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  • This House Prefers a World where a more optimistic set of artists rose to prominence after World War I rather than the Lost Generation.

    Infoslide

    For the purposes of this debate, the Lost Generation is a group of writers and artists who created their art in and around World War I (e.g. writers such as Ernest Hemingway, Virginia Woolf, F. Scott Fitzgerald; other artists such as Edvard Munch and Otto Dix). The art of the Lost Generation featured prominent themes of disillusionment, defeatism, and uncertainty about the future. The artists often drew from their experience of the war and their troubled personal lives. Their art has had significant influence over later artistic trends and holds a prominent position in many art and literature curriculums globally.

    Copenhagen European Universities Debating Championships 2025 · Round 3 · 2025-08-03

  • This house prefers art without closure in transitional justice eras, as opposed to art that offers closure

    Infoslide

    "Transitional justice eras refer to specific historical and political moments in which a society is reckoning with a legacy of mass injustice, violence, or authoritarian rule—often following dictatorships, civil wars, state-sponsored repression, or colonial regimes. These periods, occurring during or shortly after political transition, are characterized by the involvement of processes such as truth commissions, war crimes trials, reparations for victims, memorialization through museums or art, and institutional reform (e.g., judiciary, police, or military). Examples include post-apartheid South Africa, post-World War II Europe, and post-Marcos Philippines. Art that offers no closure seeks to reflect the unresolved, complex, and emotionally ambiguous terrain of a society still grappling with its past. These works often reject neat moral binaries or redemptive arcs. Examples include Dekada ‘70, Santa Evita, and Country of my Skull. Art that offers closure on the other hand, aims to heal, redeem, or resolve historical trauma, often providing a sense of catharsis, or restored moral order. Examples include the Diary of Anne Frank, Schindler’s List, Sometimes in April, and Ubu and the Truth Commission."

    North Luzon Invitational Debates 2025 · Grand Final · 2025-07-19

  • This house opposes nostalgia

    Infoslide

    Nostalgia is the romanticization of past experiences related to individuals, places, experiences and atmosphere that have been experienced. nostalgia can occur in various aspects from individuals, groups to politics

    National English Debate UICC 2025 · Round 3 · 2025-07-10

  • This House believes that the premature death of Alexander the Great did more harm than good.

    Infoslide

    Alexander the Great was a Macedonian king who conquered a large part of the known world in his time, uniting territories from Greece, Egypt, and Persia under a single empire. He sought to promote the fusion of Hellenic culture by spreading the Greek language and thought among the subjugated peoples, envisioning, through his conquests, a kingdom where people would unite under rationality. After his sudden death without heirs, his generals, known as the Diadochi, divided the empire into several kingdoms, which resulted in prolonged conflicts and the growing integration of the Diadochi with local cultures, gradually moving away from the Hellenistic heritage.

    XI Torneio Temático de Debates · Rodada 1 · 2025-07-04

  • This House, as the Ottoman Empire, would not have implemented the Tanzimat.

    Infoslide

    Tanzimat is the name given to a series of institutional reforms in the Ottoman Empire starting in 1839, aiming to modernize it and protect it from the military and economic pressure exerted by European countries, as well as to prevent its decentralization. The Tanzimat marked a shift away from a theocratic structure to introduce secularization, establish formal equality among its subjects, create a Western-style education system, and make massive investments in road infrastructure. However, the reforms also ended up worsening the fragmentation of the Empire, exacerbating ethnic tensions in the Balkans, and burdening the Ottomans with foreign debts.

    XI Torneio Temático de Debates · Semifinais · 2025-07-04

  • This House believes that the black movement, at the time, should recognize the Redemptor's Black Guard as a legitimate form of activism.

    Infoslide

    The Black Guard of the Redemptrix was a paramilitary group formed by formerly enslaved individuals in the post-abolition period in 1888. Inspired by "Isabelism," they supported Princess Isabel as a symbol of freedom and the safeguarding of rights suppressed by the Republic. The group sought to protect her physical and political figure, promote the restoration of the monarchy through a possible Third Reign, and resist cultural repression, such as the prohibition of samba and capoeira, and the appropriation of land. They became known for violently confronting republican rallies, using capoeira as a form of resistance and collective organization. Heavily repressed by the military and civilian elites that consolidated the new Republic, the Black Guard was rapidly dismantled but stands as one of the first instances of armed mobilization by freed Black individuals in Brazil.

    XI Torneio Temático de Debates · Rodada 3 · 2025-07-04

  • In the reconstruction of Mali's national identity, This House would prioritize emphasizing its glorious past over the construction of a hopeful future.

    Infoslide

    **INFORMATIONAL:** During the pre-colonial period, the territory of present-day Mali was home to powerful empires, such as the Mali Empire and the Kingdom of Ghana, known for their technological development, trade networks, wealth in gold, and established political institutions. Highlighting this glorious past aims to promote national unity through historical pride. On the other hand, emphasizing a hopeful future means building an optimistic narrative focused on new possibilities, moving away from nostalgia, and recognizing Mali as it is today, with all its transformations.

    XI Torneio Temático de Debates · Rodada 5 · 2025-07-04

  • This House opposes Damnatio Memoriae.

    Infoslide

    Damnatio Memoriae ("Condemnation of Memory") was a political-legal instrument in Ancient Rome used to erase the memory of individuals considered enemies of the state. It was primarily applied against tyrannical emperors or political rivals. Its practices included, but were not limited to, the destruction or re-sculpting of statues and coins, erasure of official records, demolition of monuments, and prohibition of funeral rites associated with the condemned person.

    XI Torneio Temático de Debates · Final Novice · 2025-07-04

  • As Nature, this council will accept the offer.

    Infoslide

    Translate the following text: Alam is a young man talented in scientific writing in the fields of philosophy and history. He grew up in a minority family, which caused Alam and his family to experience terror and left deep trauma on them. Currently, Alam is active in a historical activism club called "Pencatat Sejarah" (History Recorders), which has a mission to document and publish historical events from various perspectives of marginalized communities that have been excluded from historical memory or are not covered in history textbooks. However, the History Recorders club faces obstacles in achieving its goals due to a lack of resources and low public trust in their publications, which are considered mere conspiracy theories. One day, a representative from the Ministry intended to recruit Alam to join the national history rewriting team, a major project of the elected government at that time. Alam was promised an important position in the writing team as well as other material benefits.

    Kalimantan Open Debate Pra-KDMI 2025 · Grand Final Terbuka · 2025-06-28

  • This house prefers a world where Christianity did not adopt the reforms of the council of Nicaea

    Infoslide

    The Council of Nicaea was a church council held in the year 325AD, The council came together to come to a concensus on official church practices. The results of the council were as follows: The creation of the Nicaean Creed solidified the holy trinity (father, son and holy spirit) as opposed to Jesus being subordinate to god as a mortal (could commit sin) The Council of Nicaea also proposed a variety of adminstrative reforms, such as strict internal church hierarchy, established rules for moral conduct of the clergy, and outlined uniform punishments for breaching rules (also known as heresy).

    Norwich Online 2025 · Grand Final · 2025-06-21

  • This House supports the narrative of narratives.

    Infoslide

    In recent years, public discourse has increasingly been shaped by the use of compelling personal or collective “narratives” — emotionally charged stories used to drive political movements, frame social issues, or influence public opinion. These narratives often prioritize emotional appeal over factual nuance and are used across media, activism, and politics to shape how events are understood and remembered.

    War of Words Debating Championship 2025 · Grand Final · 2025-06-19