Introduction to Debate: Finding your way through Debate

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Introduction to Debate Finding your way through
Debate

• A guide to successful argumentation

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Types of Debate

• Value Debates (about the priority of different
  values)
• Policy Debates (whether or not to take a
  particular action)
• Fact Debates (proving a fact such as that UFOs
  exist)
• Parliamentary Debates (based on a political
  premise with
• persuasive speeches)
• Panel Debates (moderator asks questions of
  several political
• figures)
• 6. Public Forum Debates (teams debate
  controversial topics
• from newspaper headlines)

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Lincoln-Douglas Debate
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History of the Lincoln-Douglas Debate

• In 1859, Senator Stephen A. Douglas was up for
  re-election to his Illinois Senate seat.
• His opponent was Abraham Lincoln.
• During the campaign, the two men faced off in
  seven debates in different Congressional
  Districts (ones that Douglas had not yet
  visited).

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Format of the original Lincoln-Douglas Debates

• Opening statement (1 hour) This alternated with
  each debate.
• Rebuttal statement (1 ½ hours)
• First speaker rebuttal of second speaker (30
  min.)

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Modern format of Lincoln-Douglas Debates

• Affirmative position debater presents
  constructive debate points (6 minutes)
• Negative position debater cross-examination
  affirmative points (3 minutes)
• Negative position presents constructive debate
  points (7 minutes)
• Affirmative position cross-examines negative
  points (3 minutes)
• Affirmative position offers first rebuttal (4
  minutes)
• Negative position offers first rebuttal (6
  minutes)
• Affirmative position offers second rebuttal (3
  minutes)

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Constructing an argument

• RESOLVED Student parking privileges should be
  contingent on academic performance.

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Your job

• Write down one argument for each side of the
  issue.
• You MUST supply a reason (evidence) WHY you think
  these arguments are true.

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Group Task

• Together, determine what your three main
  arguments are and WHY you believe these arguments
  are true.
• Everyone records your groups arguments on the
  handout.
• Choose a moderator to present your groups
  arguments.

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Final Questions

• Why is each argument important?
• How does each argument explicitly support your
  side?
• How does it affect people?

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Structure of an argument

• Claim a statement of possible truth
• Warrant gives support for the argument as to why
  it is true
• Analytical warrant logical reasons for the truth
• Empirical warrant statistics and examples from
  the real world
• Psychological warrants explains how people act
  in certain situations backed up with
  psychological studies
• Impact importance of the argument in terms of
  how it proves claim true or how the argument
  affects people

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What is a value?

• A principle, standard, or quality considered
  worthwhile or desirable

What are some principles that most people value?
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What is a statement of value?

• It is more about what ought to be true than what
  is actually true.
• They tend to be more subjective as different
  people/cultures value different things.
• They tend to reference larger metaphysical
  concepts such as justice and morality.

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What is the difference between a statement of
value and one of fact?

• To affirm a statement of fact, you would have to
  make an absolute statement about the truth of the
  statement, with NO exceptions.
• To affirm a statement of value, you show that the
  statement is true as a matter of principal,
  with small exceptions that do not invalidate the
  overall claim.

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• Resolved In a Democratic society, felons ought
  to retain the right to vote.

What do we need to logically prove or know to
affirm or negate this resolution?
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First, analyze the text

1. Understand the definitions of words in the
   resolution.
2. Understand the type of resolution at hand.
3. Understand the context, if any, provided by the
   resolution.
4. Understand the actor and action of the
   resolution.
5. Recognize the evaluative term of the resolution.

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1. Define key words

• Resolved In a Democratic society, felons ought
  to retain the right to vote.

Democratic
Society
Felons
Retain
Right
Vote
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2. Identify the type of resolution

• Type 1
• COMPARATIVE (x is more desirable than y)
• Requires you to examine both sides and show why
  one ought to preference one thing as opposed to
  another thing.

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2. Identify the type of resolution

• Type 2
• ABSOLUTE (x action is just)
• Requires you to prove that the action or idea
  being put forward is correct.

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2. Identify the type of resolution

• Type 3
• SUPERLATIVE (x is the best form of government)
• Requires you to defend one notion as being
  preferable to all other options. You must focus
  on that advantages of the notion and why the
  possible harms are not that important.

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2. Type of Resolution

• Resolved In a Democratic society, felons ought
  to retain the right to vote.

What type of resolution is this?
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3. What is the context?

• Look for clauses that show the context of the
  value statement. Ask these questions
• Does the resolution provide a specific context?
• How do these contexts clarify the conflict of the
  resolution?
• How do these contexts suggest burdens for what
  the affirmative or negative debater has to prove?

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3. Contexts

• Resolved In a Democratic society, felons ought
  to retain the right to vote.

What is the context statement in this resolution?
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4. Who is the actor? What is the action?

• The actor is the agent/person/entity that will
  presumably carry out the action in the
  affirmative world. (i.e. a governement, the
  individual, society, the international community,
  etc.)
• The action is what the actor of the resolution
  will do in the affirmative world.

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4. Actor/Action

• Resolved In a Democratic society, felons ought
  to retain the right to vote.

Who is the actor? What is the action?
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5. What is the evaluative term or phrase?

• Evaluative terms pose the moral, legal, or
  ethical question of the resolution. For example
• It is morally permissible to kill one innocent
  person to save the lives of more innocent people.
  
• In the United States, jury nullification is a
  legitimate check on government.
• International leaders ought to cancel the debt of
  highly indebted poor countries.
• Capitalism is the most just form of economic
  system.

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5. Evaluative Term

• Resolved In a Democratic society, felons ought
  to retain the right to vote.

What is the evaluative term?
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Final Question

• Resolved In a Democratic society, felons ought
  to retain the right to vote.

What do we need to logically prove or know to
affirm or negate this resolution?
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Resolution Evaluation

• These are the resolutions for our first team
  debate
• Public high school students in the United States
  ought not be required to pass standardized exit
  exams to graduate.
• A just society ought not to use the death penalty
  for a form of punishment.
• Juveniles charged with violent crimes should be
  tried and punished as adults.
• In matters of collecting military intelligence,
  the ends justify the means.
• Military conscription is unjust in the United
  States.

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Resolution Evaluation

• Structure of the first debate
• Affirmative definition of terms and first
  argument
• Negative definition of terms and first argument
• Affirmative rebuttal and second argument
• Negative rebuttal and second argument
• Affirmative rebuttal and third argument
• Negative rebuttal and third argument
• Affirmative summary and closing statement
• Negative summary and closing statement
• 3 minutes max for each stage of the debate.