In public speaking, as in any form of communication, there are 5 basic elements, often expressed as "who is saying what to whom utilizing what medium with what effects?"
The purpose of public speaking can range from simply transmitting information, to motivating people to act, or to simply telling a story. A good public speaker should be able to change the emotions of his or her listeners, not just inform them. Public speaking is almost as ancient as speech itself. The first known textbook on the subject was written over 2500 years ago, and the principles elaborated within it were drawn from the practices and experience of orators in ancient Greece. For a Greek man, it was a way of life, a way of being, just like football and baseball are to us today. We attribute today’s field of communication to the ancient Greeks because they were the first to systematize the art of public speaking, which they called “rethoric.”
The art, or use of public speaking, is quite different today than when it was practiced by the Greeks, and then the Romans. Theirs was a time that didn't have multimedia - television, radio, internet, newspapers, and the like - to deliver their messages to the masses. Instead, Greeks and Romans informed and persuaded people the old fashioned way, through discourse or otherwise known as the oral tradition. That meant speaking face to face with their audience. What we today know as the art of public speaking has undergone a number of changes since the days of Pericles, Cicero, and Demosthenes). Public speaking brought us through the Middle Ages, experienced a rebirth as a result of the Renaissance, was redefined to conquer and explain the known and the unknown, was interpreted to perform theatrics, and finally, along this historical path from the ancient Greeks and Romans, the art of public speaking was finally reinvented to accommodate the electronic age of the twentieth and twenty-first centuries. So what is public speaking?
Has it really changed since the days of the ancient Greeks and Romans, St. Augustine, and Descartes? Well, not really. The concept of public speaking hasn't changed, it's basically the same. However, as the field of communication transitioned from one period to an other, so did the understanding of public speaking too.
Here is a quick review that helps to understand the development of public speaking.
In ancient Athens young men had to deliver speeches as citizens. Athens was one of history's earliest and most radical democratic governments, in which the public speaking was the part of everyday life. During this time Greek citizens met in the marketplace for debating politics, economic and other issues. Socrates, Plato and Aristotle, noted Greek speakers living during the fourth and third centuries B.C., were known for their speeches on democracy. At the time people didn't have lawyers for defending themselves, it was necessary for individual citizens to have the needed skills for presenting their cases. The 'Attic Ten' were Greek speech makers who formed schools which produced famous students such as Demosthenes, who's still regarded as the greatest ancient Greek orator ever.
Demosthenes had a straightforward style of speaking, he were a natural born rhetorical talent. Although his speeches were popular, this manner of speaking was thought to be almost unwashed for the standards of his time. Rome followed Athens as the ancient world's leader in politics, military and philosophy. As a young man in his twenties, Marcus Tullius Cicero, pleaded cases in the public forum during the first century BC. This leading orator, politician, lawyer and philosopher developed the five canons of rhetoric, which had continued to be used in modern-day law courtrooms. The five canons include 'invention', 'arrangement', 'style', 'memory' and 'delivery'.The famous 'Pro Quinctio' has been viewed as Cicero's first sortie into the word of oratory and still resonates with today’s orators.
Now let's skip ahead in time and take a closer look at America's early public speakers.Through their intense speeches, persuasive colonial speakers urged the American colonists to take action. Powerful orators addressed the Colonial congresses and Constitutional Convention. A few of the most famous speeches from America's early days include Patrick Henry's noted "Liberty of Death" speech (1775) and the Farewell Address of George Washington. President Abraham Lincoln gave his famous "Gettysburg Address" in 1863, followed by forceful debates and anti-slavery speeches which helped end slavery in the United States.
There are still many more worthy periods in history to talk about, though now, let’s steer our focus towards one of the most significant, revolutionary and influential period of public speaking: the era of the late 20th and the early 21st centuries.
The basic principles have undergone modification as societies and cultures have changed, yet remained surprisingly uniform. Orators still use the power of public speaking to spread their ideas and to change the course of events.
Effective public speaking can be developed by joining a club such as Rostrum, @Toastmasters International, Association of Speakers Clubs (ASC) or International Training in Communication (ISC) in which members are assigned to exercise and to improve their speaking skills. Members learn by observation and practice and hone their skills by listening to constructive suggestions followed by new public speaking exercises. Software solutions exist as well to help the effectiveness of the presentation and facilitate the interaction between presenter and audience.
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