English 101: An Introduction To Public Speaking And Basic Sentence Structure

One does not have to have a Bachelor’s Degree in English in order to be an effective public speaker, but it certainly helps! Public speaking is as competitive an arena as writing or acting, and errors in grammar and sentence structure will be as quickly identified. For that reason it is essential that the student of public speaking master the art of properly preparing their material, an endeavour that includes the understanding of the simple sentence and its close relations.

Simple Sentences

There are many different types of sentences, and the student of public speaking is going to learn about all of them before they have completed their education. None of these can be understood, however, without familiarity with the simple sentence. A simple sentence is one that contains only one subject and one predicate. A simple sentence expresses only a subject and a particular action or description. Examples of simple sentences include:

The girl drove to the store.

Andrew’s hair is red.

The chair sits on the left.

In public speaking a simple sentence serves to provide the listener with a simple, clear idea devoid of extra clutter.

Complex Sentences

The next type of sentence that should be mastered is the complex sentence. The complex sentence is one that contains one independent clause and one dependent clause, with the dependent clause serving to modify the independent clause. Examples of complex sentences include:

Although she didn’t want to, the girl drove her grandmother to the store.

The diamond shone clear and bright, despite its scratched exterior.

Although she didn’t want to and despite its scratched exterior make perfect sense when used in these sentences, but if a reader were to stumble across them on their own the reader would be unlikely to know what they were talking about. In public speaking complex sentences can be a tremendous tool to provide listeners with a fuller picture of what the speaker is talking about, and it often serves to allude to things that will be discussed later in a speech.

Compound Sentences

Compound sentences combine two independent clauses with the use of a conjunction such as and. The two parts of a compound sentence should be understandable on their own, joined together in public speaking only in the interest of providing a smoother flow of dialogue. Examples of compound sentences include:

He went walking down to the beach, and he took his dog with him.

Alexa had a hair appointment at noon, but she decided she was going to go home first.

If you were to remove the words and and but from these sentences and replace them with periods they would still be able to be understood.

Combining the Sentences in Public Speaking

As the purpose of public speaking is to clearly and comprehensibly present an idea or series of ideas to the listener it would seem as though the simple sentence would be the best choice when preparing a speech. Containing a single thought, simple sentences are very effective in making an impact on the listener. It firmly utilizes the KISS (Keep It Simple Stupid) approach to public speaking, taking the listener step by step through the speaker’s thought process and offering him small tidbits of information to grasp at a time.

At the beginning of an address the simple sentence is particularly effective to catch and hold the attention of the listener, leading them slowly into the prepared material. Excessive use of the simple sentence, however, can turn a well written speech into a monotonous series of repeating, choppy ideas that will quickly cause the audience to lose interest. It suggests an immaturity and an inability on the part of the speaker to mold their expressions. A good discourse will carefully and thoughtfully combine all forms of sentences to provide the speech with texture and variety.

 My Name Is Christopher Carlin And I Want To Give You Twenty Free Public Speaking Tips

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