Question

Mary is giving a persuasive speech about the benefits of adoption over abortion and wants to engage her audience early on. Which of the following supporting materials would probably be the most effective choice to use during the introduction of her speech? a. “A total of 820,151 legal induced abortions were reported in 2005, the abortion ratio (number of abortions per 1,000 live births) was 233, and the abortion rate was 15 per 1,000 women aged 15--44 years.” - (www.cdc.gov) b. According to Lisa M. Koonin, M.N., M.P.H. and Jack C. Smith, M.S., “Legal induced abortion is one of the most frequently performed surgical procedures in the United States. Abortion rates for teenagers are much higher in the United States than in most Western European countries and in some Eastern European countries.” c. “My name is Allie J. A few years ago I was working as an outreach worker in Vancouver, BC, Canada. One of my clients asked me to go with her while she got an abortion. I sat holding her hand wondering how I ever thought that this was not going to affect me. I was ashamed to think I had condoned this. Never will I encourage abortion over adoption again. There is a better way.” d. A young teenage girl who becomes pregnant and is faced with the choice of whether to give her child up for adoption or to have an abortion.

Answer 1

A.) “A total of 820,151 legal induced abortions were reported in 2005, the abortion ratio (number of abortions per 1,000 live births) was 233, and the abortion rate was 15 per 1,000 women aged 15--44 years.” - (www.cdc.gov)

Answer 2

The correct answer is C.

In this case, the best way to engage the audience early on is by stating the idea the speaker is advocating for. For this, personal experiences can be very helpful, since they allow the listener to understand why the speaker is defending her position.

Even though hard information such as numbers and percentages are a key part of a persuasive speech, it is better not to start with them, since the audience may lose interest.