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Radio National: Words as weapons: speech-making and democracy

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Martin Luther King stands at podium
Radio National: Words as weapons: speech-making and democracy

SUBJECTS:  Civics and Citizenship, English

YEARS:  9–10


Have you heard the term 'freedom of speech' or thought about how speaking in public or public speaking could be linked to freedom?

Find out how these words are linked as you listen to this audio program, which considers the importance of speaking in public to the history of democracy in the USA.

If you like this clip, visit this website for further information.


Things to think about

  1. 1.Can you think of any great American speeches? What are they? What makes them great, in your opinion?
  2. 2.What does the term 'using words as weapons' mean? How have features of the Puritan sermon tradition influenced American speech-making? Why does the interviewee, Dr Julian Murphet, think that American speech-making has changed?
  3. 3.Research the speeches mentioned in the audio clip. Using what you find, coupled with the information from the clip, make a time line of how speech-making in America has developed. Why do you think speech-making is so important to the history of democracy in America?
  4. 4.Locate a copy of Abraham Lincoln's Gettysburg Address and a copy or recording of one of Franklin D Roosevelt's 'fireside chats'. Compare and contrast the way that these two American presidents used the art of speech-making to get their message across. Which president's approach appeals more to you, and why? Explain your ideas to someone else.



Date of broadcast: 21 Feb 2007


Copyright

Metadata © Australian Broadcasting Corporation and Education Services Australia Ltd 2012 (except where otherwise indicated). Digital content © Australian Broadcasting Corporation (except where otherwise indicated). Video © Australian Broadcasting Corporation (except where otherwise indicated). All images copyright their respective owners. Text © Australian Broadcasting Corporation and Education Services Australia is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License (CC BY-SA 4.0).

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