Mafi-Hollandia

From the beginning of time we have lived in societies. It is in our nature to belong to groups and to seek out the company of others. We draw much of our personal identity from the groups we belong to, and our status effectiveness within these groups depends largely on our communication skills.

Although not all the speeches we give and hear are so momentous, our words create ripples of meaning that can spread far beyond the time and place in which we speak. We can never know how the speeches wee give may ultimately affect the lives of others. Even now, we recall brave classroom speeches given by students thirty years ago supporting civil and human rights in our nation. Their words continue to resonate in our memories and on our lives.

Clearly, the personal benefits of public speaking are tied to the social benefits. It is part of our nature to care about the groups we value. When we can help them. we also feel deeply confirmed as human beings. The social significance of speaking was captured very well by Isocrates, an educator of ancient Greece.

The effectiveness of a democracy depends on our ability to deliberate and make wise judgement on public policy. At the very least, we must be able to listen critically to those who represent us in government.

This entry was posted on Sunday, October 12th, 2008 at 6:56 am and is filed under Social Communities. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.