Week 1 discussions
Topic 2: Critical listening
Discuss a communication situation when you paid close attention because you really had to, where the situation and what was being communicated were extremely important. What kind of things did you find yourself doing to help insure that you were listening effectively?
Week 2 discussin
Topic 1: Analyzing the Audience
As many of you may already know or will know whilst taking Psychology, there are three basic components in Sigmund Freud’s theory of personality: the id,the ego, and the superego. While the id is made up of unconscious urges and the ego is charged with dealing with reality, the superego is the part of personality that is made up of all the internalized ideals that come from our parents and society. Freud suggested that this component of personality is the last to develop, emerging around age five. The purpose of the superego is to suppress the unacceptable urges of the id and to make the ego behave morally.
The ego
The ego is the component of personality that is responsible for dealing with reality. According to Freud, the ego develops from the id and ensures that the impulses of the id can be expressed in a manner acceptable in the real world. The ego functions in both the conscious, preconscious, and unconscious mind.
The ego operates based on the reality principle, which strives to satisfy the id’s desires in realistic and socially appropriate ways. The reality principle weighs the costs and benefits of an action before deciding to act upon or abandon impulses. In many cases, the id’s impulses can be satisfied through a process of delayed gratification–the ego will eventually allow the behavior, but only in the appropriate time and place.
The ego also discharges tension created by unmet impulses through the secondary process, in which the ego tries to find an object in the real world that matches the mental image created by the id’s primary process.
The Superego
The last component of personality to develop is the superego. The superego is the aspect of personality that holds all of our internalized moral standards and ideals that we acquire from both parents and society–our sense of right and wrong. The superego provides guidelines for making judgments. According to Freud, the superego begins to emerge at around age five.
There are two parts of the superego:
1. The Ego Ideal: includes the rules and standards for good behaviors. These behaviors include those which are approved of by parental and other authority figures. Obeying these rules leads to feelings of pride, value and accomplishment.
2.
3. The conscience: includes information about things that are viewed as bad by parents and society. These behaviors are often forbidden and lead to bad consequences, punishments or feelings of guilt and remorse.
The superego acts to perfect and civilize our behavior. It works to suppress all unacceptable urges of the id and struggles to make the ego act upon idealistic standards rather that upon realistic principles. The superego is present in the conscious, preconscious and unconscious.
The Interaction of the Id, Ego and Superego
With so many competing forces, it is easy to see how conflict might arise between the id, ego and superego. Freud used the term ego stremgth to refer to the ego’s ability to function despite these dueling forces. A person with good ego strength is able to effectively manage these pressures, while those with too much or too little ego strength can become too unyielding or too disrupting.
According to Freud, the key to a healthy personality is a balance between the id, the ego, and the superego.
[research source: .about.com/od/theoriesofpersonality/a/personalityelem.htm”>http://psychology.about.com/od/theoriesofpersonality/a/personalityelem.htm]
Now, after having, hopefully, read this lengthy explanation of the Ego, why do people believe that being ego-centric is bad for their public image? What implications does the ego-centrism of audiences hold for you as an individual who might give a very important speech and how does this relate to the importance of analyzing your audience?Please remember that you must have at least2 FULLY ELABORATED postings per threaded forum per week.
Topic 2: Gathering Materials and Supporting Your Ideas
There are many different sources from which to gather materials to help support your speech, including your own personal knowledge and experience, the library, the Internet, and interviews.
Which are you most comfortable with and why?
What are some of the pros and cons associated with using each of these sources?
Week 3 discussion
TDA Discussion Topics for Week Three
1 – Using Language
2 – Delivery and Visual Aids
3 -Open Forum
Remember, each week, I will assign two to five discussion topics, and you are expected to participate fully2topics on a weekly basis. To do so, you must contribute to2discussion topics with 2different substantive postings to each, on at least two different daysthroughout the week (open forum postings do not count).
Topic 1: Using Language
What is effective language? Why is it so important that speeches use effective language? Once language is used effectively, the next step is to ensure that “listening” takes place in order to know what message is being conveyed by the speaker. Professor Loaiza
Week 4 discussion
TDA Discussion Topics for Week Four
1 – Speaking on Special Occasions
2 – Speaking in Small Groups
3 – Open Forum
Remember, each week, I will assign two to five discussion topics, and you are expected to participate fully2topics on a weekly basis. To do so, you must contribute to2discussion topics with 2different substantive postings to each, on at least two different daysthroughout the week (open forum postings do not count).
Speaking on Special Occasions
REQUIRED INFORMATION FOR THIS SECTION:
Speeches on special occasions can provoke greater anxiety than everyday, business-related speaking assignments. Yet the truth is that a request to speak at these events is an honor. Your position, closeness to the people or events being feted, or your distinction in your field are responsible for your place of prominence on the occasion.
That special knowledge or experience is what you should draw upon as you prepare and deliver your special occasion speech. (For more on speaking successfully, download our cheat sheet, “.publicspeakinginternational.com/4-characteristics-of-an-influential-speaker/” title=”4 Characteristics of an Influential Speaker”>4 Characteristics of an Influential Speaker.”)
Tell the stories that theselisteners will find interesting. In particular, reveal your personal connection with the honoree(s). But most of allbe honest. What the audiences at these events want is sincerity, not polish. The best man speech at a wedding, or the father of the groom speech at a rehearsal dinner, always succeed more from genuine emotion than a demonstrated skill at making toasts.
How Honesty Trumps Show Business
A few years ago, one of my wifes relatives died in his early fifties, leaving his mother and three siblings. At his wake, the family asked me to read the eulogy his brothers and sister had written at his mass to be held the following day. They reasoned that I would do a good job because of my background as an actor.
I told them I would be happy to do so if they insisted, but that I felt it would mean much more to everyone if one of them read the eulogy. Eventually they agreed. And though the brother who spoke the words was not a polished speaker, he tapped into bittersweet emotions for the relatives that I would never have been able to approach.
When it comes to public speaking on special occasions, honesty trumps show business every time. It isnt the wisdom of the ages your listeners are hoping foritsyou.So be confident in your worth as a valued contributor, and speak from the heart.
Here is some advice on specific occasions requiring toasts, awards speeches, and testimonials:
The Toast. This is one occasion where eloquence is expected. Yet that doesnt mean that you must suddenly morph into a New York sophisticate. If you stay simple and true, conveying your honest affection for the honoree(s),you will be eloquent. The toast is also the ideal place to use quotations, either from persons known to the listeners or famous people. A word to the wise: Beware of alcohol, which may be flowing freely at your table by the time you stand to speak.
The Roast. Introduce yourself if you arent known to everyone in the room. A general rule of roasts is that the closer you are to the roastee, the deeper you can slip the bladeall in good fun, of course. Remember that self-deprecating humor is always welcome at a roast, since it shows that you can take it as well as dish it out.
Master of Ceremonies. Maintain a firm but light touch. Dont make the mistake of thinking that just because youve been invited to be the MC, this is about you. It isnt. Learn the names and titles of the people youre introducing and then let them do their own thing. Perhaps most important: speak beforehand with your host to see what he or she wants you to do. Then give exactly thatno more and no less. And be sure you know how youre expected to dress.
Blessing, Grace, or Benediction. A successful blessing combines the true and eternal with the particular. Prayers and profound thoughts from the Bible, poetry, and the wisdom of other religions and cultures are always appropriate. Bear in mind that you can also go outside the expected sources if you find something appropriate and refreshing. A beautiful feature of a prayer, for instance, can be your own addition, something original that youve thought up for the occasion. Thats a way to take the eternal and link it to the special occasion of the gathering.
Acceptance Speech or Response to a Testimonial. Here, less is definitely more. Nothing sours an audiences goodwill more quickly than a too-long or self-indulgent acceptance speech. Think Oscars, and youll know exactly what I mean. So: humbly thank your sponsors, mention others as accomplished as you who didnt win the award, and make a graceful exit.
Eulogy. The sometimes surprising truth about eulogies is that they dont have to be sad and somber set-pieces. Eulogies represent a wonderful opportunity for all present to celebrate the life of the person, not just mourn their passing. Here again, heartfelt emotion is the key. I wrote and delivered the eulogy at my mothers funeral, and I had to stop speaking more than once because emotion overtook me and closed my throat. But I simply paused, collected myself, and went on. At one point I even thanked everyone for being so patient!
If you deliver a eulogy, find a way to tap into the joy that this persons life made possible. In the movie Mr. Saturday Night,Billy Crystals charactera professional comediangives a hilarious and bittersweet eulogy at his mothers funeral. The fact that everyone is laughing throughout his presentation in no way diminishes the deep affection the survivors have, and are busy showing, for the deceased.
Threaded Discussion Question:
Think about the different speeches of presentation and acceptance that you have seen in your lifetime–at a campus awards ceremony or on a television program like the Academy Awards, Grammy Awards, or MTV Music Awards. Which speeches do you find most effective? Least effective? Why? Give an example to support your position.