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options Viewing Speeches - The Rules for Using Humor in Speeches

 

 Speeches - The Rules for Using Humor in Speeches  
Even in the extemporaneous speech that you give as part of a school requirement or the eulogy that you are offering for a special person in your life, you ought to inject some kind of humor to break the sad or somber mood of your audience.

By Wade Knoxville

There are many ways you can catch the attention of your audience when you are delivering speeches. One of the most effective ways, however, is adding humor and funny anecdotes to the speech you are giving in front of many people.

Even in the extemporaneous speech that you give as part of a school requirement or the eulogy that you are offering for a special person in your life, you ought to inject some kind of humor to break the sad or somber mood of your audience somehow.

If you watch television or listen to radio, you will probably realize that even the speeches delivered by the President or Prime Minister contain some funny material. However, it is important to note that not all types of jokes should be used in public speaking. In order not to commit the same mistakes committed by famous personalities such as Mel Gibson, you need to know the unspoken rules for adding humor to any speech. Read on and learn.

In comedy bars, you would probably hear the performer spew malicious, hurtful, and even toilet jokes. There is really no problem in giving such inappropriate comments and puns in such a place and on such an occasion because you know that the comedian on the stage is just trying to make you laugh and nothing in that place should be taken personally.

However, when it comes to giving speeches, you should never use jokes that make fun of a culture or group of people. This is particularly true if you are making a speech for your class or in public places. You should not criticize the race, color, religion, or gender of anyone.

Although you do not mean anything wrong with your jokes, some people might take what you are saying out of context and might get hurt with what you say. Besides, with the power of video sharing and blogging on the Internet, the bad speech that you gave inside your classroom or in a wedding might leak into cyberspace and ruin your reputation.

Not all people know how to deliver a punch line. If you think that you are one of those who are not very good at delivering jokes or telling humorous stories, then adding humor to your speeches - especially impromptu ones - might backfire on you. The best thing to do if you are unsure is just to let your joke pass.

However, if you have time to rehearse your speech, then you should try practicing your delivery of the pun or joke. You can even ask your friends or family to listen to your speech so that you can see their reaction to the humorous phrase or sentence you added to your serious speech.

Other important rules when using humor in your speeches or presentations is to avoid using other people's physical features or appearance to make fun of the situation. In addition, you should not laugh loudly at your own jibe or anecdote. It is embarrassing to laugh out loud, especially if the audience did not get the punch line.

About the Author:

Wade Knoxville http://www.oppapers.com - Research papers and essays for all. Article Source: Eulogy Site - http://EulogySite.com

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  Article added 05/25/09.


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