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Middle School Novice Curriculum Guide
The Negative Block
As you may have noticed from the speech order, the second negative constructive (2NC) and first negative rebuttal (1NR) speeches are right next to each other in the speech order. This is unusual, since every other speech is followed by a speech from the opposite side. For example, the 1NR is immediately followed by the first affirmative rebuttal (1AR). These two negative speeches are therefore referred to as the “negative block,” or “neg block” for short.
The neg block provides many opportunities for negative debaters. Because the two speeches are next to each other in the speech order – because there is no affirmative speech to between them – negative debaters can split arguments between the two speeches. For example, the 2NC could discuss the disadvantage while the 1NR could discuss the answers to the affirmative case. As a result, the negative team can cover arguments in more depth than they otherwise could without the negative block.
In short, the negative block – the second negative constructive and the first negative rebuttal speeches – provides an excellent opportunity for negative debaters to deepen their arguments by dividing those arguments between the two speeches.