Document Type
Presentation
Publication Date
1989
Abstract
The Sprit of Reform is a speech written by Dr. Robert Kendall impersonating Carl Schurz in 1884. Schurz emigrated to the U.S. from Germany in 1852, served as a Civil War general, advised Abraham Lincoln and five other U.S. presidents, and as U.S. Secretary of the Interior, Ambassador to Spain, and as a U.S. Senator. He was a well-known journalist.
Impersonation speaking was developed by Dr. Robert Kendall who taught in the Communication Studies Department at St. Cloud State University between 1971 and 1992. Dr. Kendall described impersonation speaking in this way: "Each student chooses an historical character, does independent research on that person, write a speech, locating it in a particular year of that person's adult life, making it interesting and relevant to a [contemporary] audience, assumes that character through costume, attitude, worldview, and mannerisms, and delivers the speech to an open-invitation public."
Recommended Citation
Kendall, Robert D., "The Sprit of Reform and Introductory Comments" (1989). Communication Studies Faculty Publications. 7.
https://repository.stcloudstate.edu/cmst_facpubs/7
Comments
This digital copy includes hand-written introductory comments by Dr. Kendall and pencilled revisions to the script prior to presentation.