The effectiveness of a message delivered through public speaking depends greatly on the first impression the audience receives from the presenter himself. To accept a presenter’s argument requires for a certain type of trust to be established between the presenter and the audience. When given the opportunity by Durham University give a series of three-day lectures in 1943, CS Lewis first established to the audience his authority on the various subjects found through his discussion, such as moral value and human nature. But Lewis understood that his expertise alone would not be enough to convince the Durham audience to trust him and his message, so the beginning of his lectures also centered around sentiments which were relevant for the audience.
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Challenging Gaius and Titus’ advice for students to refrain from making emotional rhetoric, Lewis shows the absurdity of the criticism they have towards “silly advertisements” when it is applied towards great works of emotional literature such as “Johnson’s famous passage of the Western Islands”. By referring great works of literatures such as the passage of the Western Islands to defend his viewpoints, Lewis shows his audience how well-versed he is in literature. However, it is in his skepticism towards the current education system approach in literature where Lewis connects his argument to his audience. As they were products of the same education system that Lewis himself spoke out against, the Durham audience would feel inclined to heed all the consequences that Lewis states comes from being taught in this …show more content…
The objective truth is impossible to refute, so presenters who successfully employ it throughout their arguments are more likely to convince their audience to agree with them. When Lewis introduced the idea of the Tao to his audience as the congregation of all moral laws and values, he used analogy of a “rebellion of the branches against the tree” to describe all attempts of rejecting the Tao. By itself, the idea of all ideologies originating from the Tao is an abstract notion which the presenter cannot expect his audience to fully comprehend. However, we understand as observers of nature that a branch cannot rebel against the tree it grows upon without destroying itself in the process. Using analogy to access the audience’s common institution about a tree branch’s dependency on the tree itself, Lewis presented his defense of the Tao against critics in such that in such a way that it would only makes sense for the audience to agree with his notions. When challenging his opponents, Lewis continuously tried to show the inconsistency in brought forth by their actions and
Challenging Gaius and Titus’ advice for students to refrain from making emotional rhetoric, Lewis shows the absurdity of the criticism they have towards “silly advertisements” when it is applied towards great works of emotional literature such as “Johnson’s famous passage of the Western Islands”. By referring great works of literatures such as the passage of the Western Islands to defend his viewpoints, Lewis shows his audience how well-versed he is in literature. However, it is in his skepticism towards the current education system approach in literature where Lewis connects his argument to his audience. As they were products of the same education system that Lewis himself spoke out against, the Durham audience would feel inclined to heed all the consequences that Lewis states comes from being taught in this …show more content…
The objective truth is impossible to refute, so presenters who successfully employ it throughout their arguments are more likely to convince their audience to agree with them. When Lewis introduced the idea of the Tao to his audience as the congregation of all moral laws and values, he used analogy of a “rebellion of the branches against the tree” to describe all attempts of rejecting the Tao. By itself, the idea of all ideologies originating from the Tao is an abstract notion which the presenter cannot expect his audience to fully comprehend. However, we understand as observers of nature that a branch cannot rebel against the tree it grows upon without destroying itself in the process. Using analogy to access the audience’s common institution about a tree branch’s dependency on the tree itself, Lewis presented his defense of the Tao against critics in such that in such a way that it would only makes sense for the audience to agree with his notions. When challenging his opponents, Lewis continuously tried to show the inconsistency in brought forth by their actions and