10 Great Speeches Viewed Through a Literary Lens: Analysis and Activities Book

What was happening in the world when a famous speech was given? Why did the speaker choose the topic and the theme of the speech? Who was in the audience? What mattered to them?

Students actively apply literary techniques—as they do when studying fiction—and intensely examine a nonfiction piece. As they discover the methods the speaker used in composing the speech, and evaluate the often subtle literary practices, they learn what made a well-known speech compelling and memorable.

Includes these famous speeches:

Units feature:

"Give Me Liberty, or Give Me Death," by Patrick Henry "Ain't I a Woman?" by Sojourner Truth "The Meaning of July Fourth for the Negro," by Frederick Douglass "The Gettysburg Address," by Abraham Lincoln "Women's Right to Vote," by Susan B. Anthony "Their Finest Hour," by Sir Winston Churchill "Day of Infamy," by Franklin Delano Roosevelt Inaugural Address, by John F. Kennedy "I Have a Dream," by Martin Luther King, Jr. Election Night Victory Speech, by Barack Obama

author biographies context of the time images vocabulary exercises analysis and evaluation writing prompts online activities individual and group activities web links to performances, and more!

©2016. English. High school. Reproducible. 200 pages.

Book Download: PDF. PDF pages include color images and clickable web links.

Print Book: Softcover. 8 x 11 inches. Black and white pages.

 

About the Author

Judy Wilburn Hill earned her bachelor’s degree in Education at Texas Christian University and her master’s degree in English at the University of North Texas. She has taught secondary English, served as Coordinator for Advanced Academics, and worked as a Curriculum Specialist. She served as English department head and created the SAT Prep programs for various high schools.

Judy’s passion is British literature, and she has visited England three times to enhance her knowledge and teaching. Having taught ninth-grade English through Advanced Placement English Literature and Composition, she has a passion for teaching all levels of students.