TRANSITION STATEMENT: I would now like to begin discussing my first main topic, Who is Saint Patrick?

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1 Erin Bohan COM100 2:00 pm Professor Sharman Brown March 23, 2012 Informative Speech Outline I. Introduction A. Opening Statements 1. I m sure most of you are aware that last Saturday was Saint Patrick s Day. 2. Whether you attended a parade or not, I m sure you knew there were celebrations going on everywhere. 3. But why? B. Purpose 1. Today, I would like to inform you of what exactly makes up Saint Patrick s Day and how it all began. C. Central Idea 1. When thinking of this holiday, most people picture the color green and the word Irish, but there is a lot of history that has made Saint Patrick s Day what it is today and unfortunately, many people don t know much about it. D. Main Points: In my speech titled, The True Saint Patrick s Day 1. I will first discuss who Saint Patrick was and where he was from 2. I will then explain why the Irish culture celebrates him 3. Next, I will give a brief history of the New York City St. Patrick s Day Parade 4. And lastly, I will discuss some symbols and traditions associated with this holiday E. Sources 1. History.com 2. National Geographic- Daily News: John Roach 3. Religionfacts.com TRANSITION STATEMENT: I would now like to begin discussing my first main topic, Who is Saint Patrick? *Speaking Aid Here: II. Body A. The Life of Saint Patrick, the Patron Saint of Ireland, is very interesting considering he was born neither Irish nor Christian 1. Saint Patrick was born in Britain around 390 AD. He lived in a townhouse and his family had several slaves. a. His family was Christian but according to Roach from National Geographic, Patrick showed no interest in Christianity as a young boy 2. At age 16, his life changed when he was taken prisoner by a group of Irish raiders attacking his family s estate

2 a. He was taken to Ireland and held captive for six years working as a shepherd (1) His name was not Patrick. He was from a Patrician Roman family so the raiders referred to him as the Patrician later leading to Patrick b. Being alone and frightened, here Patrick turned to religion for the first time 3. Patrick heard a voice in his dreams that told him it was time to escape Ireland a. He got on a pirate ship to Britain b. Once there, more voices told him to return to Ireland as a missionary 4. Patrick studied religion for 15 years in Britain and was ordained a priest a. He went to Ireland to teach the Irish Pagans about Christianity b. History.com explains that he used bonfires when telling stories and incorporated the sun, a powerful Irish symbol, into the cross, making the Celtic Cross c. Many believe he drove the snakes out of Ireland (1) There are and never were any snakes in Ireland. This is a metaphor because snakes biblically represent evil. Ridding Ireland of paganism was his ridding of the snakes Internal Transition Statement: Moving on from the history of Patrick, now I will discuss why the Irish culture celebrates him and has given him a holiday B. Why the Irish celebrate Saint Patrick 1. The Christian religion gives a feast day to every saint on the day of their death a. Patrick died on March 17, 461 AD 2. Ireland made this day a holy day of obligation and went to mass a. Pubs and businesses were closed b. In an interview on bigthink.com, Malachy McCourt, a famous Irish author, explained that large celebrations began in the U.S. and slowly Ireland changed their celebration habits, as well Internal Transition Statement: Speaking of American celebrations, I will now discuss the largest and longest running parade in the world C. The New York City Saint Patrick s Day Parade 1. The parade was first held on March 17, 1762 a. It was organized and consisted of homesick Irish soldiers of the British military serving in American colonies in New York b. At this time, the color Green represented Ireland and was forbid to be worn in Ireland by the British (1) Parade marchers used this day to express their culture with Irish songs, bagpipes, and the color green

3 2. Explained by nycstpatricksparade.org, the parade is a True Marchers parade a. There are to be no floats or vehicles in the parade- past, present, or future 3. To this day, it is led by the Irish Infantry National Guard a. Followed by Irish societies of New York 4. High schools, Universities and Colleges, Bagpipers, Irish dancers, Irish Societies, Emerald Societies, Knights of Columbus, and every type of civil job including Police, Firefighters, Correction Officers, Army, Navy, Coast Guard, etc. march Internal Transition Statement: Now that I have elaborated on the New York City parade, I will now discuss some traditions and symbols of Saint Patrick s Day D. Traditions and Symbols 1. Shamrock a. Religionfacts.com explains that Saint Patrick used the 3 cloves of a shamrock to represent each component of the Christian Holy Trinity (1) Father (2) Son (3) Holy Spirit 2. Irish music a. When Ireland was taken over by the British, Britain forbid Ireland to speak their native language, Gaelic b. The Irish used their music to communicate c. Bagpipes (1) Weren t introduced into Irish culture until the 1500s (2) Saint Patrick never blew one (3) Many Irish societies in America used them to call attention during their indoor meetings 3. Corned Beef and Cabbage a. Cabbage was always eaten in Ireland b. Corned beef not so much c. Irish bacon was the meat of choice in Ireland, but when Irish immigrated to America with very little change in their pocket, they made the switch to cheaper Corned beef d. They were introduced to this alternative by their friendly Jewish neighbors 4. Pinch Them If They re Not Wearing Green a. A tradition that is still certainly alive but now as well known b. Invented in America in the 1700s c. A story was told in American classrooms that a Leprechaun would come pinch the children if they did not show their Irish pride and wear green on Saint Patrick s Day TRANSITION STATEMENT: Now that I have covered all of my main topics, I

4 would like to conclude my speech III. Conclusion A. Review of Main Points 1. Saint Patrick, a Britain born pagan, made quite and impact on the Irish culture a. His missionary ways have made Ireland the Christian country and culture that it is today, and for that he should certainly be celebrated 2. Although the holiday has developed into something much more extravagant than it used to be, Saint Patrick has been celebrated by the Irish for many centuries and will continue for countless years to come 3. The New York City parade is just one example of how strong the Irish culture is in the United States a. Although many non-irish attend and enjoy the parade, the culture that this holiday is associated with will never be ignored 4. There are countless traditions associated with Saint Patrick s Day, shamrocks and corned beef just to name a few B. Why I chose this topic 1. I chose this topic because not only am I Irish, but I was born on March 17, I have celebrated this holiday my whole life and have attended the New York City parade every year since I was about eight 3. Although I have been following such traditions for basically my whole life, I realized I knew an embarrassingly little amount of information about the history of this holiday C. Memorable Ending 1. I hope that you have learned a bit more about this festive holiday like I have 2. Maybe next year, you will view Saint Patrick s Day in a different way 3. I would like to end with a famous Saint Patrick s Day quote that my grandmother used to write on my birthday card every year: May your blessings outnumber The shamrocks that grow, And may trouble avoid you Wherever you go.

5 Bibliography Beirne, Hilary. "Parade History (new)." Document Moved Web. 19 Mar < McCourt, Malachy. "Big Think." The Hypocrisy of St. Patrick's Day. 16 Mar Web. 19 Mar < Roach, John. "St. Patrick's Day 2011: Facts, Myths, and Traditions." National Geographic. National Geographic Society, 16 Mar Web. 19 Mar < march-17-facts-ireland-irish-nation/>. "St. Patrick's Day." ReligionFacts.com Web. 19 Mar < "Who Was St. Patrick?" History.com. A&E Television Networks. Web. 19 Mar <