SECTION I. THE PLAN

1. The Plan of a speech corresponds to the plot of a story or play. It prevents digression, insures logical sequence and growth, and secures proportion. All speeches, however simple or elaborate, should have at least an Introduction, a Main Discussion, and a Conclusion. The extent and development of these three divisions in their proper relation and proportion will depend largely upon the importance of the occasion, the personnel of the audience, the kind of speech proposed, and the subject considered. The following characteristics of a somewhat formal speech may be noted:

1. The Introduction. The object of an Introduction is to put the speaker on good terms with his audience and awaken attention and interest in his theme or proposition. It should be local as to time, place, and object of the speech; concrete in statement and not an announcement of abstract generalities; deferential to the audience and to the preceding speaker if there be any, fair and conciliatory in motive if conciliation is needed, but devoid of apology or flattery; and it should introduce the subject as favorably as possible and with becoming brevity. The manner of the speaker should be modest, sincere, and dignified, but not strained into stiffness or over-formality.

2. The Main Discussion. Different kinds of speeches naturally require more or less elaboration of the main discourse, but we may here suggest a method that will apply alike to all kinds of speeches, namely, the Historical, the Logical, and the Distributive Order.

(1) The Historical Order arranges all facts and incidents chronologically so far as their occurrence may conform to the unity of the speech and contribute to its main issue. This would be a good method for Committee Reports, certain Topical Speeches, Valedictory and Inaugural Addresses, and Commemorative Orations.

(2) The Logical Order links all facts, propositions, testimonies, evidences, proofs, and arguments into a complete chain of argumentation to convince and persuade. It must conform to the main canons of common logic and it may employ the intricate technicalities of Formal logic. This method is most suitable to Business Remarks, Debates, Didactic Lectures, and to Civic Orations of an economic nature.

(3) The Distributive Order arranges related matters into groups and distributes these groups according to their relation to each other and to the general aim of the speech. This distribution must conform unswervingly to the three great principles of Unity, Climax, and Proportion. This method requires the exercise of the clearest judgment, and has been much used by our greatest orators. It is especially appropriate to Afterdinner speeches, Salutatory and Commencement Addresses, Platform Lectures, Panegyric Orations, and to Civic Orations of a sociological nature.

3. Conclusion or Peroration. This is the place of peril for the speaker and his cause, and is a crucial test for the skill of the orator. "Here," as Dr. Sears puts it, "truth is to be established, the moral to be inculcated, the memory to be renewed and perpetuated, . . . and the verdict to be secured.” It should be characterized by a certain closing style which impels the audience to a desire to know "the conclusion of the whole matter." That style, once assumed, implies a promise, and the audience, in turn, have a right to expect the speaker to stop. The repeated utterance of such expressions as "lastly," "finally," or "in conclusion," is tiresome, and a fresh start in the conclusion is fatally disappointing. If the discourse is only the simplest Topical Speech, it should be rounded out in the Conclusion so that it does not stop short and leave an unfinished impression. But in all cases it should be as brief as the occasion and the importance of the subject will allow. If it rises to the dignity of a formal Address or Oration, the Peroration should be carefully prepared

in thought, language, and delivery. The main characteristics of the Conclusion or Peroration are Summary, Prediction, and Appeal.

(1) The Summary should be a brief epitome of the main points of the discourse in wholly different phraseology, "that," as Cicero states, "the recollection may be revived, not the speech repeated." New matter should not be introduced, as it would be too late to develop its discussion; and, on the other hand, the Summary should not drivel into a mere cataloguing of all the points of the Main Discussion.

(2) Prediction. Out of the Summary of the facts and arguments of the Main Discussion would naturally grow an application of these to future conditions, and here the speaker may offer assurances of that which will come to pass if his words are heeded. Having held up the facts of the past in the light of the present, he may predict their future outcome. In the simpler forms of discourse Prediction may be a mere logical statement, but in the formal Oration on some great theme the speaker may rise even to the glow of prophecy.

(3) Appeal. The final requisite of the Peroration is the earnest Appeal which brings the message home to the audience in no uncertain way, and induces their coöperation in carrying out the objects of the speech. There should be no appeals to the emotions that the promise of the Introduction and the discussion in the Main Discourse do not justify, nor should a speaker assume an emotion merely for effect, or overdo one that is real; but the touch of eloquence in the Peroration, inspired by genuine conviction, may be employed to clinch the nails of logic or cap the climax of persuasion. In short, the abundance of thought should be boiled down to the sweetest morsels, and the conclusion be made as brief as the occasion will allow.

SECTION II. THE QUALITIES OF DISCOURSE

The qualities of style have been variously treated by rhetoricians, but all the terms thus far used may be included in the three words Clearness, Force, and Persuasiveness, which, in turn, correspond respectively to the Mental, Vital, and Emotive natures of man.

1. Clearness is that Quality of Discourse by which a given thought is presented intelligibly to the particular mind addressed. Clearness is not an absolute but a relative term. All reasoning cannot be made equally clear to all minds, but the speaker should so treat his subject as to make it clear to the average mind of his audience. Quintilian insists that the audience should not only be able to understand what is said, but not be able to misunderstand it. Clearness involves a study of diction for suggestive words, structure of sentences that there may be no ambiguity of statement or obscurity of language, and the habit of clear, definite thinking both on and off the platform.

Force is that Quality of Discourse which renders it capable of strong, vital utterance, and energetic, expressive action. It does not apply alike in degree to all parts of a speech, but it is used to enforce expressions of spirited enthusiasm, great earnestness, and strong climaxes which conquer by their very intensity and power. Force demands the use of strong, idiomatic words, short sentences, epigrammatic expressions, figurative language, and directness of speech.

3. Persuasiveness is that Quality of Discourse which appeals to the will through the emotions. It is the crowning essential of style; for language may be "clear as crystal and as cold, forceful as the strokes of a sledge hammer and as hard," but Persuasiveness is the culminating virtue of a great speech. This Quality requires the mastery of soul-stirring words, the proper use of the expletives of language, the sympathetic association of ideas and experiences, the clever use of striking illustrations, and,

withal, its proper proportion to Clearness and Force. To secure this Quality the speaker must bring a genuine message of high motives and ennobling aims.

Then Clearness, Force, and Persuasiveness will include, we think, all the essential Qualities of Discourse, since they manifestly correspond to the triune nature of the orator and furnish the natural channels of spoken language through which his mentality, his emotions, and his vital states must find expression.

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