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Argumentation and Debate
Argumentation and Debate
DEBATE
- came from the LATIN word ‘dis’ which means reversal and ‘battere’ meaning to fight
- an oral contest or controversy on one definite question known as PROPOSITION
between the opposing speakers with one or more members on the affirmative and
negative side
- it has rules and does not just occur anywhere
- -done in a face to face interaction
ARGUMENTATION
- act of influencing the beliefs and actions of men through reasoning
- giving reasoned opinion or doxa (Greek)
- can be done in a spoken or written form
Elements of Debate
1. PROPOSITIONS
- A judgment expressed in a declarative statement. In a debate it appears as an
affirmative statement of the question to be resolved.
- Question: Should UNCW have a football team?
- Proposition: Resolved: UNCW should have a football team.
Types of Propositions
- Proposition of Fact: that a fact is/is not true or that an event did/did not take place
- Proposition of Value: makes an evaluation or judgment about an issue or event based on
criteria
- Proposition of Policy: declares that a certain action should or should not be taken
2. ISSUES
- Issues: a conclusion that must be proven in order to establish that a proposition be
adopted
- Issues arise when there is an actual or anticipated clash between two or more claims
- Issues can arise around facts, values or policies
3. ARGUMENTS
- An assertion that implies and demonstrates the result of reasoning or proof.
- Reasoning
- Evidence- matters of fact or opinion offered as support or proof of assertions advanced
in the debate
Types of Evidence
- “Definitions- are not just meanings of words we look up in dictionaries. Definitions are
kinds of arguments, and they have serious consequences for the direction as well as the
destination of any practical reasoning.
Types of Definitions
- Formal
- Common Usage
- Authority
- Example
- Operational
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ARGUMENTATION AND DEBATE
- Functional
- Negation
- Comparison/Contrast
4. ANALYSIS
- Identifying and arguing the major issues of the debate, with points also considered for
effectiveness of cross-examination.
5. REASONING
- Effectively creating clash by arguing and presenting one side of the debate, extending an
argument, turning the opponent's arguments against them, exposing faulty logic and
extending an argument based on a major item of evidence.
6. EVIDENCE
- Quality of sources, applying the evidence to a specific argument, using evidence to
support major arguments, showing how well the evidence is understood.
7. ORGANIZATION
- Structure of the spoken presentation. For example, the introduction, the arguments and
summary. How the tone followed the flow of the debate. Was the presentation coherent
and how effectively was time utilized.
8. REFUTATION
- Effectively weakening the opponent's arguments, creating clash and addressing all
arguments in the debate.
HISTORY OF DEBATE
o Protagoras of Abdera
The history of debate can be traced from the Ancient Greece where
Protagoras lived.
He known as a Sophist and the inventor of Fallacies [fallo – ‘I deceive’]
He is regarded as the ‘Father of Debate’ since he was the first to institute
argumentative contests among his disciples.
sophist-
a paid teacher of philosophy and rhetoric in ancient Greece,
associated in popular thought with moral
skepticism and specious reasoning
-a person who reasons with clever but fallacious arguments
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ARGUMENTATION AND DEBATE
o Balagtasan- is Filipino form of debate done in verse. The term is derived from the
surname of Francisco Balagtas.
o Thomasites- introduced to the Filipinos Forensic Debating with Oxford-Oregon
format.
o In 1928, the University of the Philippines sent abroad a debating team composed
of four young Filipinos headed by Teodoro Evangelista and coached by Professor
Carlos P. Romulo
TYPES OF DEBATE
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speaks once only and members of the team need to communicate with each
other during the designated preparation time.
Parliamentary Debate
o Many formats of debate are described as 'parliamentary'. This is really a catch-all
term which simply means that they are loosely modelled on the practices of the
British parliamentary system and other parliaments around the world that
adopted those practices. In practice it means that the motion for debate is
treated in much the same way as a legislative Bill placed before the UK House of
Commons. The motion always stands in the name of the Government (also called
'the Proposition') and it is the job of the Opposition to demonstrate that the
motion is either impractical or immoral.
o The distinguishing factor of parliamentary formats, of which there are many, is
the use of Points of Information (PoI). These points allow debaters to interrupts a
speaker to ask a question or offer information which favors their side of the
debate. Both Proposition and Opposition speakers can offer PoIs, but only to the
other side. It is not compulsory to accept a PoI, but in competitive debate
speakers are penalized if they fail to take any. Usually the first and last sections of
a speech are 'protected time' during which PoIs may not be offered.
o In many parliamentary formats the terminology of the House of Commons has
also been adopted with the first proposition speaker being referred to as the
Prime Minister and the first opposition speaker being known as the Leader of the
Opposition. The chair or presiding adjudicator is usually referred to as Mister or
Madam Speaker and all remarks are addressed to them not the other debaters.
British Parliamentary (BP)
o This is the name of the format used for the World Universities Debating
Championship and has, as a result, become the default format for many university
societies, especially in the English speaking world. It is probably the most
commonly used format in the World. In much the same way as many university
societies debate in their native language as well as English, so they tend to use a
regional or local format and also BP.
o Debates comprise eight speakers: four speaking in favor of a motion and four
against. Each side is made up of two teams of two individuals. They debate a
motion (the idea to be discussed) which is usually framed with the wording This
House Believes... or This House Would.... For example if the motion is This House
Would Support Assisted Suicide, it is the role of the Proposition (or 'Government')
speakers to explain why assisted suicide is a good idea and the opposition should
demonstrate that it is not. As a form of parliamentary debate, in BP the
government should propose a course of action and support it with philosophical,
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