A. Adult Spontaneous Speech Event Prompts

Round 1 - 9:00 AM PST

  1. Speaker 1


    Speaker 1

    1. "On every street in every city in this country, there is a nobody who dreams of being a somebody." ― Taxi Driver

    2. "Every man dies, not every man really lives." — Braveheart

    3. "Nothing is inconceivable." — Junior

  2. Speaker 2


    Speaker 2

    1. "If at first you don't succeed, lower your standards." — Tommy Boy

    2. "Expect the impossible." — Mission Impossible

    3. "Every journey begins with a single move." — Searching for Bobby Fischer

  3. Speaker 3


    Speaker 3

    1. "The longer you wait, the harder it gets" — The 40-Year-Old Virgin

    2. "Sooner or later, a man who wears two faces forgets which one is real." — Primal Fear

    3. "Whoever saves one Life, Saves the World entire." — Schindler's List

  4. Speaker 4


    Speaker 4

    1. "It can be Hell getting into Heaven." — Dogma

    2. "Nothing is as simple as black and white." — Pleasantville

    3. "There is nothing in the dark that isn't there in the light. Except fear." — Cape Fear

  5. Speaker 5


    Speaker 5

    1. "The truth is not what you know. It's what you believe." — Ondine

    2. "Be all that someone else can be" — Being John Malkovich

    3. "Every dream has a price." — Wall Street

Round 2 - 10:00 AM PST

  1. Speaker 1


    Speaker 1

    1. “Freeing yourself was one thing, claiming ownership of that freed self was another.” ― Toni Morrison

    2. “To learn which questions are unanswerable, and not to answer them: this skill is most needful in times of stress and darkness.” ― Ursula K. Le Guin

    3. “If you always do what interests you, at least one person is pleased.” ― Katharine Hepburn

  2. Speaker 2


    Speaker 2

    1. “At some point in life the world's beauty becomes enough. You don't need to photograph, paint, or even remember it. It is enough.” ― Toni Morrison

    2. “You cannot buy the revolution. You cannot make the revolution. You can only be the revolution. It is in your spirit, or it is nowhere.” ― Ursula K. Le Guin

    3. "The stupid things you do, you regret if you have any sense, and if you don't regret them, maybe you're stupid.” ― Katharine Hepburn

  3. Speaker 3


    Speaker 3

    1. “Definitions belong to the definers, not the defined.” ― Toni Morrison

    2. “What sane person could live in this world and not be crazy?” ― Ursula K. LeGuin 

    3. “I never lose sight of the fact that just being is fun.” ― Katherine Hepburn

  4. Speaker 4


    Speaker 4

    1. “The function of freedom is to free someone else.” ― Toni Morrison

    2. “When you light a candle, you also cast a shadow.” ― Ursula K. Le Guin

    3. “Enemies are so stimulating.” ― Katharine Hepburn

  5. Speaker 5


    Speaker 5

    1. “What difference do it make if the thing you scared of is real or not?” ― Toni Morrison

    2. “We're each of us alone, to be sure. What can you do but hold your hand out in the dark?” ― Ursula K. Le Guin

    3. “Wouldn't it be great if people could get to live suddenly as often as they die suddenly?” ― Katharine Hepburn

Round 3 - 11:00 AM PST

  1. Speaker 1


    Speaker 1

    1. “As Scyther fights more and more battles, its scythes become sharper and sharper.” — Pokédex entry for Scyther

    2. “It has the ability to alter the composition of its body to suit its surrounding environment.” — Pokédex entry for Eevee

    3. “It has a weakness for shiny things.” — Pokédex entry for Murkrow

  2. Speaker 2


    Speaker 2

    1. “It is waiting for the moment to evolve.” — Pokédex entry for Metapod

    2. “It can reconstitute its entire cellular structure to change into what it sees, but it returns to normal when it relaxes.”  Pokedex entry for Ditto

    3. “When it goes on a rampage, it’s impossible to control.” — Pokédex entry for Nidoking

  3. Speaker 3


    Speaker 3

    1. “If the Pokémon lets its strange power erupt, apparently the pain subsides for a while.” — Pokédex entry for Psyduck

    2. It has an extremely aggressive nature.” – Pokédex entry for Gyrados

    3. “While the Pokémon may think it is just playfully nipping, its bite has enough power to cause serious injury.” — Pokédex entry for Totodile

  4. Speaker 4


    Speaker 4

    1. “It stops being angry only when nobody else is around. To view this moment is very difficult.” — Pokédex entry for Primeape

    2. “The seed slowly grows larger.” — Pokédex entry for Bulbasaur

    3. “Although unattractive and unpopular, this Pokémon’s marvelous vitality has made it a subject of research.” — Pokédex entry for Feebas

  5. Speaker 5


    Speaker 5

    1. “It is thought that so long as Celebi appears, a bright and shining future awaits us.” — Pokédex entry for Celebi

    2. “It has a barbaric nature.” — Pokédex entry for Charmeleon

    3. “Its body can’t be harmed by any sort of attack, so it is very eager to make challenges against enemies.” — Pokédex entry for Tyranitar

Round 4 - 12:00 PM PST

  1. Speaker 1


    Speaker 1

    1. "To err is human; to forgive, divine" — Alexander Pope

    2. "Things fall apart; the centre cannot hold" — W. B. Yeats

    3. "Because I could not stop for death/He kindly stopped for me" — Emily Dickinson

  2. Speaker 2


    Speaker 2

    1. "I am the master of my fate" — William Ernest Henley

    2. "Tis better to have loved and lost/Than never to have loved at all" —Tennyson

    3. "My mistress’ eyes are nothing like the sun" — Shakespeare"

  3. Speaker 3


    Speaker 3

    1. "The child is father of the man"  — Woodsworth

    2. "Look on my works, ye mighty, and despair" — Shelley

    3. "Candy/Is dandy/But liquor/Is quicker" — Ogden Nash

  4. Speaker 4


    Speaker 4

    1. "I wandered lonely as a cloud" — Woodsworth
    2. "But at my back I always hear" — Marvell

    3. "Beauty is truth, truth beauty; that is all"— Keats

  5. Speaker 5


    Speaker 5

    1. "And miles to go before I sleep" — Robert Frost

    2. "To strive, to seek, to find, and not to yield" — Tennyson

    3. " A little learning is a dangerous thing" — Alexander Pope

Elimination Round 1 - 2:00 PM PST

  1. Speaker 1


    “You don't get to 500 million friends without making a few enemies.” — The Social Network

    “On every street in every city in this country, there is a nobody who dreams of being a somebody.” — Taxi Driver

    “The future is history.” — 12 Monkeys

  2. Speaker 2


    “Nothing spreads like fear.” — Contagion

    “All the power on earth can’t change destiny." — The Godfather Part III

    “Everyone wants to be found." — Lost in Translation

  3. Speaker 3


    “Family isn’t a word. It’s a sentence.” — The Royal Tenenbaums

    “Just because they serve you doesn’t mean they like you.” — Clerks

    “Life is one long insane trip. Some people just have better directions." — Donnie Darko

  4. Speaker 4


    “Whoever wins, we lose.” — Alien vs. Predator

    “Great trilogies come in threes.” — Scary Movie 3

    “There is no gene for the human spirit.” — Gattaca