Abstract
In 1963, R. P. Allen and J. B. Polisky wrote a letter to the Quarterly Journal of Speech which appeared under the title "The Gorgeous Debating Machine." In the letter, they satirically underscored one of the most critical problems confronting interscholastic debate: That somewhere along the line in academic debate the quest for recognition and prestige has replaced the quest for knowledge. Gorgeous, a (not so) mythical debate coach, posits that 11 [trophies] are more than symbols [of successful tournament competition] ... they are the raison d'etre of the debating machine." One should not be misled by the statement, however. Debate has a far more noble end than the accumulation of trophies or the aggrandizement of egos.
Journal Title
Iowa Journal of Communication
Volume
4
Issue
1
First Page
17
Last Page
24
Language
en
File Format
application/pdf
Recommended Citation
Rollins, Steven J.
(1974)
"The Games Debaters Play: or A New Look at the Old Machine,"
Iowa Journal of Communication: Vol. 4:
No.
1, Article 5.
Available at:
https://scholarworks.uni.edu/ijc/vol4/iss1/5
Copyright
©1974 Iowa Communication Association
