CHAPTER 34
Arts and Humanities Courses
CHAPTER CONTENT OUTLINE
I. Arts and humanities courses
A. Speaking in arts and humanities courses often requires the speaker to analyze and
interpret the meaning of a particular idea, event, person, story, or artifact.
II. Preparing effective arts and humanities presentations
A. Instructors will expect you to investigate the following:
1. What is the thesis or central message in the text or work?
2. What questions, issues, and themes does the author address?
III. Presentations of interpretation and analysis
A. Presentations include speeches in which a speaker interprets the relevance of a historical
or contemporary person or event; a genre or school of philosophical thought; or a piece of
literature, music, or art.
IV. Presentations that compare and contrast
A. Presentations might compare and contrast events, stories, people, or artifacts to highlight
similarities or differences.
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1. The compare-and-contrast presentation usually includes a thesis statement, a
discussion of main points, and a concluding evaluative statement about the
comparison.
V. Debates
CHAPTER STUDY GUIDE
I. DISCUSSION QUESTION
1. How do arts and humanities presentations differ from other presentations?
Presenting in arts and humanities courses often requires the speaker to analyze and
interpret the meaning of a particular idea, event, person, story, or artifact. Sample presentations
include informative speeches of explanation, presentations that compare and contrast, debates,
and classroom discussions. The informative speech of description and analysis is designed to
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CONTENT PRESENTATION IDEAS
I. STUDENT ACTIVITY
1. Students often have personal experience giving presentations in other college courses. Conduct
a panel discussion to explore experienced students’ thoughts on their own presentations.
Organize a panel of students who have a variety of experiences from their own classes.
II. GROUP ACTIVITY
1. What kind of presentation topics are likely to be assigned in arts and humanities courses?
Create a list of arts and humanities courses on the board; then brainstorm possible topics for
presentations in these courses.
III. ADDITIONAL ACTIVITIES
Professor Interview
Purpose: To learn what professors in other college courses expect from presentations in
their classes.
Instructions: Each student should visit a professor in his or her major department to
conduct a brief interview. Students should ask about the typical presentation in the professor’s
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class and discuss the components of an effective presentation. Students should prepare a one-page
paper describing the interview.
So You Do the Lecture This Week
Purpose: To provide students with an opportunity to create their own college lectures.
Instructions: Each student should prepare a lecture for a course in his or her major. Use
the guidelines in the text to create a lecture that contains an introduction to the topic, a statement of
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