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“A good speech should be like a woman’s skirt: long enough to cover the subject and short enough to create interest.”
- Winston Churchill (1874–1965); British Prime Minister 1940–1945; 1951–1955
A great speech is both memorable and invaluable.
Memorable in that, long after the speaker has gone, the words of his/her speech are remembered. Indeed, one of the key things for which the speaker may be remembered is the speech itself. Sometimes it is only a few words of the speech that hit home, but they are enough.
William Faulkner’s acceptance words for the 1950 Nobel Prize of Literature comes to mind. His message of optimism was this: Man will not only endure, he will prevail.
We have come a long way since then but, in our current situation, in the time of COVID-19, there remains doubt in the minds of some as to whether we will even endure. Some, in fact, do not. We hear or read of them daily.
Historians, wordsmiths, and the public may dissect the speech. It may even give rise to other media: books and films (e.g. the 2010 film, “The King’s Speech,” based on the true story of Prince Albert, who became George VI. Recognizing the importance of his being able to speak properly, his wife, Elizabeth, engages the services of a speech therapist to help Albert overcome his stammer).
