Chapter 8 after the debate

The host has been working for five years, only this time the "name" has been changed, and he is honored as "chairman".I wanted to blend in with the debaters who were similar in age, but I was called out respectfully by them, especially the teacher who led the team reminded the students who hadn't greeted: "Why don't you call out when you see the chairman?" I couldn't help being like them panicked.At the same time, we must maintain an objective and fair image and avoid any suspicion of closeness, so we have become more polite.Today, with the help of a pen, I can put aside the constraints and express my mind, which can be described as a pleasure, but the time is short, and I feel that I only end up with a few words.

For students, especially college students, I have always had a special kind of intimacy. Because my father was a university professor, I grew up on campus.In 1990, when I was still in college, I was admitted to CCTV as a host.The audience quickly accepted me, and it is said that one of the reasons is that I have a "bookish air".In 1994, I traveled across the ocean and went to Columbia University in the United States to become a student again, studying for a master's degree in international media.Without the burden of being a "star", I am still a simple and natural me, reading books I love to read, listening to classes I love listening to, writing articles I love to write, calling for the fresh and clean campus air that I have not seen for a long time, it is really a great joy in life , a great blessing!

Because of these connections with college life, every time I host a program for college students, I am emotionally involved, and the teachers and students of the college also have a great sense of identity with me.When the director called New York to invite me to host the '95 International Collegiate Debate, I immediately agreed. However, after all, the debate competition is different from the relaxed and free evening party. Just from the slightly pale faces and dark circles around the eyes of the debaters, as well as the gentle instructions of "Don't be nervous" from the leading professors, I can feel the silent pressure.Before the recording of each debate match, after everything is ready in the studio, there is often a few minutes of silence, waiting for the director's instructions.The debaters on the stage were all dignified and airy, and the hundreds of spectators present were all oppressed by the atmosphere. A few unbearable spectators first coughed uncomfortably, and then coughed one after another. It's like everyone is getting ready to speak.For a moment, I seemed to be back in the school's examination room, anxiously waiting for the test paper issued by the teacher.Looking at the densely written cards spread out on the table by the debaters around me, I was suddenly moved.What a group of conscientious students!I hope today's exam questions are not too difficult for them; I really want to see the slightly childish smiles that still belong to them on those calm and sophisticated faces.

To be honest, what impressed me the most in this debate was not Nanjing University, Fu Jen Catholic University and other strong teams, but several non-Chinese debaters.Among them, the overall strength of Hankuk University of Foreign Studies is the most prominent.After studying in the United States for more than a year, I deeply realized that language is not only the carrier of thought, but from a certain perspective, language is thinking itself.Language barriers not only affect expressive ability, but also directly hinder logic and judgment.So I can especially understand the difficulties these foreign students encountered when debating in Chinese, which is not their native language. He pointed out that "what we are discussing today is, in the final analysis, a question of values, not a question of methods." In the free debate, he repeatedly emphasized that the meaning of fables lies in metaphors rather than facts.If I hadn't been sitting on the rostrum, I would have applauded with the audience for such an incisive speech.

I think students’ motivations for reading can be broadly divided into two: reading for liking reading or reading for good grades, and the motivation for participating in debates may also be divided into arguing for the sake of arguing and arguing for winning. Of course, the two are not completely opposite. But as far as each debater is concerned, there is probably still a difference in severity.Emotionally, I prefer the former, because I believe that true creation and beauty come from love rather than utilitarianism. Claire Donali is a "star" debater at the University of New South Wales. People cannot help liking her for her mastery of Chinese, her good demeanor, and her straightforward personality.What I admire most about her is her enthusiasm for debate and thinking when she is an audience member.For example, after the debate on "maintaining social order depends on law or morality?", the judges withdrew, and she raised her hand in the audience to give a speech, answering in an orderly manner what the positive debaters raised, but the negative debaters failed to answer directly. The question: "Which society mainly relies on morality to maintain order?" She cited some Arab countries with religion as the main social law and Australian aboriginal tribes without written laws as examples, and discussed the possibility of further debate with the affirmative debaters. A very good on-site effect has been achieved, which makes people feel her cuteness even more.I saw the leading teachers from UNSW and some other universities nodding in approval.Probably the teachers all reached a tacit understanding at the same time: children can be taught.

Before the game, I chatted with four "foreigners" from the University of Bonn, and wanted to know their vision for their future career.Except for Ou Fuke who is more determined to be a teacher, the other three have no clear plans.When asked why they chose to spend five or six years studying a subject that is not directly "linked" to employment, they said very frankly: "We like Chinese culture, and we are idealists." "Idealism" means a A noun that is rarely mentioned by people these days, from the mouth of a few blond foreigners, speaking in our language that is not very standard, can we not give us some insight into ourselves?

When the University of Bonn lost the first round, I said in my concluding remarks: "Their love for Chinese culture and the good qualities they displayed in the debate made me feel that they were honored to lose." The audience responded with warm applause, which must be with I feel the same way. If you must ask me what regrets I have about this debate, it is that the atmosphere of the exam is too strong.Due to the lack of atmosphere in the debate and the emphasis on writing, the on-the-spot performance was not enough; the hard-working and student spirit of the debaters was very cute, but on the court, it seemed that everyone had their own opinions, and the impression that they were invariable to respond to all changes, and they were really tit-for-tat Conversations are rare.Is it because there are too many debates observed in advance, so that some debate skills are stylized?For example, in the stage of free debate, when one party raises a question, the other party often says "We have already answered this question, but I would like to ask the opponent's debater..." and then throw out the prepared question. Come and ask, often nothing happens.Another example is that sentence patterns that are well-organized and rhymed in harmony are often helpful to the momentum of the debate, but blindly pursuing the cadence of the text itself, or blindly saying some common sayings and witticisms in order to create an atmosphere on the scene, I personally think that the text will hurt the meaning, but it will give A sense of sensationalism.

In contrast, among the seven debates, the "short, flat and fast" speeches were particularly valuable.For example, in the debate on "Which is more important to control poverty or control ignorance", the National University of Singapore, which holds the view that it is more important to control ignorance, cited the old adage that "teaching a man to fish is worse than giving him a fish", while the opposing party, the University of New South Wales immediately He retorted: "You might as well eat this fish first, and then it will not be too late to learn how to fish." Another example is in the debate on "the maintenance of social order depends mainly on law or morality", the opposing party, the Chinese University of Hong Kong, put forward Confucius' enlightenment thought, and used it to include Taking the law of justice as an example to illustrate the important role of morality in law enforcement, the debaters of the affirmative Nanjing University did not evade and give in. They used Confucius's words that "a dangerous country cannot enter, and a chaotic country cannot live in" and "morality is helpless against Chen Shimei's evil deeds. Bao Qingtian's tiger-head guillotine gave a break." Arguing, it can be described as a stroke of genius, which made me secretly admire.

Although we only got along for seven days, and mostly in the formal atmosphere of the studio, I have already established friendship with these debaters.They are still students, some are eager to learn, some are transparent, and some are childish.On the court, they fought hard and were polite; off the court, they were easy-going, friendly, and generous, which made me think they were cute.I am actually one of the students, but I have to keep a certain distance from them.I have a lot of ideas about the debate in my heart and I want to share with them, maybe I can help them with one or two good ideas, but due to my status, I dare not talk about wine as a hero.When the game is over, they can let go of their airs and speak freely, and they will also leave Beijing.Only before our departure, we met unexpectedly in Haidian Book City, each carrying a bag of books.Although they met by chance, they share the same mind: students, isn’t buying books the most natural thing? !

They're going back to school, and my school has started.Back on campus, there wasn't much difference between us.What's more, in our diary, the page "95 International College Debate" has been left.