PRINCIPLES OF

SPEECH
DELIVERY
Tuesday, 19 May 2015

PRINCIPLES OF SPEECH DELIVERY

PRINCIPLES OF SPEECH
DELIVERY

PHYSICAL FEATURES OF A
SPEAKER

(a) Appearance - The speaker’s

appearance should be appealing to the
audience. The audience in factlikes
speakers who are similar to them.

(b) Movement - All the movements on

the stage should be voluntary and
warranted. Nervousness can cause
involuntary movements which can
distress both the speaker and the
audience. If the speaker gets involved
 in the speech and trusts the audience,
nervousness can go. No movement
can happen on the stage without
reason. Movements driven by the
speech can help the speaker maintain
contact with all the sections of the
audience.

(c) Posture: A confident speaker stands

straight with his arms well relaxed.
Nervous speakers sprawl on the
podium and lean against the wall.
There is always fear
and tension.Great speakers on
the other hand take an informal
posture and relax their audience too.
Informal postures get the speaker a
positive reaction from the audience.

(d) Facial Expressions: The

expression on the speaker’s face
determines the audience’s
closeness to him. Warm smile and
confident look take the audience
close to the speaker. The expressions
display the degree of involvement, the
speaker has in his speech. The
involvement with the speech is all the
necessity and the rest will take care of
itself.
 The expressions and the tone used by
the speaker should go hand in hand
with the message and the emotions
that are delivered. For example, the
expression and tone of the speaker
should be serious when he delivers a
serious message and sad when he
delivers something sad. Any deviation
in this would confuse the audience.

(e) Eye Contact: It is one of the most

important gestures. It not only
increases the speaker’s direct
contact with the audience but also
increases their interest in their
speech. Direct eye contact helps the
speaker understand audience reaction
then and there and it makes the
occasion less frightening.

(f) Volume: It is confirmed by the

number of the audience but it should
be loud enough for the speech to
reach everybody. The beginners who
have stage fear are usually not loud
enough and it is they who should check
it through rehearsals.
(g) Articulation: It is the right
pronunciation of all the words. The
people who suffer stage fright commit
the mistake of deletion, addition, adding
extra parts towards slurring.Perfect
articulation and Standard English are
a must for any public speaker.

(h) Time: Time is an important factor

in Speech delivery. At the outset, the
speaker should know the amount of time
given for his speech and prepare
accordingly. Sticking to time can be
achieved by proper rehearsals.

(i) Language : The speaker should use the

language well suited for the audience.
Too much of scientific terms may not go
well with the common public. The words
that the speak uses should be readily
understood by the audience. It is good
to stoop to the level of the audience.

“Don’t use a big word where a small

one could do.” – George Orwell.

(j) Use Short stories, Anecdotes and

Quotations according to the need. It is
 always good to start the speech with a
small story as stories normally arouse
interest. But remember, too much of
anything is good for nothing.

A good saying to follow in giving a speech is

“Tell them what you are going to tell them, tell

them, and tell them what you told them.”