Neurosis in Speaking

“A man cannot speak but he judges himself. With his will, or against his will, he draws his portrait to the eye of his companions by every word. Every opinion reacts on him who utters it. …”

—Emerson: “Essay on Compensation”

Aristotle believed the speaker must establish the idea that he is a person of practical wisdom, of intelligence; that he possesses strong moral character in the sense that he is concerned with the welfare of the audience; and that he is a person of good-will and friendliness.

To speak with meaningful purpose, the speaker, the listener, and the thing or object referred to must contain some mutual and basic agreement and understanding. The speaker, to talk productively, has to define his terms, know what he is talking about, and use words as indicators or references of his basic content of thought and feeling—otherwise he will sound like a “parrot” emitting many words and noises with very little thought or communicative meaning. The speaker must assume responsibility for what he is saying, speak to and not down to his listeners, and finally have respect for and be wholeheartedly open to criticism and evaluative opinions of his comments. For a message to be meaningful, there should be, finally, a similarity not so much in the facts for themselves, but in basic holistic content. For instance, we may differ about which candidates should be elected to our government, and how it should be run, however we as a majority basically agree as to its principles of freedom and democracy.

In order to understand the speaker, it is essential that we comprehend his personality. What are some basic differences, for instance, in defining the so-called “normal or healthy speaker” from the “neurotic speaker”? The healthy speaker has a firm inner feeling of strength and freedom, security and self-confidence, in most situations—including that of speaking. He usually experiences his voice as his own and as originating from within himself. He feels a choice of his own words o