Julius Caesar by William Shakespeare

Julius Caesar by William Shakespeare Opening Argument

Decide if you AGREE or DISAGREE with each prompt. You will then have an opportunity to choose a prompt that you feel strongly about. With this prompt in mind, you will write and present a compelling 1 minute argumentative speech to the class either FOR or AGAINST the prompt that explains your views. Use personal experiences and concrete examples to prove your point.

 It is never right to kill another person.

 Political leaders usually act in the best interest of their countries.

 If a political leader has done something wrong, it is best to get rid of him/her by any means necessary.

 With great power comes great ______[fill in the blank – first response that

comes to mind].

 Sometimes it may be justified for a political leader to bend or break the law for the good of the country.

 People have not essentially changed much since ancient times.

 Violence only causes more violence.

 No cause (political or otherwise) is worth dying for.

 Cowards die many times before their deaths.

 People can foretell the future.

ELF 40S Ms. Van Den Bussche Writing an Argumentative Speech:

 Capture the attention of your audience in the first few lines: an anecdote, quotation, rhetorical question, startling statement, etc…  State your opinion immediately afterwards (thesis).  Provide 2-3 reasons for your point of view.  Use personal experiences or concrete examples to prove each reason.  Avoid fallacy (misleading information or lies)  Close with your strongest thought-provoking final statement.

View the argumentative speech rubric below to see how you will be evaluated:

Criteria Effectively Accomplished Partially accomplished Not accomplished

5 4 3 2 1 0 Attention Effective use of attention getting strategy (quote, Use of relevant attention getting strategy, but No attention getting strategy was evident. No clear Getter question, story, etc.) to capture listeners’ attention did not seem to adequately capture audience or relevant connection to topic and/or speech and to introduce topic. Attention getter is relevant attention and/or lead to desire outcome. purpose. and meaningful and seemed to gain the desired response from audience. Thesis Speaker clearly formulated and stated thesis Thesis is clearly implied, although not No thesis statement (implied nor explicit). Main Statement statement during the speech introduction. Thesis explicitly stated. Topic is clearly identified, points are not clearly identified, audience unsure of statement identifies topic and but main points are not clearly previewed. direction of the message. encompasses/previews main points. Organization Uses effective organizational pattern for speech General structure/organization seems adequate Lack of structure. Ideas are not coherent and purpose. Main points are clearly distinguished but some blurring between main points and transitions are forced or blurred. Difficult to from supporting details. Smooth and coherent supporting details. Logical flow, but no clear identify introduction, body, and conclusion. transitions lead from reason to reason. transitions.

Eye contact Consistently and effectively used eye contact to Conspicuous use of speaker notes. Seems Reads speech from notes/manuscript. Avoids eye establish rapport with audience. Inconspicuous use disengaged from audience for noticeable contact with audience. Only occasional and of speaker notes and effective use of scanning to periods of time. sporadic glances. established an expanded zone of interaction.

Voice Natural variation of vocal characteristics (rate, Limited variation of vocal characteristics. Use Monotone or inappropriate variation of vocal pitch, volume, tone) to heighten interest and match of rate, pitch, volume and tone seemed characteristics. Inconsistent with verbal message. message appropriately. inconsistent at times.

ELF 40S Ms. Van Den Bussche ELF 40S Ms. Van Den Bussche