How to Find a Speech
Speech Anthologies
Print and online anthologies offer the full text of speeches. Some of these sources include background information on the speech, speaker, or time period. Browse around; you never know where you'll find an interesting speech. Titles marked with an [X] are reference books, and are available for use in the Library only.
Anthologies in Books
Anthologies on the Web
Other Speech Books and Recordings in the Library
Speeches in Magazines and Journals
Anthologies in Books
Great Speeches in History Series Various call numbers.
This series of books has speeches on Women's Rights (HQ1236.W6526 2002), Human Rights (JC571.H686 2002), The Founding of America (E187.F73 2002) and the Great Depression (E806.G825 2002), as well as other titles.
In Our Own Words
Speeches of the American 20th century.
Lend Me Your Ears: Great Speeches in History [X] PN6122.L4 1997
Great speeches of the Western world.
Lift Every Voice: African American Oratory [X] E185.18.L54 1998
African-American speakers from 1787-1900.
Representative American Speeches
Speeches dating back to the 1930s in one volume per year, plus a 1937-1997 cumulation in reference.
Speaking for Our Lives: Historic Speeches and Rhetoric for Gay and Lesbian Rights
Speeches of the American Presidents [X] J81.4.S64 2001
Voices of Multicultural America: Notable Speeches Delivered by African, Asian, Hispanic, and Native Americans, 1790-1995 [X] PS663.M55 V64 1996
Speeches and background, including Leonard Peltier, Arthur Ashe, and more.
Anthologies on the Web
The American Presidency Project
Click on Presidential Rhetoric for speeches and documents.
Douglass - Archives of American Public Address
Not just the speeches of Frederick Douglass, but speakers from many periods in American History.
Famous Trials
Information and transcripts from famous trials, including important American cases such as Sacco and Vanzetti, the Scopes "Monkey" Trial, O.J. Simpson, and many more. Some parts of trial transcript can make acceptable speeches. Check with your professor before using this site.
Gifts of Speech
Dedicated to speeches delivered by influential women. Courtney Love and Mother Theresa, in one place.
History and Politics Out Loud
A searchable archive of politically significant audio materials. Both audio files and transcripts are available.
Online Speech Bank
Public speeches, sermons, legal proceedings, lectures, debates and interviews in text and audio files.
University of Iowa: Speeches and Speechmakers
A collection of websites with speeches from FDR, the House of Commons, Malcolm X, and the Pope.
Other Speech Books and Recordings in the Library
There are hundreds of books of speeches at the Library. Titles such as The Art of the Impossible, a collection of speeches by Czech President and playwright Vaclav Havel, can be useful for finding a great speech. Try a keyword or subject search for the word "speeches," or a more complex search like "speeches and women" (don't actually type in the parentheses). In the Media Collection, you can also find collections of recorded speeches on video:
- Great Speeches, volumes I-IV (V 693 A-D)
- Great Speeches of the 20th Century, volumes I-IV and supplement [CD] PN6161.G74 1991
The Library Catalog includes Emerson College Library's holdings for books, journals and audiovisual materials. Please note that the catalog is shared with 8 other members of the Fenway Libraries Online (FLO) consortium, which means you can see items from these libraries in your search results. If you would like to borrow an item from one of these libraries, you can either go to the library yourself and check the book out with your Emerson ID card, or you can fill out an online request form and have it delivered to the Emerson College Library for you.
Speeches in Magazines and Journals
Some magazines and journals also reprint the text of speeches. Use print and online indexes to locate articles. The most complete magazine including text of speeches is Vital Speeches of the Day, which has it own index (1934-1984) in the Periodicals Collection.
Reader's Guide Retrospective
Citation index of the most popular general-interest periodicals published in the United States from 1890 through 1982. Includes Vital Speeches of the Day.
Academic Search Premier
Full-text of Vital Speeches of the Day, from 1934 to the present. To limit the search by journal, type VITAL SPEECHES in the PUBLICATION box.
Expanded Academic ASAP
Full-text of Vital Speeches of the Day. To limit the search by journal, type VITAL SPEECHES in the LIMIT…TO THE FOLLOWING JOURNAL(S) box.
Speech Index and Speech Index Supplement [X] PN6121.S98 1966 and 1980
These two volumes in the reference collection index a wide variety of books, magazines, journals, government documents, and congressional hearings, from the earliest times through 1980. Above is an example of an entry from Speech Index. Speeches are indexed by subject and by speaker. Under the topic "Communism" we find several speeches, including these by John Foster Dulles. The first speech is called "Freedom or despotism?" If you turn to the front of the book, you see that the code BA indicates Baird, Albert Craig, the compiler for the series Representative American Speeches, mentioned above. With that information, you can look up the book in the catalog to get the call number. This speech is on page 25 of the 1956-57 volume.
