Speech Conventions

Question 1

Appeal to Ethos

Answer 1

How do speakers establish credibility and trustworthiness? Pay attention to the moves speakers use to reduce the distance between the speaker and the audience.

Question 2

Appeal to Pathos

Answer 2

How do speakers evoke emotional responses from their audience? Look for loaded words and phrases that make the audience feel one way or the other

Question 3

Appeal to Logos

Answer 3

Every speech needs a logical argument. Read the text carefully to understand how evidence and facts are presented in a logical manner to persuade the listener to join the cause or take a certain position on a topic.

Question 3

Modality

Answer 3

Words such as “must”, “might”, “should” and “have to” may be small in stature, but they are important in meaning! Look for these keywords to understand the degree of certainty and the strength of feeling in the language to the speaker.

Question 4

Structural moves (Whole speech)

Answer 4

How does the speech begin? Did they deliver an anecdote or a joke? Did the speaker try to shock you with a provocative fact? How do they structure the main argument? What moves do they use at the end of the speech? Consider how speakers organise their arguments for effects on the listener.

Question 5

Structural moves (sentence level)

Answer 5

Look for short syntax to accentuate key points, parallel structure to illustrate patterns, and command terms when you want to call the listener to action. And, don’t forget important techniques like antithesis that often are used to deliver the main claim toward the end of a speech

Question 6

Language moves

Answer 6

This is the time to consider figurative language and all the components. Think about connotation, denotation, euphemism, hyperbole, tone, and mood. Just like on other text types, isolate words and phrases, deconstruct them, and show how they shape meaning.