Analysis of the Speech Earl Spencer Gave at Princess Diana's Funeral

1171 Words3 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Public speaking skills and why they matter essay 800 words

This semester I had the chance to take The Fundamentals of Speech Communication, this course has taught me so much on how my presence and performance in front of a group can affect the way my speech comes across. During this course, I had the opportunity to research and discover different speakers who have given amazing and inspirational speeches. Speaking has been around for a very long time, and our understanding of it comes to us at a very young age. I have researched and watched many great speeches but only one has really moved me. The speech I have chosen is the speech that Earl Spencer gave at his sisters, Princess Diana, funeral. (Staple, 2013)

Charles Edward Maurice Spencer was Princess Diana’s younger brother, he was born May 20th 1964. He is an author, print journalist and broadcaster, which explains his speech techniques and his artistic wording. Princess Diana passed away August 31, 1997 during a terrible car accident in Paris, France. The funeral was 6 days later on September 6, 1997, the funeral was heald at Westminter Abbey.

Earl Spencer used many non-verbal many techniques during his speech to show his emotion in his words. Non-verbal is a type of communication when you do not use words or speech to potray how you feel or how it was written. Non-verbal techniques include stance, eye contact, hands, proximity and platform, facial expression, voicing, rates, articulation, pausing, pitch and tone.

A good stance and good posture are crucial for two reasons: first of all, to inspire confidence in an audience, and secondly, to aid the speaker, physiologically, in a strong delivery. Physiologically, good posture helps a speaker in two key ways. One, circulation is maximised, which means that there are no unconscious...

... middle of paper ...

...ts; his intent is to educate us on Diana and her life.

To conclude, I have learned so much from this course. It was really helped me with my insecurities during public speaking and has given me tips on how to be more comfortable. It also gave me the knowledge of knowing when someone is a good speaker and when someone is a dull speaker, which is why I was so drawn to Earl Spencer speech. It is a very unusual speech since it is at a funeral and isn’t to motivate or inspire people like many other great speakers, but it made me feel something deep within. His speech made you feel his sadness and confusion over the death of the beloved Princess and sister. When I think of a great public speaker, I think of someone who can move you and bring out emotions with only his words. Earl Spencer did that to me, and I am grateful for the amazing speakers who can do the same.

Show More
Related

  • An Analysis Of Margaret Thatcher's Eulogy For Ronald Reagan

    1015 Words  | 3 Pages

    Former Prime Minister of England, Margaret Thatcher, in her 2004 eulogy for Ronald Reagan, exemplifies both his impact and legacy on the world. Throughout her speech, Thatcher memorializes Reagan’s performance in office as well as the decisions he made as a person by illustrating their time together to the reader. By utilizing these examples, the reader can then understand Thatcher’s overall claim that Reagan was one of the most profound leaders in history; however, the impact of Thatcher’s use of diction and sentence arrangement both provoke thought in the reader and allows him or her to comprehend her message on a more sophisticated level.

    Read More

  • Princess Diana Conspiracy Theory

    604 Words  | 2 Pages

    The official theory is that Princess Diana’s unexpected death was caused by her injuries that were sustained during the crash. On August 31st, 1997, Princess Diana and her partner Dodi Al-Fayed left the Ritz Hotel in a

    Read More

  • Angela Davis Speech Analysis

    1250 Words  | 3 Pages

    Her slow yet concise way of speaking, coupled with easy to follow transitions allowed for a speech that was enjoyable to listen to. Her use of examples from her personal life allowed her audience to get a picture of who she was if they did not know, and allowed her to better relate to them by provided examples of how she is related to the college they are graduating from. Her reference to many modern political problems allowed her to bring up her important role as an activist and facilitated further understanding from the audience. While some areas of her speech were weak, such as the longer than needed pauses and her lack of consistent eye contact, to a few points where she didn’t speak clearly enough, the overall picture that was her speech was fairly strong. Looking at this speech, I hope to incorporate some aspects that I failed to include in my previous speeches. Some of these include her use of hand gestures to emphasize and exaggerate certain phrases and topics, and her combined use of appeals. While my initial thoughts going in were “This is boring” and “This is too slow”, it evolved into me wanting to hear more, and overall my defeat in the beginning turned into a victory at the

    Read More

  • Verbal Communication: The Form Of Communication

    725 Words  | 2 Pages

    Verbal communication is the form of communication that the majority of the world uses today it’s expressed in spoken words. Non Verbal can be conveyed with a smile, frown, rolling of the eyes and in some case the wink of an eye. Facial expressions behavior plays a big part in non verbal communication. Our expression will say things to others that we want say out loud. Gestures are another form of non verbal such as pointing, crossing of the arms and clapping of the hands or all gestures that are non verbal. Appearance is often over looked when we think of non verbal communication. When see someone in boots, blue jeans, leather vest, and tattoos we assume that they are a biker that just one example appearance communication. Face to Face is a preferred method that is used to close the deal deals with body language 50%, tone of your voice 40% and your words 10%.

    Read More

  • Personal Progression of Public Speaking

    1156 Words  | 3 Pages

    After reviewing my speeches back to back, I realized that my public speaking skills have evolved dramatically. While I would like to have changes to my projects if I had the ability to time travel, but overall I am more than satisfied with my progression in public speaking. My level of listenability is still not flawless, but with some more practice and time I am confident that I could become a decent public speaker. Whether I will do anything as a public speaker is yet to be determined, but I do know that I walked into this class with the simple expectation to acquire my honor credits, but was fortunate enough to part with experience that will be applied to the rest of both my academic and occupational careers.

    Read More

  • Rhetorical Analysis of Earl Spencer's Speech for the Funeral of Lady Diana

    558 Words  | 2 Pages

    In this assignment, I will closely analyse the speech made by Earl Spencer for the funeral of Lady Diana, considering the complicated context and literary devises he uses to affect his audience. The speech was written as a funeral speech for Diana's close family and friends, but also, more importantly, for the public, as it was broadcasted worldwide. In the speech, although it's primary purpose is to pay respects to his sister; he uses the opportunity to promote Diana's charity work, and to raise controversy within the royal family. He never directly says it, but when analysing the text his feelings towards the royal family are apparent; from the fact that he mentions, " she needed no royal title to continue…" this comment is particularly clever because of its indirect subtlety, but the meaning behind it would still be clear to the audience, because of the media coverage of recent events.

    Read More

  • Stephen Lucas's The Fear Of Public Speaking

    1156 Words  | 3 Pages

    Lucas devotes a section of chapter one to talking about the history of public speaking stating that every culture has some word equivalent of the word speaker. Lucas then goes on to tell the similarities and differences between public speaking and conversation. Stephan Lucas then goes on to explains in this chapter that nervousness and stage fright are among the leading causes for the fear of public speaking. But he then assures us that nervousness is normal, and a welcomed part of speech giving. Lucas proves his point by saying, “If you feel nervous about giving a speech, you are in very good company. Some of the greatest public speakers in history have suffered from stage fright, including Abraham Lincoln, Margaret Sanger, and Winston Churchill” (Lucas, 2012 pg. 9). Lucas says that you should not run from your nervousness, but instead try to turn it into a positive nervousness. Lucas then goes on to give six ways to turn the negative nervousness into positive nervousness. They are acquiring speaking experience, preparation, positive thinking, visualization, realizing you’re nervousness isn’t visible and not expecting perfection. Now that Lucas has touched on the history, fears, and possible rewards of public

    Read More

  • How Is Princess Diana Contribute To Pop Culture

    802 Words  | 2 Pages

    ...ring came to Diana, who kept her title “Princess”, even after the divorce, on the night of August 30th, 1997. She died in a tragic car crash with current boyfriend Dodi Al- Fayed. The driver of the car was under the influence of alcohol, and was being pursued by photographers that night. Al Fayed and the driver died upon impact. Diana died a few hours later.

    Read More

  • Informative Speech Of Princess Diana's Speech On Eating Disorders

    795 Words  | 2 Pages

    INTRO: “From the beginning of time the human race has had a deep and powerful relationship with food - if you eat you live, if you don't you die. Eating food has always been about survival, but also about caring for and nurturing the ones we love. However, with the added stresses of modern life, it has now become an expression of how we feel about ourselves and how we want others to feel about us.” That is a quote from Princess Diana’s speech on eating disorders that she gave on April 27th, 1993. Most people know at least one person who has or who has had an eating disorder and I believe that eating disorder awareness is important. Today I am going to share with you a little of Princess Diana’s life, the significance of her speech on eating disorders, and how the message promoted the betterment of society.

    Read More

  • What I Learned In Public Speaking

    802 Words  | 2 Pages

    I have also learned about different types of audiences and speeches including persuasive, informative, entertaining and delivering special occasion speeches. It came to my attention that whenever I was making these presentations or speeches, I needed to do so with confidence, consistence and practice before the actual presentation and completely eliminate the element of panic. It was also clear that capturing the attention of the audience and engaging them in the whole process, it was necessary to have a very strong introduction and also try and use visuals to deliver the message. It was therefore vital to respect each person’s diversity and cultural values (Lucas, 2011).

    Read More

  • The Legacy Of Princess Diana And The Royal Family

    1123 Words  | 3 Pages

    Starting with how she became part of the Royal Family. She married Prince Charles on July 29, 1981. They had their first son, Prince William Arthur Philip Louis on June 21, 1982. About two years later, they had their second son, Prince Henry Charles

    Read More

  • A Brief Biography Of Princess Diana

    683 Words  | 2 Pages

    Charles and Diana’s paths crossed again when, as Diana explains it, "'Charles came to stay at my sister's house for a shoot." (CNN.com "Royals, Part 2" 2002). Shortly after their brief encounter, Diana moved to London, where she pursued an interest in taking care of children, at first as a nanny and then as a kindergarten teacher in 1979. Two years later, Prince Charles called asking Diana on a date. Within six short months of what seemed like the perfect fairytale romance, Charles proposed to Diana. In 300 years, Diana would be the first to become a Princess by marriage. Charles and Diana married in St. Paul’s Cathedral, as recorded and watched by millions worldwide on television, on July 29, 1981.

    Read More

  • Oral Presentation Essay

    987 Words  | 2 Pages

    In order to successfully deliver an oral presentation such as a speech, the speaker must follow certain procedures to ensure his message can be conveyed clearly. Vast amounts of research are essential in order to acquire the knowledge necessary to be able to speak about a topic comfortably and answer any questions the audience might have during the course of the presentation. After acquiring such knowledge about the topic of the presentation the speaker will feel more confident, confidence is key in delivering speeches and other oral presentations because it makes the speaker look more credible and trustworthy. Lastly, the speaker must be fluid and eloquent with his words, the speaker must be able to sound clear and crisp while delivering their

    Read More

  • Princess Diana Personality

    1907 Words  | 4 Pages

    They say it is better to be poor and happy than rich and miserable, but how about a compromise like moderately rich and moody?” – Princess Diana

    Read More

  • Princess Diana's Effect on the United Kingdom and the Monarchy

    1013 Words  | 3 Pages

    Born on July 1, 1961, Diana Spencer had no clue of the life she would someday live. Diana grew up as the daughter of the Viscount and Viscountess of Althorp. However, they divorced 8 years after Diana’s birth. Diana lived with her father and attended preparatory school in Norfolk. She then went on to attend West Heath Girls’ School in Kent, where she failed her O-level exams. She dropped out of West Heath and her father sent her to a finishing school in Switzerland. Before she left England for school, she met Prince Charles through mutual friends. Once she returned home from Switzerland, she and her family visited Prince Charles and his family at the castle in Scotland. This started their “royal romance.” Their wedding in 1981 was one for the history books. There was over one billion worldwide viewers watching at home on their televisions and she was the first woman born in England to marry the heir to the throne in over 300 years. Their first child, William, was born in 1982 while their second, Harry, was born two years later.

    Read More

More about Analysis of the Speech Earl Spencer Gave at Princess Diana's Funeral

Open Document