It will come as no surprise to you that I love words; but perhaps it is more accurate to say I love speech. One speech exercise I like to do to emphasize the importance of tone is to use one sentence-today, I'll use the sentence, "Why did you bring me that casserole?", and I emphasize one word in the sentence each time I say it. I say, WHY did you bring me that casserole? I imply that bringing me a casserole was a ridiculous and utterly absurd thing for you to do. This makes you feel stupid. Why DID you bring me that casserole? Here it sounds like I am accusing you of having ulterior motives. You feel defensive. Why did YOU bring me that casserole? I may as well just tell you I'd rather be seeing anyone else besides you. This makes you sad. Why did you BRING me that casserole? This sounds like I really mean to say that I think you're a fool for bringing me the casserole when I could have gone to your house to pick it up. You feel foolish. Why did you bring ME that casserole? I obviously don't appreciate your thoughtfulness or your casserole, and I wish you'd give it to someone else. You feel unappreciated. Why did you bring me THAT casserole? I'm being an ungrateful beggar and a chooser. You feel like your effort was all for naught. Why did you bring me that CASSEROLE? I wanted something else, and now I am unhappy. You feel mad.
This is a fun exercise, but it is also helpful in proving the point that it's not just what you say, but how you say it.
miércoles, octubre 19, 2016
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