Fair Game

Valerie Plame is employed by the Central Intelligence Agency, a fact known outside the agency to no one except her husband and parents. She is an agent involved in a number of sensitive and sometimes dangerous covert operations overseas. Her husband, Joseph C. Wilson, is a diplomat who most recently has served as a U.S.

Valerie Plame is employed by the Central Intelligence Agency, a fact known outside the agency to no one except her husband and parents. She is an agent involved in a number of sensitive and sometimes dangerous covert operations overseas. Her husband, Joseph C. Wilson, is a diplomat who most recently has served as a U.S. ambassador to Gabon, Sao Tome and Principe. Due to his extensive background, Wilson is approached by Plame's CIA colleagues to travel to Niger and glean information as to whether yellowcake uranium is being procured by Iraq for use in the construction of nuclear weasons. Wilson determines to his own satisfaction that it is not. After military action is taken by George W. Bush, who justifies it in a 2003 State of the Union address by alluding to the uranium's use in building weapons of mass destruction, Wilson submits an op-ed piece to the New York Times claiming these reports to be categorically untrue.

Speech text:

"How many of you know the 16 words in President Bush's State of the Union Address that led us to war? (none) How many know my wife's name? (everyone)

How can you know one, and not the other? When did the question move from "Why are we going to war" to "Who is this man's wife?"

I asked the first question and someone else asked the second. And it worked. Because none of us know the truth. The offence that was committed was not committed against me, it was not committed against my wife – it was committed against you. All of you.

If that makes you angry or feel misrepresented, do something about it.

When Benjamin Franklin left Independence Hall, just after the second draft of it, he was approached by a woman on the street, the woman said, ‘Mr Franklin, what manner of government have you bequeathed us? And Franklin said, ‘A Republic madam… if you can keep it.’

The responsibility of a country is not in the hands of a privileged few. We are strong and we are free from tyranny as long as each one of us remembers his or her duty as a citizen. Whether it’s to report a pothole at the top of your street, or lies in a State of The Union Address, speak out!

Ask those questions. Demand that truth. Democracy is not a free ride man, I’m here to tell you.

But this is where we live. And if we do our job, this is where our children will live. God Bless America."

Link to video clip: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FKbpLDdw4KU

Links to content discussed in the podcast: https://www.dramaclasses.biz/the-stanislavski-system

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0977855

https://prezi.com/-ejibzd_s82r/sean-penn-fair-game-speech/

Thanks for listening, feel free to reach out with your questions and until next time. 🎈👇

Michael-Don Smith

Michael de Groot

Rhetorical Devices

This episode covers the topic of 'Rhetorical Devices'. Quick explanation: "A rhetorical device, persuasive device, or stylistic device is a technique that an author or speaker uses to convey to the listener or reader a meaning with the goal of persuading them towards considering a topic from a perspective, using sentences designed to encourage or provoke an emotional display of a given perspective or action.

This episode covers the topic of 'Rhetorical Devices'. 

Quick explanation: "A rhetorical device, persuasive device, or stylistic device is a technique that an author or speaker uses to convey to the listener or reader a meaning with the goal of persuading them towards considering a topic from a perspective, using sentences designed to encourage or provoke an emotional display of a given perspective or action. Rhetorical devices can be used to evoke an emotional response in the audience, but that is not their primary purpose." Some links below with an exhaustive list of them. 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Glossary_of_rhetorical_terms

https://examples.yourdictionary.com/examples-of-rhetorical-devices.html

There's no way we will cover them all and you will hear a back and forth discussion between the two Michael's exploring, explaining some random devices and uncover how they might be used or indeed are being used in some examples they discuss.

Thanks for listening, feel free to reach out with your questions and until next time. 🎈👇

Michael-Don Smith

Michael de Groot

It's all in your hands!

An episode with a difference. We share some of our own current stories from our world in public speaking and storytelling.

An episode with a difference. We share some of our own current stories from our world in public speaking and storytelling. Some of the topics we will be touching on include, Vanessa Van Edwards and Captivate, Harry Truman, past president of the USA, the brand new documentary on Amazon Prime 'Rocketman', the lucky golfer Gary Player, Donald Trump and his hands, the analysis of hundreds of TED talks and why they went viral, the use of #hashtags for your stories on social media, especially Linkedin.

Next month we will be back with our analysis of an amazing speech from the movies, which will be from the movie V for Vendetta.

Thanks for listening and until next time. 🎈👇

Michael-Don Smith

Michael de Groot

#storyofaspeech 

The Great Dictator

We continue with our series of discussing 5 of the most famous and greatest speeches from the movies. Charlie Chaplin was a genius, his speech in this movie still applies today. It was made in 1940! The Great Dictator was Chaplin's first film with dialogue.

We continue with our series of discussing 5 of the most famous and greatest speeches from the movies. Charlie Chaplin was a genius, his speech in this movie still applies today. It was made in 1940!

The Great Dictator was Chaplin’s first film with dialogue. Chaplin plays both a little Jewish barber, living in the ghetto, and Hynkel, the dictator ruler of Tomainia. In his autobiography Chaplin quotes himself as having said: “One doesn’t have to be a Jew to be anti Nazi. All one has to be is a normal decent human being.”

Chaplin and Hitler were born within a week of one another. “There was something uncanny in the resemblance between the Little Tramp and Adolf Hitler, representing opposite poles of humanity, ” writes Chaplin biographer David Robinson, reproducing an unsigned article from The Spectator dated 21st April 1939:

“Providence was in an ironical mood when, it was ordained that Charles Chaplin and Adolf Hitler should make their entry into the world within four days of each other.  Each in his own way has expressed the ideas, sentiments, aspirations of the millions of struggling citizens ground between the upper and the lower millstone of society.  Each has mirrored the same reality – the predicament of the “little man” in modern society.  Each is a distorting mirror, the one for good, the other for untold evil.”

Chaplin spent many months drafting and re-writing the speech for the end of the film, a call for peace from the barber who has been mistaken for Hynkel. Many people criticized the speech, and thought it was superfluous to the film. Others found it uplifting. Regrettably Chaplin’s words are as relevant today as they were in 1940.

Watch the official clip: https://youtu.be/J7GY1Xg6X20

IMDB: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0032553/

The CYSS (Craft your Signature Speech) Master Your Message 1 Day Bootcamp with Michael-Don Smith on 27 July 2019.

The Share Your Story - Storytelling Workshop with Michael de Groot on 20 August 2019.

Both workshops qualify for a £40 discount when you use the code SOSPODCAST upon registration and/or checkout. 

Location: The Shakti Rooms, 3rd Floor Avebury House, 55 Newhall Steet, Birmingham B3 3RB

A Few Good Men

With this episode we start a 5-episode series of discussing 5 of the most famous and greatest speeches from the movies. We start with discussing 'A Few Good Men', starring Tom Cruise, Jack Nicholson, Demi Moore and Kevin Bacon.

With this episode we start a 5-episode series of discussing 5 of the most famous and greatest speeches from the movies. We start with discussing 'A Few Good Men', starring Tom Cruise, Jack Nicholson, Demi Moore and Kevin Bacon. We unpick the content of the speech and examine it against the ABC of delivering speeches, the colourful language, the metonymies used to make the audience work and remember the speech. Enjoy!

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0104257/

In this dramatic courtroom thriller, LT Daniel Kaffee, a Navy lawyer who has never seen the inside of the courtroom, defends two stubborn Marines who have been accused of murdering a colleague. Kaffee is known as being lazy and had arranged for a plea bargain. Downey's Aunt Ginny appoints Cmdr. Galloway to represent him. Also on the legal staff is LTJG Sam Weinberg. The team rounds up many facts and Kaffee is discovering that he is really cut out for trial work. The defense is originally based upon the fact that PFC Santiago, the victim, was given a "CODE RED". Santiago was basically a screw-up. At Gitmo, screw-ups aren't tolerated. Especially by Col. Nathan Jessup. In Cuba, Jessup and two senior officers try to give all the help they can, but Kaffee knows something's fishy. In the conclusion of the film, the fireworks are set off by a confrontation between Jessup and Kaffee.

The difference between a Speech and a Story?

Michael-Don does some fabulous challenges throughout this episode to hold us both to account when discussing the differences between a Speech and a Story. We go back and forth, running around the Rabbit Hole, deciding how we can differentiate them. Is a speech just factual? Is a story just a narrative with characters? Is there absolutely no storytelling in speeches?

We would love to hear your views, comments and ideas for topics in future episodes. Reach out to us via Twitter, @mdonsmith and @stayingaliveuk. You can also find us both on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/michaeldonsmith and https://www.linkedin.com/in/stayingaliveuk. Do connect with us there also.

What is a Story?

In this third episode of the Story of a Speech podcast, we examine what a story actually is. What is the structure and it’s impact on the viewer/listener? Now because Michael de Groot is the resident storyteller, you will hear a lot of him in this episode, well of course it his specialist subject after all.  

We would love to hear your views, comments and ideas for topics in future episodes.  Reach out to us via Twitter, @mdonsmith and @stayingaliveuk. You can also find us both on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/michaeldonsmith and https://www.linkedin.com/in/stayingaliveuk.  Do connect with us there also.

What is a Speech?

In this second episode of the Story of a Speech podcast, we're examining what a speech actually is.  Now because Michael-Don is the resident signature speech coach, you will hear a lot of him in this episode, well of course it his specialist subject after all.  

We would love to hear your views, comments and ideas for topics in future episodes.  Reach out to us via Twitter, @mdonsmith and @stayingaliveuk. You can also find us both on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/michaeldonsmith and https://www.linkedin.com/in/stayingaliveuk.  Do connect with us there also.

Introduction

Michael-Don Smith and Michael de Groot introduce the Story of a Speech Podcast. In this episode they introduce themselves, why they started this podcast and many other insights, ideas and discussions around the topics of public speaking, presenting and storytelling. We would love to hear your views, comments and ideas for topics in future episodes. Reach out to us via Twitter, @mdonsmith and @stayingaliveuk

As mentioned in the podcast if you wish to listen to Michael-Don's full story, you can hear it on the #shareyourstory podcast.

https://www.stayingaliveuk.com/podcast/2017/12/0031-michael-don-smith-speaker-trainer-and-business-master-coach