101 Intriguing Persuasive Speech Topics and Ideas
Be it high school, college or university, one day you face it – a task to prepare and give a speech that will persuade your classmates. This is why you are here in search of directions and good persuasive speech topics. And this is where we can step in. We can do everything from giving you cool persuasive speech ideas (see below) to writing a full speech from scratch.
If you plan to write alone, choose a topic from the list we offer and just do it, as the ad says. But anyhow, look at the tips and samples we provide and create the best paper to impress the class.
What is Persuasive Speech?
Persuasive speech is a speech dedicated to some focused topic ideas where a student has a stand and persuades listeners to accept this stand as well. A student defends what he or she has to say and wants the audience to get along. Thus an excellent persuasive speech needs a good topic, right wording, structure, and some presentation skills. We can help with the first three points (and do it perfectly well), but the presentation part is yours.
We will highlight important points about writing a persuasive essay. First, trace the structure of speeches:
- Introduction and mentioning of the issue (thesis);
- Clearly mentioned ideas with enough evidence (paragraphs);
- Factual evidence mingles with reasoning and persuasive words;
- Summing up (conclusion).
You need to use factual evidence to show that your ideas are true. So it is reasonable that the audience will adopt these ideas as well. Use lots of facts to show how history repeats itself, and why we should understand it to avoid mistakes in the future. You can add various and bright situations so it will be hard not to agree with you.
Besides, if you are passionate about history, it will make your words earner and strong.
To give you a visible example, let us write down some kind of intro to a history speech:
History has long been known as the science about the past, but also as the lessons we should learn to avoid troubles. Many historical events reflect and repeat themselves in later times, and those who did not pay attention to historical lessons are bound to get into the same trouble again and again. There are many sayings that state how important and valuable history is, but it is better to see once than hear many times. So in this speech (or paper) I will show how history teaches us that it is a mistake to enter some country and fight its population in order to conquer it or appease it because in the last two centuries this venture never ended well for an attacker.
Next you can write about the WWII, about the Gulf War, about the United States troops in Afghanistan, or even the latest Iraqi campaign, or Syrian war. In every single case a foreign country never achieved its primary goal. So history teaches us that cooperation and negotiations are more practical. Do not forget about a passionate conclusion.
Speech Topic Types
Informative essays are easier in this regard because you do not have to persuade anyone. You just compile a set of objective information and share it with others. You do not have to take and stand and defend it.
Persuasive speech is different. You have to believe in what you say, you have to have a clear view of your own position and you have to pick strong arguments to defend it. Besides, you need to account for opposite beliefs and find ways to discard them.
For example, an informative paper about family will list types of families and provide some data on what kind of families is widespread or what is not (and maybe why it is so). While shaping a persuasive essay topic you have to decide what kinds of family you support (traditional family, single parent family, same-sex couples with or without kids, etc.) and say why your audience should have the same opinion. Already by looking at the offered topics you can tell that it will be a hard time for you, and maybe you personally oppose something mentioned. This is why persuasion is an art or like a foreign language that you need to learn. And the more different topics (and sometimes hard topics) you choose, the better your skills and the higher the confidence in debates.
How to Choose a Topic?
Choosing topics for a persuasive speech is not the same as choosing a paper topic because you have to present a speech. You should be ready to say things in front of your audience. So decide if you are willing to take up some embarrassing issue and defend it openly. In papers you write it privately and then a prof reads it also privately, but a speech is a public thing.
After you have decided upon this, let us look at some other points to consider.
Do you want to make people change their minds or do you want them to do something? If you need people to take some action, take a topic that asks people to do so. For example:
- Recycling;
- Reducing consumption;
- Donating something;
- Volunteering;
- Voting;
- Doing some community service;
All these points already prompt a topic or lead to further topics that you can invent.
Is the topic fresh or dead-beaten? People do not like to listen to things they already know well. It is possible that you have some killer ideas on how to change their minds or show them the topic from new points of view. But most probably they have already heard it all. So settle on something they do not know and or have not decided upon yet.
Emotions
It is always easier to make people listen and believe through emotions. Empathy, anger, shock, fun – they always work well.
Interest
We mean interest on your part and interest your audience has. It is OK to speak about things that you like and enjoy talking about. But people that listen to you should also enjoy it or at least have some interest in it. Otherwise nobody will listen at all. The latest and hottest topics usually do an interesting trick.
Connection
It is easier to listen and agree if you can relate to things that you hear. Something about a country, a state, a city or community, family or pets, food or education will always appeal to people.
Your knowledge of the issue
We put it last because if you are interested and want to make people aware of the topic, you will do your homework and research it well. Basically, if you know the topic well, people will also know it from A to Z. It should be a very special topic that you dig into regularly that other people do not know much about. But what are the chances that other people will take a deep interest in it as you do? Yep, chances are low.
And now – the promised list of good ideas to persuade people in. Choose your topic for a persuasive speech.
Best Persuasive Speech Topics List
Economy and Business
- People should buy more goods and food from local producers and small sellers.
- Marketing methods and ads need more outside control and standards to stick to.
- Never launch a business with a family member as a partner.
- Tax cuts benefit the richest people most.
- ‘Trickle-down’ economy model does not work as it should.
- Inequality is the greatest economic threat to modern America.
- American retirement and pensions system needs a change.
- Today it is easier to earn wealth for anyone that at any other time in history.
- Transnational companies should be limited in their influence on the national economy.
- Monopolies in any economic area are wrong.
Education
- Students with the highest GPAs should go to colleges free of charge.
- Elite colleges are not that elite in their selection of students, as the college admission scandal shows.
- STEM and Arts courses should be valued both, bot opposed to each other.
- Home-schooling is a good choice for those who do not like regular school.
- Homework loads are too big and useless today.
- Teachers need to pass skill tests once in a while just like students pass exams.
- It is alright to enroll teens as college students because they are great at sports?
- The college admission today is too messy and unfair towards students-to-be.
- Should gym class grades affect students’ overall GPA?
- Kids should be allowed to try and fail because it helps them grow and learn new things better.
- Use of tech and Internet does not really make classes and learning better.
- Do books really teach us to understand others and why they do what they do?
Arts
- Every kid should be taught to paint and play some instrument, at least some basics of it.
- Museums should be free of charge for school kids and students.
- Is modern art an art? How can we tell a hoax from a really cool artwork?
- Should some books and works of art be taught to teens later or not taught at all?
- Is rock music or rap an art? Why yes or not?
- Everyone should be taught to understand jazz and why it matters in music so much.
- Everyone can learn to love poetry (one should find the right poems).
- Are movies based on comic books better or worse than comic books themselves?
- Should movies be studied in class instead of books?
Animals and Environment
- Exotic animals should not be pets as they belong to the wild nature.
- Climate change is boosted by humans and we need to take actions to prevent it.
- Climate change is a normal process that comes after the Ice Age that began in the Middle Ages.
- Should countries where disappearing animals live punish poachers by the death penalty?
- Should we crowdfund and try and save moose from armies of ticks if the state or donor agencies are not willing to give funds?
- Should we stop using all single-use items altogether (like diapers, plates, cups, straws, bags, etc.)?
- What is more environment-friendly – to wash dishes by hand or to use a dishwasher?
- Fossil fuels should be gradually replaced by eco-friendly ones.
- Production of electricity for ‘clean life’ in some regions does more harm to the environment than burning coals and gas.
- Should we combat the poisonous frogs and insects that come to live by local and garden ponds?
- Puppy mills and dog fights organizers should be punished severely like drug dealers.
Government and Policy
- Voting should be made compulsory (like tax paying).
- Zoning laws need to be changed into more down-to-earth ones.
- Should the government have more control over social media like Facebook or Twitter?
- Does the USA need one more state?
- Should the US get all its military people from overseas back home?
- Politicians should not take money from business lobbyists.
- The voting system of the US needs a fix or a full overhaul.
- Why is policy today all about reducing costs and not about making people’s lives better?
- Is democracy the best mode of governing for every country in the world?
- Should voters pass some kind of test to check their ability to choose rationally?
Health
- Do we need a universal healthcare system funded by our taxes?
- Teens should have free psychology help without asking their parents.
- School students need to have relationships than just ‘say no to it’ policy.
- Fast food can do as much harm to your health as drugs or smoking.
- Marathons are not health-boosting exercise, they are hard challenges.
- Gym alone cannot help combat obesity in people.
- Sometimes overweight people cannot lose weight on diet or sports alone, they need serious medical treatment.
- Some diets are ridiculous and unhealthy and should be avoided.
- Drugs costs should be reduced significantly.
- Insulin should be made free to anyone dependent on it despite their income.
Sports
- Why should young athletes be paid for playing in school or varsity teams?
- Should drug test be made obligatory for all athletes and sportspeople, no matter where and when they play?
- Why do schools spend so much on their football or baseball teams but not on feeding students or hiring more teachers?
- Should schools focus less on sports on its grounds and more on formal education?
- Football stars are paid ridiculously big salaries for completely senseless activity.
- Aggression in sports should not be promoted or put up with.
- Is sport about ‘fair game’ or about winning at any cost?
- Why do we still have separate male and female chess championships?
- Should alpinism be made an Olympic kind of sports?
- Sports involving animals should be banned.
Workplace
- Is it true that if you do for a living a thing you really like it does not count as work?
- Women should be paid the same wages as men for the same positions and jobs.
- We need more labor unions and actions for the rights of workers.
- Teambuilding and office perks: do they make people work better?
- Remote work as the future of employment.
- Flexible schedules should be provided to both parents in a family with kids.
- Is it necessary to have an MBA to become a good manager?
- It is possible to grow the next leader within the organization itself.
- Are high salaries of the bonus of CEOs justified by their work?
- Financial sector creates a threat to the economy by engaging in subprime loans and hedge funds.
Technologies
- Cell phones changed the way we see friendship, communication and privacy.
- Is it right for small kids to use gadgets like smartphones or tablets?
- Is telemedicine good thing or bad?
- It is real to use only solar or wind energy now that big accumulators for storing energy have been built?
- Will robots steal human jobs?
- Is the current Net Neutrality law fine or should it be changed?
- Are there video games that help kids learn and develop thinking skills?
- Is it normal for parents to spy after their kids over the phone?
- Can we survive without Facebook or similar media now that we have adopted it as part of our lives?
- Instead of building self-driving cars we should be developing public transport networks.
Ethics
- Is hunting a kind of sport and is it ethical?
- Is it normal to show crimes on TV?
- Is it ethical to ask female politicians questions about family and kids while male politicians are not asked about it?
- Is fur ethical under any possible condition?
- How can assisted suicide be ethically explained by doctors?
- Is it ethical to protest against vaccination and so to put the whole humanity at the threat of epidemics?
- What is more ethical: testing of drugs in animals or on humans (criminals, volunteers, etc.)?
- Is it ethical to celebrate Columbus Day when it means ousting of indigenous people from their native lands?
- Should all sacred places of an indigenous population be exempted from development, mining, water use, and so on?
- Is it ethical for men to sue against affirmative action when most top jobs belong to men and not to women?
