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Speech Analysis: How To Study and Critique A Speech

The document outlines how to analyze a speech by asking questions about the speech objectives, audience, content, structure, delivery skills, and intangibles. Key things to analyze include the speaker's goal, whether it was achieved, how the content relates to the objective, the organization, opening and closing, use of examples, delivery techniques, visual aids, and whether the overall message was compelling. Analyzing these areas will help develop skills as a public speaker and speech evaluator.

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Shiela Rengel
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486 views

Speech Analysis: How To Study and Critique A Speech

The document outlines how to analyze a speech by asking questions about the speech objectives, audience, content, structure, delivery skills, and intangibles. Key things to analyze include the speaker's goal, whether it was achieved, how the content relates to the objective, the organization, opening and closing, use of examples, delivery techniques, visual aids, and whether the overall message was compelling. Analyzing these areas will help develop skills as a public speaker and speech evaluator.

Uploaded by

Shiela Rengel
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Speech Analysis: How to Study and Critique a Speech

Andrew Dlugan

Studying other speakers is a critical skill, one of the 25 essential skills for a public speaker. The
ability to analyze a speech will accelerate the growth of any speaker.
The Speech Analysis Series is a series of articles examining different aspects of presentation
analysis. You will learn how to study a speech and how to deliver an effective speech evaluation.
Later articles will examine Toastmasters evaluation contests and speech evaluation forms and
resources.
The first in the series, this article outlines questions to ask yourself when assessing a
presentation. Ask these questions whether you attend the presentation, or whether you view a
video or read the speech text. These questions also apply when you conduct a self-evaluation of
your own speeches.

Things to Analyze:

The Speech Objectives


Knowing the speaker’s objective is critical to analyzing the speech, and should certainly
influence how you study it.
 What is the speaker’s goal? Is it to educate, to motivate, to persuade, or to entertain?
 What is the primary message being delivered?
 Why is this person delivering this speech? Are they the right person?
 Was the objective achieved?

The Audience and Context for the Speech


A speaker will need to use different techniques to connect with an audience of 1500 than they
would with an audience of 15. Similarly, different techniques will be applied when
communicating with teenagers as opposed to communicating with corporate leaders.
 Where and when is the speech being delivered?
 What are the key demographic features of the audience? Technical? Students?
Elderly? Athletes? Business leaders?
 How large is the audience?
 In addition to the live audience, is there an external target audience? (e.g. on the
Internet or mass media)

Speech Content and Structure


The content of the speech should be selected and organized to achieve the primary speech
objective. Focus is important — extraneous information can weaken an otherwise effective
argument.
Before the Speech
 Were there other speakers before this one? Were their messages similar, opposed, or
unrelated?
 How was the speaker introduced? Was it appropriate?
 Did the introduction establish why the audience should listen to this speaker with this
topic at this time?
 What body language was demonstrated by the speaker as they approached the speaking
area? Body language at this moment will often indicate their level of confidence.

The Speech Opening

Due to the primacy effect, words, body language, and visuals in the speech opening are all
critical to speaking success.
 Was a hook used effectively to draw the audience into the speech? Or did the speaker
open with a dry “It’s great to be here today.“
 Did the speech open with a story? A joke? A startling statistic? A controversial
statement? A powerful visual?
 Did the speech opening clearly establish the intent of the presentation?
 Was the opening memorable?

The Speech Body


 Was the presentation focused? i.e. Did all arguments, stories, anecdotes relate back to
the primary objective?
 Were examples or statistics provided to support the arguments?
 Were metaphors and symbolism use to improve understanding?
 Was the speech organized logically? Was it easy to follow?
 Did the speaker transition smoothly from one part of the presentation to the next?

The Speech Conclusion


Like the opening, the words, body language, and visuals in the speech conclusion are all
critical to speaking success. This is due to the recency effect.
 Was the conclusion concise?
 Was the conclusion memorable?
 If appropriate, was there a call-to-action?
Delivery Skills and Techniques
Delivery skills are like a gigantic toolbox — the best speakers know precisely when to use every
tool and for what purpose.

Enthusiasm and Connection to the Audience


 Was the speaker enthusiastic? How can you tell?
 Was there audience interaction? Was it effective?
 Was the message you– and we-focused, or was it I- and me-focused?

Humor
 Was humor used?
 Was it safe and appropriate given the audience?
 Were appropriate pauses used before and after the punch lines, phrases, or words?
 Was it relevant to the speech?

Visual Aids
 Were they designed effectively?
 Did they complement speech arguments?
 Was the use of visual aids timed well with the speaker’s words?
 Did they add energy to the presentation or remove it?
 Were they simple and easy to understand?
 Were they easy to see? e.g. large enough
 Would an additional visual aid help to convey the message?

Use of Stage Area


 Did the speaker make appropriate use of the speaking area?

Physical – Gestures and Eye Contact


 Did the speaker’s posture display confidence and poise?
 Were gestures natural, timely, and complementary?
 Were gestures easy to see?
 Does the speaker have any distracting mannerisms?
 Was eye contact effective in connecting the speaker to the whole audience?

Vocal Variety
 Was the speaker easy to hear?
 Were loud and soft variations used appropriately?
 Was the speaking pace varied? Was it slow enough overall to be understandable?
 Were pauses used to aid understanding, heighten excitement, or provide drama?
Language
 Was the language appropriate for the audience?
 Did the speaker articulate clearly?
 Were sentences short and easy to understand?
 Was technical jargon or unnecessarily complex language used?
 What rhetorical devices were used? e.g. repetition, alliteration, the rule of three, etc.

Intangibles
Sometimes, a technically sound speech can still miss the mark. Likewise, technical deficiencies
can sometimes be overcome to produce a must-see presentation. The intangibles are impossible
to list, but here are a few questions to consider:
 How did the speech make you feel?
 Were you convinced?
 Would you want to listen to this speaker again?
 Were there any original ideas or techniques?

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