Chapter 16

Persuasive Speaking

• Define the goals of persuasive speaking

• Develop a persuasive topic and thesis

• Evaluate your listeners and tailor your speech to them

Chapter Outcomes

• Explain three forms of rhetorical proof: ethos, logos, and pathos

• Identify the logical fallacies, deceptive forms of reasoning

• Choose an appropriate organizational strategy for your speech

Chapter Outcomes (cont.)

Persuasion

The process of influencing attitudes, beliefs, and behaviors on a given topic

The Goals of Persuasive Speaking

• Influencing attitudes, beliefs, and behaviors of your audience– Attitudes are evaluations of people,

objects, ideas, or events.

– Beliefs are how people perceive reality.

– Behavior is how people act or function.

Developing a Persuasive Topic and Thesis• Your topic should…

– be somewhat controversial

– allow you to develop a message to bring about change in the audience

Developing a Persuasive Topic and Thesis (cont.)• A persuasive thesis may be

stated as a...– proposition of fact

– proposition of value

– proposition of policy

Developing a Persuasive Topic and Thesis (cont.)• Propositions of Fact

– Claim what something is or what something is not

– Involve issues that have conflicting evidence or beliefs• Goal: Align your audience’s perception

or opinion of the fact with your own.

Developing a Persuasive Topic and Thesis (cont.)• Propositions of Value

– Claim that something meets or does not meet a specific standard of goodness or quality or right or wrong

– Value statements reflect your opinion• Goal: Align your audience’s beliefs and

attitudes with your own.

Developing a Persuasive Topic and Thesis (cont.)• Propositions of Policy

– Make claims about what goal, policy, or course of action should be pursued

– Commonly used during election campaigns• Goal: Persuade your audience that a

current policy is or is not working.

Persuading Your Audience

• Understanding Your Audience’s Disposition– Receptive audience

– Hostile audience

– Neutral audience

Persuading Your Audience (cont.)

• Consider what you would like your audience to do at the speech’s conclusion.– What is their anchor position at the

beginning of the speech?– This determines their latitude of

acceptance and rejection.

Persuading Your Audience (cont.)

• Understanding Your Audience’s Needs

Persuading Your Audience (cont.)

• Understanding What Is Relevant to Your Audience– Elaboration Likelihood Model (ELM)

•Central processing (longer lasting)

•Peripheral processing

Persuading Your Audience (cont.)

• Determining relevance:– Is your message relevant to listeners?– Did you present the topic at the

correct level?– Did you establish your credibility?– Did you create a common bond?

Strategies for Persuasive Speaking

• Forms of rhetorical proof– Ethos

• Speaker’s qualifications and personality

– Logos • Nature of speech’s message

– Pathos • Audience’s feelings

Strategies for Persuasive Speaking (cont.)

• Ethos (moral character)– Credibility

– Character

– Trustworthiness

– Goodwill

Strategies for Persuasive Speaking (cont.)

• Logos (reasoning)

– Inductive reasoning draws general conclusions based on evidence.

– Deductive reasoning proceeds from the general to the specific.

•syllogism: major premise, minor premise, conclusion

Strategies for Persuasive Speaking (cont.)

• Pathos (appeal to listener's emotions)– Should be combined with

logical appeals for lasting effect

Strategies for Persuasive Speaking (cont.)

• Avoiding logical fallacies– Bandwagoning– Reduction to the absurd– Red herring fallacy– Personal attacks (ad hominem

fallacy)– Begging the question– Either-or fallacy (false dilemma

fallacy)– Appeal to tradition– Slippery slope fallacy

Organizing Patterns in Persuasive Speaking

• Problem-solution pattern– Alternative: problem-cause-solution

• Refutational organizational pattern– Show points opposed to your own

• Comparative advantage pattern– Effective when listeners know the

issue

Organizing Patterns in Persuasive Speaking (cont.)

• Monroe’s Motivated Sequence– Attention– Need– Satisfaction– Visualization– Action