Superman is better than Batman

·  My topic is the humanising or unmasking of the Batman and that there’s a Batman in all of us.

·  Batman is accessible, whether it be sharing a beer at the pub or dropping by Commissioner Gordon’s office to use the ‘red phone’ to chat to the Dark Knight about a crim who needs a good ‘bif’, ‘kapow’ or ‘wallop’. Batman is an emotional character and like you and me he is dealing with a lot of stuff. This complexity in character originates from a traumatic childhood event.

·  Personally, I would feel incredibly sympathetic toward anyone who had to stand there as a child completely defenceless to prevent the cruel gunning down of ones parents. Don’t you just want to reach out and hug Batman in his loneliness? Rather than let this tragic life changing event affect his psyche Bruce Wayne used this as a motivation to mould himself into a self made avenger or home grown hero known as Batman. That is to say that he tirelessly trained his mind and body to actually become the Dark Knight. I’m sure that if you hit the gym and enrol in a university course in criminology you too could be the next Batman or Batwoman. Where did Superman’s powers originate from? On his way to earth he simply had to draw his energy from the sun as he passed by! I mean, come on! Does that actually happen? He didn’t have to earn a thing!

·  Batman is a reluctant and humble hero, a ‘dark knight’ not a ‘white knight’, who does not seek recognition. He is there for when ever we may need him, summoned by the bat signal, but in the recent movie, ‘Superman Returns’, we learn that Superman has deserted earth for a number of years after hearing reports that his home planet of Krypton may not have been destroyed after all, and in his absence his former lover, Lois Lane, writes a Pulitzer Prize winning article titled, “Why the World Doesn’t Need Superman”. Sold out by Lois Lane herself!

·  A wise man once said: “It’s not who I am underneath, but what I do that defines me.” (Batman from ‘Batman Begins’). Do you know who that wise man was? And with these words of wisdom it’s easy to understand why he is such an inspiration to me, you and millions of others around the world.

What makes this speech work?

·  Formal introduction by clearly stating the topic

·  Use of humour to make the audience laugh

·  Language that the audience can relate to such as “stuff” and “crim”. Colourful language such as “bif” and “kapow” make for interesting sound effects

·  Language that is sophisticated such as “criminology” and “humanising” and language that is associated with the topic such as “Krypton” & “Bat Signal”

·  Unifying pronouns such as “we” and “you” to unite the audience behind the speakers cause

·  Knowledge of the topic is extensive or the speaker knows what he is talking about. References to Batman’s childhood, specific references to movies featuring Batman and Superman. Also, the speaker has a broad knowledge of the opposition argument involving Superman in order to rebut opposing ideas

·  Use of evidence such as the article written by Lois Lane and quotations from Batman himself

·  The use of several rhetorical questions that involve the audience

·  Other features that have not been utilised would be shorter sentences and repetition.

What to remember

·  NOTHING WORKS IN ISOLATION OR BY ITSELF