Public Speaking
Lecture 01: Introduction to Public Speaking
Prof. Binod Mishra
DEPARTMENT OF HUMANITIES AND SOCIAL SCIENCES
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What is Public Speaking?
❖ According to Merriam Webster Dictionary , Public Speaking is “the act or
process of making speeches in public” or “the art of effective oral
communication with an audience”
❖ “Speech is power: speech is to persuade , to convert, to compel” - Ralph
Waldo Emerson
❖ To be successful, says business leader Midge Costanza, you must have
“the ability to stand on your feet, either on a one-to-one basis or before a
group, and make a presentation that is convincing and believable” (Lucas
34).
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Advent of Public Speaking
➢ The inception of Public Speaking in Greece and Rome as a discipline
dates 2,500 years ago.
➢ The famous Greek scholar Aristotle (384-322 BCE) laid the foundation in
his treatise titled Rhetoric - the first book on Public Speaking.
➢ Roman educator Quintilian, Christian preacher St. Augustine, the
medieval writer Christine de Pizan, British philosopher Francis Bacon,
Nelson Mandela, Hillary Clinton and many others have magnified the
power of public speaking.
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Public Speaking and its Development
❑ 21st Century witnessed the advancements in the discourse of Public
Speaking.
❑ Due to technical advancements, different forms of public speaking have
surfaced and are thriving in the contemporary times.
❑ Besides the physical communication, new platforms for Public Speaking
like Ted Talk, YouTube broadcasting, Video conferencing, and Podcasts
are vested with the power to inspire, educate, entertain and persuade
the viewers or the listeners.
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Public Speaking as a Form of Communication
➢ Communication plays a chief role in public speaking.
➢ Effective communication is the backbone of public speaking.
➢ Effective communication ensures the message reaches the audience in
its correct and desired form.
➢ Speaking with confidence is mandatory.
➢ Style of communication also plays an important role in public speaking.
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Public Speaking Vs. Everyday Communication
▪ Public Speaking is not an everyday routine.
▪ Public speech is special and it is delivered on occasions of
importance.
▪ Attributes of Public Speaking:
✓ More structured and not spontaneous
✓ Time constraint
✓ Formal and Decent language
✓ Proper body language and mannerism
✓ Avoiding jargons, colloquial expressions or slangs
✓ Avoiding non-lexical fillers
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Public Speaking- An Exercise in Critical Thinking
✓ Ability to form your own judgments
✓ Analyze and understand different points of view
✓ Verify the facts
✓ Recognize a speaker’s biased/unstated assumptions
✓ Broaden one’s canvas of thoughts
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Ingredients of Public Speaking
Topic
Pattern Time
Public
Speaking
Style Language
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Beneficiaries
➢ There are more avenues to reach people than ever before, but there is
no substitute for face-to-face communication
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Domains of Public Speaking - I
Entrepreneurial Communication:
➢ Interviews
➢ Leadership
➢ Meetings
➢ Group Discussions
➢ Negotiations
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Domains of Public Speaking- II
Classroom/ Scholarly Communication
➢ Student-teacher communication
➢ Elocutions
➢ Recitations
➢ Debates
➢ Conferences and Symposiums
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Impediments to Public Speaking
➢ Nervousness
➢ Inept Delivery
➢ Lack of Coherence
➢ Negligent Listening
➢ Content divorced from Occasion
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Advantages of Public Speaking in diverse fields
➢ Technical
➢ Financial
➢ Bureaucracy
➢ Aesthetic
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Iconic Speech
"Long years ago we made a tryst with destiny, and now the time comes when
we shall redeem our pledge, not wholly or in full measure, but very
substantially. At the stroke of the midnight hour, when the world sleeps,
India will awake to life and freedom. A moment comes, which comes but
rarely in history, when we step out from the old to new, when an age ends,
and when the soul of a nation, long suppressed, finds utterance…”
- Jawaharlal Nehru
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“And now, as you graduate to begin anew, I wish that
for you. Stay Hungry. Stay Foolish.”
- Steve Jobs
Thank You
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Works Consulted
▪ Lucas, Stephen E. The Art of Public Speaking. McGraw-Hill Book
Co., 2014.
▪ https://www.cam.ac.uk/files/a-tryst-with-destiny/index.html
▪ https://www.managementstudyguide.com/role-of-
communication-in-effective-public-speaking.htm
▪ https://www.npr.org/2010/01/18/122701268/i-have-a-dream-
speech-in-its-entirety
▪ Zaresky, David. Public Speaking Strategy for Success. 8th Edition,
Pearson: New York,2016.
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