Public speaking and democracy Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Public speaking and democracy - Essay Example While one may argue that the importance that is given to demagoguery in a democratic setup subverts the role of an intelligent citizen by tricking him and showing disrespect to the wisdom and trust of an electorate, it is also true that extremely important points are made during speeches that serve to move people to the side of righteous causes and also to rightly channelize the anger of a nation for productive purposes. This has been seen time and again in the history of the United States of America. A successful democracy, America has always placed a great amount of importance on the ability of its public figures to engage in oratory. It is no coincidence that most of the American presidents were excellent orators and could move masses to their point of view time and again and in the process, win their trust and love. The importance that is placed on oratory in a free democracy may also stem from the basic right to speech that citizens are provided with in a democratic nation. The right to express oneself from a public platform in order to communicate one’s views to another person or group remains the highest expression of one’s right to free speech. ... People also share a great interest in the contents of political speeches, with replies and counter-arguments being a part of the discussions that permeate the lives of a modern man in a democratic state. These events are also a site where the political leaders who give speeches are able to demonstrate the strength of the numbers of people that follow their views, apart from being an opportunity to win more followers and thus increase their base of supporters. This would enable them to not only win elections, but also to sustain the trust that people have in them. In many cases, an emotional and moral mandate of the population is necessary before a government undertakes any action of grave importance, something that may have a profound effect on the lives of the people of a country. This may be made possible through a powerful verbal assertion of the reasons that a leader may have for undertaking that particular action. This also demonstrates the effectiveness of public speaking as a tool in a democracy for the purpose of maintaining communication between the holders of executive authority and the electorate. In a democratic nation, public speaking is a tool that political and other leaders may use in order to stay in constant contact with the masses. This may help to impart to the masses the feeling that the state is being looked after in a good manner. This also enables the government in power to block allegations that may be leveled against it by people of differing viewpoints. The act of public speaking, thus, enables a citizen of a democratic country to express dissent that may then be shared by many sections of the society. It may also be used to attract attention to a certain problem that may have otherwise gone unnoticed by the