Sample Persuasive Speech Outline

STUDENT'S NAME: Sarah Fischvogt
SPEECH #5
TOPIC: Industrial Hemp
GENERAL PURPOSE: To persuade
SPECIFIC PURPOSES: To persuade my audience to consider hemp as a natural resource to be cultivated.
To inform my audience about hemp's other uses.
CENTRAL IDEA: Industrial hemp is very different than marijuana and has many benefits and uses.

SUPPORTING MATERIALS:

  1. Sources:
    1. Javna, John. 50 Simple Things Kinds can Do to Save the Earth. Kansas City: Andrews and McMeel, 1990.
    2. Pederson, Anne. The Kids' Environment Book. Santa Fe, NM: John Muir, 1991.
    3. The Hemp Revolution. Dir. Anthony Clarke. Narr. Anthony Clarke. Tara Entertainment, 1996.
    4. Hemp.Com Inc. "Hemp 101." 22 Jan 2000 <http://www.hemp.com/Information/QuickFacts.asp>.
  2. Visual Aids: Books, poster and clothes
  3. Testimony: William Conde, Dr. Andrew Katelaris


Outline
  1. Introduction
    1. Attention Getting Device: (hold up poster) This is not about drugs! (turn poster over) This is about hemp and all of its uses. [Monroe's Motivated Sequence - ATTENTION]
    2. Preview: Today, I am going to give you a few good reasons that will explain why you should vote for the legalization of industrial hemp when you are given the chance.

  2. Body
    1. Imagine what this world is going to be like in about fifty years. What do you see? I cannot imagine that it is a pretty picture. Considering the speed at which we are burning fossil fuels, cutting down trees and polluting our water with pesticides and other junk, I am glad that my years left on this earth would be few at the point. [Monroe's Motivated Sequence - NEED] Where will we turn when the trees are all gone? What will we drink when the water is unsafe for consumption, even after boiling it first?
    2. Is there anything that can replace all of these resources? [Monroe's Motivated Sequence - SATISFACTION]
      1. Using Hemp could replace the need to cut down trees.
        1. Anything that can be made out of wood or plastic can be made from hemp.
        2. One acre of hemp produces as much paper as 4.1 acres of trees.
        3. The first paper was made from hemp.
        4. When using hemp for paper, only the stalk is needed. The flowers and leaves are returned to the earth. This takes away from the need to spread fertilizer.
        5. William Conde of Conde's Redwood Lumber supports hemp over trees saying, "hemp is a superior fiber to tree fiber." He also states that "We invision hemp as being a complete new wave of the industrial revolution."
        6. Trees are needed to put oxygen into the air and to take out carbon dioxide.
        7. According to 50 Simple Things Kids Can Do to Save the Earth the average American uses seven trees a year. That is over 1.5 billion trees per year.
      2. Why is hemp better than cotton?
        1. Hemp is nature's longest, strongest, most durable fiber. As a fabric it is softer, more insulating, more absorbent, more breathable and longer lasting than cotton.
        2. Dr. Andrew Katelaris of Biological Products states that "per acre hemp outproduces cotton by 200%."
        3. Cotton is the leading user of pesticides. It accounts for 60% of the pesticides used each year.
        4. Hemp uses almost no pesticides and fertilizers; those two things are the number one pollutants in ground water.
        5. Cotton rags and paper take six months to biodegrade.
      3. Hemp is already being considered in some places.
        1. France grows hemp for commercial use. It is almost drug free. It is used mostly for paper.
        2. Australia is using an experimental drug free strand of hemp.
        3. The United Kingdom legalized commercial use of hemp in 1993.
        4. In January 1996, the American Farm Bureau Federation, more than 4.6 million members strong, unanimously endorsed the researching and growing of industrial hemp.
      4. Hemp also has other uses.
        1. Hemp could replace our dependency on fossil fuels.
        2. Hemp oil is edible and contains fatty acids that are essential.
        3. Hemp oil can be used for a variety of medical uses: immune system, luster for skin, hair and eyes, transfer of oxygen from lungs to cells, strengthen cardiovascular system and helps to clean arteries.
      5. More interesting hemp facts!
        1. According to Hemp.Com, "To 'get high' from hemp, an individual would have to smoke a joint the size of a telephone pole in a single sitting, this is humanly impossible."
        2. It has been cultivted since 2800 BC.
        3. From fifth century BC until the late nineteenth century, 90% of all ship sails were made from hemp.
        4. Dr. Andrew Katelaris said, "Original Levi jeans were made from recycled sow clith, which was made from hemp fiber.

  3. Conclusion
    1. Summary: Today I have shared many ways that hemp could help our environment and industry. I also told you some other interesting facts about hemp's history.
    2. Concluding Device: Go back and imagine once again what the earth will be like in 50 years if we converted to using hemp. The air sure would smell clean. The water would be safe to drink. [Monroe's Motivated Sequence - VISUALIZATION] Someday this knowledge hopefully will remind you to vote for legalizing industrial hemp when the chance presents itself. [Monroe's Motivated Sequence - ACTION] Think of it this way: (hold up book) This book has fifty things a kid can do to save the planet. I'm only asking you to think about one.


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