Ava Arledge
Advanced Topics: American Language and Literature
Maid of Honor Speech
My 29-year-old sister, Taylor, recently got married, and I served as her maid of honor. This role came with the significant responsibility of delivering a speech. To briefly introduce Taylor, she can be quite difficult and hard to please. If the sun had shined at the wrong angle or the wind had blown her hair the wrong way at her wedding, it would have been "ruined". Taking this into consideration, I felt pressure to craft a speech that would meet her high expectations. Before writing the speech, I took some time to brainstorm and create a speech outline, aiming to make Taylor's wedding even more special.
I had never spoken in front of 150 people before, and admittedly, I was incredibly nervous. My goal was to weave together humor and emotion in such a way that would move the audience to laughter and tears. To get the perfect speech required a rigorous process of drafting, erasing, and rewriting. Although the process was challenging, seeing my speech come together was immensely rewarding.
I was thrilled with how well my first draft came together, as it was a great start. However, upon reading it aloud, its weaknesses became apparent. The transitions between ideas felt abrupt, and the closing statements lacked the powerful impact I had envisioned. I wanted everyone to feel moved by my speech, but my first draft had only skimmed the surface, and I had not fully explored the depth of why Taylor and her husband were such an incredible match. I needed to enrich my speech by providing more specific details and moments that captured their bond.
My final speech marked a significant improvement, enhancing transitions for a smoother flow and crafting a compelling conclusion to leave a lasting impression. By diving deep into her husband's character and how he shows his love for Taylor, I was able to create a meaningful connection with the audience and transform the speech into an engaging piece.
CLOSE READ:
My first attempt:
In this first draft, I recognized Jeff's admirable qualities, noting his ability to bring happiness to my sister and care for her, but I lacked the illustrative depth that could truly bring these traits to life. I did not provide any short anecdotes or vivid details that would allow the audience to see, rather than just hear about, the ways in which Jeff enriches my sister's life. My goal in the second draft was to provide a unique (but quick) description of their bond and highlight specific gestures and habits that make their connection special.
My final speech:
With this revision, I applied my knowledge from the rhetorical analysis unit in AT Lang and provided specific details about Taylor and Jeff's bond. I expanded on Jeff's behaviors and actions, such as how he offers Taylor food when she is unhappy with hers, replacing the more general statement of appreciation in the first draft and providing an intimate picture of their relationship. In this draft, I was able to highlight the unique bond that Taylor and Jeff share and get more personal with everybody, creating an uplifting and intriguing speech. If I had time to complete one more revision (and was not on a time limit at the wedding), I would have expanded on "You are genuinely the most cheerful and happy person I have ever met" and provided specific examples to showcase why Jeff is so amazing, but for the sake of everyone's time, I wanted to keep the speech short and sweet.