* IF YOU'RE HAVING PROBLEMS, READ ALL THE WAY DOWN.
**You will need to use this time-tested organizational pattern to organize your persuasive speech. This matches the sample outline that was sent to you on Monday 02/18/2007.
***You need a Work's Cited page. I need to hear a minimum of FIVE different sources TAGGED in your speech.
****To be eligible, you will need a pre-speaking block, complete sentence outline, a scripted & labeled introduction, a scripted & labeled conclusion, a visual aid that is a chart, graph, etc. that contributes to us understanding some aspect of your speech.
PRE-SPEAKING BLOCK: Give us a MLA Heading, a title, a GP, a SP and an AAS. Still confusing? It should be in your notes. But, it's also here on the blog.
ATTENTION STEP: Get the attention or your audience as we've done all term. This can be done with a detailed story, shocking example, dramatic statistic, quote, etc. This is part or your introduction (in addition to stating your thesis, giving a preview of your main points, mentioning your credibility, and telling your audience why the topic is of concern to them).
I. PROBLEM/NEEDS STEP: Show the problem exists, that it is a significant problem, and that it won't go away by itself. Document your statements with statistics, examples, etc.
A. First problem related to your topic that is proved (remember, "PROVE IT") with multiple pieces of evidence (story, personal reference, illustration, statistic, comparison, expert opinion, etc.)
B. Second problem related to your topic that is proved (remember, "PROVE IT") with multiple pieces of evidence (story, personal reference, illustration, statistic, comparison, expert opinion, etc.)
C. Third problem related to your topic that is proved (remember, "PROVE IT") with multiple pieces of evidence (story, personal reference, illustration, statistic, comparison, expert opinion, etc.)
II. SATISFACTION/SOLUTION STEP: Offer solutions for the problem you have shown exists in the Need Step. These are solutions that the government or society as a whole can implement. You must satisfy the need.
A. A possible solution to the first problem that you proved in I.A. This directly relates to that problem. Your solution needs to be specific and related to that problem. Don't reinvent the wheel...do some research to see what others are doing, have done or are planning on doing. Remember, you need to "PROVE IT" will solve a problem with multiple pieces of evidence (story, personal reference, illustration, statistic, comparison, expert opinion, etc.)
B. A possible solution to the second problem that you proved in I.B. This directly relates to that problem. Your solution needs to be specific and related to that problem. Don't reinvent the wheel...do some research to see what others are doing, have done or are planning on doing. Remember, you need to "PROVE IT" will solve a problem with multiple pieces of evidence (story, personal reference, illustration, statistic, comparison, expert opinion, etc.)
C. A possible solution to the third problem that you proved in I.C. This directly relates to that problem. Your solution needs to be specific and related to that problem. Don't reinvent the wheel...do some research to see what others are doing, have done or are planning on doing. Remember, you need to "PROVE IT" will solve a problem with multiple pieces of evidence (story, personal reference, illustration, statistic, comparison, expert opinion, etc.)
III. BENEFITS/VISUALIZATION STEP: Tell us what will happen if we don't do something about the problem. Be graphic.
A. Explain the benefits that I will receieve from the solution that you proposed in II.A. The benefit should be something that I can apply to my life and see as personally beneficial. Don't reinvent the wheel...do some research to see what others have discovered about benefits to them, their group, organization or cause. Remember, you need to "PROVE IT" will solve a problem with multiple pieces of evidence (story, personal reference, illustration, statistic, comparison, expert opinion, etc.)
B. Explain the benefits that I will receieve from the solution that you proposed in II.B. The benefit should be something that I can apply to my life and see as personally beneficial. Don't reinvent the wheel...do some research to see what others have discovered about benefits to them, their group, organization or cause. Remember, you need to "PROVE IT" will solve a problem with multiple pieces of evidence (story, personal reference, illustration, statistic, comparison, expert opinion, etc.)
C. Explain the benefits that I will receieve from the solution that you proposed in II.C. The benefit should be something that I can apply to my life and see as personally beneficial. Don't reinvent the wheel...do some research to see what others have discovered about benefits to them, their group, organization or cause. Remember, you need to "PROVE IT" will solve a problem with multiple pieces of evidence (story, personal reference, illustration, statistic, comparison, expert opinion, etc.)
CONCLUSION: Motivate us to get out and do something! Wrap up loose ends by giving a review of points and restating your thesis, and then conclude the speech.
V. ACTION STEP: Offer alternatives to your audience that they can do personally to help solve the problem you have shown exists. Again, be very specific and very realistic.
Another View of Monroe's Motivated Sequence
Monroe's motivated sequence is a technique for organizing persuasive speeches that inspire people to take action. It was developed in the mid-1930s by Alan H. Monroe. It consists of five steps:
Attention
Get the attention of your audience using a detailed story, shocking example, dramatic statistic, quotations, etc.
Problem/NeedShow that the problem about which you are speaking exists, that it is significant, and that it won't go away by itself. Use statistics, examples, etc. Convince your audience that there is a need for action to be taken.
Solution/Satisfaction
Show that this need can be satisfied. Provide specific solutions for the problem that the government and community can implement as a whole.
Benefits/Visualization
Tell the audience what will happen if the solution is implemented or does not take place. Be visual and detailed.
Action
Tell the audience what action they can take personally to solve the problem.
The advantage of Motivated Sequence is that it emphasizes what the audience can do. Too often the audience feels like a situation is hopeless; Monroe's motivated sequence emphasizes the action the audience can take.
Monroe's Motivated Sequence (another explanation)
In the mid-1930s, Alan H. Monroe developed a pattern for persuasive messages that has become something of a standard because of its effectiveness. It is both logically and psychologically sound. It is known as the motivated sequence. I highly recommend it for your next speech, since it is explicitly designed to move an audience to action.
Attention: This step is designed to gain the interest of the listeners. One of the biggest problems here is assuming you have the audience's attention. In fact, assuming the step as given causes problems throughout the entire speech. You cannot persuade someone unless you have his or her attention. This step is very similar to the traditional introduction.
Need: The need step is used for developing or describing some problem or for demonstrating that the audience has a need for the speech you are giving. You want them to say to themselves, "I need to hear this," or "Something needs to be done about this!" Again, don't assume the need is obvious. Remember that this step involves need from the standpoint of the audience member. The door-to-door salesperson who says "I need one more sale so I can go to Hawaii" is being ineffective; he should address the prospect's need.
Satisfaction: Next, present a solution to the problem you presented in the Need step. Show how to satisfy the need. Scratch the itch. The Need step and the Satisfaction step appeal primarily to left-brained, logical thinking (although you always need some appeal to the right-brain thinking as well, especially in terms of clarifying information). In this step, you want the audience to think, "That will work!"
Visualization: This is where we get into true persuasion. The purpose of this step is to develop within your audience an image of the consequences of their choices. If you want them to do something, you have to help them create in their minds an image of the good things that will happen if they do what you want them to do. Or, help them imagine the bad consequences of not adopting the policy.
In this step you are appealing more to right-brain thinking; you want to get them emotionally as well as logically involved, and you want them to feel those consequences on a gut level. In the Satisfaction step, you wanted them to think, "That will work." In the Visualization step, you want them to think, "That will work for me. I can do that. I can see myself doing that."
Action: The action step should move your audience to actually do something about your speech. To do this, you need to have some clear and specific action for them to take. "Somebody should do something" only frustrates them, because they have no direction. Even "give some money to this cause" lacks motivation. Tell them, "I want each of you to give just $10 to this. If you can do more, fine. But don't you agree that $10 is within reach of all of us?" Or whatever it is you want them to do. You should know from the beginning of your speech what exact action you are going to ask them to take.
