Wildly controversial at the time of its release, the 1940 film “The Great Dictator” was written, directed, produced and starring famed comedian Charlie Chaplin.

In the film, Chaplin plays duo roles, as both a ruthless dictator and a persecuted Jewish barber. In the climax of the film, Chaplin, in his role as the barber, is mistaken for the dictator and invited to give a speech to the nation. He uses the opportunity to make an impassioned call for peace.

The speech is often sited as the most famous in film history.

So what is it about Chaplin’s delivery that made the speech connect so well with so many viewers? What lessons can you take from it for your next presentation?

1)An opening with an emotional hook:

It’s said that you don’t get a second chance at a first impression, and it’s just as true for a speech. The first moments of your speech are some of the most crucial–they tell an audience whether or not they should expect you to say anything they’ll be interested in hearing. It sets the tone and the expectation for the entire performance.

To make those first moments memorable, you need to make them emotional. If you can generate an emotional reaction out of your audience, whether it’s laughter, anger, fear, or anything in between, you’re already standing out from 99% the other less interesting speakers they’ve endured. It kicks your audience out of listening in a “half-hearted autopilot mode” and actually makes them listen with genuine curiosity to where you’re going next.

In Chaplin’s case, this is done somewhat subtly. The emotions are uncertainty and anxiety. In a technique very common in the actual speeches of the dictator he was mocking, Adolf Hitler, Chaplin’s character initially stands in front of us and says…nothing.

For six full seconds, Chaplin says absolutely nothing. His shoulders tense. He breaths deeply. We can almost feel his anxiety, and it’s infectious.

To cap it all off, when he finally does say something, his first words are an apology. “I’m sorry.”

Now, on top of sharing his anxiety, our curiosity is piqued. Sorry? Sorry for what? Now we *have* to hear more.

As mentioned, Hitler himself did something similar; he would intentionally begin many speeches softly, slowly, and almost coming across as vaguely confused. That anxiety would put listeners in a hyper-attentive state, extremely unsure of what to expect next–but extremely eager to find out.

2)Emotional momentum through repetition:

This is the other major takeaway in the Chaplin speech, and probably the aspect that offers up the most material to learn from.

Just a quick glance over Chaplin’s opening shows him immediately repeating words and phrases:

I’m sorry, but I don’t want to be an emperor. That’s not my business. I don’t want to rule or conquer anyone. I should like to help everyone – if possible – Jew, Gentile – black man – white. We all want to help one another. Human beings are like that. We want to live by each other’s happiness – not by each other’s misery. We don’t want to hate and despise one another. In this world there is room for everyone. And the good earth is rich and can provide for everyone. The way of life can be free and beautiful, but we have lost the way.

Reading over the paragraph, what is the effect of the repetition?

It builds momentum. Like the repeated chugging of a train engine, the repeated sounds, combined with the rising energy in the delivery, project us forward. In the mind of the listener, the repetition can also make the speaker seem more focused–like the train on its tracks, the repetition can make the content feel like it’s headed on straight, focused trajectory, with a clear destination in mind.

ANAPHORA

Chaplin also makes use of a similar technique called “anaphora.” Anaphora is a Greek term for the repetition of words or phrases at the beginning of several consecutive statements. For example:

Greed has poisoned men’s souls; has barricaded the world with hate; has goose-stepped us into misery and bloodshed.

The use of anaphora here once again gives the speech a rhythm that makes it easy to listen to and follow. That steady rhythm helps the listener focus and maintain attention.

The technique is extremely effective–think back to almost every famous political speech and you’ll find anaphora, from Martin Luthor King’s repetition of “I have a dream,” to Churchill’s “We shall fight.”

Anaphora, and repetition in general, also works extremely well when combined in an increase in speed or enthusiasm from the speaker. It creates a “crescendo” effect, ratcheting up the intensity and the focus of the speech higher and higher with each repetition. As a case in point, we can see a masterclass in the technique with Chaplin’s conclusion:

Don’t give yourselves to these unnatural men—machine men with machine minds and machine hearts! You are not machines! You are not cattle! You are men! You have a love of humanity in your hearts! You don’t hate! Only the unloved hate; the unloved and the unnatural.

POLYSYNDENTON

Polysnydenton is a complicated word for a simple idea–the repeated use of conjunctions for dramatic effect. In other words:

The hate of men will pass, and dictators die, and the power they took from the people will return to the people. And so long as men die, liberty will never perish.

That repeating “and, and, and” might not be grammatically correct, but it’s extremely effective in a speech to build ratchet up intensity.

PARALLELISM

Parallelism might be the trickiest idea of the bunch, but it’s extremely useful to understand. Parallelism refers to the use of aspects in sentences that are similar grammatically or structurally to add a sense of symmetry and balance. In simple terms, it means finding ways to give sentences a repetition to their structure, sound, meaning, rhythm, etc. that help to give the words a stronger impact.

For example:

Machinery that gives abundance has left us in want. Our knowledge as made us cynical; our cleverness, hard and unkind. We think too much and feel too little. More than machinery we need humanity. More than cleverness, we need kindness and gentleness.

Even ignoring the repetition of individual words in the example, when we hear the passage out loud, there is a very clear sense of a repetitive flow to the sentences themselves–there’s an obvious, repeating rhythm to it. If you closed your eyes, you could almost picture the words as a wave, rising and falling.

ANTITHESIS

In the same example, you might have also noticed the repetition of contrasting or opposing ideas:

Machinery that gives abundance has left us in want. Our knowledge as made us cynical; our cleverness, hard and unkind. We think too much and feel too little. More than machinery we need humanity. More than cleverness, we need kindness and gentleness.

That contrast is referred to as “antithesis.” As with the other rhetorical tools we’ve talked about today, it can be extremely powerful in connecting emotionally with an audience, and building up a sense of momentum. You’ll also noticed that Chaplin is using it in short, punchy sentences. By keeping his sentences short, the contrast is made even clearer, the acceleration faster, and the overall buildup that much more dramatic.

With all of that in mind…

Watch Chaplin’s famous speech below, and see how many other instances you can find of rhetorical techniques we’ve reviewed.

Hopefully, the next time you have a speech to prepare, you can find creative and effective ways to implement some of these techniques yourself. It’s no accident that they appear so often in so many great speeches–so give them a try, and see firsthand just how effective they can be in connecting with your audience.