Research Guides: Speech Assignment Research Guide: Start Here

Types of Speeches

An informative speech gives us unbiased, factual information on a topic, person, event, or concept. The goal is to educate the audience without an opinion, judgment, or intent to change the audience's attitude. The informative speech should enlighten listeners on a subject that is non-controversial. Types of informative speeches include:

Demonstrating to an audience how to do something such as changing a tire, or downloading a file.
Describing a particular activity, object, person, or place. Examples would be a piece of artwork, the Great Wall of China, or the basic rules of a sport.
Concept speeches which focus on a belief, idea, or theory. Topics such as Christianity, the Big Bang Theory, or non-violent protesting would be appropriate.

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A persuasive speech proposes to change your beliefs or actions on a particular issue. The presenter takes a side and gives his/her opinion on why something is good/bad, right/wrong, moral/immoral, or justified/unjustified. The topics tend to be debatable and the speech itself should have a convincing tone. While the objective is to sway your audience, it is important to have factual evidence to support your point of view. Common examples of persuasive public speaking include:

A politician running for office or re-election
A lawyer or prosecutor trying to convince a jury
The benefits of physical activity
The importance of getting a college education

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The goal of an argumentative speech is to present both sides of an issue and get the audience to accept his/her point of view supported by credible evidence and valid reasoning. In essence, it is similar to a debate. It offers several claims for one side while acknowledging that there are valid counterclaims from the opposition. It is important to maintain fairness and an unbiased approach while explore multiple sides of the argument.

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Issues & Controversies This link opens in a new window Issues & Controversies offers a wealth of current topics research information, including pro/con discussions of hot issues, newspaper editorials, numerical snapshots of key topics, photos and graphics, and selected historical source documents.
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Academic Search Complete This link opens in a new window Academic Search Complete provides full-text for more than 4,650 publications, including full-text for more than 3,600 peer-reviewed journals. PDF backfiles to 1975 or further are available for well over one hundred journals, and searchable cited references are provided for more than 1,000 titles.

Speech Assignment Research Guide

Student Services at the University/College Library

Types of Speeches

Persuasive vs. Argumentative Writing