Verbal Communication 1 Chapter The words you choose to say something are just as important as the decision to speak. — Anonymous Learning Objectives After reading this chapter, you should be able to: understand the importance of language in ESL presentational speaking. know how to choose the right words in giving presentations. master several types of figures of speech. know how to use signpost language. Introduction Communication in general is a process of sending and receiving messages that enables humans to share knowledge, attitudes, and skills. Although we usually identify communication with speech, communication is composed of two dimensions—verbal and nonverbal. In this chapter, we will look at verbal communication in presentations, which
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Verbal Communication 1Chapter
The words you choose to say something are just as important as the decision to speak.
— Anonymous
Learning Objectives
After reading this chapter, you should be able to:
understand the importance of language in ESL presentational speaking.
know how to choose the right words in giving presentations.
master several types of figures of speech.
know how to use signpost language.
Introduction
Communication in general is a process of sending and receiving messages that
enables humans to share knowledge, attitudes, and skills. Although we usually identify
communication with speech, communication is composed of two dimensions —verbal and
nonverbal. In this chapter, we will look at verbal communication in presentations, which
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here in this context refers to the English words and language. The word “verbal” means
communicating with words and language (as opposed to images, actions or behaviour).
Verbal communication is restricted to language. In Chapter 2, we will talk about the other
dimension of communication—nonverbal communication.
English is a West Germanic language and the first language for most people in Australia,
Canada, the Commonwealth Caribbean, Ireland, New Zealand, the United Kingdom and
the United States of America. It is widely used as a second language and as an official
language throughout the world, especially in Commonwealth countries such as India, Sri
Lanka, Pakistan and South Africa, Singapore, and in many international organizations.
With its popularity and wide spread of use, modern English is sometimes described as
the global lingua franca. English is the dominant international language in communication,
science, business, aviation, entertainment, radio and diplomacy. English is also specifically
used for giving presentations.
English language is essential in presentation giving if you are non-native presenters of
English. But it can be one of the biggest barrier to communication in English presentations
for non-native speakers. In order to deliver your message to your audience, you must make
your language work for you. If you know how to make language work for you, you must
know how to use it effectively.
Language is powerful if you know how to use it effectively. When you are giving an
English presentation, there are certain structures you can follow and certain key words and
phrases you can use. This chapter will introduce to you specifically the “hows”, such as how
to make the language work for you, how to introduce yourself, how to state the purpose of
your presentation, how to sequence your ideas, and how to use signpost language, etc.
Warming-Up
1. How do you usually start a presentation?
2. How can you make language work for you in a presentation?
3. What are some of the ways to state your purpose clearly at the beginning of your
presentation? Name a few.
4. List about 6 types of figures of speech.
5. List some key words you can use to “signpost” different stages in your presentation.
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Verbal Communication in Presentational Speaking
Language is a system of communication that enables humans to cooperate. It is an
instrument or a tool for you to use to communicate your ideas and thoughts. Only if you
know how this tool works and how to use this tool well, can you make your audience
understand your message. In a word, language is basically for communication, which
enables humankind to express and bring to reality great ideas. That is to say, to communicate
effectively while presenting, you have to respect the language you use and know how it
works.
Language is powerful if you use it effectively. If you use “power” and “command”
words, you will get your audience’s attention and give them the impression of confidence
and competence. You sound more confident and competent if you use “I am certain you will
agree” instead of “I think you will agree”.
Using non-committal or vague language such as “you should find” or “your sales should
improve” can subconsciously imply to the audience that you don’t have much confidence on
what you can deliver. Using positive, solid language such as “you will sell more in a shorter
space of time”helps to instill confidence in your audience and they will find themselves
really imagining what your offering could do for them.
In the word of Lucas (2010) “Words are vital to thinking itself ”, which means that
thought and language are closely linked. You don’t get an idea first and then figure out some
words to convey it. You think with words. Language structures your thoughts. When you
are looking for the “right word”, what you are really looking for is just the right “idea”. As
a presenter, as long as you get the right idea, you must consider how to express it to your
audience best. Thus, you need to know how language works and what language can do.
While delivering a presentation, unless you use simple and clear language, you will not be
understood by your audience. To remove the language barrier and make it work for you in
presentations, you have to show enough respect to it and know well how to use it effectively.
Choice of the Right Word
Words are the component structures of language; they are combined to form sentences.
As ESL presentational speakers, your focus on your language for the words you choose to
use can have a big impact on your audience—far more than the way you hold one’s hands.
In order to make the language work for you, you should consider the following points about
words you choose to use in drafting your presentation.
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Power of Words
Words to a presenter are like tools to any profession. Watch a carpenter hitting a nail
into a piece of wood. It only takes him a few seconds, but you or I would spend several
minutes or even an hour to have the job done. You cannot turn a screw with a hammer or
drive a nail with a screwdriver. It is the same with oral presentations. You must choose the
right words for the job you want to do. Words are powerful. They can either help or hurt
your presentation and your audience. The words you select will dramatically influence and
impact your audience’s reaction to both your ideas and your image as an effective presenter.
Denotation and Connotation of Words
Words have both denotative meanings and connotative meanings. Good presenters
should be conscious of the meanings of words. They should also know how to use them
clearly, vividly and properly. Then what is denotation? Denotation refers to the literal
meaning of a word, the “dictionary definition”. For example, if you look up the word snake
in a dictionary, you will discover that one of its denotative meanings is “any of numerous
scaly, legless, sometimes venomous reptiles having a long, tapering, cylindrical body and
found in most tropical and temperate regions”.
Connotation refers to the associations that are connected to a certain word or the
emotional suggestions related to that word. The connotative meanings of a word exist
together with the denotative meanings. The connotations for the word snake could include
evil or danger. The denotation of the word “politician” is “someone who holds a political
office”; while its connotation is “opportunist or wheeler-dealer”.
It is important for you as a presenter to know the difference between the denotation and
the connotation of words you choose to use. Denotative meaning is obvious, literal, and
objective; while connotative meaning is subtle, implied, figurative, and subjective. Almost
everyone who speaks the language agrees on the denotative definition of a word because it is
the most precise meaning available.
The connotative and denotative meanings of words are both correct, but a word’s
connotation determines when it is used. By definition, synonyms have the same denotation
or literal meaning, but usually have different connotations, or shades of meaning. For
example, the synonyms of “boat” include ship, yacht, dinghy, and ferry. All these words refer
to the same thing, but each elicits a different association in the audience’s mind.
Audience-centered Words
The words you use should be audience-centered. It’s easy to accidentally focus a
presentation on the presenter, rather than the audience. Even if you’ve cut the company
description and focused on how you can deliver benefits to your audience—which is by no
means the standard—many presenters unknowingly turn the presentation back to themselves,
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simply by the language they use. Phrases such as “we deliver” and “we can provide” sound
like the obvious choices in a sales presentation, but it actually focuses on the presenter.
Using audience-centered language such as “you need”and “you will experience” draws
the audience in, and presenters will automatically find themselves expressing benefits, as
they focus on what everything means to the audience. If you are a salesperson, you are not
teaching the audience about your company while presenting; you are demonstrating how
they would benefit from working with you. “You” is a very powerful word; generally, the
audience react much better to being addressed as “you” than in the third person as “they”.
“As a participant, you will benefit” sounds more powerful than “participants will benefit”.
Therefore, while giving a presentation, you’d better address your audience in the second
person—“you”.
Simplicity and Clarity of Language
Vast amounts of skills, expertise and knowledge remain hidden while you are
giving presentations because of the language barrier. Language is the biggest barrier to
communication in English presentations for non-native presentational speakers. By language
barrier we do not mean foreign languages or accents: we mean technical language or jargon.
Presenters often assume that their audience have a similar level of knowledge and familiarity
with the subject matter to themselves, thus making the fatal error of using terminology that
the audience do not understand. This leads to incomprehension and confusion, which can
have the added effect of making the audience lose interest.
Therefore, if you want your audience to understand your message, your language must
be simple and clear. Use short words and short sentences. Do not use jargon, unless you are
certain that your audience understand it. In general, you should talk about concrete facts
rather than abstract ideas. Use active verbs instead of passive ones. Active verbs are much
easier to understand, and they are much more powerful.
Using Figurative Language
One meaning of “figure” is “drawing”, “image”, or “picture”. Figurative language
creates figures in the mind of the listeners. These pictures help convey the meaning faster
and more vividly than words alone, add color and interest to the subject and awaken the
imagination. A figure is worth a thousand words.
Figurative language is everywhere, from classical works like Shakespeare or the Bible, to
everyday speech, pop music and television commercials. It inspires the listeners to use their
imagination and understand much more than the plain words do.
Figurative language is the opposite of literal language. Literal language means exactly
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what it says. Figurative language means something different from (and usually more than)
what it says on the surface: It is important to recognize the difference between literal and
figurative language. We use figure of speech in figurative language.
He ran fast. (Literal)
He ran like the wind. (Figurative)
In the above example “like the wind” is a figure of speech (in this case, a simile). There
are many different kinds of figures of speech, such as metaphor, simile, personification,
hyperbole, understatement, paradox, and pun. It’s important that you understand several
kinds of figures of speech.
Simile
Simile is a figure of speech comparing two different things by using like or as. For
example, if you say, “My boyfriend is like a watermelon in the summer,” you are creating a simile
that compares your boyfriend with a watermelon. If on the other hand you are mad at your
boyfriend and say, “He’s like a typhoon in the house,” you’re comparing your boyfriend with a
typhoon.
The word “simile” reminds one of “similar”, and it is the neuter of the Greek word
“similis” meaning “like”. It is a specific comparison between two essentially unlike things. It
is aimed at illustrating, enhancing the meaning of one thing by means of another. A simile is
often marked by words “like” or “as”. If used ingeniously, it is capable of expressing surprise
and poignancy. We can use similes to make a speech more emphatic or vivid. Given below
are a few simile examples to help you understand it better.
It’s been a hard day’s night, and I’ve been working like a dog. (have a hard time) — The Beatles
Life is like a box of chocolates, and you never know what you’re going to get. (Life is a
mystery) — Forrest Gump
His explanation was as clear as mud. (not clear at all since mud is opaque)
The film was about as interesting as watching a copy of Windows download. (long and
boring)
Watching the show was like watching paint dry. (very boring)
Metaphor
A metaphor compares two dissimilar objects without using a word like as or like. “All
the world’s a stage, all the men and women merely players, they have their exits and their
entrances.”In just these few words, Shakespeare managed to capture the entire play of life
and death by comparing the world to a stage. Rich in vivid imagery, no wonder, it is one of
the finest examples of a metaphor. Metaphors are linguistic symbols that convey a particular
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image. It is a figure of speech wherein an idea is given to provide clarity by comparing or
associating it to another totally different idea. And it won’t be fair to think of it the same as
analogy or simile.
Metaphors differ from analogy in the sense that no specific interpretations are provided
for the former. And unlike similes, there are no direct comparisons. In metaphors, the
concept is presented as something else, which in fact is not. This association between two
different concepts, which are similar in some respects, presents a very strong image. So, when
you say that “He is an elephant”, then the image that it creates is that the person is huge as
well as strong. Given below are a few metaphor examples to help you understand it better.
“The rain came down in long knitting needles.” — (Enid Bagnold, National Velvet)
“Language is a road map of a culture. It tells you where its people come from and where
they are going.” — (Rita Mae Brown)
“Fourscore and seven years ago our fathers brought forth, upon this continent, a new
nation, conceived in Liberty, and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created
equal.”— (Abraham Lincoln, The Gettysburg Address, 1863)
You can see from the examples given above, metaphors can make a simple sentence
interesting by conveying strong imagery. Poets have used metaphors with great effects as they
enabled them to say profound things without being verbose. Using metaphors can make any
speech or writing stylish. Cultivate the habit of using metaphors and you will find that you
can speak and write beautifully.
Hyperbole
Hyperbole is a figure of speech that uses an exaggerated or extravagant statement to
create a strong emotional response. As a figure of speech it is not intended to be taken
literally. Hyperbole is frequently used for humor. Examples of hyperbole are:
I will die if she asks me to sing in front of everyone.
My dog is so ugly; he only has cat friends!
The town I grew up in is so isolated; rock, paper, scissors is considered a high tech game.
My aunt is so fat that when she walks by the TV, I miss three shows.
These are some of the best (hyperbolically speaking!) examples of hyperboles. Try
imbibing them into your language to have an impact — the very dramatic way!
Oxymoron
An oxymoron is a figure of speech that deliberately uses two contradictory ideas. This
contradiction creates a paradoxical image in the listeners’ mind that generates a new concept
or meaning for the whole. “An oxymoron is formed when two words that don’t normally go
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together are conjoined, creating a compressed paradox. A paradox is interesting because it is
false and true at the same time. Paradoxical observations are often extraordinarily thought
provoking, helping us see old realities in new ways. Somebody once said—quite wisely—that
a paradox is a truth standing on its head to get our attention.” The following sentences are
some typical Oxymora:
Sometimes you have to be cruel to be kind.
The Sounds of Silence (song title)
We sleep in separate rooms, we have dinner apart, we take separate vacations. We’re
doing everything we can to keep our marriage together.
“We picked a bad year to have a good year.”
Oxymora can make the following effects:
1. Humor. As you can see from these examples, oxymoronic humor is a sophisticated
humor. It’s directed at the most important organ in the human body—the brain. As Grothe
puts it that the self-contradictory aspects of oxymoronic humor appeal to a special part
of our mental apparatus, a part that enjoys thinking about some of life’s most intriguing
contradictions and paradoxes.
2. Ironic Contrast. Oxymoron can be useful when things have been contrary to
expectation, belief, desire, or assertion, or when your position is opposite to the one which
you are discussing. The figure then produces an ironic contrast which shows, in your view,
how something has been misunderstood or mislabeled:
The cost-saving program became an expensive economy.
3. Paradoxes. Oxymora, as more or less true paradoxes, show the complexity of a
situation where two apparently opposite things are true simultaneously, either literally
(“desirable calamity”) or imaginatively (“love precipitates delay”). Examples some people
have used are these: scandalously nice, sublimely bad, darkness visible, cheerful pessimist, sad
joy, wise fool, tender cruelty, despairing hope, and freezing fire. An oxymoron should preferably
be yours uniquely; do not use another’s, unless it is a relatively obvious formulation (like
“expensive economy”) which anyone might think of.
Personification
Personification is a figure of speech in which an inanimate object or abstraction is
endowed with human qualities or abilities.
When used in the right way, a personification can make your style of conversing
extremely artistic and intriguing. When you use personifications, you endow inanimate
objects or abstractions with qualities, characters and abilities that are generally associated
with humans. Assume that you want to describe wind. With personifications, you can
juxtapose the wind to an angry young magician. This is something that you can do if you
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are going to talk about a very strong wind. For example, “O Wild West Wind, thou breath
of autumn’s being/ Thou from whose unseen presence the leaves dead/ Are driven like
ghosts from an enchanter fleeing.”(Shelley, P. B. 1792-1822) It might seem like an alien
concept in the very beginning, but as you familiarize yourself with more and more examples,
you might just become an expert in personifying objects and abstractions. Go ahead and
discover for yourself a cluster of personification examples. Going through the examples on
personification will help you exploit this figure of speech to the hilt too.
Every morning my alarm clock springs to life; I hate it when that happens.
When I woke up this morning and looked out of the window, it was the sun who was so
willing to greet me.
From the roof of my house, I observed that snow had wrapped a white blanket over my
city.
Careful when you talk; around here, even the walls have ears.
Wisdom cries aloud in the streets; in the markets she raises her voice ...
Going through the examples should familiarize you to this important figure of speech
and how it can be used when talking to a group of friends, delivering a presentation or even
writing. If you have always wanted to use personifications when looking to express your
thoughts, you now know how to go about it. It is really not as difficult as you may think.
Remember, it is all about giving a human personality to your subject or theme.
Signpost Language
When you drive on the roads, you know where you are on those roads. Each road has
a name or number. Each town has a name. Moreover, each house has a number. If you are
at house #120, you can go back to #60 or forward to #160. You can look at the signposts
for directions. In addition, you can look at your atlas for the structure of the roads in detail.
In other words, it is easy to navigate the roads. You cannot get lost. However, when you
give a presentation, how can your audience know where they are? How can they know the
structure of your presentation? How can they know what is coming next?
Signpost language is the words and phrases that people use to tell the listeners what has
just happened, and what is going to happen next. A good way to make your presentations
effective, interesting and easy to follow is to use signpost language.
Different Signpost Language
Signpost language guides the listeners through the presentation. A good presenter will
usually use a lot of signpost languages, so it is a good idea to learn a few of the common
signpost phrases, even if you spend more time listening to presentations than giving them.
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Signpost language is usually informal, so it is relatively easy to understand. Signposts make
it easier for the audience to follow the structure of the presentation, understand the speaker
more easily, and get an idea of the length and content of the presentation. The following is a
list of phrases to help you make a professional presentation:
1. Welcoming. You may use the following structures to welcome your audience:
Good morning and welcome to [name of company, name of conference hall, hotel,
etc.].
Thank you all very much for coming today.
I hope you all had a pleasant journey here today.
2. Introducing yourself and your presentation. These are ways to introduce yourself and
your presentation:
My name is Mark Watson and I am responsible for …
My name is Mark Watson from [name of company], where I am responsible for …
Let me introduce myself; my name is Mark Watson and I am responsible for …
The purpose of today’s presentation is to …
The purpose of my presentation today is to …
In today’s presentation I’d like to … show you … / explain to you how …
In today’s presentation I’m hoping to … give you an update on… / give you an overview
of …
In today’s presentation I’m planning to … look at …. / explain …
3. Outlining your presentation. You can also outline your presentation to give the
audience a clear overview of what they can expect:
In today’s presentation I’m hoping to cover three points:
Firstly, …, after that we will look at … , and finally I’ll ….
In today’s presentation I’d like to cover three points:
Firstly, … , secondly … , and finally …
4. Starting the presentation. These are ways how you start a presentation:
To begin with ….
To start with ….
Let’s start by looking at …
I’d like to start by looking at …
Let’s start with / start by looking at …
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5. Beginning a new section of the presentation. The expressions include:
Now, let’s move on to …
Now, let’s take a look at …
Now I’d like to move on to …
Next I’d like to take a look at …
Moving on to the next part, I’d like to …
Moving on to the next section, let’s take a look at …
6. Concluding and summarizing the presentation:
Well, that brings us to the end of the final section. Now, I’d like to summarize by …
That brings us to the end of the final section. Now, if I can just summarize the main
points again.
That concludes my presentation. Now, if I can just summarize the main points.
That’s an overview of … Now, just to summarize, let’s quickly look at the main points
again.
7. Finishing and thanking:
Thank you for your attention.
That brings the presentation to an end.
That brings us to the end of my presentation.
Finally, I’d like to finish by thanking you (all) for your attention.
Finally, I’d like to end by thanking you (all) for coming today.
I’d like to thank you (all) for your attention and interest.
8. Inviting questions:
If anyone has any questions, I’ll be pleased to answer them.
If anyone has any questions, I’ll do my best to answer them.
If anyone has any questions, please feel free to ask them now.
If anyone has any questions, please feel free to ask them and I’ll do my best to answer.
9. Dealing with (difficult) questions:
I’ll come back to that question later if I may.
I’ll / We’ll come back to that question later in my presentation.
I’ll / We’ll look at that point in more detail later on.
Perhaps we can look at that point at the end / a little later.
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Conclusion
One important factor of presentational apprehension is that for many people English is
not their mother tongue. As what Chesebro and McCrosky (1992) stated, people experience
a high degree of communication apprehension with limited English proficiency because
English is not their mother tongue. To break the language barrier, you have to know how
language works and how to use it effectively. In other words, you should understand the
power of language and try to use figurative language to make your message more vivid and
understandable to your audience.
Unlike writing, a presentation has no paragraphing to help an audience know when the
presenter is changing subject or concluding his remarks. So the signpost language is crucial
in the main part of the presentation and will help the audience understand and appreciate
your presentation.
While giving a presentation in your job interview, business career, no matter whether
it is a formal presentation at a conference or a more informal talk to staff or a short
presentation as part of a meeting, you can either make it a chance to improve your career
prospects, or conversely to damage your possibilities of future promotion. It is vital to know
the key language of presentations. Presentations have a fairly set structure and it helps to