Writing and Delivering a Funeral Speech

Funeral speeches, or eulogies, are speeches or written compositions that observe and honor the life of a person who has recently passed away. In most cases, they are given by either a family member or a close friend of the deceased person. Sometimes, however, what is called a living eulogy will be delivered. Living eulogies are usually expressed to the elderly or terminally ill while they are still alive. This way that person is able to hear and appreciate all of the sycophantic and loving words that are being expressed about them.

Composing a poignant and well-crafted eulogy is by no means an easy feat, especially considering the fact that the person writing the eulogy is most likely experiencing feelings of grief and sorrow over the recent loss of their loved one. If you find yourself faced with the difficult task of crafting a eulogy, then try reading this article as it will provide you with useful information about how to both write a eulogy and give the actual funeral speech.

The first thing that you should remember when writing a eulogy is that the intended purpose of this type of speech is not to give a biographical account of the deceased person’s life. Rather, the objective of a eulogy is to impart the writer’s own thoughts and remembrances of the person who has passed away. While it may be difficult to do, try to clear your mind and distance yourself from your sadness as best as you can before you sit down to compile the eulogy. Then, once you are in a calm state of mind, focus in on thoughts about how the person you are writing the eulogy about lived their life, jotting down all the personal notes and memories as soon as they spring to mind. Some great ways to resurface old memories are by looking through old photo albums and by talking with other people who also knew the person who passed away. These experiences can also be very therapeutic for the person writing the eulogy during their time of sorrow.

There is no one correct writing style when it comes to the composition of eulogies. Some important elements to incorporate, however, include personal stories, anecdotes, quotes, poetic materials, and deceased person’s greatest accomplishments. During the brainstorming process, the writer should ask themselves questions like, “What made this person most happy in life?” and “What will be remembered most about them?” An overall theme should also be developed during the brainstorming process. This theme should reflect the deceased person’s personality and life philosophies.

Once the brainstorming work has been done, the time has come to actually sit down the compile your thoughts and notes into an organized and well thought out composition. The final draft of the eulogy should be kept concise at 3 to 7 typed, double-spaced pages or 5 to 8 minutes reading time. The pages of a eulogy should be numbered and you should use 14 + size font so that it will be easier to read. A eulogy should consist of an introduction, a mid-section, and a conclusion. In the eulogy, like-minded content should be grouped together into paragraphs. For example, one section could include all of the highlights of the deceased person’s life. A eulogy does not have to be written entirely in your own words. If you find yourself at a loss for words, a nice touch is to add sayings, expressions, poems, or song lyrics that the departed person enjoyed.

After you have written and edited the final draft of the eulogy, you should prepare for how you are going to read it out loud. It is definitely a good idea to practice reading the eulogy out loud in front of friends and family members several times before the actual reading at the funeral. This will allow you to gain feedback as well as your composure because when talking about memories that have an emotional rawness to them it is easy to break down into tears.

Writing and delivering a funeral speech or eulogy is a highly emotional experience. Hopefully the advice given in this article has provided you with some helpful tips that can make the eulogy composition process an easier one.