Extra credit

It's scary but it's survivable

(1) PUBLIC speaking fills most people with dread. Humiliation is the greatest fear; self-exposure and failing to appeal to the audience come a close second. Women hate it most, since girls are pressurized from an early age to be concerned with appearances of all kinds."

(2) Most people have plenty of insecurities, and this seems like a situation that will bring them out. If parents, teachers or peers mocked your foibles as a child, you fear a repeat. If you were under pressure to be perfect, you are terrified of failing in the most public of ways."

(3) While extroverts will feel less fear before the ordeal, it does not mean they will necessarily do it better. Some very shy people manage to shine. When I met the British comedian Julian Clary, he was shy and cautious, yet his TV performances are perfect. And he enjoys TV formats that call for unscripted spontaneity.

(4) In fact, personality is not the best predictor of who does it well. Regardless of what you are like in real life, the key seems to be to act yourself.

(5) Actual acting, as in performing the scripted lines of a character other than yourself, does not do the job. While politicians may limit damage by having carefully rehearsed, written screeds to speak from, there is always a hidden awareness among the audience that the words might not be true.

(6) Likewise, the incredibly perfect sales pitches of many American academics are too contrived." You may end up buying their book on the way out, but soon afterwards, it's much like fast food, and you get a nameless sense that you've been cheated.

(7) Although, as Earl Spencer proved at his sister Princess Diana's funeral, it is possible both to prepare every word and to act naturally. A script rarely works and it is used as a crutch by most people.

(8) But, being yourself doesn't work either. If you spoke as if you were in your own kitchen, it would be too authentic, too unaware of the need to communicate with an audience.

(9) I remember going to see British psychiatrist RD Laing speak in public. He behaved like a seriously odd person, talking off the top of his head. Although he was talking about madness and he wrote on mental illness, he seemed to be exhibiting rather than explaining it.

(10) The best psychological place from which to speak is an unselfconscious self-consciousness, providing the illusion of being natural." Studies suggest that this state of "flow", as psychologists call it, is very satisfying. Whether in normal life or making speeches, the key is to remind yourself that, contrary to what your teachers or parents may have implied, your best is good enough. In the zone, a strange place of authentic falsehood and shallow depth, play is possible.THE OBSERVER, JULY 8

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Vocabulary

1. dread : n. great fear of sth. that might happen 恐惧，畏惧
Bob's just not very smart and lives with a constant dread of failing his exams.

2. humiliation : n. from humiliate v. to hurt the pride or dignity of someone by making them seem foolish or contemptible 羞辱，蒙耻
After the humiliation of last week's defeat, the Mets were back in form this week.

3. mock : v. to hold up to contempt or to imitate or mimic someone in a ridiculous way嘲笑，嘲弄
The boys kept mocking him because he was so unsuccessful in talking to girls.

4. foible : n. a small weakness; slight lack of character (性格上的) 弱点，小缺点，癖好
He doesn't really have any foibles, but talking too much may be one.

5. extrovert : n. a person who is interested in other people性格外向者,反义词是"introvert"(性格内向者)

6. ordeal : n. a difficult, painful, or trying experience严酷的考验，痛苦的折磨
The hostages' ordeal came to an end when soldiers stormed the building.

7. comedian : n. entertainer who tells jokes, sings funny songs, etc. 喜剧演员，来源于"comedy"(喜剧)

8. unscripted : adj. (of a speech) given without a prepared script无讲稿的,反义词"scripted"(有讲稿的)也出现在本文中

9. spontaneity : n. from spontaneous: adj. acting naturally, impulsively, without effort or previous thought or preparation 自发的，主动的

10. lines : n. all of the speeches in a play, especially for one character 台词

11. rehearse : v. perform (a play, musical concert.) for practice, in preparation for public performance预演，排演
They rehearsed the symphony for days to get every note just right.

12. screed : n. a long, tiresome speech or piece of writing长篇大论，单调的说话或者文章

13. contrived : adj. too obviously the result of forethought and planning rather than spontaneous and natural人为的，做作的，挖空心思的
His town meetings always sound a bit contrived and forced and he looks uncomfortable.

14.crutch : n. (often used disapprovingly) anything one relies on for help or support 拐杖，支撑，帮助
As an atheist, he believes that religion is just an emotional crutch for insecure people.

15. psychiatrist : n. a specialist in psychiatry: n. the branch of medicine concerned with the study, treatment, and prevention of disorders of the mind 精神病专家，精神科医生

16. off the top of your head: adv. done without notes or checking the facts of the case 未经考虑或准备就说出的
We didn't get an accurate measurement, but just off the top of my head I'd say we had about 200 people at last week's meeting.

17. illusion : n. false idea, impression, or conception 错误的观念，幻觉，错觉

Background

Public speaking: a vital means of communication throughout history. It has three main goals ?to persuade, to inform, and to entertain. Many people, even actors, athletes, politicians and experienced speakers, get anxious about the prospect of standing up in front of an audience to speak. In addition to the "act yourself", "be yourself", suggested in this article, there are several ways to overcome stage fright. Pick a topic you care about and prepare it thoroughly. Think positively. Use visualization ?the mental process where a speaker pictures himself giving a successful presentation. This is a technique used by athletes, musicians, and others. You should also know that nervousness is normal and most nervousness is invisible. Speechmaking is a kind of communication rather than a performance. Therefore, you don't need to expect perfection.

Earl Spencer: the brother of Princess Diana - Charles Edward Maurice Spencer. He spoke at Diana's funeral on September 6, 1997; "earl" (伯爵): one of the titles for peerage(贵族) in Britain. The five levels of peerage in Britain are (highest to lowest): duke (公爵), marquess (侯爵), earl(伯爵), viscount (子爵) and baron(男爵).

Making sense

1. Women hate it most, since girls are pressurized from an early age to be concerned with appearances of all kinds. (paragraph 1)

Females hate public speaking because they worry about how they'll look, because they've been taught that way from childhood.

2. If you were under pressure to be perfect, you are terrified of failing in the most public of ways. (paragraph 2)

If there was always a lot of pressure (from family, teachers) to be perfect, you would always be afraid of letting them down; "in the most public of ways": equal to "in the most public way", in the most obvious way to appear among the public (最公开的方式).

3. Likewise, the incredibly perfect sales pitches of many American academics are too contrived. (paragraph 6)

Academics are unbelievably good of convincing people that their ideas are right; "sales pitch": line of talk that is used to sell something (推销员唱的高调).

4. The best psychological place from which to speak is an unselfconscious self-consciousness, providing the illusion of being natural. (paragraph 10)

The best way to prepare yourself mentally is to be aware of your nervousness and lack of experience, but to do it in a way that makes you appear unaware of it.

5. In the Zone, a strange place of authentic falsehood and shallow depth, play is possible. (paragraph 10)

Here, "zone" is the "place" referred to above in (4); "authentic falsehood": unselfconscious self-consciousness; "shallow depth": not worrying too much; "play": playing with the audience, having a good time speaking in public.

Test Yourself

Comprehension: Decide whether the following statements true (T), false (F) or not given (NG).

1. The ordeal in paragraph 3 refers to the process of rehearsing.

2. It seems that excelling at public speaking doesn't have too much to do with one's personality.

3. Audiences do not believe politicians because they've been cheated by politicians so many times.

4. To most people, a well-prepared script often does more harm than good for a speaker.

5. To act yourself means you should expose your nervousness to your audience.

Answers: 1. F 2. T 3. F 4. T 5. F