Speech 1: Present a Poem and inform us about the poet

This prepared speech will be a 5 - 7 minute speech presenting a poem to the class. The original poem may be in any language and from any time period, but you may read only 4-8 lines of the given poem to us!

The speech type is "informative."

You will turn in a separate Cover Sheet with your Outline. On the cover sheet you must include the Source. Tell me the place you found the poem itself (title of the book or webpage) AND the source for your information about the poet's life. That means, you must write the exact web address of the places you learned about the poet and the poem.

You will not use the Outline during your speech. Instead, you will use cards. We will discuss this in class!

The Outline (together with image and cover sheet) is due Week 5

We will have speeches Week 6

Introduction
  • Must include all five points of a normal Introduction. You may choose EITHER a "Credibility" OR a "Relevancy" - you are not required to give both.
Body

All Poem speeches must include three points:

  • The poem itself. Read at least four and at most eight lines. You may choose to read in English or in your native language. It's wonderful to hear poetry in many languages, so I hope you will consider this! Focus on rhythm as you read.
  • Meaning. What does the poem mean to you? Why do you like it? Why did you choose it? How can we understand it? Are there important symbols you need to explain? Do you need to tell us about the rest of the poem?
  • The poet's life. Give us some simple, basic information about the writer - when did they live, their gender, their nationality. How does the life of the poet influence their writing? Is the poet famous or not? Are they living now? What other works should we know about? This part is required, so it will not be OK to choose "anonymous" poems. You must know the writer by name and learn some facts about their life.

You may give these points in any order that makes sense to you. Include clear transitions between points.
Conclusion

Again, follow the standard Conclusion form: a short summary and an interesting last thought.