Author: B.Wu, Murry Bergtraum HS, New York, NY

Grade Level: 10

Students need to learn the

persuasive techniques used by Antony in his speech at Caesar's funeral to win the crowd over, and Cassisius speeches to Brutus to persuade him to join the conspiracy. Through studying the logic reasoning and methods of appealing to the audience's emotions as well as other rhetoric techniques, students will be able to post a position of their own and write a persuasive speech from the following topics (hand-out).

Objectives: Following the discussion of the persuasive techniques, students will display their understanding of the strategies by applying at least two of them in their speech.

Materials:

• Students' Project Handout
• Shakespeare's Julius Caesar

Activities and Procedures:

• Ask students to read aloud Antony's speech at Caesar's funeral(Act III Scene i) and discuss what persuasive techniques are used by Antony

1. Repetition: "Brutus is a honorable man", and through each repetition, the meaning changes.
2. Logical reasoning: refute Brutus argument that "Caesar was ambitious" by eliciting examples people are familiar with, such as, bringing Rome wealth, rejection of the crown, and weeping for commoners' sufferings.

(Logical reasoning is a way of explaining exactly why you believe that something is true. When you reason logically, you state the necessary conditions for the explanation to be true. Then you show that these necessary conditions do exist. When you reason logically, however, you must be sure that both you and your audience agree on the same set of assumptions. This means that you agree about what is important in the particular situation you are considering, e.g., in Antony's speech. both Antony and the crowd agree on the concept of what an ambitious man means.)

3. Appeal to people's emotions: review Caesar's greatness and his accomplishments; reveal Caesar's will; and invite people to witness Caesar's stabbed body.
4. Refer to proofs: the reading of Caesar's will which reveals the fact that Caesar did leave his property to his people.

• Ask students to point out the most effective part of Cassius' speeches to Brutus in Act I, Scene ii.

1. Appeal to Brutus' emotions: implicitly echoes Brutus' inner thoughts; touch on Brutus' sense of justice and his tendency to follow principles even by sacrificing his personal feelings; remind Brutus of their grandeur background and their capability.
2. Use logical reasoning: the prediction of their future if Caesar is crowned king.
3. The use of facts: elicit examples of Caesar's domineering personality, his overflowing and almost uncontrollable power.

• What is persuasion?

Persuasion is a technique used by speakers to convince an audience to adopt a particular viewpoint, to perform a particular action, or both. Generally, persuasion appeals to both logic and emotions. Logical appeals imply that if listeners are reasonable people, they will do or think just what the speaker wants. Whenever you find yourself appealed to as a "reasonable person," think critically about the factual evidence that is part of the appeal. Is it relevant? Have important details been omitted? Emotional appeals sometimes contain very little factual information and instead often rely on emotionally charged language that triggers feelings such as hostility, fear, and so on.

• How to begin your speech?

In the beginning of your speech, state your proposition, which is a very specific statement of your belief or point of view. Generally you should come up with a proposition that can truly be argued. It is important you strongly believe in the proposition. Make sure to state your proposition clearly.

• How to develop and support your proposition?

1. Make sure you understand your point thoroughly so that you do not distort the meaning of any concept involved (you want your audience to have confidence in you and not think you're misinterpreting the ideas in Antony's or Cassius speeches.
2. Think about each element which makes the speech sound logical and powerful, but especially collect your ideas on how the different elements may not support your proposition and the questions your audience may ask you or confront you. Put yourself in the shoes of both sides and think of the points or arguments you may use to appeal to your audience's reason as well as emotions.
3. Lead your audience by superficially agree with them first, or use their proposition to begin your argument just as Antony did. Let the audience accept you and think you are on their side so that they will be willing to listen to you. Gradually you introduce your proposition. Use your opponents' point of view to look at the discussed issue(s), and then lead them to see the contradictory or foolish sides of their proposition. Now you start to elaborate your argument and explain in details why your audience should think you're right.

• Conclusion:

Restate your proposition and offer a solution to the discussed issue as opposing to the one if you had adopted the other proposition.

• Following Activities and Assessment:

Students' will read their speeches in their group, and the most persuasive one will be read in the class. It will also be discussed why the selected are more persuasive.

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