The Art of Public Narrative: Teaching Students How to Construct Memorable Anecdotes

Abstract

Courses: Debate; Interpersonal Communication; Public Speaking; Speechwriting

Objective: Students will explore the anecdote-creation process and enhance their ability to craft memorable anecdotes

Notes

1. Lehrman (2010) contends that anecdotes are highly effective tools, because they make listeners remember, make speakers believable, and “touch the human heart” (p. 102).

2. Andeweg, deJong, and Hoeken (1988) found that anecdotes “led to significantly higher ratings of the presentation's comprehensibility and interest, as well as the speaker's credibility. The presence of an anecdote also resulted in higher retention scores. Oddly enough, the relevance of the anecdote did not seem to make a difference in the ratings” [emphasis in original] (p. 271).

3. Quesenbery and Brooks (2010) point out that “stories are created for a purpose. They are not primarily about self-expression, but this doesn't mean that they shouldn't be eloquent, fun, or engaging” [emphasis in original] (p. 157).

4. There appear to be few academic resources that discuss the anecdote-creation process in much depth. I examined approximately 30 sources as I was writing this article. Most of these sources confuse the terms “story” and “anecdote,” and very few explore the parts of a story or the story-creation process. Simply put, these sources primarily discuss the storytelling process.

5. Portions of this framework appear in my book Public Speaking: The Path to Success.

6. Ganz (2008) notes that “Arguments persuade with evidence, logic, and data. [Short] stories persuade by this empathetic identification” (p. 8).

7. McDrury and Alterio (2003) argue that “To educate using storytelling is to take seriously the need for students to make sense of experience and seek meaning from their lives … If educators valued such connections and, when appropriate, taught using narrative modes of knowing, perhaps students would be better prepared to manage the challenges inherent in their personal and professional lives” (p. 34).

8. I recommend that anecdotes be no more than a minute long.