In one line: A speech is written to be heard — spoken aloud to a crowd. That's why the repetition, rhythm and ‘we’ are all built for the ear.
Ever noticed how a captain's team talk, or a coach's pep speech, gets a room fired up?
“We fight for each other. We win for each other. Now let's go.”
Read silently it's plain — but spoken to a crowd it lands. A speech is written for that moment.
What to listen for
Anaphora
Repeating line-openings (‘We fight… We win…’) builds rhythm and force.
Tricolon (rule of 3)
Three in a row feel complete: ‘of, by, for the people.’
Inclusive ‘we’
Unites speaker and crowd into one team.
Questions & contrast
Rhetorical questions pull the crowd in; antithesis sharpens the point.
Repetition · threes · ‘we’ · questions · contrast
The key move: Hear it. Don't just say ‘repetition’ — say what the sound does: it builds to a climax and fires up the listening crowd.
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Why it matters in the exam: A Paper 1 speech asks how the speaker persuades or unites the audience. Analyse the sound and rhythm, linked to the crowd.
![The top of a page on ‘The Lectern’, a speeches website: a dark site bar; the headline ‘We are not finished’; the speaker line ‘Maya Torres, chair of the Port Halden Rovers Supporters’ Trust’; an italic line saying the speech was delivered on the pitch at Harbour Road at half-time in the first match at the rebuilt ground, to about 3,000 supporters; a wide photograph of a full stand and a pitch under floodlights at night; then the transcript, opening ‘We built this. We believed in it when no one else did. And we are not finished — not today, not ever.’, with audience cues such as ‘[cheering]’ and ‘[booing]’ in square brackets, fading out at the foot of the clipping.](/_next/image?url=https%3A%2F%2Fjgcpvdmsisyavmczgjhu.supabase.co%2Fstorage%2Fv1%2Fobject%2Fpublic%2Fess_media%2Fexam-vault%2Fenga%2F2-1-5%2F2.1.5-rovers-speech-clip-f3b871f4e7805de9.jpg&w=3840&q=75)
Analyse how the opening of this speech rallies its audience.
Model answer plan
See the mark-by-mark plan — for / against / judgement, with marking guidance — in study mode.
Watch out: Don't just name ‘repetition’ and stop. Say what the sound does to the listener — and track how the speech builds to a climax.