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Manner

Manner refers broadly to all the things you CANNOT write on the page. It is how you deliver your speech, and the impact this has on how convincing you are as a speaker.

Manner is often broken down into speech and non-speech items.

Speech

  • Projection

  • Tone

  • Volume

  • Fluency

Non speech

  • Eye Contact

  • Facial expression

  • Gesture

  • Confidence

By honing these skills, you can present your speech in a manner which makes it more convincing to your listeners. That is, it amplifies the persuasiveness of your speech.

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Debaters with the best manner have studied their notes before getting up to speak, and thus focus less on what they are saying, and place greater emphasis on HOW they are saying it.

Over time, this will often flip, so that you have naturally good manner, and you place most of your focus on the things you are actually saying.

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Practicing in the mirror is an excellent place to start once you have written your speech, which is why you should prepare as far in advance as possible!

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