Great analogy, Liz! I totally concur with your observations!
I have a cousin (PhD in psychology; stereotypical university professor elitist; atheist; liberal; etc.)whose “take” on the debate was the opposite... He wrote, in effect: Rudeness in the face of mendacity is an acceptable debate tactic. -His implication being that Ryan was the liar rather than Biden...
My observation was: I must be GETTING old... I thought debates consisted of opposing opinions where one person spoke, THEN the other offered a rebuttal, without RUDE interruptions. The silliness of the laughter is demeaning to the seriousness of the debate.
You are absolutely right. When I was in grade school there was a branch of language arts called "Forensics".
The skills included :
► Congressional Debate
► Debate
► Domestic Extemporaneous Speaking
► Dramatic Interpretation
► Duo Interpretation
► Expository Address
► Extemporaneous Commentary
► Extemporaneous Reading
► Foreign Extemporaneous Speaking
► Humorous Interpretation
► Impromptu Speaking
► Original Oratory
► Poetry Interpretation
► Policy
► Prose Interpretation
► Public Forum
► Storytelling
The list is subject to revision over time and may include new areas of development as older areas are eliminated.
Ground Rules for Forensic Debate
The coach of the debate team selects debaters and forms four man teams, two affirmative speakers and two negative speakers. There are specific rounds alternating between the two teams. The winners of the district tournaments go to the state tournament and if successful, advance to a National Forensic League Tournament.
Ethical Rules
Debaters must address the judge, opponents and audience. They may not interrupt a speaker at any time. All debaters shake hands at the conclusion of the debate.
Topic Rules
The National Forensic League provides the topic each year in the form of a resolution and sends it to interested schools. Their publication, "The Rostrum," also lists the announced topic. The students are informed of the topic several weeks in advance. At the debate, the coach puts the topic on the board so it is visible to the debaters and audience.
Evidence Rules
The debaters bring verifiable sources of information to prove their arguments. Debaters place this evidence on index cards and file them according to the arguments.
Questioning Evidence
The opposing team may question the validity of a source. A judge may rule to disregard a specific citation when challenged. The debater may be disqualified for using non-existent evidence and claiming it is true.
Procedural Rules
Each speaker speaks for eight minutes.The affirmative has a prepared speech and speaks first. He shows how the status quo is not working and proposes a method for change. He has the burden of proof. The first negative cross-questions the first affirmative. According to the rules, the process continues until each speaker has an opportunity to speak. A five-minute rebuttal alternating the negative and affirmative speakers follows.
Teammate Rules
Between rounds, a speaker may consult with a partner. No consultation can occur at any other time.
Requesting Opponents' Arguments
A debater may request a copy of the opponent's arguments and case. The opponent has the option to refuse and suffers no penalty for doing so.
Judge's Rules
The judge uses a rubic or rating sheet to rate the debaters.The speaker qualifies for points based upon the presentation.The judge writes constructive comments on each debater's rating sheet and returns it to the debater. The judge then announces the debate winner.
You will notice that there is a great difference between formal forensic debate and the clown show that passes for debate among politicians. To wit, a single topic is debated under strict procedural rules, and the debate is scored by judges not the press or spectators.
NFL Background
No, not that NFL! The National Forensic League is a non-partisan, non-profit educational honor society established to encourage and motivate American high school students to participate in and become proficient in public speaking. NFL is the America's oldest and largest high school speech and debate honor society. Since 1925, NFL has enrolled over 1.3 million students in fulfillment of its motto, "training youth for leadership.
"The National Forensic League believes that all students should be empowered to become effective communicators, ethical individuals, critical thinkers, and leaders in a democratic society. The League exists to promote secondary school speech and debate activities and interscholastic competition as a means to develop a student’s lifelong skills and values and to increase the public’s awareness of the value of speech, debate and communication education."
Members of the National Forensic League are expected to abide by the NFL Code of Honor. The Code of Honor was initially proposed in recognition of the Honor Society nature of the League. The Code of Honor consists of an NFL Oath and five tenets. "As a member of the National Forensic League, I pledge to uphold the highest standards of integrity, humility, respect, leadership and service in the pursuit of excellence."
The National Forensic League was formed through the efforts of professor Bruno E. Jacob, in March of 1925 at Ripon College, Ripon Wisconsin.
And yes, I did participate in "Forensics" in the early 1950's.
Regards,
GtG