2023-24 UIL Prose Categories
Prose Category A Restrictions
Material chosen for use in Category A of Prose Interpretation shall meet the following restrictions:
(A) One to four selections of prose may be used.
(B) If performing a single selection, the prose shall be published, printed material; internet material shall be prose published concurrently in hard copy.
(C) If multiple prose selections are used, one prose selection may be unpublished.
(D) Selections from plays, screenplays, movies, and monologues shall not be used.
(E) Speeches shall not be used in this category.
(F) No contestant shall use the same writer in more than one category in the contest.
(G) No contestant shall use selections from the same literary work more than one year at UIL State Meet.
(H) Selections shall be read in the English translation; however, incidental use of foreign language words and phrases in any selection may be used as in the original.
Category A: Recognizing Joy: Focusing on the Little Things
The goal of this category is to recognize joy in even the simplest of things.
In this category, the contestant may read a single literary work of prose, an excerpt of a work of prose or may create a program containing no more than four literary works of prose. If a program is used, one prose selection from an unpublished source is allowed in the program. The majority of the performance must be published prose. The intent of this category is not to encourage an entirely originally-authored program.
The performance may be fiction or non-fiction. Examples may include, but are not limited to oral histories, testimonies, interviews, and letters. For Category A, co-authored and anonymous works of prose are permissible. The author(s) used in this category shall not be used in Category B of prose.
When using copyrighted material, each member school is responsible for obtaining permission from the publisher for their participant to use the material. UIL assumes no responsibilities for copyright permission to perform material.
The introduction and/or transitions shall include all titles and authors read and should connect the literature to the goal of the category. If the program is woven, it shall be stated in the introduction, and the different literary works should be distinguishable through interpretation.
Documentation Requirements
- If performing a single literary work, it shall be published printed prose.
- If performing a program, all selections shall be published, printed prose, with the exception that one prose selection may be unpublished.
- The contestant shall prepare and provide for the contest director and each judge a hard copy of the UIL Prose A Documentation online form.
- The contestant shall provide proof the selection(s) are published.
Examples of acceptable proof of publication include:
- the original published source
- a photocopy of the copyright of the original source
- online printout of Library of Congress cataloguing information
- If a prose selection is drawn from a literary collection (anthology), the contestant shall supply the original source or a photocopy of the table of contents that designates the title of the book and proof the prose selection is included in that book, such as a photocopy of the first page of the prose selection.
- A printout from an online source proving the selection is included in the published collection. Printouts of online documentation shall include the URL of the website downloaded in the header or footer
- If a prose selection is drawn from a book containing mixed genre, the contestant shall provide proof the selection is prose.
Examples of unacceptable forms of formal documentation include:
- Social media (such as Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr)
- Copying and pasting into a word processing document
See the UIL Prose and Poetry Handbook and the official UIL website for expanded, detailed information about acceptable and unacceptable documentation.
Students are urged, but not mandated, to take to the contest site the original published source of the selection.
Prose Category B Restrictions
Material chosen for use in Category B of Prose Interpretation shall meet the following restrictions:
(A) Two to four selections of prose may be used.
(B) All selections may be published, printed material, internet material or transcribed material but must be prose.
(C) No contestant shall use the same author in more than one category in the contest.
(D) Selections from plays, screenplays, movies, and monologues shall not be used.
(E) Anonymous works may be used.
(F) No contestant shall use selections from the same literary work more than one year at UIL State Meet.
(G) Selections shall be read in the English translation; however, incidental use of foreign language words and phrases in any selection may be used as in the original.
Category B: Inspiring Change: Striving for a Better Tomorrow
The goal of this category is to celebrate positive change over time. Students will explore developments that enhance our world.
In this category, the contestant shall read a minimum of two selections. The contestant shall create a program containing no fewer than two prose selections and no more than four selections. Students should consider using prose that spans different time periods.
Students may use prose selections from one or more authors. Prose Category B includes fiction, nonfiction, news sources, speeches, essays, letters and diaries. Co-authored and anonymous works of prose are permissible. The author(s) used in this category shall not be used in Category A of prose.
When using copyrighted material, each member school is responsible for obtaining permission from the publisher for their participant to use the material. UIL assumes no responsibilities for copyright permission to perform material.
The introduction and/or transitions shall include all titles and authors read and should connect the prose to the goal of the category. If the program is woven, the contestant shall state it in the introduction, and the different prose works should be distinguishable through interpretation.
Documentation Requirements
- All selections may be published, printed material, online material or transcribed material that is prose.
- The contestant shall prepare and provide for the contest director and each judge a hard copy of the UIL Prose B Documentation online form.
- No proof of publication for Category B is required.
- If a prose selection is drawn from a book containing mixed genre, the contestant shall provide proof the selection is prose.
See the UIL Prose and Poetry Handbook and the official UIL website for expanded, detailed information about acceptable and unacceptable documentation.
Students are urged, but not mandated, to take to the contest site the original source of each published selection.