HITLER'S MEIN Kampfshould or should not be published in Germany after 2016 when the copyright runs out. Media "personalities" must or must not wait four years before running for political office. What's more, this house should never fight for "king or country" – or perhaps it should?
Such was the flavour of fevered argument in Galway over the past six days, as some 360 students engaged volume, pitch, speed and reasoning in the European Universities Debating Championships.
The 180 teams from educational institutions had been narrowed down to eight yesterday, with Oxford and Cambridge facing Durham and Trinity College Dublin to dissect the motion that “States should pay reparations to women”.
Two groups from Tel Aviv in Israel made the “English as a second language (ESL)” final – on the motion “That this house believes God exists” – along with the Dutch Erasmus college and the Romanian Babes Bolyai university.
“No faulty syllogisms!” one competitor was heard to hiss to a partner during the pre-final break in the Radisson Hotel, prompting bystanders in bow ties to nod with the confidence of those who eat dictionaries for breakfast.
Nor was there any grappling for Google. For long after the final tweet is sent, the last Facebook account closed for good, students will have an appetite for actual, rather than virtual, discourse.
“Yes, the art of debating is alive and well,” convenor Nollaig Ó Scannláin explained. Galway hosted this year’s championships for the first time, in a partnership between NUI Galway’s Law and Literary and Debating societies.
The event dates back to 1999, and teams from the Middle East and central Asia are now eligible to compete, pending formation of similar contests in their regions. Such is the growth in interest that sufficiently large venues are proving difficult to find, Mr Ó Scannláin said.
“We used 45 different rooms in the college for some of the early in-rounds,” he explained. “So, for example, the motion about banning media from political office or working for government for four years was both carried and defeated by various teams in the semi-final.”
NUIG students could not compete, but were enlisted into volunteering and looking after guests.
However, several adjudicators had strong Galway connections, including Ruth Faller of TCD. “Very well organised and very lively, with good arguments and oratory skills,” was how Ms Faller described the overall standard, while fellow adjudicator Simone van Elk from the Netherlands said it had been “very busy”, with 16-hour-a-day sessions.
The adjudicators selected the motions throughout the week, and wording was not released to competitors until 15 minutes beforehand.
Not surprisingly, there was some considerable tension – released by the traditional foot-stomping, cheering and whistling – before the adjudicators’ bell rang for the final round.
The Oxford A team of Hugh Burns and Ben Woolgar won the overall prize, while Tel Aviv’s A team of Omer and Sella Nevo won the ESL section of the international contest.
