opened by
the chairman in view of the audience, and the decision announced.

LESSON X

A SUMMARY AND A DIAGRAM

We have now completed our study of debating. We saw first that all
talking and writing is discourse, and that one great division of
discourse--that which aims to gain belief--is argumentation.
Argumentation we divided into spoken and written argumentation. We
found that it varies in formality but that, when carried on orally
under prescribed conditions and with the expectation of having a
decision rendered, it is called debating.

Successful debating we found to require three steps: showing the
hearers what belief is desired; showing them upon what issues belief
depends; and supporting these issues with evidence until we have
established proof.

We learned that the first of these steps could be taken by stating the
question in the form of a definite, single proposition; defining the
terms of this proposition; and then restating the whole matter. We
found that the second step required that the material that both sides
admit, together with all other material that is really not pertinent
to the question, should be first removed, and that the fundamentals of
the question should be stated as the issues. The last step, proving
the issues, we found to involve two processes. It was necessary,
first, to find and select evidence, and, second, to arrange that
evidence in logical order--the brief-form.

[Illustration]

The accompanying diagram is one that has helped many students to
visualize more clearly what is attempted in a debate and to see how
the debate may be made successful.

The doubt that the audience very reasonably has of the new idea
proposed is bridged over by the proposition. But this proposition will
not be strong enough to cause the minds of the listeners to pass from
unbelief to belief unless it is well supported. The whole proposition
is therefore placed upon one or two or three great capitals--the
issues, under each of which is a pillar of proof. These pillars are
composed of evidence of every sort. The intelligent debater has,
however, before placing a single piece of this evidence in the proof,
tested it carefully. He has tested it with the question: "Will it help
bring conviction to the audience; how will it affect my hearers?"
Moreover, not satisfied with this scrupulous choice of evidence, he
has been careful not to pile it in regardless of position, but to
place each piece in