixed on the page. Talk through the text, rather than worrying about say-
ing every word just as it is written. You are the only person who will know when the speech
departs slightly from the manuscript.
4. Don’t try to “photograph” too much text at a time. Let your eye record what you can remem-
ber comfortably, then look up and speak to the audience. Break sentences into oral chunks.
Strive for bite–sized groups of words that are comfortable to utter in one breath.
5. Don’t be afraid to pause between statements. At first, this may feel awkward, but frequent pauses
are a normal part of everyday conversation and they will not seem unnatural to your audience.
6. Establish eye contact with your audience while you are speaking. Look for someone who
seems to be listening intently and speak to that person. Then switch your attention to another
part of the room and engage someone else’s gaze. The quickest way to lose your audience is
to spend the entire speech staring at your manuscript in an effort to recite every word just the
way it is written.
7. Use vocal variety to give your speech impact. Your words must be given time to sink in and
to register with the audience. Remember that your listeners cannot see your speech—they can
only hear it.
8. Mark your speaking text to indicate places where you want to speed up, slow down, speak
louder or softer, pause, and the like. There is a key word in every line. Find that word, under-
line it on your text, and be sure to give it proper emphasis when you speak.
9. Practice. Delivering a speech effectively from a manuscript takes time and effort. In many
ways, it is harder than speaking extemporaneously. The more you practice, the more likely
you are to present the speech with strong eye contact and a conversational tone.