Test Information Guide

Field 44: Speech
Sample Multiple-Choice Questions

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Objective 0001
Understand classical, modern, and contemporary theories of rhetoric.

1. Which of the following is the best definition of rhetoric?

  1. any form of communication that influences thought and actions
  2. the use of language to convey knowledge
  3. any linguistic theory that can be verified by independent research
  4. the cultural meanings that people attach to communication
Answer
Correct Response: A.

Correct Response: A.

Objective 0002
Understand the role of oratory, public argument, and debate in democratic societies.

2. In which of the following ways does the place of debate in a democratic society differ most from its role in an authoritarian society?

  1. It is likely to focus on a narrower range of political issues.
  2. It is less likely to be based on verifiable forms of evidence.
  3. It is likely to involve a broader range of opinion.
  4. It is more likely to be governed by generally accepted rules.
Answer
Correct Response: C.

Correct Response: C.

Use the excerpt below from an 1873 speech by Susan B. Anthony to answer the two questions that follow.

1    Friends and Fellow-citizens: I stand before you tonight, under indictment for the alleged crime of having voted at the last Presidential election, without having a lawful right to vote. It shall be my work this evening to prove to you that in thus voting, I not only committed no crime, but, instead, simply exercised my citizen's right, guaranteed to me and all United States citizens by the National Constitution, beyond the power of any State to deny. . . .

2    [According to the Fourteenth Amendment,] "No state shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens; nor shall any state deprive any person of life, liberty or property, without due process of law, nor deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws."

3    The only question left to be settled now, is: Are women persons? And I hardly believe any of our opponents will have the hardihood to say they are not. Being persons, then, women are citizens, and no state has a right to make any new law, or to enforce any old law, that shall abridge their privileges or immunities. Hence, every discrimination against women in the constitutions and laws of the several states, is to-day null and void . . . .

Objective 0003
Understand the history of public discourse and debate in the United States.

3. Which of the following best describes the speaker's fundamental claim in the excerpt above?

  1. that the speaker is not guilty of the crime of which she is accused
  2. that women are citizens of the United States
  3. that all laws discriminating against women are null and void
  4. that the Constitution gives women the right to vote
Answer
Correct Response: D.

Correct Response: D.

Objective 0008
Understand persuasive communication.

4. The speaker's observations in the excerpt above best illustrate the use of which of the following persuasive appeals?

  1. reasoning by analogy
  2. causal reasoning
  3. reasoning by example
  4. syllogistic reasoning
Answer
Correct Response: D.

Correct Response: D.

Read the excerpt below from a speech by Benjamin Franklin at the Constitutional Convention in 1787; then answer the two questions that follow.

1    I confess that I do not entirely approve of this Constitution at present, but Sir, I am not sure I shall never approve it: For having lived long, I have experienced many instances of being oblig'd, by better information or fuller consideration, to change opinions even on important subjects, which I once thought right, but found to be otherwise. It is therefore that the older I grow the more apt I am to doubt my own judgment, and to pay more respect to the judgment of others. Most men indeed as well as most sects in religion, think themselves in possession of all truth, and that wherever others differ from them it is so far error. . . . But tho' many private persons think almost as highly of their own infallibility, as of that of their sect, few express it so naturally as a certain French lady, who in a little dispute with her sister, said, I don't know how it happens, Sister, but I meet with nobody but myself that's always in the right. . . .

2    In these sentiments, Sir, I agree to this Constitution, with all its faults, if they are such; because I think a general government necessary for us, and there is no form of government but what may be a blessing to the people if well administered; and I believe farther that this is likely to be well administered for a course of years, and can only end in despotism as other forms have done before it, when the people shall become so corrupted as to need despotic government, being incapable of any other. I doubt too whether any other convention we can obtain, may be able to make a better Constitution: For when you assemble a number of men to have the advantage of their joint wisdom, you inevitably assemble with those men all their prejudices, their passions, their errors of opinion, their local interests, and their selfish views. . . .

3    On the whole, Sir, I cannot help expressing a wish, that every member of the Convention, who may still have objections to it, would with me on this occasion doubt a little of his own infallibility, and to make manifest our unanimity, put his name to this instrument.

Objective 0003
Understand the history of public discourse and debate in the United States.

5. Which of the following best describes the speaker's main purpose in the excerpt above?

  1. to analyze the strengths and weaknesses of the Constitution
  2. to persuade members of the convention to discard their preconceptions
  3. to identify areas where the Constitution needs further amendment
  4. to explain why he believes the Constitution is acceptable
Answer
Correct Response: D.

Correct Response: D.

Objective 0008
Understand persuasive communication.

6. Which of the following best describes the speaker's main reason for beginning his remarks with the statement that he does not entirely approve of the draft Constitution?

  1. The speaker pretends he is an opponent of the Constitution so that his endorsement of it will come as a dramatic surprise to his listeners.
  2. The speaker expresses his own reservations at the outset to insulate himself from criticism should the action he proposes prove unwise.
  3. The speaker assumes that no one is satisfied with the Constitution as a means of identifying with his listeners.
  4. The speaker establishes his own objectivity before attempting to persuade others of a recommended course of action.
Answer
Correct Response: D.

Correct Response: D.

Objective 0004
Understand ethical and legal decisions related to communication.

7. In Tinker v. Des Moines School District (1969), the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that the district could not suspend students for wearing black armbands to protest the government's policy in Vietnam. Which of the following best describes an important free speech question raised by this case?

  1. In what circumstances does freedom of expression conflict with other rights protected by the Constitution?
  2. Should an opinion's popularity be a factor in determining whether it is protected by the First Amendment?
  3. Are there classes of individuals to whom freedom of speech does not apply?
  4. Is criticism of the government protected by the First Amendment to the Constitution?
Answer
Correct Response: C.

Correct Response: C.

Objective 0005
Understand the planning, preparation, and organization of public speeches.

8. Which of the following questions should one answer first when attempting to determine an appropriate topic for a speech?

  1. How should I structure the speech?
  2. Who will be my audience?
  3. What is the purpose of the speech?
  4. For how long will I be speaking?
Answer
Correct Response: C.

Correct Response: C.

Objective 0006
Understand effective speech delivery.

9. In general, it is recommended that speakers responding to audience questions adopt a deductive technique that moves from the general to the particular. In which of the following situations would a speaker be best advised to abandon this approach and adopt an inductive technique that moves from the particular to the general?

  1. when responding to questions from an indifferent audience that seems uninterested in what the speaker has to say
  2. when responding to questions from a hostile audience that opposes the speaker's position
  3. when responding to questions from an attentive audience that is interested in what the speaker has to say
  4. when responding to questions from a friendly audience that supports the speaker's position
Answer
Correct Response: B.

Correct Response: B.

Objective 0007
Understand the principles of argumentation and debate.

10. In an academic debate, the affirmative introduces evidence that the negative recognizes does not apply to the issue at hand. Which of the following rules of evidence should members of the negative be most concerned with at this point?

  1. Evidence must be verifiable and consistent with other known evidence concerning the topic.
  2. The opposition may ask for clarification of any evidence presented in case construction during cross-examination.
  3. Weak evidence that is not refuted by the opposition may be considered adequate and acceptable.
  4. Advocates of a position need only to persuade the judges that they have a preponderance of evidence.
Answer
Correct Response: C.

Correct Response: C.