The art of public speaking can trace its roots back to ancient Greece and the orators who proclaimed governmental achievements, entertained audiences, and debated political issues in public forums. In the Rhetoric, written in 330 B.C.E., Aristotle discussed the process by which a speaker prepares and delivers a speech. Much of this material is still applicable. For example, Aristotle wrote about three types of persuasive appeals: ethos (i.e., credibility of the source of the message), pathos (i.e., appealing to the emotions of the audience), and logos (i.e., the nature of the message). A contemporary advertisement in which a notable sports figure (ethos) telling a personal story about learning the negative consequences of driving while intoxicated (logos) to teenage athletes who have just learned to drive (pathos) illustrates the principles that Aristotle described.

History

Historically, public speaking was known as rhetoric and has...