Original Oratory
The Great Equalizer
Adapted from presentation by Nicholas Owen
Salina High Central
Original Oratory is…
….the creative and insightful analysis of a
fresh, relevant, and true social problem.
Choosing the Problem and its Harm
DO’S
 Know what your region prefers
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Value-based problems are more philosophical like:
“we should all value the power of forgiveness”
or
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Policy-based problems are more concrete like: “we
should all stop drinking bottled water”
Choosing the Problem and its Harm
DO’S
 Reveal a Fresh, Relevant, Truth
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Fresh – Does the problem have a newness to it or at
least a creative twist? Example - Hamlet
Relevant – Does the problem harm us all? Is its
harm especially detrimental today? Can we all
practically contribute to the solution?
Truth – Do you believe passionately in your solution?
Choosing the Problem and its Harm
Subjects vs. Topics
Brainstorming Problems:
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Browse periodicals – TIME, Newsweek, Psychology Today, The
Week, Opinion pages in newspapers
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Browse recent non-fiction books - current events,
social problem, or self-help books.
Do you have a pet-peeve that, when you think
about it, is actually a relevant and harmful problem?
Personal life – major issues and life changing
events in your own life. - Pathos
Choosing the Problem and its Harm
Before Choosing
 Be sure you have at least 1 strong, credible source that
agrees with you.
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Complete a rough outline on 3 different problems.
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Show the completed outline to one of the coaches and
ask for their input/approval. If one of the coaches
disapproves, you may NOT choose that problem.
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Ask yourself: Which of these 3 problems do I care
about the most?
Seeking Credible Support

Aim for both credibility and variety in your
support/evidence.
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Sources of Hard Evidence
 Academic Journals
 Books
 Periodicals
 Websites
 Personal Interviews
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Sources of Soft Evidence
 Personal Examples
 Stories of others
 Philosophical
Quotations from
famous people
Seeking Credible Support
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Have at least 1 source citation in each main
point.
Strive for 1 personal example in your speech
to show how this problem is True to you.
Policy-based problem = harder evidence is
necessary.
Value- based problem = some softer
evidence is more welcome.
Seeking Credible Support

Always verbally cite the source, author,
and date of every source in your speech.
Examples:

According to Pulitzer Prize winning author Thomas Friedman in his 2005
landmark work The World Is Flat …….

Daniel Pink, Harvard Business Review writer and author of the 2006
book A Whole New Mind, agrees……
Citation of Sources - Ethos
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Good - According to a twenty year study on depression by Dr. Susan Frey,
Doctor of clinical research in psychology at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester Minnesota,
in her 2008 article in the American Journal of Psychology a psychology journal
established for over 75 years, 45% of all American suffer from depression before the
age of 32 (Frey,2008). That could mean one out of every three of us would suffer
depression, before the age 32.
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Bad
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“In a recent study”….What study…what was the name, researchers names,
published where, published when, why valid?
“According to Susan Frey, Americans suffer from depression”. Who is she, why
should we care, what study, where published, date published, why valuable?
“In an internet article”…what article, when published, what author, why is author
credible, when was website last updated?
Organizing Effectively
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Make your organization abundantly clear
If your audience is lost, you’ve just lost the round.
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An outline is NOT optional. A typed outline must be approved by
the coaches before you begin writing.
Introduction
Thesis Statement
Preview
Strict Paragraphs for Main Points: Problem, Cause, Solution
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Sign-Posts and Transitions to and from Main Points
Consistently connect everything to your thesis
Topic Sentence
Review
Closing Statement
Revising

Always seek content revisions:
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at every practice
after every tournament
by dissecting your critiques carefully before
practice
by coming to practice with questions ready for
your coach
by emailing speech to your coach before practice
Google Alerts
Colorful Language - Ethos

Language should pop on and off the page
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Use thesaurus to prevent repetition
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Use sophisticated words
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Apprehensive vs. Worried
Tolerate vs. Allow
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Language should influence, not impress

Improves creditability
Delivery - Logos

The audience must like you. They need to see:
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your
your
your
your
personality
smile
vulnerability
passion for this speech, how it is “true to you?”
Avoid being “holier than thou” or preachy
Make a connection to the audience with your
eyes
Seek natural transitional walks