The Art of Debate

Overview

Unpack the structure of a formal debate and apply it to all aspects of your everyday life. If you’re like many people, you might associate debate with either a college club or a TV political “debate” that features two or more candidates talking over each other. However, the ability to debate—presenting persuasive arguments, piercing the logic of others, and turning the tables against withering cross-examinations—is one of the truest tests of one’s intellectual capacity.

The Art of Debate offers you the ultimate how-to guide for anyone interested in learning this powerful skill. Taught by Professor Jarrod Atchison of Wake Forest University, these 24 stimulating lectures will help you develop your command of logic, construct clear and concise arguments, recognize the fallacies in others’ reasoning, and sharpen your strategic thinking skills. This course focuses on applied debating—developing skills that you can apply to the real world to help you think through complex issues and arrive at better decisions.

Whether you are trying to make a tough business decision or lead a lively discussion at the dinner table, this course will provide insight not only into how to win arguments but also how to present ideas more generally.

Course Content

01: The Hidden Value of Debate

Find out what we mean when we talk about “debates,” and how immersing yourself in the techniques of formal debate can dramatically impact your decision-making in every aspect of your life. (33 min)

02: When and How to Use Debate

Debate provides an honest assessment of an idea, making it a powerful decision-making tool. Professor Atchison walks you through the structure of a formal debate and explores when debate can help you the most. (31 min)

03: The Proposition: Choosing What to Debate

Shift your attention to what to debate. The “proposition”—the idea up for debate—is crucial, and this lecture surveys how to structure it effectively. (29 min)

04: The Structure of Argument

Unpack the claim, evidence, and warrant—three elements that provide the structure of a strong argument. Focus on the warrant, often the most vulnerable part of an argument. (28 min)

05: Using Evidence in Debate

Examine the strengths and weaknesses of narrative, empirical, and authority-based evidence. See them in action as Professor Atchison applies them to debates on various topics. (29 min)

06: Fallacies in Your Opponent’s Research

Learn to recognize argument fallacies and combat them during the debate. This lecture offers insight into identifying flaws in your opponent’s research. (29 min)

07: Fallacies in Your Opponent’s Arguments

Continue your study of fallacies with a survey of those stemming from the debate itself, including false analogies and ad hominem attacks. (28 min)

08: Elements of a Good Case

Consider the audience—the ultimate decider or judge. Learn how to connect with them and create a well-researched case with enough nuance to argue your point. (29 min)

09: Arguing for the Affirmative

Discover how to build a winning affirmative argument by staying relevant to the resolution, indicting the status quo, and offering a proposal. (29 min)

10: Building Affirmative Cases

Apply your skills to a specific debate, using a resolution about campus carry laws as an example to walk through the steps to indict the status quo. (30 min)

11: Arguing for the Negative

Delve into the key arguments available to the negative, including disadvantages of the affirmative case and critiques of its assumptions. (29 min)

12: Building Negative Cases

Learn several approaches to confront the affirmative case directly, including attacking the harms and the proposal’s solvency. (29 min)

13: The Crucible of Cross-Examination

Explore the history of debate and the goals of cross-examination, a chance to interrogate your opponents and keep the audience engaged. (30 min)

14: Asking and Answering Leading Questions

Learn the rules of creating good leading questions, which are useful for identifying holes in an argument and can be persuasive in their own right. (28 min)

15: Open-Ended Questions: Setting Traps

Understand how open-ended questions can help you maximize strategic flexibility and set traps for your opponent. (30 min)

16: Essentials of a Persuasive Rebuttal

Explore the elements of a good rebuttal—assessment, organization, and emotional appeal—and how to defend your case effectively. (28 min)

17: Dealing with the Unexpected in Debate

Learn how to navigate unexpected arguments in a debate by slowing down, diagnosing, analyzing, and responding effectively. (28 min)

18: “Even If” Arguments: The Essential Weapon

Explore “even if” arguments, which allow you to explain why you should still win the debate, even if your opponent is right about everything. (30 min)

19: Debate Jujitsu: Flipping the Warrant

Learn how to destroy your opponent’s argument by showing that their proposal will actually make things worse, a technique requiring high-level analytic argument. (29 min)

20: The Power of Concessions

Understand the strategic flexibility that concessions provide, allowing you to focus on your best arguments or set traps for your opponent. (29 min)

21: Conditional Argumentation

See how “conditional argumentation” allows you to acknowledge a point without agreeing to it, pairing well with “even-if” arguments. (30 min)

22: Line-by-Line Refutation

Conclude your study of advanced debate techniques with a survey of line-by-line refutation and learn how to map out the “flow” of a debate. (30 min)

23: Judging Debates: The Art of the Decision

Survey the best way to communicate your reasons for a decision, starting with a thesis statement followed by an explanation of your reasoning. (31 min)

24: Winning the Cocktail Party

Conclude your course with tips for winning debates in informal settings and knowing when to bow out of discussions. (33 min)