Original Oratory

Original Oratory (often shortened to "OO") is a competitive event in the National Speech and Debate Association, National Catholic Forensic League, and other high school forensic competitions in which competitors deliver an original speech on a subject of their choosing, though the speech must be factual. Though the rules for the category change from organization to organization, generally, an Oratory must be written and memorized by the performer and should be no more than ten minutes in length. No more than 150 words can be quoted. The finished speech must be approved by the National Speech and Debate Association. This speech is frequently highly persuasive and is normally about a slightly controversial topic. An orator is given free choice of subject and judged solely on the effectiveness of development and presentation.

Oratory topics are usually related to current problems in the world, and are delivered in a persuasive way as to motivate the audience to make a choice. However, this may not always be the case. Some orations may alert the audience of an imminent threat or inspire them to act now to initiate change. According to the National Speech and Debate Association, the competitor is judged on:

These are the questions the competitor and the judge should ask themselves before performing an Oration, to either an audience, or especially yourself. The key to gain the audience's attention isn't through your topic, it's through your passion. For instance, your topic could be that people today are lazy, but instead of changing it, they are accepting it. Now the topic itself interests the audience or judge.

Judges are usually Original Oratory competitors, coaches, sponsors, parents, or friends of the host tournament. Coaches are prohibited from judging their own schools, and alumni competitors must wait two years before they are allowed to judge the school from which they graduated. In some states and leagues, alumni are not allowed to judge the school from which they graduated for up to four years; this is to ensure that one may not judge one's former teammates.

Because the oratory is the speaker's original work, Oratory does require some preparation, which sets Oratory apart from Impromptu. The following are recommended parts of a good Oration:

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