• Unit 10: Outlining

    This unit explores the use of outlining in preparation for giving a speech. In this unit and the next, consider critically the authors' recommendation to favor sentence outlines over keyword outlines. Sometimes, the use of sentence outlines needs to be balanced with an inexperienced speaker's tendency to produce a manuscript rather than a speech. Unit 11 will emphasize using language designed for the ear rather than the eye when presenting a speech. Many would argue that sentence outlines can interfere with that process. Moreover, sentence outlines allow a speaker to be less familiar with a topic and thus less flexible in presenting it, even if, as the textbook also recommends, the sentence outline is converted to keywords and phrases on cue cards. Lastly, sentence outlines can make a speaker dependent on pre-planned phrasing rather than addressing the audience through a natural, conversational style. As a result of these potential pitfalls, pay particular attention to the "tricks" described at the end of the chapter, which are designed to avoid reliance on reading and/or on words that were originally written "for the eye rather than the ear".

    Completing this unit should take you approximately 4 hours.

    • 10.1: The Benefits of Outlining

    • 10.2: Types of Outlines

    • 10.3: Using Outlining for Success

    • 10.4: Unit 10 Exercises