These three qualities animation, coordination, and energy always contribute to the effectiveness of action. IV. POSTURE AND BEARING A. Definition. Posture is the speaker's physical attitude. When he first presents himself to the audience, posture is his primary technique in controlling their mental processes. Good posture is a tremendous asset to a public speaker, while poor posture may negative and nullify much that he says. B. Common Errors in Posture. Posture may fail because there is too much relaxation of muscles. This gives the speaker a slouchy, indifferent appearance. It suggests an improper attitude on the part of the speaker toward himself and toward his audience. Professor Clapp says: "Do not slouch. Most of us do that nearly all the time. We do not stand erect. We stand with our hands in our pockets or on our hips. When we walk, we sway, or roll, or swagger. When seated we relax too much, sprawl back in our chairs. . . . A commercial artist of my acquaintance, a highly intelligent man, wore out his welcome in the business houses where he had to sell his services by his slouchy, careless bearing. . . . His whole appearance was slipshod and queer. People could not believe that his mind was really orderly and reliable." Just as we should avoid the fault of too much relaxation, which results in slouchiness, so we should also avoid its opposite - too high tonicity of muscles. If the speaker maintains a rigid posture, he suggests mental rigidity, or an attitude of superiority which may be offensive to his audience. His muscle tensions are not comfortable to look at. The audience is made uncomfortable by watching him. Such a posture is likewise a great hindrance to efficiency in movement. The muscles are so tense that changes in posture become infrequent and awkward. It is not safe to follow the old advice, "Be 2 Reprinted by permission from Talking Business, p. 42, by John M. Clapp. Copyrighted 1920. The Ronald Press Company, Publishers. natural," because you may be natural and be slouchy, or you may be natural and be tense and rigid. Voluntary muscles are typically paired. For example, the muscle which extends the arm is called the extensor, while the muscle which bends it is called the flexor. These muscles are always antagonistic in their operation, and it is plain that when a movable member of the body is to be held in any given position, this apparently static situation must really be a matter of delicate balance between the tension of these opposing muscles. We want enough tension of muscles represented in posture to give the observer a pleasant sensation, and we may fail in this because of too much tension in pairs of opposing muscles, which condition will involve and suggest — much wasted effort in maintaining the posture. The only invariable rule, C. Principles of Effectiveness. again, may be phrased as follows: Make your posture contribute just as largely as possible to the efficiency of your other visible action, your voice, and your language. Ordinarily, a satisfactory standing posture will be one in which the weight of the body is carried principally on one foot. In a direct public speaking situation, the weight should usually be on the foot toward the audience. Try it out for yourself and see what various distributions of weight mean to the observer. It seems reasonably clear that the public speaker who stands with feet wide apart and his weight equally distributed between them is usually saying something to the audience which can scarcely be expected to contribute materially to his efficiency. It seems also true that the public speaker who stands with one foot behind the other and his weight settled back on the rear foot is probably stirring up meanings which will not be helpful to him. Your posture should suggest ease and control. It should indicate a definite, direct interest in your audience, a desire to communicate with them just as sincerely as possible, a lack of fear of the audience, and a reasonable degree of confidence in your capacity for the work in hand. V. MOVEMENT A. Definition. - Movement includes shifts in posture and changes in the speaker's position with reference to those whom he addresses. When a speaker shifts his weight from one foot to the other, or when he moves from one side of the platform to the other, he is engaged in what we call move ment. B. Functions of Movement. The first important function which movement performs for the speaker is that it helps him to hold the attention of the audience, and to give the impression that the speaker is free and in control of his voluntary muscles. Then, too, movement indicates transitions, progress in thought, changes in emotional attitude on the part of the speaker; it often is to spoken language substantially what punctuation is to printed or written language. C. Common Errors in Movement. Perhaps the commonest fault of the inexperienced speaker is an attempt to dodge the whole question of movement by reducing it to a minimum. This is peculiarly true in the case of most people who are suffering from embarrassment. They feel very conspicuous, so they remain in one posture and in one position as long as possible. While they are doing this, of course, they are giving an impression which they do not want to give, but this fact frequently escapes their notice. Their apparent incapacity for movement is becoming the most significant thing about their speech. The people who observe the speaker are persuaded either that he is not much interested in what he is saying or in them, or that he is embarrassed and uncomfortable - which is precisely what the speaker is trying to conceal. The other common fault in movement is that of shifting about, twisting, turning, walking to and fro, when the only thing these movements are saying to the observer is, "I am nervous and excited and unable to control myself sufficiently to avoid this distracting activity." D. Principles of Effectiveness. The trained speaker will not move except when movement is going to mean something that he wants to say. His movements will be designed to aid in expressing his meanings. Movement for movement's sake is bound to be distracting. Most of us will have difficulty in saying one thing at a time, without dissipating our energies in three or four. All this advice simmers down to the statement: The speaker should move just enough no more, no less. When the question is asked, How much is enough? the best we can do is to suggest that the answer to this question can be found only in the speaker himself, in what he wants to say, and in the character of those who look and listen, briefly, in the specific speech situation. When those addressed are tired and sleepy, more movement is acceptable; when they are many and at some distance from the speaker, movement will have to be more obvious. 3 a Professor Clapp also has some excellent advice on movement. He says, "Do not shift. Most of us do that also . . . a young real estate operator of my acquaintance has to meet people constantly, either individually in conversation or in talks before committees. He is an extremely alert, lively young man, but he seems unable to control his energy. When he talks he cannot keep on the floor. As soon as he gets interested he rises on his toes, bends his knees, sways about, until you grow nervous watching him. Another man is a sales manager of prominence, a man personally of dignity and confidence. When he talks he straddles his legs, sways back and forth before his listeners, and is forever ramming his hands in his pockets, stroking his face, and brushing his hair. He has never learned to control his energy and direct it all toward his one purpose." The problem suggested by that last sentence comprises the supreme problem of the speaker - how to control his energy and direct it all toward his one purpose. 3 Reprinted by permission from Talking Business, p. 42, by John M. Clapp. Copyrighted, 1920. The Ronald Press Company, Publishers. A. Definition. VI. GESTURE As we are using the term gesture, it is that part of the speech code made up of the visible activity of hands, arms, shoulders, head, and face. The distinction between movement and gesture is that movement covers total changes in posture and position, whereas gesture is a narrower term applying to specific activities of the parts of the body just mentioned. B. Principles of Effectiveness. - Gesture is more definitely conventionalized than are posture and movement. It approaches a little nearer to the symbolism of the language code itself; consequently there are more specific principles which the effective speaker usually observes in the use of gesture. 1. Integration. This principle is beautifully exemplified in the following statement from Booth Tarkington's Alice Adams. In describing Alice, the author says, "She led a life of gestures, the unkind said to make her lovely hands more memorable; but all of her usually accompanied the gestures of the hands, the shoulders ever giving them their impulses first, and even her feet being called upon at the same time for eloquence. So much liveliness took proper place as only accessory to that of the face, where her vivacity reached its climax." There are a number of interesting things about this quotation. The fundamental importance of animation is recognized; the fact that hands, shoulders, and feet may produce eloquence without any words, is indicated; and the author shrewdly observes that the face is the proper place for the climax, since it is usually in the focus of the observer's attention. However, the particular point for which the quotation has been introduced is to explain the principle of integration, which is that any gesture, in order to be most efficient, should be part of a total bodily response. When we make a gesture we should not treat the hand as detached from the rest of the body and use it as an isolated agent. We should merely emphasize certain things with the hand, realizing all the time that it is a part of |