Master the Metaphor
“The greatest thing by far is to be a master of metaphor.” –Aristotle Metaphor is the last rhetorical device in the acronym SCREAM (Simile, Contrast, Rhyme, Echo, Alliteration, and Metaphor). Metaphor is the comparison of two UNLIKE things without using the word “like” as in a simile. In a previous post, I briefly explained the […]
Polished Presenters Use Awesome Alliteration
Mickey Mouse, Donald Duck, Bugs Bunny, Fred Flintstone, SpongeBob Squarepants. All cartoon characters. All examples of alliteration. Alliteration is the repetition of the same sound at the beginning of nearby words. It is the fifth rhetorical device in the acronym SCREAM (Simile, Contrast, Rhyme, Echo, Alliteration, and Metaphor). Use the techniques of SCREAM to capture […]
The Echo Technique in Presentations
You may have heard people say that giving a speech is simple: Tell them what you’re going to tell them. Then tell them. Then tell them what you told them. That’s one basic, boring use of repetition. A more exciting use of repetition is the echo technique. Echo is the repetition of a word or […]
Using Contrast in Presentations
What if in Shakespeare’s play, Hamlet had said, “I wonder if I should kill myself?” Nobody would have remembered it. Instead, Hamlet says, “To be or not to be, that is the question.” Shakespeare knew the secret power of contrast. Contrast is the second rhetorical device in the acronym SCREAM (Simile, Contrast, Rhyme, Echo, Alliteration, […]
Rhetorical Devices: SCREAM to Give Your Presentations Power
Colorful language can capture an audiences’ attention and it can anchor your points in their minds. The following acronym was modified (by adding “simile”) from the book, Speak Like Churchill, Stand Like Lincoln (a book I highly recommend for any speaker!). The SCREAM structure was coined in 2005 by Dr. Randy J. Harvey, the 2004 World […]