Matt_11_I

Overall, I think I learned a thing or two from this book. Though, as Sarah said earlier, I think we may have learned a little more from each other in class. No offense to Simmons, but I doubt that I will refer to this as being among my favorites. But it was a little more enjoyable than your average textbook. In this last chapter, I'd say the part that stuck out for me was where Simmons acknowledges that storytelling is a two-way street with the audience.

Matt_10_I

The part that caught my attention (as well as many who read this chapter I'm sure) in this chapter was the part that Simmons talks about Hitler. It kind of took me off-guard. I didn't really expect for Hitler to be addressed in this book. However, it does make a lot of sense. He obviously would've had to been a gifted storyteller to convince an entire country to be okay with what he did. Simmons got her hands dirty in this chapter, and it really proved her point.

Matt_9_I

I, too, found the section in this chapter discussing children's stories to be interesting. I also agree that it takes a very talented person to create a good children's story. I can't help but think of Pixar, Dreamworks, Blue Sky, Sony Imageworks, and other animation studios that have managed to not only make stories that are effective for children, but for adults as well. I've always been impressed by films are able to do this. They are admittedly some of my favorite movies.

Matt_8_I

I also thought the central theme of "listening" was interesting in this chapter. As far as listening being "waiting for your turn to talk", this reminded me a lot of my family. Growing up with three siblings, it seemed like it was a constant competition to see who could talk the most and get the most attention. Admittedly, there are even times now that we revert to some of our old habits, including our "listening" skills of waiting for our turn to talk.

Matt_7_Q

The author really grabbed my attention when she was talking about bringing out the good and not focusing on the evil. And, in somewhat of a reply to previous posts, I can't help but wonder, do you think that it would really be more effective to focus on the positive rather than point out the negative. Using the "Incovenient Truth" documentary, for example- would there have been as much hoopla about it if it had focused on things that are being done to save the environment? Or would people not even have given it the time of day (or a second thought)?

Matt_5_I

The story about Tipper Gore and the homeless woman was one of the highlights for me in chapter five. The author tells us how this story could cause even a "radical conservative" to hear her story. In earlier chapters we've talked about how much more effective an argument can be with a story behind it. In this case, shifting the stereotype of lazy homeless people is much more convincing with a story than just mere fact.

Matt_4_I

I know this has already been mentioned but I totally agreed with the importance of nonverbal communication. Nonverbals can really help or hurt the understanding of your audience when telling a story. For instance, if you were to tell someone they're doing a great job but your facial expressions and actions made it seem like you were totally ticked-off, it would really confuse them. It's actually kind of fun to try sometimes just to see peoples reactions.

Matt_3_I

I thought the Sufi teaching story about good 'ol Nasrudin was pretty great. It reminded me of a time that I forgot about a speech I was supposed to give for COMM 210 about an hour before class. If only I could have pulled off the "Who knows of which I speak?" routine. As for the rest of the chapter, I may not agree with Simmons a great deal of the time, but I do believe that stories have much more of an impact than just throwing facts at people. For instance, you could tell someone that drinking and driving is bad and that countless people are affected by it every year. However, if they are able to hear or see a story about someone who had their life ruined by drunk driving, they are much more likely to accept the advice.