Personal Narrative: The Great Debate

I look to my right at my opponent who has just finished his speech and sits back down with a smug smile on his face. I glance at my paper where I jotted down swift notes during his speech. The clock is ticking as my prep time comes to an end and an idea rings through my anxious state. I add a couple more counter arguments while I try to find a loophole in the core idea of his case. The timer rings, ending my preparation time, and I stand up to begin my speech. This is the last round and I have four minutes to make the final argument to shut down his case. I take a deep breath and feel confidence bubbling up in my chest as I turn to face the judge.

There is truly no greater feeling to me than being in this exact moment. As nerve racking as it may be, the thrill of being in a debate round is a truly liberating experience.
I love debate because it gives me the opportunity to think and solve, the world of logical fallacies is intriguing to me. At the same time, it gives me an appropriate platform to discuss many social and political issues.

As a child, I would wake up every morning excited for the riddle of the day my father would give me. I …show more content…
Debate has allowed me to cultivate this passion while still teaching me important lessons. The pressure of having to come up with arguments on the spot and refuting your opponent’s position trained me to gain a quicker response time. It has also taught me how to be open minded through having to debate both the affirmative and negating side. Lincoln Douglas specifically appeals to me because it centers on controversial topics and their morality. For instance as a debater on an Organ donation topic I would have to persuade the judge that my side (pro/con) is more morally acceptable. Debate has educated me about my world and the way that ethics interacts with it more than any other class in high