Outlining Any good speech is carefully prepared and organized in advance of its delivery.This organizational process begins with sifting through the information you gather when researching,but the structure of your speech really takes shape when you draft your outline.The development of an outline is not a one-time task,but rather a process in which you create a full-sentence outline that illustrates the points you want to make and from which you practice your speech.As you practice,you become more familiar with the material and thus can pare it down to shorter phrases,which in turn constitutes your speaking outline. In order to successfully use this process,it is important to understand the principles that guide the construction of a good outline.In this chapter,we will first cover the principles of outlining,and then discuss the characteristics of a preparation outline,and how to turn that outline into a proper speaking outline.Despite the emphasis on outlining in this chapter,we recognize an outline is not the only type of speaking material you might use,and so the chapter concludes with a brief exploration of other types of speaking materials. ○utlining Principles Outlining is a systematic method of organizing your ideas.This organized approach ensures that your argument is clear and your information is in an appropriate place within the speech.There are three key tenets to outlining:subordination,coordination,and division.Each of these three helps you create an organized presentation your audience can follow. Subordination All outlines work to create what is essentially a hierarchy of ideas through the use of symbols and indentations.This process of creating a hierarchy of ideas in which the most general ideas appear first followed by more specific ideas is called subordination,and it is a key principle of outlining.In an outline,each level has a different symbol set,and those symbols correspond to items such as main points, subpoints,and sub-subpoints.The first or broadest level is a main point,and it is represented by a Roman numeral.The second,slightly more specific level is a subpoint,and it is represented by a capital letter.The third level,if needed,is even more specific than the second level,and is denoted by an Arabic numeral.The following shows what the system looks like: I.Main point A.Subpoint B.Subpoint C.Subpoint 1.Sub-subpoint 2.Sub-subpoint Il.Main point Notice how indenting different levels creates the perception of a hierarchy of points.The main point is the most general and does not include specific evidence or data,but rather sets up an entire section of a speech that provides data and evidence in support of the main point.The subpoint is a more specific aspect or aspects of the main point and can include specific evidence or information in support of the main point.Sometimes this information can take several sentences of explanation,and in those cases another level of the outline, the sub-subpoint,is created. Each time you move to a new level,the information should support the level above it.So,if you have a subpoint indicated by a capital letter and need to explain it further,you do not use another capital letter,but rather move down a level to numbers so you can visually see that that explanation relates to the particular subpoint it is under.In essence,the deeper into the levels one goes,the more specific the information gets,but it always relates to the level under which it appears. Coordination The hierarchy created by an outline that adheres to subordinated points naturally creates coordination of information.By coordination we mean that all information on the same level has the same significance.In other words,you would not place a main point next to a capital letter or number because such a move would create a confusing speech.The same types of statements appear on the same level,and when you find yourself making a claim in a place where you should be providing data in the outline,it should indicate that you are at the wrong level of the outline and need to make a change.This coordination helps you and your audience stay on track and provides expected and relevant information when it is needed. DivisionOutlining Any good speech is carefully prepared and organized in advance of its delivery. This organizational process begins with sifting through the information you gather when researching, but the structure of your speech really takes shape when you draft your outline. The development of an outline is not a one-time task, but rather a process in which you create a full-sentence outline that illustrates the points you want to make and from which you practice your speech. As you practice, you become more familiar with the material and thus can pare it down to shorter phrases, which in turn constitutes your speaking outline. In order to successfully use this process, it is important to understand the principles that guide the construction of a good outline. In this chapter, we will first cover the principles of outlining, and then discuss the characteristics of a preparation outline, and how to turn that outline into a proper speaking outline. Despite the emphasis on outlining in this chapter, we recognize an outline is not the only type of speaking material you might use, and so the chapter concludes with a brief exploration of other types of speaking materials. Outlining Principles Outlining is a systematic method of organizing your ideas. This organized approach ensures that your argument is clear and your information is in an appropriate place within the speech. There are three key tenets to outlining: subordination, coordination, and division. Each of these three helps you create an organized presentation your audience can follow. Subordination All outlines work to create what is essentially a hierarchy of ideas through the use of symbols and indentations. This process of creating a hierarchy of ideas in which the most general ideas appear first followed by more specific ideas is called subordination, and it is a key principle of outlining. In an outline, each level has a different symbol set, and those symbols correspond to items such as main points, subpoints, and sub-subpoints. The first or broadest level is a main point, and it is represented by a Roman numeral. The second, slightly more specific level is a subpoint, and it is represented by a capital letter. The third level, if needed, is even more specific than the second level, and is denoted by an Arabic numeral. The following shows what the system looks like: I. Main point A. Subpoint B. Subpoint C. Subpoint 1. Sub-subpoint 2. Sub-subpoint II. Main point Notice how indenting different levels creates the perception of a hierarchy of points. The main point is the most general and does not include specific evidence or data, but rather sets up an entire section of a speech that provides data and evidence in support of the main point. The subpoint is a more specific aspect or aspects of the main point and can include specific evidence or information in support of the main point. Sometimes this information can take several sentences of explanation, and in those cases another level of the outline, the sub-subpoint, is created. Each time you move to a new level, the information should support the level above it. So, if you have a subpoint indicated by a capital letter and need to explain it further, you do not use another capital letter, but rather move down a level to numbers so you can visually see that that explanation relates to the particular subpoint it is under. In essence, the deeper into the levels one goes, the more specific the information gets, but it always relates to the level under which it appears. Coordination The hierarchy created by an outline that adheres to subordinated points naturally creates coordination of information. By coordination we mean that all information on the same level has the same significance. In other words, you would not place a main point next to a capital letter or number because such a move would create a confusing speech. The same types of statements appear on the same level, and when you find yourself making a claim in a place where you should be providing data in the outline, it should indicate that you are at the wrong level of the outline and need to make a change. This coordination helps you and your audience stay on track and provides expected and relevant information when it is needed. Division