Form Affects Function!

There are many different ways to organize a speech. Some speakers choose a long, rambling style, with lots of stories and examples. Others choose a more direct style, with clear organization and tight points. The talk that I analyzed, by Carole M. Stephens, offered an integrated approach that I really liked, and which effectively brought all of the elements of her talk together in an easily digestible, yet pointed and purposeful format.



Sister Stephens started by telling us a story about her granddaughter. She could not get her granddaughter to behave, despite rewards, punishments, and begging, until her granddaughter realized that she loved her. Once she realized this, everything went smoothly. This was a great little story that appealed to ethos and pathos, but then Sister Stephens transitioned to that little girl's trust that was based on love, and in turn to our trust for our Heavenly Father that we can have because of His love for us. What started as an engaging story turned into a point by point discourse of logos on the trust that we can have in Heavenly Father, Jesus Christ, the Holy Ghost, and their servants on the earth. She then wrapped it up by relating it back to that original story of a little girl trusting her grandmother.

It was perfect. Ethos, pathos and logos were all effectively appealed to. The organization made it easy to remember, despite our occasional tendency to forget exactly what speakers said. The ending conclusion left us with the sweet feeling of a child's trust in our loving Heavenly Father, and the excellent organization of the talk was an important part of achieving that. The talk was a great example of how style can truly affect the content of a speech and its effect, rather than being simply a tool to be used.