Final Speech Critique Essay

For this assignment, I watched a persuasive speech about being a hero. The name of the
presenter is not given, so I cannot give him credit. The speech can be accessed by clicking on
this link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KYtm8uEo5vU. Overall, this speech was
persuasive and powerful. The speaker made a great case as to why and how ordinary people
can become heroes. The speaker showed that there is a real need for heroes in today’s self-
absorbed world, and he also showed just how easy it is for someone to become a hero.

The introduction of this speech was unique. I loved his use of his visual aids – the red cape and
superman-esq sticker. He begins his speech with a couple of jokes which I loved. “Humor,
handled well, can be a wonderful way to get an audience’s attention” (Page 113). The speaker’s
jokes were simple, relevant, and made the audience laugh. It was a great way to begin his
speech. He also told a short anecdote, a method used to have an effective introduction (Page
112), about why Superman was his favorite childhood superhero. He also previewed “the main
ideas of the speech,” (Introductions and Conclusions Notes) a function of the introduction.

Introduction-5

This speaker had a great thesis statement. It was simple, straightforward, and gave the listener
a good idea of the course the speech would be taking. His thesis statement was: “Today I want
to tell you a little bit about how we define what a hero is, what it takes to be a hero, and how
you and I can help rekindle the effects of heroism.”

Statement of Purpose-5

I thought the organization of this speech was good. He had a clear introduction and conclusion,
as well as three distinct body paragraphs. It was a classic five part speech, but it worked for him
and the topic he was presenting on. His three main body paragraphs were: the definition of a
hero, what it takes to be a hero, and how we can become heroes and rekindle the effects of
heroism. This structured outline help the speaker to stay organized during his presentation and
made it easier for the speaker to listen to him.

Organization-5

This speaker had really good transitions. Overall, his speech flowed really well which made it
easy to listen to. This speaker primarily used verbal transitions (Page 104). One of the best
transitions in the whole speech is when he transitions from the first body paragraph to the
second body paragraph. This transition is so smooth that it is hard to identify what it even is. It
was really incredible and gave his speech a seamless feel. One of the more noticeable
transitions this speaker used was when he transitioned from his introduction to his first body
paragraph by saying: “So let’s start with how do we define what a hero is.”

Transitions-5
This speaker had pretty good supporting materials. From what I could tell, there was only two
supporting materials presented in his speech. One was from answers.com and the other was
the “Berkley education site”. While he does not have a surplus of supporting materials, this
speaker uses his supporting material to benefit his speech. It was obvious that his research
from these sites was crucial to his speech – they were of great value to integrity of the body
paragraphs. For example, he used the definition of a hero from answers.com to build on the
ideas he was already presenting in his first body paragraph. This supporting material made his
first body paragraph strong and cohesive.

Supporting Material Uses-4

This speaker’s visual aids were absolutely great. The cape and the symbol and his blue shirt
really gave him that superman look. He also had a superman hat that was not super important
to the speech but still relevant. The speaker’s visual aids were playful, yet appropriate. They
were well thought out and unique to his speech.

Visual Aid-5

This speaker established his credibility by citing his sources. The two sources he cited were
answers.com and the “Berkley education site”. While he was masterful in using his sources, I
think his credibility could have been improved by having additional sources. I do not know what
his professor required of him in terms of how many sources he needed, but at least one more
source would have made his speech even stronger. Overall, he was a credible speaker and
established this by citing his sources to his audience members.

Crediblity-4

This speaker had good language. There were a few points during his speech where he seemed
to stumble over his words but it did not take anything away from the speech as a whole. It was
obvious that he practiced his speech and that he was very well prepared. I think he only
stumbled 2 or 3 times and they were minor stumbles, so I commend him on a job well done.

Language-4

This speaker’s conclusion was wonderful. He signaled it by saying “So to sum up…” which
alerted the audience that the close of his speech was coming. One of the main purposes of the
conclusion is to “reemphasize the central idea in a memorable way” (Page 117). This speaker
did this by giving the dictionary definition of a hero and then showing how this definition is
applicable to himself and his audience members. This was a great way to wrap up his speech
because it made it personal for the audience. His conclusion also “summarized the key ideas”
(Page 117) of the speech which allowed the audience to recount everything they learned from
his presentation.

Conclusion-5
This speaker ended his speech with a memorable closing statement that challenged his
audience members to act: “For someone you know and someone you don’t, be a hero.” It’s
simple, but effective – just like the rest of his speech. This was a great way to end the speech
because it put the ball in the audience’s court, which is exactly what a persuasive speech’s
conclusion should do.

Memorable Closing Statement-5

This speaker showed a lot of enthusiasm for this topic. Through his tone, the audience was able
to understand how important this topic was to him. His creative visual aids also showed the
audience that he was willing to wear (literally) the words he was saying. This speaker was clear
and easy to understand throughout the speech. At times, his fluency was lost because he
stumbled over his words, but it was not anything major and it definitely did not detract from his
speech. Cortes’s body language was formal but he was relaxed enough that he was able to use
a lot of gestures during his speech. He also had good eye contact throughout the speech and
looked down at his notes a couple of times per paragraph. He was well prepared and kept good
eye contact with his entire audience. This speaker’s use of gestures added a lot to the speech. It
was visually interesting for the audience. At times, I felt like his gestures were a little too much,
but overall I thought they worked well for the speech.

Enthusiastic Delivery-5

Clarity, Rate, Fluency-4

Body language-5

Eye Contact-5

Poise and Composure-4

Overall, this speaker gave a great speech. He was well-prepared, knew the material well and
was a credible speaker. He was enthusiastic, persuasive, and easy to listen to. He was able to
keep my attention all the way through and transitioned from one topic to the next smoothly.
There are a couple recommendations I would give to this speaker to bring his speech to the
next level. One would be to increase the amount of sources. This would have made him an even
more credible speaker and added a lot to the body paragraphs of his speech. I would also
recommend controlling the gestures slightly. He used his hands a lot and as a viewer, I was
sometimes distracted by his overuse of motion. It really was not a major issue – just something
to tweak to make the next speech that much better. Overall, this speech was persuasive,
cohesive, and entertaining. He is an excellent speaker and with some adjustments, he would
have a more successful presentation.

Overall Effect- 5 Total Points- 75 (Out of 80)