General Purpose, Specific Purpose, and Thesis

🎯 Purpose Statements

Purpose statements guide your speech goals and content choices.

  • General Purpose: broad goal of the speech

    • to inform

    • to persuade

    • to celebrate

    • to entertain

  • Specific Purpose: precise action your speech will accomplish

    • combines general purpose + audience + topic

    • written as a clear statement, not a question

    • used mainly for planning your speech content

Writing a Specific Purpose:

  1. State general purpose

  2. Identify the audience

  3. Add a short phrase describing the topic
    👉 Helps decide which examples, facts, and main points belong.

🧠 Thesis Statement (Central Idea)

  • A single declarative sentence that captures the main idea of the speech

  • Based on your specific purpose but written for the audience

  • Must:

    • focus on one clear idea

    • avoid being a question

    • avoid vague or overly broad topics

  • Includes:

    • general purpose

    • topic
      Class format (informative speech):
      “Today I will inform you about ________.”

đź—ş Preview Statement

  • A roadmap that tells the audience how the speech will unfold

  • Appears in the introduction

  • Includes:

    • signposting (first, second, third)

    • three main points

  • Explains the order of ideas in the speech body

🧱 Body of the Speech

  • Contains main points, facts, examples, and evidence

  • Supports the thesis and fulfills the specific purpose

  • Usually written before the introduction and conclusion

  • Built step-by-step: thesis → three main points → outline

âś… Key Study Reminders

  • General purpose = broad goal; specific purpose = precise objective.

  • Thesis = clear, one-sentence main idea for the audience.

  • Preview = roadmap of the three main points.

  • The body is the longest section and contains your supporting material.