Spellbinding And Crooning Analysis

The history of speech is long and diverse, changing with the technology available. In Huub Wijfjes article Spellbinding and Crooning: Sound Amplification, Radio, and Political Rhetoric in International Comparative Perspective, 1900-1945, the author discusses two types of speech. Spellbinding, which required determined gestures and a thunder-like voice, was used primarily before microphones (150). With the introduction of the microphone came the crooning style of speech, which had a quieter calmness to it. Each have their place and each are media for bringing about different responses.
In the case of spellbinding, gestures such as clenched fists and stamping feet convey specific emotion. Visual and sometimes physical contact were just as important as verbal contact because before the microphone it might have been the only way for a large audience
Crooning is equally inspiring, but in a different way.
Wifjfes gives the examples of Franklin D Roosevelt’s Fireside Chats as perfect representations of crooning. In the midst of the worst economic crisis America had ever seen, Roosevelt spoke to the nation as if he were speaking to his brother or best friend. He used simple words and played the comforting sounds of a crackling fire in the background. He used a quiet voice and reassured the nation that it was united and because of that, they would recover.
These tactics worked, and families across the country listened to Roosevelt’s advice and were comforted by his words.
Spellbinding and crooning are both as relevant today as they were when Roosevelt was addressing the nation with his Fireside Chats, but both are used in specific circumstances. Spellbinding lights a metaphorical fire in the heart of the listener, often inspiring action. Crooning reassures, calms and reminds the listener of a quieter strength, inspiring