First, please create an account

Already have a Sophia account?

Ways of Thinking About Language

Author: Sophia

what's covered

In this lesson, you will learn how to choose the most fitting language for your speech. Specifically, this lesson will cover:

Select the Best Wording
Consider Your Audience
Consider Your Venue and Occasion
Your Overall Goals, Objectives, and Purpose

1. Select the Best Wording

When writing your speech, it's imperative that each and every word is carefully selected for inclusion in your speech. Each word should serve a purpose— to advance your logic and address your speech subject in some way.

How you organize your speech, outline your thesis and supporting arguments, as well as the ways you describe those points are all essential to crafting the best speech you can.

Devoting yourself to the creation of multiple drafts of your speech ensures that you are honing and refining your speech down to its most effective words and parts.

2. Consider Your Audience

Who will be listening and watching your speech? Why are they there and what do they want?

You'll want to not only fully understand your audience for who they are, as this may inform you of their experience with your subject, but you'll also want to understand what has brought them to your speech in the first place.

In thinking very specifically about the groups and types of people attending your speech, you can more finely tailor the language of your speech..

3. Consider Your Venue and Occasion

Understanding your speech venue and the occasion for your speech is just as important as getting to know your audience.

Venue and occasion can often dictate both subject matter and formality of your speech. You want to make sure your languages both of those elements.

term to know

Venue

A place, especially the one where a given event is to happen.

4. Your Overall Goals, Objectives, and Purpose

Why are you giving a speech? What have you, from all the other people who could speak, been selected? What makes you the subject matter expert?

Consider each of these questions as you prepare your speech. Knowing your purpose for speaking must be one of the guiding principles as you craft your thesis, supporting evidence and make your case to your audience.

Thinking about what you want to achieve informs how you can establish a plan, that is, select the right language, to achieve that goal.

summary

In this lesson, you learned that every word in your speech must have a purpose for being in your speech. Don't waste any words and commit to writing multiple drafts to refine and hone your speech. Always think about your audience, venue, and occasion. Considering these factors will help inform what language is best to use in your speech. Finally, what are the overall goals, objectives, or purpose you have for speaking? Think about this so that you can work backwards to select the best wording to achieve those goals.

Source: Boundless. "Ways of Thinking About Language." Boundless Communications Boundless, 14 Mar. 2017. Retrieved 21 May. 2017 from https://www.boundless.com/communications/textbooks/boundless-communications-textbook/wording-the-speech-11/understanding-language-57/ways-of-thinking-about-language-225-8331/

Terms to Know

Venue: A place, especially the one where a given event is to happen.