Transcript “They Say, I Say”

“They Say, I Say”
How to enter into an argument
• “…to give writing the most important
thing of all -- namely, a point -- a
writer needs to indicate clearly not
only his or her thesis, but also what
larger conversation that thesis is
responding to” (Graff 17-180).
Order
• In order to engage the audience, you the writer - need to tell your audience
what or who you are responding to prior
to offering the response.
• You are entering into a conversation that
is already taking place in writing, on
television and the radio, and in person,
therefore you must start with “what others
are saying” and then provide what you
are saying as a response (hence “they
say, I say”).
Order, cont.
• It is a good idea to summarize the “they
say” as early as you can in your
argument, while still providing a clear
introduction and thesis. It can be useful
to have the “they say” argument shape
your introduction, because it helps to
introduce your topic well and it clearly
demonstrates why you are entering into
this conversation.
Including the “they say”
• You do not need to (and should not)
attempt to provide a list of what
EVERYONE has said on this subject,
unless it is an extremely limited
subject.
• Instead, point to the most influential
comments on your subject as well as
the more recent commentary.
Including the “they say”
• Think of the “they say” and the “I
say” as a unit. You want to both
introduce what you are responding
to and your response together. Do
not spend an entire paragraph
talking about the “they say” without
providing the “I say”
Find the “they say” and the
“I say”
• “Most people who bother with the matter at all would
admit that the English language is in a bad way, but it
is generally assumed that we cannot by conscious
action do anything about it. Our civilization is
decadent and our language -- so the argument runs -must inevitably share in the general collapse…. [But]
the process is reversible. Modern English, especially
written English, is full of bad habits which spread by
imitation and which can be avoided if one is willing to
take the necessary trouble” (Orwell)
• George Orwell, "Politics and the English
Language," 1946
Find the “they say” and the
“I say”
• “Most people who bother with the matter at all would admit
that the English language is in a bad way, but it is generally
assumed that we cannot by conscious action do anything about
it. Our civilization is decadent and our language -- so the
argument runs -- must inevitably share in the general
collapse…. [But] the process is reversible. Modern
English, especially written English, is full of bad habits
which spread by imitation and which can be avoided if
one is willing to take the necessary trouble” (Orwell)
• George Orwell, "Politics and the English
Language," 1946
In your own words:
• “Many people believe that the poor
state of the English language
cannot be changed, but I think that
it can.”
• Note how the “they say, I say”
argument comes together as one
unit.
Other ways to open an
argument
• Instead of starting by explicitly
stating the “they say” you could
also:
• 1. Provide a fact or statistic
• 2. Insert a telling quote
• 3. Summarize a useful anecdote
Open an argument
1. Provide a fact or statistic
“According to CNN, 95% of Americans think our
language is doomed.”
2. Insert a telling quote
President Obama recently said, “The English
language has gone downhill and will likely never
recover.”
3. Summarize a useful anecdote
“Last week I received an email from a student
that was so riddled with text-speak (‘u,’ ‘thx’
and ‘2mro’) that I could not even understand
what the student was asking.”
Other ways to open an
argument
• Whatever method you use to open
your argument, you must in some
way demonstrate what the “they
say” is saying. If your quote, statistic,
or anecdote doesn’t thoroughly
illustrate the argument you are
responding to, then you need
something else.
Templates for introducing
what “they say”
• A number of sociologists have recently
suggested that X’s work has several
fundamental problems.
• It has become common today to dismiss
X’s contribution to the field of sociology.
• In their recent work, Y and Z have offered
harsh critiques of Dr. X for ______________.
Standard views
• Ideas that have become so widely
accepted that few people question
them - it is, essentially, the
conventional way of thinking.
• Ex: “Pluto is a planet” was a
standard view that someone
questioned.
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Templates for introducing
standard views
Americans today tend to believe that ___________.
Conventional wisdom has it that ______________.
Common sense seems to dictate that _________.
The standard way of thinking about topic X has it
that ______________.
It is often said that ______________.
My whole life I have heard it said that ___________.
You would think that ____________.
Many people assume that ___________.
Practice using templates for
introducing standard views
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Americans today tend to believe that ___________.
Conventional wisdom has it that ______________.
Common sense seems to dictate that _________.
The standard way of thinking about topic X has it
that ______________.
It is often said that ______________.
My whole life I have heard it said that ___________.
You would think that ____________.
Many people assume that ___________.
Templates for making what
“they say” something you say
I’ve always believed that ____________.
At one time I used to think that _______,
but now I believe that _______ .
Although I should know better by now, I
cannot help thinking that ________.
While I believe _____________, I am also
convinced that ______________.
Practice making what “they
say” something you say
I’ve always believed that ____________.
At one time I used to think that _______,
but now I believe that _______ .
Although I should know better by now, I
cannot help thinking that ________.
While I believe _____________, I am also
convinced that ______________.
Templates for introducing
something implied or assumed
Although none of them have ever said so directly,
my teachers have often given me the
impression that _______________.
One implication of I’ve treatment of
_____________is that _____________.
Although X does not say so directly, she
apparently assumes that _______.
While they rarely admit as much, _______, often
take for granted that ________.
Practice using templates for
introducing something implied
or assumed
Although none of them have ever said so directly,
my teachers have often given me the
impression that _______________.
One implication of I’ve treatment of
_____________is that _____________.
Although X does not say so directly, she
apparently assumes that _______.
While they rarely admit as much, _______, often
take for granted that ________.
Templates for introducing on
ongoing debate
• In discussions of X, one controversial issue
has been________________. On the one
hand, ____________ argues
_______________. On the other hand,
___________ contends ______________.
Others even maintain _____________. My
own view is that
____________________________________
____________.
Templates for introducing on
ongoing debate
• When it comes to the topic of ___________,
most of us will readily agree that
___________________________________.
Where this agreement usually ends,
however, is on the question of
______________. Whereas some are
convinced that
_________________________, others
maintain that ________________________.
Practice using templates for
introducing on ongoing
debate
• When it comes to the topic of ___________,
most of us will readily agree that
___________________________________.
Where this agreement usually ends,
however, is on the question of
______________. Whereas some are
convinced that
_________________________, others
maintain that ________________________.
Keep what “they say” in view
• Even after introducing the “they
say” at the start of the essay, you
need to keep the “they say” in mind
throughout your paper.
• You need to keep reminding readers
what claims you are responding to.
Supply a “they say” for these “I
says” using one of the templates
1. Our experiments suggest that there are
dangerous levels of Chemical X in the Ohio
groundwater.
2. My own view is that this novel has certain flaws.
3. Football is so boring.
4. Male students often dominate class discussions.
5. In my view the film is really about the problems
of romantic relationships.
6. I’m afraid that templates like the ones in our
book will stifle my creativity.
7. Eating fruit without washing it is very dangerous.