英语学术演讲speech outline

SELF-PORTRAIT

Specific purpose:To tell the audience why they are crazy about selfie and how it can affect them. i. Open with Impact:2016 hasn’t been a great year for the selfie.

A. Examples for selfie causes animal deaths.

1.In February, Argentinian tourists passed around a baby dolphin in order to take selfies with it,then the endangered animal died from stress.

2.Then, in early March, a swan died after a tourist dragged it from a lake in Macedonia – all for the sake of a selfie.

B.While both animal deaths elicited widespread anger, humans have been more likely to put their own lives at risk in order to snap the perfect photograph.

1.Examples include a Polish tourist in Spain fell off a bridge and died attempting to take a selfie.

2.And a Cessna pilot lost control of his plane – killing himself and his passengers – while trying to take a selfie in May of 2014.

ii. Thesis :Self-portrait is becoming increasingly popular,people even put their own lives at risk in order to snap the perfect photo.

iii. Connec t:People who frequently post selfies are often targets for accusations of narcissism and tastelessness. But selfie is becoming a trend in the 21th century.

A.So what is it about the self-portrait that’s so popular as a form of communication?

B.And why someone feel so compelled to snap the perfect selfie that they’d risk their life? iv. Preview :Maybe there are no definitive answers,but today I want to inform you something about selfie.

A.A brief history of the selfie.

B.Positive and negative effect of selfie.

C.Why selfie is so popular.

Body

i. Main Point:The selfie has a long history.

A.Robert Cornelius, an early American photographer, has been credited with taking the first selfie: in 1839, Cornelius, using one of the earliest cameras, set up his camera and ran into the shot.

B.The broader availability of point-and-shoot cameras in the 20th century led to more self-portraits, with many using the popular method of snapping a photograph in front of a mirror.

C.Selfie technology took a giant leap forward with the invention of the camera phone. Then, of course, there was the introduction of the selfie stick.

(Transition:As self-portrait is becoming increasingly popular,how does it affect our mental state?) ii. Main Point: On the one hand selfie is confidence booster ,on the other hand,it is an instrument of narcissism.

A.Some do see selfies as a positive development.

1.Psychology professor Pamela Rutledge believes they celebrate “regular people.”

2.And UCLA psychologist Andrea Letamendi believes that selfies “allow young adults to express their mood states and share important experiences.”

3.Some have argued that selfies can boost confidence by showing others how “awesome ” you are, and can preserve important memories.

B.Still, there are plenty of negative associations with taking selfies.

1.While selfies are sometimes lauded as a means for empowerment, one European study found

that time spent looking at social media selfies is associated with negative body image thoughts among young women.

2.Apart from injuries and fatalities , one big issue with selfies appears to be their function as either a cause or consequence of narcissism.Do selfies and narcissism correlate? Psychologist Gwendolyn Seidman suggests that there’s a link.

(Transition:Selfies seem to be this generation’s preferred mode of self-expression,but why selfie is so popular?)

iii. Main Point:Selfies draw attention,but the evidencecombined with people and animals dyingsuggests there is little to celebrate about the craze.

A.Why people post selfie.

1.Psychologists have suggested that our self-image and how we project it is filtered through two criteria: believability and beneficiality .

2.In this sense, the selfie is the perfect medium: it’s an easy way to offer proof of an exciting life, extraordinary talent and ability, unique experiences, personal beauty and attractiveness.

B.Why anyone bothers looking at them.

1.Evidence suggests that people simply like viewing faces.

2.Selfies attract more attention and more comments than any other photos, and our friends and peers reinforce selfie-taking by doling out “likes ” and other forms of approval on social media. Conclusion

i. Summary :Now you have a brief idea about self-portrait.

A.A brief history of the selfie.

B.Confidence booster or instrument of narcissism?

C.Why selfie is so popular.

ii. Close with impact:Properly amount of selfies is good,but there is no need to be addicted to it,because there are many other ways to draw attention and boost your confidence except selfie.So the next time you want to take a perfect selfie, please take care of your life and others ’,this is your bottom line.

References

[1]http://blog.oxforddictionaries.com/2013/11/word-of-the-year-2013-winner/

[2]Sorokowski, P., Sorokowska, A., Oleszkiewicz, A., Frackowiak, T., Huk, A., & Pisanski, K. (2015). Selfie posting behaviors are associated with narcissism among men. Personality and Individual Differences, 85, 123-127.

[3]Grijalva, E., Newman, D. A., Tay, L., Donnellan, M. B., Harms, P . D., Robins, R. W., & Yan, T. (2015). Gender differences in narcissism: A meta-analytic review. Psychological bulletin, 141(2), 261.

[4]https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Impression_management